Lock It Up! Support Thread (Sisterlocs, Dreads, Freeform, Etc)

Just finished my consult! The price is 140. I had to pay 20 today for the deposit which will be taken off of the 140. She does use gel but not a lot; I think she uses Joi gel. She assessed my hair and std that my hair was good to go for locs. I told her I wanted them small and at least 200 (I was going to do 250, but that's just too much for me) and she std no problem. She std she considers the size of the head and the density of the hair.

The interesting thing is, I will go to her every 2 wks until my hair buds and then every 3wks and then once the locs are formed it will be every 6wks.

Every 2wks she will do a gentle spray wash and retwist. She retwist with a homemade oil that she sells. She offers 3 different oils.

As far as her disposition, she seems really sweet and authentic. I also like that my scalp will be getting cleaned every 2 wks and retwisted. As far as cons, the price is a little high. I was thinking it would only be 100. Another con was that she was almost 30 mins late.
 
Do any of the ingredients in the attached look like they would hinder the loc process?
Just finished my consult! The price is 140. I had to pay 20 today for the deposit which will be taken off of the 140. She does use gel but not a lot; I think she uses Joi gel. She assessed my hair and std that my hair was good to go for locs. I told her I wanted them small and at least 200 (I was going to do 250, but that's just too much for me) and she std no problem. She std she considers the size of the head and the density of the hair.

The interesting thing is, I will go to her every 2 wks until my hair buds and then every 3wks and then once the locs are formed it will be every 6wks.

Every 2wks she will do a gentle spray wash and retwist. She retwist with a homemade oil that she sells. She offers 3 different oils.

As far as her disposition, she seems really sweet and authentic. I also like that my scalp will be getting cleaned every 2 wks and retwisted. As far as cons, the price is a little high. I was thinking it would only be 100. Another con was that she was almost 30 mins late.
That's awesome!! I was a bit shocked at the price though. Every two weeks seems a bit excessive to be twisting the hair, especially since budding can take about three months.
 
Just finished my consult! The price is 140. I had to pay 20 today for the deposit which will be taken off of the 140. She does use gel but not a lot; I think she uses Joi gel. She assessed my hair and std that my hair was good to go for locs. I told her I wanted them small and at least 200 (I was going to do 250, but that's just too much for me) and she std no problem. She std she considers the size of the head and the density of the hair.

The interesting thing is, I will go to her every 2 wks until my hair buds and then every 3wks and then once the locs are formed it will be every 6wks.

Every 2wks she will do a gentle spray wash and retwist. She retwist with a homemade oil that she sells. She offers 3 different oils.

As far as her disposition, she seems really sweet and authentic. I also like that my scalp will be getting cleaned every 2 wks and retwisted. As far as cons, the price is a little high. I was thinking it would only be 100. Another con was that she was almost 30 mins late.
Oh I forgot to ask, are you starting with coils, twists, etc....
 
Just finished my consult! The price is 140. I had to pay 20 today for the deposit which will be taken off of the 140. She does use gel but not a lot; I think she uses Joi gel. She assessed my hair and std that my hair was good to go for locs. I told her I wanted them small and at least 200 (I was going to do 250, but that's just too much for me) and she std no problem. She std she considers the size of the head and the density of the hair.

The interesting thing is, I will go to her every 2 wks until my hair buds and then every 3wks and then once the locs are formed it will be every 6wks.

Every 2wks she will do a gentle spray wash and retwist. She retwist with a homemade oil that she sells. She offers 3 different oils.

As far as her disposition, she seems really sweet and authentic. I also like that my scalp will be getting cleaned every 2 wks and retwisted. As far as cons, the price is a little high. I was thinking it would only be 100. Another con was that she was almost 30 mins late.

It sounds like you had a good consultation overall, but I definitely see some red flags there.

Before I go in I'll start with the positives though. I've seen a lot of people talk about that particular gel and the people who like it seem to swear by it. Just pay attention to how your hair reacts to it and make sure it doesn't flake. I've heard people say it doesn't, but of course you know products react differently on different hair types and in conjunction with other products.

I'm also glad it seems like her personality and spirit agree with yours. That's important. What was the atmosphere of the salon like?

