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

[shortycocoa]

Thank you ladies for all the tips!! @FlawedBeauty thst video was extremely helpful! He makes it look so easy and effortless. @shortycocoa did you tie a knot on all your locs or did you sew some together?

You're welcome! Girl no....I didn't tie a knot on all my locks. Just the ones that were experiencing slippage in the middle of the lock but the tip was intact. So it was looking like this:

000000000000000--------------------*

(the zeroes would indicate the locked portion, while the dashes indicate the slippage, and the star represents the tip of the lock where the twist did not come out.) So on some of those, I tied knots on them to reinforce the tip and make it stronger so that the interlock would stay when I interlocked from the tip up to meet the rest of the lock. I hope that makes sense.

I really wish I had taken before and after pics of me manipulating my locks in this way just for reference for myself later as well as to provide a better visual for people when I'm explaining. But a lot of the times I was just in the mirror examining my locks and made an executive split second decision to correct them on the fly.

I didn't sew any of my locks together. That seems like too much work and I don't like the idea of sewing my hair and also never understood how to sew so you can't see the thread, so that was never an option for me.

But there is a video I saw on YouTube a while back of Cynsational Locs combining her husband's locks without sewing. If you're interested in that, I will post it here so you can see.:

 

[FlawedBeauty]

Her locks are amazing! I think I follow her on IG, too. She is sooooooo sexy!!! I thought I was subscribed to her YouTube channel but I wasn't until just now. And my bad....I must be all the way wrong and confused. It's a hook but she called it a needle, didn't she?

I was referring to this one in Kris McDred's video (it's been posted upthread before, but I'll just repost it here.) but I'm also legit confused because it looks like a needle to me but he also called it a hook. Unless the point is so small that you can't tell it's a hook and not a needle.



I need an update on this client's locks...cause the first time I saw this video was about three years ago and these locks were dope then. I'm sure they look amazing now, if she still has them. I didn't realize I wasn't subscribed to his channel already either but I am now!



I had to requote you because I realize I didn't address this part of your post before. I'm not sure if using a product will allow them to stay. The locks will come undone as soon as you wash your hair, no? Also, if you tie a knot at the end of the lock, the knots might be big and you might end up with fat tips until they condense. If you're going to tie knots, you have to be sure to tie them extremely tight and be sure about your choice because it would be very hard to undo the knots if you decide you don't like the way that looks.

I would tie the knots loose enough so that you get an idea of what it looks like but tight enough to hold in case you do like it and decide to leave it, if that makes sense. You are also going to have to tie more than one knot, and you'll see what I mean when you attempt this, which will cause you to lose some length. Practice with a piece of yarn or string first so you can understand what I mean before you try it on your locks. I didn't do that, but I'm also cool with it because like I said, I know the length will come back as my hair grows out and I'm happy with the way my locks look. IMO, you can't even tell that I tied knots in some of my locks.

ETA: If you only want to tie one knot on all of your locks, you will have to probably cut all the hair that ends up being below the knot, so that the knotted end will then become the new tip of each of your locks.

The other thing I forgot to mention is if you reconsider and you want to combine them another way, you can always use your interlocking tool to interlock two locks together. I may have already posted the video of DynamicRunner doing this method on her locks, I'm not sure. There were several SLs I mistakenly combined that way when I was first learning how to retighten my own locks. With this method though, you do have to wait until the locks fuse together, and you will end up with two-headed dragons. Then you will need to decide which of the heads you want to cut off so that you end up with one lock. Also, until they fuse, you have to thread both locks through your tool when you retighten.

For me, it always made sense to cut off the shorter head and leave the longer one in tact. You can also save the shorter heads that you cut off and reattach them to the ends of your newly combined locks. I think I was throwing those away, partly because I didn't think to save them for the purpose of reattaching them to the ends of my SLs back then. The other part was due to the fact that my ends were already fat as it was, and some of the dragons I was cutting were not the same size and I didn't want the huge variance (small from the root to about mid shaft, then fat ends, then a newly reattached, smaller end.) So if you can picture it, it would have looked like this:

-------------------------------0000000000000000000============

instead of this:

--------------------------------000000000000000000.

I'm not even sure reattaching would have worked anyway, because my bunching on the ends felt like stone. I don't think a crochet needle was going to get through that.

