Tuesday, November 20, 2007

A girl and her hair

Alright I know, I know, I know, I have not posting in almost for ever the first few times I posted I was so excited about my new SLs and then all of a sudden I was gone into thin air. A lot of things have happened since I first started to post I moved, started a different type of job, and life in general has me running like a chicken. As far as my hair goes I have mixed emotions. I love my naps but as far as my “Sisterlocks” I really don’t know.

When I got my SL they were installed by a nice woman by the name of Yvonne after my first retightening (because it was free) I never went back, not b/c I didn’t like her or she did anything wrong, just b/c I wanted to do my own hair. I figured that if I messed it up in any way I could take them out and start all over again plus it’s MY hair I want to know how to do MY own hair. I have to back track just a little so you can understand the full story. Before I got my SL I was trying to figure out how to recreate the look but not spend the money it would take to do it (not that Im cheap I just like to spend my money on my kids and bills). I was not all into the name of having SISTERLOCKS to be frank I could care less I just wanted my hair to be dreaded and be free from the lye. I got the nappylocs training video and it came with a booklet, and the tool. I was more than excited I was thinking finally I can dread my hair. After trying and failing so many times I decided that I would wait until my natural hair got a little bit longer b/c it was hard trying to reach around the back of my head and barley getting any hair in a full rotation. This upset me very much because Im very much a DIY type of person, and I didn’t trust anyone to help me. This made me decided that I would get the SL and then learn how to retighten them myself, the only thing that the SL did that I couldn’t do at the time is part my hair. It would have taken me a month as particular has I am about my parts being straight.

Bring it back to speed as I was getting my SL installed although I didn’t see what Yvonne was doing I could feel her rotations, and from watching the nappylocs training DVD I pretty much figured out what she was doing. After the instillation was done I was sooooo excited here I was dreaded finally. Like most my hair in some places would unravel particularly in the front. At first I tried not to touch them b/c I was going back to get my first retightening, but I couldn’t help it I took out my nappyloc tool and started to fix the ones that were unraveling. After I fixed the first one I knew then that I would maintain my hair from here on out.

After my first retightening (which was included in the price of the instillation) I made sure that I paid extra close attention to what was being done with my hair. Though out this whole time I was getting my hair done I was think that I could still come to get my hair done depending on how long it would take her to do it. At first she told me that it would take 3-4 hours so Im thinking well that’s not too bad at 25.00 an hour but that just if I had the extra money to treat myself. After my hair was done it took her 6.5 hours to complete my whole head so that’s approx. 162.50 round up 163.00 I DON’T THINK SO!!! I was thinking to myself in order for this to work I would have to stay on my head like everyday in order for them not to unravel to the point I could not follow the parts. I was doing good with making sure that my hair didn’t unravel I was redoing my hair about every two weeks and it would take me two week ends to do it so one can pretty much say that every weekend I was doing my hair. Then I had to move back to ATL b/c of my job transfer me there. After getting aquatinted again with my home town I started doing my hair again this time I was only doing it every month with still was taking my two weeks to do it. As my hair grew I noticed that the ends look nothing like they did in the beginning. The ones in the front were completely unraveled except for what I did so it looked like a fuzz puff with no curl pattern on the end of a skinny loc. All of my locs in the front looked like this and I hate it. I don’t know if this is normal seeing as how I don’t have a consultant but to tell you the truth I don’t even trust a consultant to tell me what my hair is suppose to look like. I just think they will say yeah it suppose to look like that but when my hair is all funked up they will then say OH NO ITS NOT SUPPOSE TO LOOK LIKE THAT! And then tell me that I need to spend X amount of dollars to fix it. Then I stared to get into a funk and contemplated taking them all out and just rocking my afro for a while which I loved even if it was a TWA. Then I got the bright idea of redoing my hair my self taking them down one at a time and just redoing them. This is an overwhelming decision in itself b/c all the while I’m redoing my hair it’s still growing and if I don’t at least retighten the lose ones in the front they will unravel completely and will really look crazy.
I started in the back and I noticed that the ones that have redone thus far show the length in my hair. I don’t know if its b/c they are fresh or if the there is something that I’m doing that’s different then what was done when I first got my hair done. Either way I’m happy about it. I just fear how long its going to take me to do it. Well here I go.....

