Sunday, December 23, 2007

After a Year



Wow, even though my hair has always grown long, I don't think I've let it grow quite this long since I was pregnant with my son (over 17 years ago!). So this is where my SLs have brought me after a mere year and I really like the results. Looking at these pics makes me wish I'd have remembered to measure my hair while it was down yesterday, but I didn't think of it at the time.


I have an up-do at the moment which I am also loving, so I won't be taking it a down for a minute. My consultant and I have agreed to start clipping off the relaxer at my Jan 08 retightening. Unless I change my mind and delay the inevitable a bit longer, I plan to have all of the relaxer off by the spring (I need at least a little something to keep my head warm until then). I think I have about 6" of natural SL'd hair right now so it will feel and maybe look like a drastic change, but at the same time I am looking forward to seeing how my locks look "totally naturale".
I feel especially blessed to be able to pass on the experience and message that if for any reason you are a sister that prefers to keep some or all of your relaxed length while your SLs are developing, first of all know that there is no shame and nothing wrong with this approach. This is your journey and, as such, you never need to feel that you have to justify keeping your relaxed ends for or to anyone. Assuming you've chosen SisterLocks because you want to go totally natural, you'll likely already be aware that the relaxer has to go eventually and you'll want that. When, how fast and how much is totally up to you, keeping in mind input from your consultant. Second, keeping your relaxed hair can be done without bunching and tangling drama, as long as your consultant knows how to manage it correctly and you follow her instructions. There are some consultants that won't install SLs with any relaxer still in the hair. This is way cool too. In my case, I was extremely fortunate to find a consultant who, among other things, knew how to work with relaxed ends and who also put my relaxed hair in the SLs pattern (as you'll see elsewhere in my blog and/or in my Fotki, I began this journey with approximately 3" of natural hair and my total length was at least 8", probably more). It would be many months before I realized that she had even done this; I guess I just never thought about it until I kept reading posts about others having trouble with their relaxed ends. It was sort of like a lightbulb moment. Since relaxed hair will never lock (at least prob not in my lifetime), my consultant did this for the sake of manageability and consistency (I'm actually guessing this because I keep forgetting to ask her why she made this choice, but knowing her professionalism and dedication to her work ... ). Besides being extremely precise, my consultant also has the added advantage of being very fast, so any extra time added on to do this during my installation was minimal. Thank goodness! Just more proof for me that Divine Guidance led me to her (and Lord knows I said some serious prayers about this thang before I jumped in) and to Sisterlocks!!

Sunday, December 16, 2007

2nd Charlotte Sisterlocks Gathering

In case I didn't already know it, I don't have time to blog, at least not as regularly as I would like. That being said, I'm sure you've heard by now through the blog grapevine that we had a grand time last Saturday (Dec 8) celebrating our SL journeys together. Extra special for me was the fact that I got to celebrate being SLd for one whole year on that same day! It was truly wonderful getting to hang out with Carmen/beautiful1 again, and a little longer this time. Keeping up with her personal journey has been so inspiring. And her creativity with Tomoka's Twists is growing off the chain! Check it out ...


You'll see more of Carmen's talent below because I don't think any of us could walk away without at least one Twist, Tie or set, and of course we were more than happy to model some of her pieces when the opportunity arose.





There were several times when I found myself just being quiet and staring, trying to drink in all of the unique beauty exuding from our locs. Our collective SL journeys spanned the timeline from just a few months to several years, and our loc length spanned from neck, shoulders, to "sitting on it". Man, I thought I'd gotten a good pic of Lauren's "sit on it" length, but I don't seem to have one - darn! And to my further surprise ... I guess I was so busy taking pics of these ladies (I sure hope I didn't forget anyone) that I forgot to have someone take pics of me with my camera. We did get one of my vest though for my Crochet Passion blog ;-) ...
(Not that I ended up needing to wear this vest that day; it wasn't until I stepped foot outside for the first time that evening that I discovered how unseasonably mild it was outside.)
But no worries, we have all agreed to get together again in the spring, so there'll be one of many more Charlotte SL gathering photo opps to look forward to. Besides, I've previously posted some "almost a year" pics on my blog and will surely have more to come.
Now I've purposefully shied away from naming names here because I know I will forget (at least) one. However, BlackRussian (a much more dedicated blogger than me and also a true pleasure to finally meet in person after reading so many of her great posts) has them nailed on her blog. I'll never forget any of the faces and warm personalities though. What a blessed"gem"lady I am to have met these ladies in person and benefited from their experiences, tips and sisterhood.
Happy Holidays ladies!!
I so appreciate the fact that you took the time out to come from near and far (very far in some cases) to hang out with us. I know we'll continue to keep in touch and I can't wait to see what the next few months holds for each of us on our SLs journeys.