No, I think I'm getting confused too lol. It's called a crochet hook...I didn't even mean to say needle lol

ETA:. Okok I see now. The crochet tool for locs is called crochet needle...which is basically the same as the crochet hook used for actual crocheting yarn

 

[shortycocoa]

@mz.rae have you seen this?

 

[Guinan]

@shortycocoa , you were right; I need to find a new loctician. My 1st wash and retwist is this morning at 9am (well it was supposed to be). Yesterday, I missed two calls from the salon. The receptionist left me two messages but never said the reason for the call, just that I needed to call her back ASAP. She called me at 5:21pm, I didnt see the call until after 7pm. I called them but there was no answer so I left a message. This morning, I called them and left a message and told them that I wasnt going to the appt until I heard back from them or whether or not the appt is a go. Moments later I got a call from the receptionist who stated that my loctician had a family emergency (which I dont believe) and needs to push my appt to 11am. What frustrates me the most is that she just sent out an email about clients being late and how she will be charging for lateness and no shows and how there will be a 2.00 processing fee when using credit cards. You as the owner need to be held accountable.

Yesterday when I got the messages from the salon, I started looking for a new loctician. This will be my last appt with this salon. Later on today, I plan on calling another salon for my next 3wk appt. I have also been practicing retwisting my hair . I retwisted the entire front of my hair and I think I did a really good job. I used only water and oil to retwist. Next time, I'm going to either use homemade flax seed gel or KCC.

If anyone knows of any good locticians in the West, South, Southwest Philly, Delaware County or Delaware area, please let me know. There are ALOT of locticians in Philly and Delaware but because there are so many it's hard to find a good one.

 

[Guinan]

I'm soooooo conflicted!!!!!

I absolutely LOVE the outcome of my retwist and I love the fact that when I leave the salon I'm in good spirits with myself and my hair (if that makes sense). But the lateness is REALLY annoying. She did apologize but this is a constant with her being late.

I recounted my locs and I now have between 180-190 (I might have missed a couple). I started with 206. I told her how many I had but she told me my loc count may change; which at this appt it did. I told her that I expected as much as I could tell that the ones in the front were too small and that I may want to combine them. I'm REALLY happy with the results today and I'm surprised since I'm down almost 20 locs.

Ok enough with me rambling on to the pics, lol

1st pic is before anything was done and the others are after the wash, during the retwist process and the end results. The front of my hair was completely washed out of my starter coils. I think its because the shampoo girl, shampoos too rough

 

[shortycocoa]

@shortycocoa , you were right; I need to find a new loctician. My 1st wash and retwist is this morning at 9am (well it was supposed to be). Yesterday, I missed two calls from the salon. The receptionist left me two messages but never said the reason for the call, just that I needed to call her back ASAP. She called me at 5:21pm, I didnt see the call until after 7pm. I called them but there was no answer so I left a message. This morning, I called them and left a message and told them that I wasnt going to the appt until I heard back from them or whether or not the appt is a go. Moments later I got a call from the receptionist who stated that my loctician had a family emergency (which I dont believe) and needs to push my appt to 11am. What frustrates me the most is that she just sent out an email about clients being late and how she will be charging for lateness and no shows and how there will be a 2.00 processing fee when using credit cards. You as the owner need to be held accountable.

Yesterday when I got the messages from the salon, I started looking for a new loctician. This will be my last appt with this salon. Later on today, I plan on calling another salon for my next 3wk appt. I have also been practicing retwisting my hair . I retwisted the entire front of my hair and I think I did a really good job. I used only water and oil to retwist. Next time, I'm going to either use homemade flax seed gel or KCC.

If anyone knows of any good locticians in the West, South, Southwest Philly, Delaware County or Delaware area, please let me know. There are ALOT of locticians in Philly and Delaware but because there are so many it's hard to find a good one.

Today has been a busy day for me, so I haven't been able to respond. This is a mess! I'm glad you have decided to switch locticians and salons. Constant lateness and last-minute rescheduling are big issues that I don't like, either.

I will do some digging and get back to you on the new loctician search. What is the name of the salon/loctician you're seeing now? I'm asking just so I know not to include that in my results if I find a place you might be interested in.

I'm soooooo conflicted!!!!!

I absolutely LOVE the outcome of my retwist and I love the fact that when I leave the salon I'm in good spirits with myself and my hair (if that makes sense). But the lateness is REALLY annoying. She did apologize but this is a constant with her being late.