It's good you're going to get frequent washes, but I'm not so sure you should let her retwist every 2 weeks That seems like too much. Also, what was the price she quoted you for those visits? Maybe you should just ask her to wash your hair and separate your locks and maybe do a style in lieu of the retwist. Or just retwist the ones that have unraveled. That could make the price considerably less, but you won't know unless you ask.

Now, if you want them extremely manicured and small, then sure, but otherwise, it seems like too much. Sisterlocks don't even get retightened that soon initially and for maintenance. Are you starting with coils?

The other things that I made note of were the cost. On one hand, I agree it seems high, but you have to consider that you want small locks and you want 200 locks. For those factors alone, I can see why it will cost $140, and if your hair is dense, it's going to take a longer time and labor for her to complete that. Plus, if you're getting a wash, condition and deep condition before she puts your locks in that might be included in the $140 price tag.

So when you consider those things that may be a good price. Why did you think it would only be $100? Did she quote you that initially? Is there a price list displayed somewhere that indicates that that service is $100 flat, or $100 and up, based on an evaluation of the client's hair? Hopefully you took a picture of it to show her or if she has a website that lists her prices, you can refer to that. If so, you should make her honor that price and not the $140. (Less the deposit...at least the deposit was reasonable)

Also, ask her if she runs a referral fee program and if you like her work you can recoup some of the money back by referring clients to her.

If you still have a problem with the price, continue shopping around until you find someone that will do it for $100.

Her being late was a concern also. Hopefully it doesn't continue but she should respect your time and vice versa. If it continues and that's a deal breaker, be prepared to part ways with her.

Have you set your install appointment with her yet? You didn't mention that in your post.
 
Do any of the ingredients in the attached look like they would hinder the loc process?

That's awesome!! I was a bit shocked at the price though. Every two weeks seems a bit excessive to be twisting the hair, especially since budding can take about three months.

Same thing I said....but if she's going to her every 2 weeks for a wash and wetting her hair frequently at home, her hair will probably bud sooner than that. I still wouldn't get the retwist every 2 weeks, that seems like too much.
 
Do any of the ingredients in the attached look like they would hinder the loc process?

That's awesome!! I was a bit shocked at the price though. Every two weeks seems a bit excessive to be twisting the hair, especially since budding can take about three months.

Yea, I was shocked about the price too. I was thinking it would be 80-100. Every 2wks is very different but I'm going to do the 2wks initially and if its too much then ill reduce it to once a month.
 
It sounds like you had a good consultation overall, but I definitely see some red flags there.

Before I go in I'll start with the positives though. I've seen a lot of people talk about that particular gel and the people who like it seem to swear by it. Just pay attention to how your hair reacts to it and make sure it doesn't flake. I've heard people say it doesn't, but of course you know products react differently on different hair types and in conjunction with other products.

I'm also glad it seems like her personality and spirit agree with yours. That's important. What was the atmosphere of the salon like?

It's good you're going to get frequent washes, but I'm not so sure you should let her retwist every 2 weeks That seems like too much. Also, what was the price she quoted you for those visits? Maybe you should just ask her to wash your hair and separate your locks and maybe do a style in lieu of the retwist. Or just retwist the ones that have unraveled. That could make the price considerably less, but you won't know unless you ask.

Now, if you want them extremely manicured and small, then sure, but otherwise, it seems like too much. Sisterlocks don't even get retightened that soon initially and for maintenance. Are you starting with coils?

The other things that I made note of were the cost. On one hand, I agree it seems high, but you have to consider that you want small locks and you want 200 locks. For those factors alone, I can see why it will cost $140, and if your hair is dense, it's going to take a longer time and labor for her to complete that. Plus, if you're getting a wash, condition and deep condition before she puts your locks in that might be included in the $140 price tag.

So when you consider those things that may be a good price. Why did you think it would only be $100? Did she quote you that initially? Is there a price list displayed somewhere that indicates that that service is $100 flat, or $100 and up, based on an evaluation of the client's hair? Hopefully you took a picture of it to show her or if she has a website that lists her prices, you can refer to that. If so, you should make her honor that price and not the $140. (Less the deposit...at least the deposit was reasonable)

Also, ask her if she runs a referral fee program and if you like her work you can recoup some of the money back by referring clients to her.