Friday, July 20, 2007

Tag your it

Okay, so I believe I was tagged by Dstdiva.
Here are the rules: Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to then report this on their own blog with their 7 things as well as these rules. They then need to tag 7 others and list their names on their blog. They are also asked to leave a comment for each of the tagged, letting them know they have been tagged and to read the blog.

Alright this is going to be hard. There are so many things to me but tryin to think of them enough it type them is another thing but I will try.

1. I have two kids, Jada is 4 going on 14 and Sean is 17 months. I was in the Navy for two years got out of active duty and joined the reserves when I got pregnant with Jada.

2. I have 11 tattoos and 6 piercing. I am done with tattoos but I want to get some more things pierced.
3. I have a slight case of Obsessive Compulsive disorder (OCD). I have a thing with glasses. If I see smudges weather on the outside or inside I need to wash the glass. No one else can wash it but me, that way I know it’s clean to my liking. When I have a deck of cards in my hand and I’m not playing with them I have to put them in order. At work my desk is color, size and function coded. When I staple paper the staples have to be in the same place and paper that’s being staples have to be aligned all the way around. I am very meticulous when I do my daughter hair and have to part it. I will be late to work trying to make sure that the parts are straight. I can’t help it, it really bothers me if it’s not fixed.
4. I love music doesn’t matter what kinds. When I hear it its does something to me, it almost feels like I can feel everything in the song. I can feel the emotion in the words that are being sung. I listen to more Old School then I do whats on the radio today. Half the time people older then me know more about whats being played then i do.
5. I have a thing for shoes (Most women do). I have shoes in my closet that I have never worn but when I seen them I had to have them. I have more shoes than I have outfits to wear them.
6. I have a thing for electronics. Any new gadget that comes out I have to have it. It’s almost like I need it. I feel like I’m missing something if I don’t have it. Now don’t get me wrong I don’t get it when I want it I just keep thinking about it and save up until I can afford it.
7. My favorite cereal is Cinnamon Toast Crunch, I will not eat any other cereal if I can help it.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Washed for the first time


I washed my hair last night for the first time I was so scared I would do it wrong. I still dont know if I did it right but my hair didnt unravel so I guess i did a good job. Also when I washed my hair I counted my locks, when they were being installed Yvonne (my consultant) lost count at 130. I bundled them in groups of 20. I counted 544 baby locs.


Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Im Locked





My beautiful babies after I got them installed. I could not believe I finally got my hair the way I truly want it. I now see myself as a Nubian beauty and no one can tell me different. I am showing the world that I love my African heritage and I still look good doing it. I absolutely love it my hair. I can’t stop looking in the mirror. The day after I got my SL installed I went to Burlington and as soon as I walked into the door there was a sister that was all natural and she was rocking a TWA. She could not take her eyes off of my hair. I saw her looking but I didn’t want to be rude and turn around and ask her if she like what she saw. I just thought to myself I will just have to get use to this. People don’t know how to react to something they know nothing about, I didn’t get upset I just smiled and kept stepping. After I left Burlington I went to TJ Maxx and the same sister that was in Burlington was in TJ Maxx this time she came up to me and was like “girl I love your hair, who did that for you?” I told her I got my SL installed yesterday. She looked at me with the most puzzled look and asked me what is SL? I told her that it is a technique that locks the hair. I could tell that she still didn’t understand so I just had to break it down and tell her that they were locks. I gave her my consultants name and number, all she just kept saying I love your hair girl. Needless to say I felt good, and that was not the last time that I heard that. A lot of women don’t like the look the first few days and thinks that it looks like a wet chicken. I don’t think that my hair looks like that, but I also know that everyone’s hair is different.