I recounted my locs and I now have between 180-190 (I might have missed a couple). I started with 206. I told her how many I had but she told me my loc count may change; which at this appt it did. I told her that I expected as much as I could tell that the ones in the front were too small and that I may want to combine them. I'm REALLY happy with the results today and I'm surprised since I'm down almost 20 locs.

Ok enough with me rambling on to the pics, lol

1st pic is before anything was done and the others are after the wash, during the retwist process and the end results. The front of my hair was completely washed out of my starter coils. I think its because the shampoo girl, shampoos too rough

Your hair looks amazing!!!! I see why you didn't want to go past three weeks for a retwist. Did she combine some of them, and that's how you ended up with a different total this time around? And yes, the shampoo girl needs to be more gentle. When you came in were some of your coils still in tact in the front? I'm glad you're happy with the outcome of your hair, despite all the scheduling challenges and the rough shampoo.

 

[Guinan]

Today has been a busy day for me, so I haven't been able to respond. This is a mess! I'm glad you have decided to switch locticians and salons. Constant lateness and last-minute rescheduling are big issues that I don't like, either.

I will do some digging and get back to you on the new loctician search. What is the name of the salon/loctician you're seeing now, just so I know not to include that in my results if I find a place you might be interested in.



Your hair looks amazing!!!! I see why you didn't want to go past three weeks for a retwist. Did she combine some of them, and that's how you ended up with a different total this time around? And yes, the shampoo girl needs to be more gentle. When you came in were some of your coils still in tact in the front? I'm glad you're happy with the outcome of your hair, despite all the scheduling challenges and the rough shampoo.

She basically had to redo (re-part) the entire front, in doing so she made some locs bigger. When I came in my entire front was intact because I had retwisted last week. I kinda anticipated the front coming loose since its my finest area. The back appears to be the same. Ill insert some pics of the differences in the front. Its weird when I went for the consult I told her I didn't want straight parts, I wanted free hand but she std that she likes to keep the parts neat. So she gave me neat parts on my 1st visit. I didn't really care for the straight part down the middle. Now this visit she did the back really neat but then, what it appears to me, did free hand in the front; which is what I wanted in the 1st place, I just have to make sure I like the size. I did tell her that the front appears to be too small. My front/edges are thin. I have thyroid issues and my hairline is the 1st to go when it's acting up.

Is that normal for loc numbers to change until it locs and you settle on the number or should I try to keep the same number?

 

[Cattypus1]

I'm soooooo conflicted!!!!!

I absolutely LOVE the outcome of my retwist and I love the fact that when I leave the salon I'm in good spirits with myself and my hair (if that makes sense). But the lateness is REALLY annoying. She did apologize but this is a constant with her being late.

I recounted my locs and I now have between 180-190 (I might have missed a couple). I started with 206. I told her how many I had but she told me my loc count may change; which at this appt it did. I told her that I expected as much as I could tell that the ones in the front were too small and that I may want to combine them. I'm REALLY happy with the results today and I'm surprised since I'm down almost 20 locs.

Ok enough with me rambling on to the pics, lol

1st pic is before anything was done and the others are after the wash, during the retwist process and the end results. The front of my hair was completely washed out of my starter coils. I think its because the shampoo girl, shampoos too rough

They look so good! That lateness would annoy me to death! I just can’t do it. I don’t have nearly as many locs as you, I think about half as many or less. I’d be all day trying to retwist those ...LOL

 

[shortycocoa]

She basically had to redo (re-part) the entire front, in doing so she made some locs bigger. When I came in my entire front was intact because I had retwisted last week. I kinda anticipated the front coming loose since its my finest area. The back appears to be the same. Ill insert some pics of the differences in the front. Its weird when I went for the consult I told her I didn't want straight parts, I wanted free hand but she std that she likes to keep the parts neat. So she gave me neat parts on my 1st visit. I didn't really care for the straight part down the middle. Now this visit she did the back really neat but then, what it appears to me, did free hand in the front; which is what I wanted in the 1st place, I just have to make sure I like the size. I did tell her that the front appears to be too small. My front/edges are thin. I have thyroid issues and my hairline is the 1st to go when it's acting up.

Is that normal for loc numbers to change until it locs and you settle on the number or should I try to keep the same number?

I had no idea that you didn't want your hair the way it was initially done! What's even worse is you told her what you wanted and she gave you what her vision was for your hair and not yours. I hate when stylists do that. It looks like you ended up getting what you wanted anyway, though. I actually think it looks better the way you wanted it, but the first way also looks very good too.