If you still have a problem with the price, continue shopping around until you find someone that will do it for $100.

Her being late was a concern also. Hopefully it doesn't continue but she should respect your time and vice versa. If it continues and that's a deal breaker, be prepared to part ways with her.

Have you set your install appointment with her yet? You didn't mention that in your post.
Everyone seems high to me because I've been watching too many Damian Walter videos. He's like the king of locs lol. I'm on the east coast and at some point I want to fly down to Texas to get him to bless my hair just once :lachen: He's extremely popular and he only charges $70 for install which includes wash condition. And it's a flat price no matter if you want 100 or 200 locs. He says be careful of folks who just trying to take your money by having you come back all the time. I wish I could find the video. He could probably easy charge over $100 and people would pay for it.
 
It sounds like you had a good consultation overall, but I definitely see some red flags there.

Before I go in I'll start with the positives though. I've seen a lot of people talk about that particular gel and the people who like it seem to swear by it. Just pay attention to how your hair reacts to it and make sure it doesn't flake. I've heard people say it doesn't, but of course you know products react differently on different hair types and in conjunction with other products.

I'm also glad it seems like her personality and spirit agree with yours. That's important. What was the atmosphere of the salon like?

It's good you're going to get frequent washes, but I'm not so sure you should let her retwist every 2 weeks That seems like too much. Also, what was the price she quoted you for those visits? Maybe you should just ask her to wash your hair and separate your locks and maybe do a style in lieu of the retwist. Or just retwist the ones that have unraveled. That could make the price considerably less, but you won't know unless you ask.

Now, if you want them extremely manicured and small, then sure, but otherwise, it seems like too much. Sisterlocks don't even get retightened that soon initially and for maintenance. Are you starting with coils?

The other things that I made note of were the cost. On one hand, I agree it seems high, but you have to consider that you want small locks and you want 200 locks. For those factors alone, I can see why it will cost $140, and if your hair is dense, it's going to take a longer time and labor for her to complete that. Plus, if you're getting a wash, condition and deep condition before she puts your locks in that might be included in the $140 price tag.

So when you consider those things that may be a good price. Why did you think it would only be $100? Did she quote you that initially? Is there a price list displayed somewhere that indicates that that service is $100 flat, or $100 and up, based on an evaluation of the client's hair? Hopefully you took a picture of it to show her or if she has a website that lists her prices, you can refer to that. If so, you should make her honor that price and not the $140. (Less the deposit...at least the deposit was reasonable)

Also, ask her if she runs a referral fee program and if you like her work you can recoup some of the money back by referring clients to her.

If you still have a problem with the price, continue shopping around until you find someone that will do it for $100.

Her being late was a concern also. Hopefully it doesn't continue but she should respect your time and vice versa. If it continues and that's a deal breaker, be prepared to part ways with her.

Have you set your install appointment with her yet? You didn't mention that in your post.

Yes, my install is tommorrow:dance7:
I don't know where I got 100 from, lol. I was just thinking that for a touch-up, blow dry and style its usually around 100.

If the retwisting every 2 wks is too much for my hair ill def cut back. I'm curious to see what exactly she will be doing.

I got the impression that she starts the install with some sort of gel but maintains with only water and oils. She std she doesnt use any waxes or anything from the Jamaican lime product line.

I didn't care for the lateness either . But she did apologize. I just chucked it up to CPT, lol. The atmosphere of salon was nice. They have a mani-pedi section and massage section; so I plan on getting my eyebrows done too. I don't like that its a unisex salon but I'll just have to deal with it. There was a guy that came in upset that some of his locs are thinning and falling out after going to another salon.
 
Everyone seems high to me because I've been watching too many Damian Walter videos. He's like the king of locs lol. I'm on the east coast and at some point I want to fly down to Texas to get him to bless my hair just once :lachen: He's extremely popular and he only charges $70 for install which includes wash condition. And it's a flat price no matter if you want 100 or 200 locs. He says be careful of folks who just trying to take your money by having you come back all the time. I wish I could find the video. He could probably easy charge over $100 and people would pay for it.

