STEP 1: CHOOSE A GOOD SHAMPOO Its worth finding, investing and sticking to a GOOD shampoo that suits you, and that will keep both your scalp and hair clean and conditioned. *STAY NATURAL I believe in keeping your products as natural as possible...less chemicals causes less irritation to your scalp and may be the reason for dryness or dandruff.Atleast with natural products, your scalp and hair can start the healing process. *ANTIBACTERIAL PROPERTIES Choose a shampoo that has antibacterial properties...over the locing process, bacteria may form gradually as locs begin to mature. Remember that your locs are like sponges that traps dirt, fumes, products and may breed bacteria (if not cleansed properly). Using a shampoo that attacks this problem by fighting bacteria is the first step to keeping those locs smelly and bacteria free. MY TIP: USE TEA TREE OIL SHAMPOO Just a suggestion. You can find these shampoos everywhere...I us the one from THE BODY SHOP but any good chemist will have it. Different types for your skin type. TEA TREE -wonderful natural properties that feel refreshing, cleanses deeply, kills bacteria, and heals your scalp and nourishes hair. OTHER OILS: *Rosemary Oil - Stimulates growth, antiseptic, good for dandruff, excellent for shine on dark-colored hair. *Sage Oil - Astringent, stimulates growth, kills bacteria, said to have the ability to darken graying hair. *Jojoba Oil - Smoothes and conditions curly hair, good for dry scalp. *Sweet Almond Oil - Contains vitamins E and F, good for itchy scalp, mild and easily absorbed. *Avocado Oil - Rich in potassium and sulfur, contains vitamins A, D, and E, easily absorbed. *Evening Primrose Oil - Moisturizes and conditions the hair. *Birch Oil - Antidandruff, effective in treating inflamed scalp. *Calendula Oil - Extracted from the marigold flower, light astringent, soothes scalp and eczema problems. ________________________________________________________________________________ STEP 2: SHAMPOO THE RIGHT WAY *ALWAYS WASH YOUR LOCS IN THE SHOWER This is so that when you rinse, all the shampoo is washed away. *SHAMPOO YOUR LOCS ATLEAST ONCE EVERY 2 WEEKS Keep your scalp clean and avoid sweat and too much of your natural oils building at the rotts of your locs. *THE WATER SHOULD BE WARM/HOT (not too hot!) This will open the pores up so you cleanse your scalp properly. Your hair becomes more receptive to your shampoo. *HOW TO SHAMPOO -Section the locs into 4 divided parts. -Wash each section at a time. -Grab the section, apply shampoo to the roots at the scalp, massage gently and well at the scalp, slowly workd the massage down your locs to the end. -Do this to all the sectioned areas. Rinse well...just because the water is running clear, it doesn't mean all the shampoo has gone. -Take your time. ________________________________________________________________________________ STEP 3 (OPTIONAL -not during the early stages...): CONDITIONING LOCS Until your locs have stopped unravelling for a while, do not use conditioners. But if you are ready... go for it. *DO NOT USE LEAVE-IN CONDITIONERS You've just washed your locs so don't put anything back into your locs. This is why products build up in the hair. *CHOOSE THE RIGHT CONDITIONER Again, keep it natural. Herbal oil extracts smell great and get absorbed easily. MY TIP: Using ALOE VERA gel is great straight out of the plant, for both your scalp and loc conditioning. Just make sure you wash it off. *LET IT CONDITION FOR 30 MINS BEFORE WASHING OFF Leave your conditioner in for half an hour so everything is absorbed well. -Use a shower cap to cover your locs and scalp. -Place a towel as a wrap over the cap. This will produce natural heat while the conditioner is being absorbed. *RINSE WELL -Rinse well with warm/hot water. -To close your pores, do a final rinse (if you're brave enough!) with cold water. ________________________________________________________________________________ STEP 4: DRYING I've read that not using a hair-dryer to dry your locs as soon as possible can cause mildew and bad odours...I wouldn't agree with that. But maybe thats just me! -If you use an atibacterial shampoo everytime you wash, there is hardly any room for bacteria to thrive in your locs... -Why "cook" your hair?!? Hair is so fragile and can become brittle with too much heat. -Its a choice: If you do decide to use a dryer... Low heat, Keep the dryer on the move all the time, and Stay away from the scalp. MY TIP: Towel dry your locs, remove as much water as possible. Then let