Her justification for doing it the way she did it initially makes absolutely no sense, because you can keep the parts neat in any formation as long as you follow the pattern and redirect the loose hairs back into each lock.

Girl yeah....she needs to be cancelled based off of that alone, but also due to your other issues with her.

I don't think the front looks too small, at least from the pictures it doesn't. But I also realize that pictures can usually be misleading and you see your hair up close every day so it could look much different from what we are seeing. And remember that they will thicken up and fill in during the locking process, so if you redid them even larger then more than likely they will thicken up larger still.

It's normal for the lock count to change during your journey, especially during the first year of setting the foundation and the transformation they go through.

But in my opinion, as long as you keep up with maintenance and the size is big enough to support the locks so you don't have to end up combining any of them, you should be okay.

 

[santigold]

i feel like i need to be talked off the ledge. just two days ago, out of nowhere, i decided to go back to the loose side. i haven’t started to pick them out yet because i’m on vacation but as soon as i get home i feel it’s gonna happen.

my loose hair is dry, brittle and frizzy. it takes an entire day to detangle. i hate the way i look when prepping for a braid/twist out. i hate sleeping with a bonnet. i hate that i can’t even think about water without my hair becoming tangled and ruined. i hate that i can’t touch it without it breaking off. i hate that my hair is so high maintenance.

my locs are easy. i lead an active lifestyle and they allow me to hike, camp, swim etc. without a second thought. i never have to worry about doing my hair because it’s always done.

all of these cons and i still miss being loose.

 

[shortycocoa]

i feel like i need to be talked off the ledge. just two days ago, out of nowhere, i decided to go back to the loose side. i haven’t started to pick them out yet because i’m on vacation but as soon as i get home i feel it’s gonna happen.

my loose hair is dry, brittle and frizzy. it takes an entire day to detangle. i hate the way i look when prepping for a braid/twist out. i hate sleeping with a bonnet. i hate that i can’t even think about water without my hair becoming tangled and ruined. i hate that i can’t touch it without it breaking off. i hate that my hair is so high maintenance.

my locs are easy. i lead an active lifestyle and they allow me to hike, camp, swim etc. without a second thought. i never have to worry about doing my hair because it’s always done.

all of these cons and i still miss being loose.

But why, though????? This list right here would make me not miss it AT ALL. Is it just because you feel like you need a change? What is it that you want to do with loose hair that you feel you can't do right now with locks? Because I have seen plenty women wear wigs, braids, twists, etc. over their locks. It's not for me and not something I would do, but the options are there.

I seriously hope you reconsider.

 

[santigold]

if i unlock i know for certain i will return sooner rather than later. i'd give myself 1 yr max. i think i just want a break/to start over. i love my locs but have made some mistakes and am now seeing the consequences. i think taking them down will satisfy the itch for loose hair and then actually having loose hair will quickly push me back to locs

 

[shortycocoa]

if i unlock i know for certain i will return sooner rather than later. i'd give myself 1 yr max. i think i just want a break/to start over. i love my locs but have made some mistakes and am now seeing the consequences. i think taking them down will satisfy the itch for loose hair and then actually having loose hair will quickly push me back to locs

Wow.... I understand. Re: the bolded...can you elaborate on the mistakes you made and the impending consequences? I'm just curious to know what those were. I've never quite heard someone with locks say what you just said in the way you said it.

 

[santigold]

Wow.... I understand. Re: the bolded...can you elaborate on the mistakes you made and the impending consequences? I'm just curious to know what those were. I've never quite heard someone with locks say what you just said in the way you said it.

i made it sound more serious than it is. just a lot of the same mistakes others have made.

1. using creamy blue conditioner = blue buildup
2. bleaching and never moisturizing = breakage
3. never covering my hair = lint
4. picking out lint = weak points
5. didn't take into account texture and density when parting = locs of vastly different sizes

 

[mz.rae]

You're welcome! Girl no....I didn't tie a knot on all my locks. Just the ones that were experiencing slippage in the middle of the lock but the tip was intact. So it was looking like this:

000000000000000--------------------*

(the zeroes would indicate the locked portion, while the dashes indicate the slippage, and the star represents the tip of the lock where the twist did not come out.) So on some of those, I tied knots on them to reinforce the tip and make it stronger so that the interlock would stay when I interlocked from the tip up to meet the rest of the lock. I hope that makes sense.

