Cornrows...experiment :-)

I attempted cornrows with my locks, however I think my locks are a little bit too long for this hairstyle, or the downward plait wasn't tight enough... but whatever the case, although I got a lot of compliments, I felt something wasn't quite right.

Too much of a rooster effect? not sure...

I'm still going to try a few more styles..at least 2 every month, I'm loving the freestyle so much I'm bordering on downright laziness!!!

PS: not sure if this sort of 'cornrows' hairstyle doesn't break the hair, I didn't keep it long enough to find out...I'm somehow paranoid with anything that pulls my front locks as I feel they are too thin to handle the pressure.. need to get over it soonest!

Wrap-A-Loc the African Way

Meet ButtaPhly

ButtaPhly is a friend of mine from church, lovely human being with a beautiful soul and rich dense hair :-) She started 2 strand twist sometime early last year, and when I came back from the US with my gerrylocks she volunteered her hair for me to practise on, with the tool (I think there was a bit of pressure from my side as well, can't remember).

Her hair was already locking, so for a full afternoon, I pulled her twists apart (making 2 locks for each locking twist) and crocheted her 3 inch growth.  I must admit she had a lot of faith in me because I really didn't have a clue what I was doing, I was just using common sense and determination to master using the tool :-)

Our experiment worked out rather well, today was her 4th retightening (from August) and her hair is thick, bouncy, fluffy and gorgeous! The tool maintained part and the rest of locks from the twist have blended rather well, I was afraid the parts done with the nappylocks tool would be thinner. She has no grid as her original twists were free-formed, but her hair is too thick anyway, I doubt the grid would show.

I didn't have time to style her today, but her hair stretches and is long enough to plait unto a nice style.

Our next project is to trim the fluff around each lock for a more professional look, but I'm weary to experiment with the scissors until I have read enough to know what I'm doing. If any of you is familiar with trimming locks, and have blogged about it, please direct me to the blog-links.

I thank God for all the friends who have allowed me to learn-as-I-go on their heads...I know how fussy I am with my own hair, so I know how much love and faith it must take to allow someone to 'experiment' on your hair..:-)

So long...
Keep on spreading the loc-love..

Acceptance

I've pretty much accepted the fact, I don't have eyes at the back  :-( It took me a while not to stress about every single lock. I have messed quite a few (by that I mean they are thinner than my average lock size) and some have stray hair all around where I had to snap off a few strands because I had hooked 2 locks together *deep sigh*...

With me in the pic is Lithabo (a friend's daughter whom I also locked with my tool 2 months ago), after retightening her locks she offered to learn and help me...and I agreed. It was so much fun listening to her recite 'top-bottom, left-right, bottom-up, right-left' in her baby efforts not to mess up my rotation pattern... don't know if she got it right in all the locks she helped me with, but I really don't care much. It is OK if I have a few locks not perfectly rotated, hopefully the size won't be significantly different with minor variations in rotation pattern.

I have not lost any locks so far, so I figure it must be pretty difficult to mess up a lock to the point of loosing it because I have messed up big time! I take of my hat to all the sisters out there with +400 locks who do their own hair without messing up..I really don't know how you guys do it...Lord knows I've tried

I am a pro by now at doing other people's hair, just not mine, and especially not the back. It's either I let whoever is around, as long as they are somewhat good with hair..to help me; or I really hunt down the elusive Thandi and let her fix my back locks every couple of months.

On a brighter note...can't wait to see how Lithabo's micro locks will turn up, her mom is green with envy and she's now growing natural hair so she can have locks as well...

I guess no one can accuse me of not spreading the loc-love...:-)
Tomorrow I am retightening ButtaPhly's hair...her locks are stunning :-)