your hair breathe. Finish off with a light spray of your favourite essential oil. _______________________________________________________________________________ AND FINALLY: READ YOUR LABELS! Look at your label of ingredients. If you see these: Castor Oil Petroleum Mineral Oil AVOID! Mineral Oil is a derivative of crude oil (petroleum) that is used industrially as a cutting fluid and lubricating oil. Mineral oil forms an oily film over the skin to lock in moisture, toxins and wastes, but hinders normal skin respiration by keeping oxygen out. It dries out your hair by coating it and keeping moisture out. I won't get into what it does to your skin. * [ READ! THE 'DANGEROUS BEAUTY' LINKS ABOVE FOR MORE INFO ] * ******************************************************************************** FOR THOSE WHO HAVE MATURE LOCS AND WASH DAILY OR REGULARLY: WHEN YOUR LOCS HAVE MATURED AND YOU DECIDE TO START A ROUTINE WITH REGULAR HAIR WASHING, USING CONDITIONER TO WASH IS PROBABLY A GOOD SOLUTION TO KEEP YOUR HAIR FROM DRYING OUT... ITS CALLED THE 'NO POO' METHOD (NO SHAMPOO). AND ITS SAID TO HELP FRIZZIES DIE DOWN AND MANAGEABILITY TO INCREASE. I WOULD ONLY RECOMEND THIS IF YOU HAVE MATURE LOCS/LOCS THAT DON'T UNRAVEL WITH REGULAR WASHES.... CHECK OUT THIS LINK FOR MORE INFO: |
******************************************************************************** IT DEPENDS ON YOU, BUT IF YOUR LOCS HAVE STOPPED UNRAVELLING AND YOU DON'T MIND THE FRIZZIES FROM WASHING: WASHING YOUR HAIR ON A REGULAR OR DAILY BASIS, APPARENTLY, INCREASES GROWTH AND SOFTNESS OF YOUR LOCS. ITS ONLY RECENTLY THAT I HAVE TRIED TO DO THIS MYSELF (AFTER MY LOCS HAVE STOPPED BEING SO DIFFICULT!). * HERE'S WHAT SOME PEOPLE HAVE SAID ABOUT IT: "I can't believe that not too long ago, I was under the belief that once per 2 weeks was enough. I think alot of us have noticed a benefit in washing or rinsing the hair more often because of the constant moisture and conditioner 'feeding' the hair." ________________________________________________________________________________ "WOW O WOW O WOW I have been saying this for yearsssss and everytime I said this peopele looked at me as if I was crazy. How many times I have said that I noticed that my hair grows more from daily rinsing! I don't shampoo ever but I do rinse daily sometimes twice a day. Once a week I do a conditioning wash with a bit of lemon. When I rinse I make certain to massage my scalp to remove any sweat and dirt. My hair always suffers when it does not get wet. Growing up in St. Lucia I rinsed every single day and shampooed on Sundays and my hair was waist length. I remember comming to this country and everyone advised me to stop wetting my hair soo often because it was bad for black hair. From the time I stopped wetting my hair it was down hill for my hair. When I began wetting my hair I surpassed the shoulder length. My hair never seemed to pass my shoulders for years untill I began to rinse daily. water is moisture and we need it. Plus could that be one of added reasons that people of other ethnic groups grow longer hair?" ________________________________________________________________________________ "Now that I think about it, you all have heard me complain about how much longer my hair is in the back than on the sides and front, right? Well, I just realized that whenever I shower, I'm not very careful about not wetting my hair in the back, and it always ends up getting real wet. I just spray some Dew on it and put it up in a ponytail and the next day it's fine. Well, I just realized that this just might be the reason my hair has grown so much in the back!!!! WOW!! I don't think I can do daily washes, but I'm going to try to wash at least every 4-5 days especially in the summer and see what happens." _______________________________________________________________________________ "I remember all through 5th and 8th grade i used to wash my hair everyday and wear it curly with some gel and grease or my mama would braid it in 2 plaits and kids at school used to be like "...yo color is black.. not white u needa wash once a week" but now that i think about it.. my hair was sooo long it was almost to my waist. after that i stopped washing it daily and started getting relaxers. that was HORRIBLE for my hair. now i am back natural with shoulder legnth in the front and 4 in from brastrap in the back. i am definately going to wash daily because i know this works!!!" ******************************************************************************** |