I really wish I had taken before and after pics of me manipulating my locks in this way just for reference for myself later as well as to provide a better visual for people when I'm explaining. But a lot of the times I was just in the mirror examining my locks and made an executive split second decision to correct them on the fly.

I didn't sew any of my locks together. That seems like too much work and I don't like the idea of sewing my hair and also never understood how to sew so you can't see the thread, so that was never an option for me.

But there is a video I saw on YouTube a while back of Cynsational Locs combining her husband's locks without sewing. If you're interested in that, I will post it here so you can see.:

Thank you so much! I’m going to watch those videos! My loc tool came today I can’t wait to try it. I ended up going to my consultant the day after my initial appointment. But if any come loose at the root they have in the past I’m going to use my tool to retighten it back up.

 

[shortycocoa]

i made it sound more serious than it is. just a lot of the same mistakes others have made.

1. using creamy blue conditioner = blue buildup
2. bleaching and never moisturizing = breakage
3. never covering my hair = lint
4. picking out lint = weak points
5. didn't take into account texture and density when parting = locs of vastly different sizes

Well when you put it this way it definitely offers more insight as to why you feel like you need and want to start over. People talk about build-up in their locks, but never colorful buildup, so that's a new one for me!

The upside is that when you do decide to come back and start over after you have gotten what you need from having loose hair, you know what not to do and how to prevent or minimize these issues if they come up again.

 

[shortycocoa]

Thank you so much! I’m going to watch those videos! My loc tool came today I can’t wait to try it. I ended up going to my consultant the day after my initial appointment. But if any come loose at the root they have in the past I’m going to use my tool to retighten it back up.

Yay! Glad you got your tool. I know a few people who ordered that tool had problems with the shipping being mad delayed or never receiving theirs at all. I hope it works out for you. I think that's a good plan you have to retighten the ones that slip on your own. It will give you a chance to practice and get the hang of the retightening process. And you won't be so overwhelmed with learning how to do it AND retightening your whole head at the same time. That was a whole different level of anxiety for me when I went through that for the first time. But each time the anxiety goes away. Now I retighten like it's nothing....I am still trying to work on speed. Even when I retighten DS 2's hair it seems to take me way long. And he only has 45 locks. I feel like I should be done with that in 30 minutes.

 

[Cattypus1]

My 4b-c hair is so weird. My coils are staying intact and I don’t have any problem with them. I cover my hair at night with a satin bonnet. I don’t use any daily products but every day I find some weird bone straight hairs just hanging out where they should not be. It’s so random and annoying.

 

[shortycocoa]

My 4b-c hair is so weird. My coils are staying intact and I don’t have any problem with them. I cover my hair at night with a satin bonnet. I don’t use any daily products but every day I find some weird bone straight hairs just hanging out where they should not be. It’s so random and annoying.

It's ok. All a part of the process. Wrap them around the locks.

 

[simplycee]

My niece sent me a picture of my husband and I at her party 2 weeks ago. I couldn’t stop staring at my locks. So much growth and thickness.... and they look like sisterlocks with coils at the end (well they are sisterlocks with coils at the end) but they look like locs ya’ll, not just curly hair. Even though it will be a year in Feb I know I have more months, maybe a year, before I’m fully locked. I’m working on patience but this picture made me smile.

 

[shortycocoa]

Hi ladies! I've been meaning to come in here and post.

Friday night I took the kids to a holiday block party and I saw this young queen with Sisterlocks. I immediately went over to her and complimented her and started a conversation. I should have asked her how old she was. She looked like she was in middle school but her hair was pretty. I asked her how long she had them and I was shocked that she said it was only a month or a little over a month.

Yesterday marked 8 months locked for me. I started this post last night to tell ya'll that but I fell asleep with the phone in my hand.

For the past 2 weeks or so, it seemed like my locks were/are condensing and some days they look like not so much. But I am really enjoying my hair! I look forward to see what they look like at 9 months and then a year.

DS 2 hits 3 months on Wednesday. I almost started DS 1's locks over the weekend but he came home from school with a cough on Friday and hasn't been feeling good. I washed his hair this morning and thought about starting his locks today, but I want to focus on getting all my Christmas prep out of the way so that I can actually spend more quality time with my kids instead of being in the kitchen cooking most of the day.

I'm making good time right now, so we'll see. If I can keep the same momentum I might be able to go ahead and do it. Something is telling me to just wait until after Christmas, though. I'm all over the place.

