Hair Razing: Thrilling Adventures in Black Girl Curls - Part 3

When I started seriously considering locking my hair I put in enough research to write an undergraduate paper. Locs aren't a hairstyle to be undertaken lightly. They're a pretty permanent commitment; if you're tired of them, your options are cutting them or spending days and heaps of conditioner painstakingly combing them out. Thankfully Jo and More Hair Salon came through for me again. The salon owner, Ms. Loretta, had the most beautiful set of sisterlocks, locs done with a specific technique that allows for smaller, easier to manipulate locs and less stress on your scalp.

(A few weeks after I'd gotten them done. Cute, right?)

This was it, my next hairstyle. I could have the locs I coveted while still being able to style my hair as needed for performances. After three days and eighteen how in a salon chair (beauty seriously takes time, y'all) I had a head full of my own sisterlocks. I was thrilled. The first year of having them takes some work. The sisterlock method doesn't use any product to hold the hair together so you need to be careful that your locs don't unravel when you wash your hair. I was also back to not really knowing what to do with my hair. The bad part was I moved to London and away from Jo's styling prowess. The good part? I didn't really have to do much of anything to my hair. I was good to get up in the morning, shake my hair a bit too loosen my bed head, and walk out the door. If I wanted to look fancier I'd either at my hair and let it dry in large braids to get some volume or roller set it the night before.

(Small curls from an editorial shot I did. That face is beat though! )

In my five years of having sisterlocs I've had nearly no issues. I dyed them red (I make a fetching redhead if I do say so myself) and my hair is longer than I think it's ever been. I have lots of people assume they're braids but that just makes it a great when I hear "Are those sisterlocs?". It makes me feel like I'm in an exclusive club (more on that another time). With my reinvention I've also been trying to actually style my hair more often, to show some folks who may not know how versatile sisterlocs really are (I had a make-up artist on a shoot tell me straight up that she didn't know what to do with my hair).

(Versatility. BOOM!)

Is this my forever hairstyle? I don't know. But I am going to keep living them while I have them. What hairstyle have you always wanted but never tried? When you imagine your perfect hairstyle, what does it look like? Love, The EGOTist Read Hair Razing - Part 1 Read Hair Razing - Part 2