My Loc Journey

Dreadlock Inspo

My sister is my true loc inspiration. She began her loc’ing journey in 2004.

Up to that point, I had been chemically straightening my hair with a “relaxer” & wearing weaves & wigs.

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In June 2005 I went “Naptural” (natural) & got the B.C. “Big Cut” to the T.W.A. (teeny weeny afro) & began doing natural styles. My favorite style at the time (Two Strand Twist/Twist Out) mimicked locs. One day, I thought, why not take the plunge & make this style I like permanent?! 

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Starter Locs

I officially began my dreadlocks with the comb coil method. I was styled by Nicole Mack on December 11, 2005 at Au Naturale salon in Philadelphia, PA.

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2006’s Blonde Hair

To get this color blonde, my hairdresser used Color # 10 with Volume # 40 & left in for 30 minutes

2006 – 2010 Growth Progression

Thanks to the influence of both of her daughters, my Mother then began loc’ing her hair!  

I LOVED her salt & pepper locs!

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2011 & 2012’s Extensions

For 2011, I decided to switch it up & do my own extensions; Just by using human afro kinky hair & a tutorial on YouTube. It was a long process & they looked ok from far away…. but up close? Ugh. They were a bit of a mess hahaha. I loved the length though. As they got older & scruffier, they definitely got better. Dying my hair back to brown DEFINITELY helped to hide the hideous parts of it all though! hahaha. Thankfully, in 2017 I learned a NEW WAY that is MUCH “easier” & longer lasting! CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO!

2013 – 2014

I removed the extensions in 2013. They definitely weighed my hair down & helped it grow!

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Red Hair

I needed a change, so I cut my locs into an asymmetrical bob! I used this picture as my inspiration:

I also colored my locs red! It’s an AMAZING color & I may have to do it again! It was a lot of upkeep though!

My at home Red Hair:

• I used the: HOW TO: From Brown Hair to Rihanna Red Without Bleaching Youtube tutorial by Nicole Guerriero
• 2 TUBES of HiColor Red HiLights Red Permanent Creme Hair Color – by L’Oreal
• 30 Volume Creme Developer – by L’Oreal or by Clairol

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Blonde Hair

To dye my whole head, I used Bellatory’s How to Bleach Your Hair Blonde – The Step-by-Step Guide. I didn’t have purple shampoo at the time, so I skipped that step. I also only bleached once… Wish I did it twice like they suggested. So basically, I’m saying, DO WHAT THEY SAID LOL!  It still came out really nice! Their root touch up method is here.

My at home Goldilocs Hair:

• Quick Blue Bleach – by L’Oreal
• 30 Volume Creme Developer – by L’Oreal or by Clairol
• Wella Toner in T27 – (used 2 bottles)
• Wella Haircolor – 9NG & 7NW
• No Yellow Shampoo & Nutri Care Conditioner (Purple Shampoo) – by Fanola

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Loc Extensions

I was dying for some length again, so I decided to look into extensions again. I planned to treat myself & get them professionally done… but after some scheduling issues, I decided to google & find out the latest way people were doing loc extensions these days! 

I found INSTA-LOCS!!! Glory HALLELUJAH! What an amazing idea! Insta locs are handcrafted handmade locs made with human afro-kinky hair. You can create your own loc extensions using a CROCHET hook, time, & dedication.  

1. The method I used to attach the insta-locs to my mature locs was by Jennifer Tulley ( themukisa11 on Youtube ). Her video on how to add extensions to mature locs is no longer a public video, but you can search for similar videos here.
2. You can purchase loc extensions, like I did in in May 2017 from LegacyLocs on Etsy (store closed 9/2017) but she has her own website now that you can purchase from. 

 

My LegacyLocs extensions were amazing! What an amazing job she did fulfilling my special request of a color blend of honey brown with blonde! These locs are so soft, feel amazing and smell amazing too! AMAZING JOB WELL DONE.

I first purchased a “tester” order of: Qty 10 locs (1 bundle) of medium width 5″ length locs

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When I fell in love with my test set, I ordered:

• Qty 10: x-small width / 5″ length
• Qty 60: small width / 5″ length
• Qty 20: medium width / 5″ length
• Qty 10: small width / 10″ length

How To Add Extensions To Mature Locs

Attaching extensions to mature locs is a different process than just adding locs to straight/natural hair.

The method I used was by Jennifer Tulley ( themukisa11 on Youtube ). Her video on how to add extensions to mature locs is no longer a public video, but you can search for similar videos here.

Basically you’d:

Loc Extensions Tools:

• Latch hook
• size 6 / 1mm crochet needle
• 90 – 100 Instant locs

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Pipe Cleaner Curls:

One of my favorite things to do to my locs are Pipe Cleaner Curls! It takes a good while to do, but you get SO many styles out of it!

2009 – 2013

To achieve my curls, I purchased a package of Pipe Cleaners.

I used the Pipe Cleaner curling method by Franchesca “Chescaleigh” Ramsey.

How To Get Curly Locs

Basically you’d:

• Prep the pipe cleaners by halving the length and bending one end of them to make a loop.
• Wash hair or Wet clean hair.
• Do your normal loc maintenance by palm rolling or twisting each loc to smooth out your roots.
• Grabbing two locs at a time, place the end of the loc near the loop you created on your pipe cleaner.
• Roll the pipe cleaner up the loc until you get close to your scalp.
• Bend the other end of the pipe cleaner over your loc to secure it.
• Do not secure too tightly as the connection will get stronger as your hair dries.
• Repeat until entire head is done.
• Let your hair dry naturally or with a hair dryer.
• Feel free to rock the pipe cleaners as a style before removing them!
• When ready, completely remove the pipe cleaners by pulling the loop from the ends of your hair.
• After a day or two, separate the “combined” locs to transform your curls into a looser style.

2017

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