Right now I need to go ahead and get DS 2's hair together since he just had a bath and got his hair washed this morning. So I'm going to oil his scalp and spray his locks with my rosewater spray.

I washed my hair yesterday and last week I have also started oiling my hair right after a wash or when my hair is wet. I think I like that better than waiting until I go to bed, and I'm also sealing in more moisture this way, as opposed to waiting. I can definitely tell the difference. My hair is extra cottony and soft. I have to force myself to stop touching it.

Plus, I think this will help me stay more consistent with using my sulfur oil because at night I am usually so exhausted I can't be bothered to do anything except put my hair up for the night and go to sleep.

I have been styling my hair more also. I will post pics later.

 

[shortycocoa]

My niece sent me a picture of my husband and I at her party 2 weeks ago. I couldn’t stop staring at my locks. So much growth and thickness.... and they look like sisterlocks with coils at the end (well they are sisterlocks with coils at the end) but they look like locs ya’ll, not just curly hair. Even though it will be a year in Feb I know I have more months, maybe a year, before I’m fully locked. I’m working on patience but this picture made me smile.

That's exciting!!!! And February is not that far off...especially since this month is almost over.

 

[BillsBackerz67]

For some us Sisterlocks can be frustrating! Add in consultants that you can guarantee when it comes a few hours before your appointment time they to have to reschedule. Me and SO now have a bet going on every time it gets time for my appointment that my consultant is going to text me having to reschedule. I honestly wish I went with small traditional locs.

Thanks for being honest and upfront about your trials and tribulations! I merely didn’t go with sister-locks because of the price and the length of time retightening involved. I did no further research and thought MAYBE I would reattempt it if I wanted to start a new set of locs one day. But yeah I’m all set. I was totally ignorant to the fact that slippage or any of the other issues existed until this thread. The end results are so drool worthy once you get past the jump but it takes a lot to get there!

 

[simplycee]

I love my sisterlocks. My retightenings are about 3 hours long but I have almost 600 locks so it seems reasonable to me. She does wash (and would style if I was doing that) at each appointment. I usually don’t have any issues but this last one I thought she was trying to pull my brains out through my scalp. My only issue during my journey has been shrinkage and parts of my hair that aren’t beginning to lock because the hair in the area is so soft. My hair looked like curls, not locks up until about last month.

 

[prettywhitty]

I’ve had these twists in a month now. I’ve purchased an interlock tool and jojoba oil. My question is will my twists swell a lot with interlocking? I don’t want my finished product to be too big... but I don’t want sister lock small either.

 

[simplycee]

Welp, I called it. My Aunt has been quizzing me about my hair choice all year. I prefer “locs” or “sisterlocks” to “dreads” and I’ve told her that. Tonight’s family gathering for Christmas and my aunt starts asking questions about my hair.
Auntie: you have dreads now?
Me: no, sisterlocks.
Auntie: looks like tiny dreads to me.
Me: nope, tiny locs
Auntie: same thing
Me:
Auntie 1 hour later: oh I see....those are braids with curls on the end.
Me:

We have had this same conversation the last 3 times we’ve seen each other. It’s annoying because my mother has had her sisterlocks for 7 years, her daughter has been wearing her sisterlocks for the last 6 years. The first time I told my aunt about my sisterlocks she told me not to do it because my loose natural hair was so long and thick. That was 10 months ago. I’ve seen her for all the family gatherings since then. I really believe she is being annoying on purpose. Last time she said my coils looked like a Jheri curl.

 

[mz.rae]

Yay! Glad you got your tool. I know a few people who ordered that tool had problems with the shipping being mad delayed or never receiving theirs at all. I hope it works out for you. I think that's a good plan you have to retighten the ones that slip on your own. It will give you a chance to practice and get the hang of the retightening process. And you won't be so overwhelmed with learning how to do it AND retightening your whole head at the same time. That was a whole different level of anxiety for me when I went through that for the first time. But each time the anxiety goes away. Now I retighten like it's nothing....I am still trying to work on speed. Even when I retighten DS 2's hair it seems to take me way long. And he only has 45 locks. I feel like I should be done with that in 30 minutes.

I can’t wait to use my tool I’m excited to try it and post about it! Hopefully I will be able to retighten my hair and not depend on a consultant for retightens just only to make sure my hair is doing ok and that I haven’t joined any locs together.

