Product updates: Design Essentials and SisterLocks

 The Design Essentials Organic Cleanse Deep Cleansing Shampoo with Oatmeal Protein has been discontinued.  It has been replaced with Design Essentials Oat Protein and Henna Deep Cleansing Shampoo.  Based on the ingredients, there is more propylene glycol in the newer version of the shampoo and less of what I thought was the good stuff.  Our hair industry is really going backwards.  Manufacturers are going to continue to cut cost which may mean cheaper ingredients being used in their products.

On the flip side, Sisterlocks(tm) has been tweaking their "Starter Shampoo" for awhile trying to get the best product consistency.  The bottle on the right is the newest packaging of the Sisterlocks Starter Shampoo.  There is nothing in the ingredients list that screams that they are sacraficing quality.  So I really think Sisterlocks has improved the shampoo.  This starter shampoo is designed to clarify and rough up the cuticle to aid with hair locking.  I do sell Sisterlocks products within my salon.

Michelle Obama Learns Never say Never

 Photo Credit:  People Magazine, January 27, 2014 edition, Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States turns 50 years old this month.  In the past, I have written articles on my blog about Mrs. Obama's hair based on magazine photos.  I've seen it in its healthy stages as well as its recovery stages.  In the past, FLOTUS' voice echoed that she would never wear hair extensions, wigs, nor commercial hair enhancement pieces.   So in her interview with Sandra Sobieraj Westfall, I had to laugh at FLOTUS' response to her philosophy on plastic surgery, Botox, fillers.

She states "Women should have the freedom to do whatever they need to do to feel good about themselves.  Right now, I don't imagine that I would go that route, but I've also learned to never say never."

Enough said.  Extensions, wigs, commercial hair enhancements can be a "life saver" when you want to look good for public events.  We can not control the weather so we can not control our hair.  So why not have a little "hair insurance" to make sure that we are constantly looking our best regardless of the environmental conditions around us.

So if there is anyone out there still thinking that Michelle Obama would not wear any form of commercial hair enhancement,  then we all now know that she is open to wigs, hair extensions, etc.  The pressure to look "polished" continues on.

Three Do-It-Yourself Interlocking Tools

1) The Sisterlocks (tm) Clip Tool is designed with a spring hook to latch onto a lock and then you  feed it through the base of the lock.

Disadvantage of Clip Tool:  If the dreadlock is dry and brittle, the spring action of the clip can break the lock completely off.  One of the Sisterlocks Certified consultants clipped the tool to my lock without any regards of the spring action of the hook, and I swear that my lock broke completely off where the clip tool was attached.  The consultant apologized to me about the lock snapping off and then moved on to the next one.  So no, I am not fond of this tool.  People should be cautious to gently attach the hook to the lock.

2) A Safety pin has been suggested by Stylist Jovan on youtube.  You actually just pin the safety pin on the end of the dreadlock and feed the smooth end through the lock as if it was the Sisterlocks "clip" tool.

Disadvantage of the Safety pin: Piercing through the lock over the course of a year may weaken the lock, and the closure end of the safety pin may accidently catch some hair if one is not careful when feeding it through the roots of the locks.

3) The hair pin:  The coolest method yet! It is a partial feed through the base of the lock. Youtube channel Chocolatemilk0104 has a video to teach you at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlWTWiLBqQo

Disadvantage of the hair pin:  If your lock partings are smaller than the width of  hairpin, then this method may not work because the hair pin would be too wide.

Wrestling with the Hair Demons

 Well, to my surprise during this 2014 Sisterlocks training, the Sisterlocks(tm) instructor helped me to realize that I was still wrestling with hair demons.  What are hair demons?

The hair demons are the ones whispering in your ear telling you

• That you need to straighten out those "beadi-bees" around your hairline.  
• A smooth hairline is a more polished look.  
• Your hair looks soooo nappy.  
• You need to gel down your edges.  
• Everyone is staring at your "nigga" naps. (Sorry for any wording offense here.)

Well, you get the picture . . .  my curl pattern is no where near the beautiful Spanish wet and wavy or the Brazilian or the Malaysian or the Indonesia curl patterns.  Many "weave" wearers do not naturally grow this type of hair, but they love to wear the exotic look of other cultures.

With most of my hair clientele being chemically straightened or mechanically straightened, I am constantly teaming up with the hair demons to keep my clientele corporate American polished with a Spanish, Brazilian, or a European flair.  This is how I make my living.

I do not come from a support group of natural hair women.  I also know that as my locks grow longer and longer, they should draw attention away from my hairline. I am waiting to really feel like "I own" my hair in its infinite beauty and uniqueness.

As stated in a previous article about resistant hair, my hair around my hairline does not want to hold straight without some heavy duty protein gel, and I refuse to get that gel all built up in my locks.

The compromise is to wear my locks styled where the edges are covered with the length of my locks.

I did not realize that I have been breed with a self-hatred because my curl pattern is not considered "pretty" by European and corporate American standards.

I can only hope that as I gain more length the beauty of the uniqueness of my tightly coiled hair will intrigue people into accepting it as beautiful because it is mine.

Updo using Vidal Sassoon Comb N Clip

 Do you love my updo?  I am loving that I am gaining some length.  Yes!

One of my newest lock styling accesories is the Vidal Sassoon Comb 'N' Clip.  I love it!  I even slept in it without any pain.  It stayed in place as well.  I actually banded my locks at the top first in a "pineapple" stack.

I then clipped the Comb N Clip in place to give the illusion that it was actually holding up long locks.

This hair accessory is lightweight, sturdy, and I purchased for about $2.00 USD at one of the Tuesday Morning Stores.  People without locks of course, will also benefit from this particular hair accessory.