Monday, July 16, 2007

In the Beginning

In November I made the decision to get locs I didn’t know what kind what type or anything. All I knew was that I wanted them and I was going to do it myself. I have always done my own hair with the exception of the occasional perm, when I had the time to sit in a salon and the extra money to treat myself (or so I thought). So when I did my research on locs I wanted to find something that I could do my self. I looked into comb coils, but you couldn’t wash them as much as you would like, I looked into natural locs but I didn’t like that b/c I wanted a manicured look. I came across Sisterlocks I loved the manicured look, I love the fact that they were thin and could be washed to same day you got them installed if you wanted to, but off the bat I didn’t want them b/c it was something that I could not do myself. As I search I transitioned with doing kinky twist, which I learned to do myself. I was going to keep them in until I had about 6 inches of natural hair to work with but after keeping them in for 3 months I took them out.I looked and looked and kept looking and no matter what avenue I went down I kept coming back to SL. I finally decided that the only way that I will be able to get the look I wanted I had to get SL. So I began my search of what I needed to do to learn how to do SL. I went the website and saw that they offer training classed and there was one that was being held in Atlanta which is 350 miles from me plus that’s where I was from. So I looked and the price of the class and almost lost my eyesight, but I was determined to get the money to learn how to do it. Needless to say by time that class was being held in Atlanta I didn’t have the money saved. So I then I was at a lost. I didn’t want to pay anyone to do my hair when I could just learn how to. So I got depressed for a while. I knew I didn’t ever want to perm my hair I just didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to wait a year or more until the class was offered again in Atlanta so I just had to get it in my head that I will find a consultant and pay her to do my hair. Back to the SL website I go. I search consultant name in my area which is Savannah, Ga. and Jacksonville, FL. There was no one in Jacksonville and closes one was in Fort Lauderdale which is about 300 miles from me which was out of the question. If I was going to drive that I might as well go home and get them done. So I looked for one in Savannah. I called the number that was posted on the website but the person that answered the phone acted like they didn’t know what I was talking about. I didn’t want to drive all the way up to ATL just to get my hair done b/c when I do go home I spend that time with my mom and visiting family. I didn’t want to spend that time getting my hair done. So I looked over at the trainee list. I found some closer to my area. Brunswick Ga., and Fernandina Beach, FL. The trainee that is in Brunswick sounded highly HIGHLY unprofessional. The trainee that is in Fernandina her number was disconnected. At this time I thinking Oh my goodness why cant this just be easy for me? Am I not suppose to get SL in my head or what. I finally got a number of a consultant, which lives in Jacksonville, Fl. I got her number from one of the ladies that belongs to a yahoo group that I am in. After I got the number I then did some thinking, should I or shouldn’t I cut my hair. I had about 7-8 inches of permed hair. I knew that SL could be start with permed end but my hair in some spots was broken off all the way to my natural hair. Plus I was thinking I wanted to get rid of the old Saabira the Saabira that thought long straight hair was beautiful. That the only way I could be beautiful was to continue to kill my hair, and add weave all down my back.So I kept telling myself I will cut my hair. Im going to cut my hair and I will not regret it. After going back and fourth with myself I came home from work one day. Took a shower, washed my hair and just cut a patch before I could even think twice. By doing this I had to cut it all and I knew if I didn’t just do I would never do it. I wont even lie I wanted to cry after I cut my hair I thought I looked like my brother. I hated I didn’t even want to go to work the next day. When I went to work I wore a scarf over my head and did that for the next two days. I even went to the local beauty supply store and bought a wig. When I put the wig on my head I wanted to cry again b/c I knew I could not go forever wearing a wig on my head. I read several blogs and found the strength in me and knew what India Arie was saying when she wrote that song “I am not my hair.”



After Im comfortable with my TWA I made the appointment to get my test locs installed. I was so excited I could not wait for the two weeks to go by to get my whole head done. I found myself dreaming about how good my head would look once I got it done. Finally the day came for me to get them installed. July 13-14……….. 21 hours 45 mins, a numb butt, sore neck, back, and shoulders later, my babies where born.