Thanks for being honest and upfront about your trials and tribulations! I merely didn’t go with sister-locks because of the price and the length of time retightening involved. I did no further research and thought MAYBE I would reattempt it if I wanted to start a new set of locs one day. But yeah I’m all set. I was totally ignorant to the fact that slippage or any of the other issues existed until this thread. The end results are so drool worthy once you get past the jump but it takes a lot to get there!

No problem! Now I do love my Sisterlocks it’s just some of the things along the way can be irritating. I can’t wait for when I am 3/4 years in this journey.

 

[shortycocoa]

I’ve had these twists in a month now. I’ve purchased an interlock tool and jojoba oil. My question is will my twists swell a lot with interlocking? I don’t want my finished product to be too big... but I don’t want sister lock small either.

Awwwww shucks! So you did decide to leave the last set and let them lock....that's what's up! What size are your twists now and what size did they start out as? If you're at least a month in, they should have filled in a little bit and will continue to do so along your journey. It's hard to definitively say how much they will swell, because several factors are involved.

If you don't want them too thick or too small, then you should consider the interlocking pattern you want to use. Have you decided on one yet? I'm not a loctician, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if you chose a 3 pt rotation that would contribute to giving you the look you want. With that being said, other things are involved with getting the correct size you want, such as the maintenance schedule, how small you started them, whether or not you combined them, and how you care for them overall. Even the tool you use might be a factor.

We talked about a 2 pt rotation in this thread, and that will give you thicker locks. Conversely, a 4 pt. rotation is going to create a more tighter, compacted (read: slim) lock.

I think you should ask lots of people who maintain by interlocking, as well as people who have SLs and microlocks what pattern they use and then come to a decision.

Just to reiterate, when I had my SLs, my consultant said she used a reverse 4 pattern to retighten my locks. When I retightened my own, I continued using a 4 pt rotation but I wasn't going in reverse.

With these, I started with two-strand twists and interlock to maintain. I still use a 4 pt rotation and I will find the post where I discussed the direction I go in and link to it in a different post.

Hopefully the other ladies will also reiterate their interlocking patterns, to help you decide.

 

[shortycocoa]

Welp, I called it. My Aunt has been quizzing me about my hair choice all year. I prefer “locs” or “sisterlocks” to “dreads” and I’ve told her that. Tonight’s family gathering for Christmas and my aunt starts asking questions about my hair.
Auntie: you have dreads now?
Me: no, sisterlocks.
Auntie: looks like tiny dreads to me.
Me: nope, tiny locs
Auntie: same thing
Me:
Auntie 1 hour later: oh I see....those are braids with curls on the end.
Me:

We have had this same conversation the last 3 times we’ve seen each other. It’s annoying because my mother has had her sisterlocks for 7 years, her daughter has been wearing her sisterlocks for the last 6 years. The first time I told my aunt about my sisterlocks she told me not to do it because my loose natural hair was so long and thick. That was 10 months ago. I’ve seen her for all the family gatherings since then. I really believe she is being annoying on purpose. Last time she said my coils looked like a Jheri curl.

I agree....she's trying to get under your skin. Just ignore her. If it's good enough for your mom and her daughter, it's good enough for you. Your hair is fabulous and she can't take it. That's it and that's all.

She sounds like the type of person that will end up with Sisterlocks later on down the line and just magically "forget" that she had negative things to say about other people who chose that path.

 

[shortycocoa]

I can’t wait to use my tool I’m excited to try it and post about it! Hopefully I will be able to retighten my hair and not depend on a consultant for retightens just only to make sure my hair is doing ok and that I haven’t joined any locs together.

No problem! Now I do love my Sisterlocks it’s just some of the things along the way can be irritating. I can’t wait for when I am 3/4 years in this journey.

The only piece of advice I can give you here so you can try to prevent that (because nobody told me and I definitely had to learn the hard way) is to section the hell out of your hair prior to starting and make sure that the section you are working on only has the lock you are about to retighten out. Once you start accumulating lots of freshly retightened locks, put those in ponytails or braid them down and out of the way so that you don't mistakenly weave the lock you are working on through one you just retightened. It is extremely easy to do.

One other thing that I do now is block the area around the lock I am about to retighten with my free index finger that is not holding my retightening tool. Each time I finish a rotation I reposition my free finger wherever it needs to be to block the area around the lock until I am finished. That ensures that I don't go through an adjacent lock. I hope that makes sense.