Exactly!!! I knew I was forgetting something. @Guinan this was another thing that concerned me about those frequent visits.
 
Yes, my install is tommorrow:dance7:
I don't know where I got 100 from, lol. I was just thinking that for a touch-up, blow dry and style its usually around 100.

If the retwisting every 2 wks is too much for my hair ill def cut back. I'm curious to see what exactly she will be doing.

I got the impression that she starts the install with some sort of gel but maintains with only water and oils. She std she doesnt use any waxes or anything from the Jamaican lime product line.

I didn't care for the lateness either . But she did apologize. I just chucked it up to CPT, lol. The atmosphere of salon was nice. They have a mani-pedi section and massage section; so I plan on getting my eyebrows done too. I don't like that its a unisex salon but I'll just have to deal with it. There was a guy that came in upset that some of his locs are thinning and falling out after going to another salon.
I can't wait to see pictures!!!!! How long is your hair to start?!
 
Everyone seems high to me because I've been watching too many Damian Walter videos. He's like the king of locs lol. I'm on the east coast and at some point I want to fly down to Texas to get him to bless my hair just once :lachen: He's extremely popular and he only charges $70 for install which includes wash condition. And it's a flat price no matter if you want 100 or 200 locs. He says be careful of folks who just trying to take your money by having you come back all the time. I wish I could find the video. He could probably easy charge over $100 and people would pay for it.

I will def ask how much it will cost every two wks. If its 100, then I will def have to pass. I'm going to try it the 1st time but after that probably not
 
BTW... Thanks ladies for all your help! I felt really prepared today with my questions. So for tomorrow I am going to ask:
1. To see the ingredients in the oil
2. Ask about the every two week retwist. I will ask if she can just do the gentle wash and not the retwist. I am going to try it the 1st time; but if I dont like it, I will just go every 3wks. If she has a problem with that then I will be looking for another loctician.

I forgot to mention that the loctician doesnt use conditioner. She washes and uses her oils as the conditioner. She said that my hair will never be dry.

Question: How often should I go in the beginning? Some say 3wks and some say 6wks.
 
BTW... Thanks ladies for all your help! I felt really prepared today with my questions. So for tomorrow I am going to ask:
1. To see the ingredients in the oil
2. Ask about the every two week retwist. I will ask if she can just do the gentle wash and not the retwist. I am going to try it the 1st time; but if I dont like it, I will just go every 3wks. If she has a problem with that then I will be looking for another loctician.

I forgot to mention that the loctician doesnt use conditioner. She washes and uses her oils as the conditioner. She said that my hair will never be dry.

Question: How often should I go in the beginning? Some say 3wks and some say 6wks.
IDK about the not using conditioner bit. I'm on the fence as I've read many conficting things on that subject. Oils do not moisturize so you may want to ask how she plans on putting moisture back into the hair if she is using a drying shampoo. That is to say that some shampoos are meant to moisturize and condition the hair, and I'm not talking about shampoo and conditioner in one, those are junk imo.

It also depends on your hair though. My hair can get extremely dry so I need some type of conditioner. I like the explanation in this video. Maybe though she just doesn't use conditioner until you are loc'd? You should see if she believes in conditioner for mature locs.
 
Everyone seems high to me because I've been watching too many Damian Walter videos. He's like the king of locs lol. I'm on the east coast and at some point I want to fly down to Texas to get him to bless my hair just once :lachen: He's extremely popular and he only charges $70 for install which includes wash condition. And it's a flat price no matter if you want 100 or 200 locs. He says be careful of folks who just trying to take your money by having you come back all the time. I wish I could find the video. He could probably easy charge over $100 and people would pay for it.
I watched dozens of his videos. He drives me crazy talking but he is badazz with some locs. He gives great information and his videos show magic right before your eyes.
 
BTW... Thanks ladies for all your help! I felt really prepared today with my questions. So for tomorrow I am going to ask:
1. To see the ingredients in the oil
2. Ask about the every two week retwist. I will ask if she can just do the gentle wash and not the retwist. I am going to try it the 1st time; but if I dont like it, I will just go every 3wks. If she has a problem with that then I will be looking for another loctician.

