Colour Trial Revisited: Locspiration

So today I confess that my fascination with hair colour is back in full force. (read more here). I still want red locs and I'm not the only one. My4tress and ThoughsofAddis have both blogged about there new hair colours and I love it. I found locspiration on tumblr too:

 

Cute right? Well while I wait for my locs to mature I have done tons of research. During my first attempt I bleached and coloured a few locs and wasn't too happy with the results. The colour was too subtle and the bleach left me with dry hair that no amount of deep conditioning has been able to reverse. I'm glad to share this bit of info for anyone wanting to lighten their hair using bleach. The result is permanently stripped hair. It's in good enough condition for me to let it grow because I don't comb or use heat but I cannot bare the thought of my entire head feeling this way so I need something else.

Amongst other YouTubers, My4tress used a different method to lighten her hair. Dying it blonde! Sounds simple enough right? I looked around and it seems both Dark & Lovely Lightener and Creme of Nature Honey Blonde have successfully taken natural hair from dark to light so I was tempted enough to do a strand test. And it worked. Using Dark & Lovely Lightener in Light Golden Blonde I was able to lift my colour to the same shade on the box...and get this, I didn't use the provided bleach (booster) packet!

Once I tried it on myself my hair felt normal, it hasn't lost it's elasticity (as with the bleach) and it's not dry. As you can see, My4tress then applied a semi-permanent colour to get the red. I followed suite and did the same. Using Creative Image Adore in Intense Red I got this:

Now I personally think my roots are far too bright but as I palm-rolled the loc, the colour became darker and I quite like it.

So I learnt:

1. I should lighten my roots last so that they aren't as bright as the lengths. 
2. I should apply lightener/colour ⅛" away from my scalp so I don't get such a harsh contrast.
3. I should pick a colour only slightly lighter than I want so that when it's applied to loc'd hair it'll appear slightly darker because less light can shine through it than if it were loose.
4. I need only colour my hair permanently once or twice a year and then use a semi-permanent in the same shade to top up the colour in between.
5. Semi-permanents can last longer on loc'd hair because we don't tend to wash and use heat as often as when it's loose.
6. Adore brand semi-permanent colour isn't harmful to hair.
7. I'm one step closer to getting healthy red locs.

Thoughts, advice, critique, dye stories welcome below.

DREADLOCKS ARE A LIFESTYLE

**Collage created using photos that a publicly available on tumblr. All other material is owned by the blog account holder. DONOT use without permission**

Calling all loc'd friends: Help!

Hi folks, I'm having some issues with these locs of mine and I need some opinions and advice please.

It's hard to explain in words but here goes: As you know I opted for bigger locs a couple of months ago. The issue is only with my thickest locs. I love how thick they are but I'm aiming for a more cylindrical shape - whether that happens naturally or with maintenance. I've been "budding" for a while now. There's a bud on the end of virtually every loc. I've seen so many pictures and videos of people with buds starting in the middle of their locs but I assume that's because they've got longer locs to start with. Anyway, my "buds" have swollen up. A LOT. They're so puffy and shrink every time I wash my head. When I re-twist the roots they unravel within the day. The sections still stay separated so it's not like having loose hair but when I stretch out one of the problem locs it looks like this (A):

(B) Here's what I do understand of the budding process so far:

So that's how it's supposed to be, right? Budding, shrinkage, swelling? Well I have some questions:

1. Do I need to re-twist the locs in pics (A) or will they matt and condense on their own?
2. If I don't re-twist will they remain as thick and shapeless as they look now?
3. Many of the smaller locs are forming with either pointed or rounded ends which I don't mind but I also have some locs that seem to be forming two headed dragons or something less distinguishable. How can I get the ends stay together?
4. Is this my hair's way of telling me my locs are too big?
5. How can you tell between budding/matting and unravelling?

(C) Here's how a thinner budding loc looks by comparison:

(D) And here's some two headed locs:

You know when you only get to see freshly twisted loc's and you rarely see what they look like in between so you panic every time your own locs look different? Well I'm experiencing that right now.


Thanks in advance.

DREADLOCKS ARE A LIFESTYLE

**photography ownership is held with the blog account holder. DONOT use without permission**

Month 6

So, It's official! I've finally settled in the baby loc stage and I love my little dreads. I definitely have the dryness issue under control and my maintenance routine is smoothing out.

I tried the palm roll method for the first time and I have to say I loved it!

Recently I've been getting the urge to play in my hair more and more. It's like an affection thing, the more you love it the more you want it. Thing is, there's not a lot of "loc'ing" going on at the moment and the buds I do have are battling enough as it is. Looking forward to the time when I can smile and welcome a curious hand or too onto my growing crown without fear of unravelling!

I was wondering how to celebrate half a year's dreadlocking on a budget but after enquiring at a local salon for prices, I decided to have some fun with makeup and some dread beads instead.

That's all for now!

Products I love:

1. Pure coconut oil as a leave in conditioner.
2. Extra virgin olive oil and water as a daily moisturiser.

I took quite a few photos this month sooooo have a look-see below (click to enlarge).

adding some colour

the colour's starting to grow out

texture close up

almost two weeks after re-twisting

using rubber bands again

a braided loc

i love this shot

experimenting with colour

progress

shrinkage, shrinkage everywhere

new loc cuff

comb coil close up

going for the dramatic look

happy 6 month update!

DREADLOCKS ARE...

**photography ownership is held with the blog account holder. DO NOT use without permission**