The Basics of Loc Care Maintenance
As a loctician by profession, I encounter a lot of different notions on how to maintain healthy and strong locs. Let me just say many of those notions are plain ridiculous. There are many false notions on what deems a healthy loc and I for one am tired of many of these notions. Locs are a beautiful form of self expression with our hair and they are not as difficult to maintain as many believe.
Essentially, locs need to be cared for very much the same as you would your loose natural hair hair. Basically, (1) Wash Regularly, (2) Condition/Moisturize Regular, (3) Cover with a satin or silk bonnet/ head-wrap, (4) Maintaining regular re-tightening as needed.
Let me Explain....
One of the main notions I hear regarding locs revolves around the first component for basic loc care, Washing Regularly. There are to many people who push this notion that locs cannot or should not be washed often. Or that you can go long stretches without washing. Ladies and Gentlemen this is FALSE. Avoid this very basic step not only is a practice of poor hygiene, but it does nothing but create problems with your locs. Maintaining healthy hair and a healthy scalp is key to healthy locs and the most important step is properly cleansing the scalp and hair.
You see when you avoid properly cleansing the locs, along with the matted un-shed hair, you are also allow flaking skin cells, dirt and grim, as well as elemental pollutants to build-up in loc. This compromising the overall healthy of the hair and thus the loc. With all of this foreign elements they create barriers that prevent the hair from being able to absorb the proper moisture and nutrients applied topically.
This build-up essentially can begin to slowly suffocate the hair. This can cause excessive damage that can and will lead to breakage. This is something that we want to avoid at all cost as much as possible.
Aside from the Aesthetic reasons, locs hold a lot of air pollutants as well. As we are battling the Covid-19 Pandemic, maintaining proper hygiene practices are going to be essential overall. I will share more information on locs and combating illnesses, germs, and virus in an upcoming post.
So, if you are anything like me having healthy, strong, hair is what you want right? I know you do, we exude the most confidence when we know we look are best. Its like a boost to want to conquer the world around us.
So whether you wash at home or come into the salon, it is important to also be sure to use the proper products as well. This also leads into to step 2 for maintaining healthy locs. For cleansing your locs you want to be using products that are 'Water Soluble' or in basic terms can be rinsed away with plain water. You also want to be sure that the products you use infuse moisture into the scalp, hair follicle, and hair strands throughout the process. Some tried and true products I personally swear by would be by the Renpure product line, Tresemme, and Garner Fructis. (*Disclaimer, I am not paid to promote these products I actually use items in these lines).
I also recommend at least once a month to use a clarifying shampoo, I personally use the Dr. Bonner's Pure Castile Soap for this process. Following up on the cleansing of the hair and scalp, you want to continue to replenish the moisture lost during the cleansing phase. Against popular opinion you actually should be conditioning your locs with conditioner. Here the same rules apply when selecting a good, quality conditioner. You want to be mindful to not use a conditioner formulated for detangling of the hair. In this instance you want to select one formulated to increase moisture to the hair and scalp, so again I recommend the same brands previously mentioned with focus on the products in the lines designed for curly hair or have essential oils infused into them like Tea Tree oil or Grapeseed Oil.
After, washing and conditioning the locs and scalp, now you want to massage in a light loose oil. Begin with the root and massage to the end of the locs. Its is key to do this while the hair is still wet. This will help to seal in the moisture your are adding as well as providing some much needed topical nutrients for the hair.
After all the work you did to cleanse and rehydrate the locs, you want to be sure to properly dry the locs. If you elect to air dry be sure that you keep the locs loose and unstyled to ensure that they dry completely. Unlike loose hair locs can take a couple of days to fully dry depending on how thick they are. For planning on retwisting the locs, the general rule for maintaining healthy locs is to retwist between 4-6 weeks. Retightening your locs sooner then this window can lead to over twisting and thus cause breakage at the base of the loc over time.
Overall, if you build a solid care regimen in the beginning you can expect a wonderful and healthy loc journey.
Key Takeaways from Beautifully Loc'd:
Develop a strong maintenance routine and stick with it
Wash and condition your locs regularly; at minimum 1x ever 1-2 weeks
Moisturize your locs every 3-4 days with water and loose oils
Be sure to follow the instructions on the product bottle to get the most effective results from the products used.
When rinsing be sure to keep rinsing under warm water until the water runs clear. Be prepared to spend a little longer on this step then you would on loose hair.
Use the pads of your finger tips to be sure to scrub the scalp, avoid using your fingernails. This will help to stimulate blood flow as well as agitate dead skin cells and dander from the scalp.
Always protect your locs by covering with a satin or silk bonnet, pin-up when possible to prevent snagging, and style gently to prevent excess tension of breakage
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