I forgot to mention that the loctician doesnt use conditioner. She washes and uses her oils as the conditioner. She said that my hair will never be dry.

Question: How often should I go in the beginning? Some say 3wks and some say 6wks.
I got comb coils, too. My loctician charged $85 for the wash, DC, trim & coil. My hair is about 10 inches long or was before it shrank with my coils. She used Design Essentials foam and the honey-something gel. She said that I should try to wait 3 weeks before my first retwist. I really didn’t think my cottony, fine hair would stay twisted but I’m a week and a half in and they still look pretty good. I cover with a bonnet every night and I haven’t gotten it wet at all. I haven’t put any products at all on my hair. I’m loving this carefree loc-life.
 
Yea, I was shocked about the price too. I was thinking it would be 80-100. Every 2wks is very different but I'm going to do the 2wks initially and if its too much then ill reduce it to once a month.

BTW... Thanks ladies for all your help! I felt really prepared today with my questions. So for tomorrow I am going to ask:
1. To see the ingredients in the oil
2. Ask about the every two week retwist. I will ask if she can just do the gentle wash and not the retwist. I am going to try it the 1st time; but if I dont like it, I will just go every 3wks. If she has a problem with that then I will be looking for another loctician.

I forgot to mention that the loctician doesnt use conditioner. She washes and uses her oils as the conditioner. She said that my hair will never be dry.

Question: How often should I go in the beginning? Some say 3wks and some say 6wks.


I'm not trying to kill your vibe or be negative, but you really should pick one or the other and not waiver or go back and forth between the two. The same goes for the method you choose to maintain your new growth. It can cause problems with your locks, such as weakening and or breakage, especially from frequent retwists that are close together.

Yannie the locologist talks about this a lot in her videos. She even emphasized "WHAT ARE YOU RETWISTING????" But it's so true. I think you should monitor your hair every week after your install. Observe the new growth mostly and also pay attention to what the base of each lock looks like. Also, take lots of pictures so you can see what your hair looks like. That will give you a clearer picture of how long you should wait between retwist appointments, IMO. That's what I do and I'm doing it with DS 2. It can be hard making that decision so I understand because I've mentioned a couple times that I'm still on the fence about what his maintenance schedule should be.

Three weeks is okay, but try to wait at least a minimum of 4 weeks. As your locks start to develop and mature, you might learn that that's still too soon for you and that's ok.

Conversely, if you feel like you need to go sooner, by all means do that. This is your journey so do what feels comfortable and healthy for you and your locks.

Ultimately, the goal here is for all of us to win and have locks. Not just locks, but healthy, strong and beautiful locks. So we're all sharing information and dropping knowledge that will lead us to that destination.

Now as far as the conditioner argument goes, I agree with what @FlawedBeauty has said. This time around as it stands, I don't use any creamy conditioners on my hair. Some people feel they need it. Surprisingly, my hair is doing well without those and plus buildup scares me. :lachen: But who knows, I may use very little later on after my locks have fully matured and I'm 2-3 years in.

At this stage of your journey, I wouldn't advise using it. Yannie also stated in some of her videos that conditioners inhibit the locking process because it causes the hair to unravel and detangle. When I thought back to all the times I have worn my hair in two-strand twists and co-washed them frequently, it makes sense.
 
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@Guinan what time is your appointment? I think you should also ask her why she recommends that maintenance schedule. If her reasoning is because she can stay on top of the locks unraveling or to train the hair, she needs to come better than that.

Once your hair is set in the pattern of whatever method you chose to start locks, the hair will naturally adjust and follow that pattern, so to speak.

You're just giving it that foundation to guide the shed hairs into that formation. Remember what I said about natural hair being a trellis. I didn't elaborate when I said it, and that probably wasn't completely accurate if you look at the definition of trellis. What is more accurate is to look at the starter locks as being the trellis, and the hair is the plant. Natural hair naturally wants to wrap around itself and seek out other hairs to join and fuse with.

