The Power of Peer Pressure

So....everyone is learning to retighten their own hair and I was feeling left out! Last night I went online and ordered my very own nappylocs tool!

I can't wait for it to get here. I want to try it out right away!

I had my locks tightened by my consultant 3 weeks ago, which means I will be due again in two weeks. Phyllis is from the Midwest and she informed me that she intends to go home for the Thanksgiving holidays. Okay, no problem. But then she says she might be gone for 4 or 5 weeks. Oh really?

Well, doesn't that put a kink in my normal retightening schedule? And isn't it all about me?

So, I'm going to have to go a week longer before she leaves or possibly wait a week or two for her to get back...Bummer!

Then there are those locks around my hairline that always want to slip at three weeks....what about those?

I have two locks at my nape that need retightening now, but I was just in her chair last week for lock repair. (One of my straight-hair locks had developed an almost two-inch hole! I could stick two fingers through it!) Someone is probably out there saying, "That's because you didn't braid and band...." But you know what? For all the time I've saved in the past 6 months not braiding and banding, it's a small price to pay. Even if this happens to five more or ten more, it's not a big deal to me.

It took her about 10 minutes to fix, maybe 15. And my lock is perfect again.

But I said all that to say that I am reluctant to go back and have the twins tightened this week, and then turn around and go back for my regular visit in two more weeks. It just seems a little obsessive. Of course, it is my obsession, so it doesn't bother me. It is being perceived as obsessive by others that I wish to guard against.

Phyllis is ever-gracious and wouldn't say a word, but....as I was fingering the locks that already need tightening and thinking ahead about how she is soon to be unavailable, I just decided that I would go ahead and order the tool and be done with it.

I used to twist my own hair, so I don't believe I will have any problem maintaining my locks when necessary. Somehow, I can't bring myself to put a latch hook in my head. I am just really averse to the idea. I'm not sure why. I guess because it just seems awkward and unwieldy, in spite of the suggestions for modification that people have made. It just seems too difficult, and like more trouble than it's worth for me. I can see myself snagging and tangling and marrying locks, getting a 'crick' in my neck and cramps in my fingers....no thanks!

I also tried using a hairpin and I don't know where I went wrong, but that wasn't working for me either!

When I was younger I used to sew (both by hand and with a machine), and I did needlepoint and cross-stitch, and latch hook rugs, so I am familiar with handicrafts and the necessary skill and dexterity, but it is different holding something in your lap in front of you where you can see it, and working on top of your own head where you have no choice but to go by feel. However, everyone says the nappylocs tool is like sewing, and that idea appeals to me. I like sewing. That sounds easy and simple and comforting.

I expect it will be like twisting my own hair and that once I establish a rhythm, I will find it quite enjoyable. I may even be able to go 6 or 7 weeks between tightenings. I go in at 5 now because I get locks around my hairline that feel really loose and floppy and I just don't like that feeling, but it's only about 20 of them that really bother me. I don't much care about the thickness through the interior. I rather like the volume I have when I'm due for a retite. If I can tighten those few looseys myself, I can probably go another week or two....but, we'll see.

On Not Braiding and Banding

I was just commenting on Carmen's Braiding and Banding technique when I decided to make a proper post about my own lack of b&b to explain that it isn't sheer laziness or rebellion or ignorance that led me to my decision. I figured I would take my chances because I learned to wash my hair while it was still twisted several years ago.

Truth be told back then I was just lazy (no, I'll say that I was busy. I was in school and working two part-time jobs.) I didn't have three hours to take them all down and three more to put them back in every three weeks, so one time I just washed it with them in. Nothing bad happened, so I kept doing it.

The twists didn't unravel and my hair got clean. I didn't experience extreme puffiness or frizzies. At the time I was more afraid that it would lock unintentionally, but I learned that if I combed out the tangles at the ends it wouldn't. Plus I retwisted in sections, so that they were not ever in for more than 2 months. So I figured if I my hair held up well with 2 strand twists, it should certainly be fine with my SL 4 pt pattern, and so far it has been.




This time around I have been concerned about the impact it might have on my attempts to lock, but like I said, I know how to wash it gently. I don't over-manipulate my locks. I do concentrate mostly on the scalp. I was feeling my locks today and they seem to be coming along fine. No buds yet, but a few balls. Some of them definitely feel tighter and denser in places. And I can tell that my shed hairs are beginning to tangle into the pattern; they are not coming out even when I wash. And you'll notice I said I only wash it once every three weeks.

I'm sure some people find that appalling, but I already had a rather organic approach to washing my hair. I remember reading several articles years ago that said we don't need to wash our hair several times a week, or even weekly, unless we sweat excessively or have a scalp condition. I had a stylist explain to me once that if you don't wash frequently then you allow your scalp to regulate itself when it comes to producing natural oils and staying healthy.

I've scarcely washed my hair more than once every two or three weeks for 10 years or more, and to no ill effects. (Unless I went swimming a lot or spent days sweating in the sun for some reason. Then I always washed on an as-needed basis) And I guess my scalp has self-regulated because I've never experienced itchiness or bad smells. Even when I was wearing it straightened, I washed at the same frequency. I never used gels or greasy products that built up, so washing it less often has never been an issue.