What Was I Ever Afraid Of?

It is only day two and I am loving - LOVING - my locks, do you hear me? I absolutely can't believe I ever had any reservations about how it would look or how it would feel!

My hair is SO cute! I have to say so myself! It is just the thing I needed to start the new season. It looks and feels so light and carefree. I can't stay out of the mirror and I can't stop touching it.

It's funny, I look at my locks and I feel like a mother in a big family must. You love all your children, but even though you say you don't and even though you know you shouldn't, you have favorites. Day TWO and most of my locks already seem have distinct personalities and characteristics. Some of them are very independent. Others are more obedient. A few are more attractive than others. It will be interesting to watch them develop and mature.

I asked my consultant to give me locks that were slightly larger than the largest recommeded size. I always knew I wanted to start my locks using the Sisterlocks techinique, but when I was doing research I realized that the locks I admired most on other women were smaller than traditional locks, but larger than typical Sisterlocks.

Once I decided I would get SLs I still obsessed over lock size for another 2 or 3 weeks, but thus far I am very happy with my decision. I love the look of locks that hang straight, but my hair is very fine and very curly. It has a tendency to frizz, fuzz, and flyaway no matter what style I'm wearing. I believe if I had gotten smaller SLs I would have ended up with a head full of kinky thin wispys, especially after watching my test locks. Even after 6 weeks of washing and wetting my hair in the shower almost daily they didn't swell at all.

My consultant was a little reluctant to give me the size I requested because when I came over with my blowout my hair looked so voluminous she really couldn't believe it wouldn't turn into really fat locks after my first washing. It didn't. They remain almost the same size they were when she put them in. I know it is only the second day and I have no idea what changes my hair will go through in the next 6 months and beyond, but I really don't expect they'll get very much larger than they are today. I think they'll just fill in and really lock. It's a done deal now, so there's nothing to do but wait and see.

I'm very happy for now because to me they don't look really new. It definitely looks like I'm in transition, but it doesn't look like I just started yesterday. I am a little apprehensive about my first retightening. I remember reading that sometimes there is more discomfort with the bigger locks and I am extremely tender-headed. I'll probably have that done in six weeks and I'll be sure to give an update.

Sisterlocked Today!

It is well past 2am and I should be in bed asleep, but I am just so excited. I just got home from having my Sisterlocks installed, well...a couple of hours ago. I've been in the mirror checking them out and taking pictures for the last 90 minutes or so.









Those of you who started at the beginning of my blog know that I intended to start my locks at the end of February, so why the delay? Cold feet? Misgivings? No...Does anyone remember the song by Dionne Farris called 11th Hour? I often recall a lyric where she says, "Once you make your decision, your decision is made." Now, on the surface it seems like a simple statement and not particularly profound. But I assure you, it is deep. What can I say? If you know what she means, then you know what she means.

By the middle of February I had made up my mind to get Sisterlocks, but roughly a week before my scheduled appointment, my office had a visit from our largest client. We rolled out the red carpet and were ready to present our new products and services...and they pulled the rug out from under us. We were told that they would not be renewing our contract...After seven years with my company! My department was mid-sized (about 45 employees). Within 3 days 5 people were "let go" and within 3 weeks an additional 10. I was one of the ten.

So, if I thought I had to scrape together the money before, I was really in no position to spend hundreds of dollars on my hair once I lost my job....And I knew that natural hair would not be a problem in my casual office, but I wondered: how would it go over on interviews for a new job? Especially since I didn't know how my locks would look and behave in the beginning!

But...I had made my decision...so...I cashed in a small 401K and I got a cash advance from one of my credit cards and I got my Sisterlocks!...And I'm not sorry.