This is exactly how freeform locks develop and also why hair that is left alone to freeform doesn't need our help. I hope that makes sense.

If you're concerned about the coils unravelling, remember that you can ask her to interlock the roots of each coil after she finishes putting all of them in. If she tries to tell you that's extra, you can just have her do the coils and you can interlock them on your own. That will give them the extra support to stay and not unravel. You don't have to continue interlocking after that if that's not your preferred method of maintenance.

I gotta go shortly to get us ready for one of DS 2's appointments but before I go I will also post the video I mentioned earlier.



It's going to take me a little longer to find the one where she was discussing the conditioner, but in the meantime here's these. @FlawedBeauty these might also help you.



 
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@Guinan what time is your appointment? I think you should also ask her why she recommends that maintenance schedule. If her reasoning is because she can stay on top of the locks unraveling or to train the hair, she needs to come better than that.

Once your hair is set in the pattern of whatever method you chose to start locks, the hair will naturally adjust and follow that pattern, so to speak.
You're just giving it that foundation to guide the shed hairs into that formation. Remember what I said about natural hair being a trellis. I didn't elaborate when I said it, and that probably wasn't completely accurate if you look at the definition of trellis. What is more accurate is to look at the starter locks as being the trellis, and the hair is the plant. Natural hair naturally wants to wrap around itself and seek out other hairs to join and fuse with.

This is exactly how freeform locks develop and also why hair that is left alone to freeform doesn't need our help. I hope that makes sense.

If you're concerned about the coils unravelling, remember that you can ask her to interlock the roots of each coil after she finishes putting all of them in. If she tries to tell you that's extra, you can just have her do the coils and you can interlock them on your own. That will give them the extra support to stay and not unravel. You don't have to continue interlocking after that if that's not your preferred method of maintenance.

I gotta go shortly to get us ready for one of DS 2's appointments but before I go I will also post the video I mentioned earlier.



It's going to take me a little longer to find the one where she was discussing the conditioner, but in the meantime here's these. @FlawedBeauty these might also help you.





My appointment is at 9:30. I think I'm going to go every 3wks. I don't think I can make it to 4, lol. I will def ask why she suggest every 2 wks. I wouldn't be able to do 2wks anyway b/c of my schedule.

The conditioner thing doesnt bother me. My scalp builds up quickly so I prefer not to have the conditioner at the early stages but once they matured I'm going to use KCNT conditioner. Its light and very moisturizing
 
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My appointment is at 9:30. I think I'm going to go every 3wks. I don't think I can make it to 4, lol. I will def ask why she suggest every 2 wks. I wouldn't be able to do 2wks anyway b/c of my schedule.

The conditioner thing doesnt bother me. My scalp builds up quickly so I prefer not to have the conditioner at the early stages but once they matured I'm going to use KCNT conditioner. Its light and very moisturizing
I forgot all about KCNT!!! I might have to try that! I used to use it waaaaayyyy back in the day lol
 
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My appointment is at 9:30. I think I'm going to go every 3wks. I don't think I can make it to 4, lol. I will def ask why she suggest every 2 wks. I wouldn't be able to do 2wks anyway b/c of my schedule.

The conditioner thing doesnt bother me. My scalp builds up quickly so I prefer not to have the conditioner at the early stages but once they matured I'm going to use KCNT conditioner. Its light and very moisturizing

OWWEEE I'm so excited for you!!! Are you on the east coast so currently getting your loc on?!
 
@tolly mentioned she was using that or planning to use that earlier in the thread. I take it you still haven't read the earlier posts. :lachen:
I have only used conditioner once since I put in my three strands box braids as starter locs. I have beeen doing shampoo washes- a clear shampoo- then after towel dabbing, spray rosewater onto my damp hair. a drop or two of jojoba oil on my palms then rub onto my hair. I wash twice a week. My hair is so supple and moisturised!!!
I am glad to leave all the products out. I also use dandruff shampoo infrequently. I will keep the one bottle of conditioner I still have if I ever feel the need for it but I am glad I don;t feel the need for more products. I maintain by interlocking.
I am so happy to see the new comers.
I am two month in, lots of fuzz, no budding at all.
 
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