Loc Me Tae

2020–>2025–2026

With several variations of a distant Targaryen cousin to boo, 🍅🍅, over the past 6 years.

It hair. It flourishes, it’s abundant, it’s versatile & when it’s too much (or too hot in H-Town) .haute hands me the ✂️

What combo of colors will I go for in my future throw of boredom? Find out next time on Dragon Ball Z

Color always done by Zakiya in HOU

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Proof of Life, or whatever the kids call FOMO
I got to a few installs—back, to back, to back months. One of the reasons I began doing SL/microlocs is because of my own testimony & being living proof that hair doesn’t have to be on your mind 24/7 nor a priority everyday.
When asked about how long it takes to do my hair in the morning, yall really don’t believe that time is actually spent elsewhere, like scrolling on TikTok, rubbing my feet together in bed. Sisterlocks/microlocs maintenance require little upkeep.

Once I started doing installs for these small locs, I also realized a range of different emotions hit me AND my client, as we spend the next 12 to 24 hours together in a room, with unlimited streaming, phones & media. Like the stages of grief or getting a fresh set of braids— aint s**t funny after hour 8. Then it gets funny again at hour 10. There’s only so much tv one can binge in a day. Yes, I know yalls asses be hurting, thats why we take breaks. And shoutout to clients who dont order seafood boils for your lunch🥲✌️

Here, this install took roughly 16 hours. And these are all the emotions me & my clients go thru. Once its done, we cool again & I’m on to the next appointment😂

Truly, being a choosey lover about anything for yourself (or where your money goes) is sport & self-care at the damn time.
When it comes to SL or microlocs, product-wise, not much is needed. Still, the smallest things make a difference in appearance & condition of your hair.
Cotton pillow case. Ew—brother eww. Time to upgrade.
Not enough water in your diet? Yes, it can affect the health of your hair so put that 3rd cup of ☕️ down.
Listed are products & tips in my vault that I use even today, 5 years into being loc’d.
Maintenance is apart of everyone’s haircare; embrace it & nurture both in & out.
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Going blonde spring 23’, i knew my maintenance/regimen would increase from a ⭐️ to ⭐️⭐️⭐️ wanted level on GTA.
Meaning quick wash & goes with a lil moisture to the scalp take a little longer.

I made the decision to go blonde once I knew my locs were in their elder/mature state, meaning they’d dropped (no shrinkage), the locking pattern was apparent & established, and I no longer needed to BRAID & BAND.

AKA around my 4 year anniversary of having
I say this out-loud simply because color/bleach is a detailed topic I always discuss in consultations for installs or transfers.

Color it before the install, I encourage— and even if you don’t, you’re still going to have to wait minimum 2 years before you can introduce color/bleach to them again.

Don’t stop reading the post now, sis. I know you ain’t like that answer. I don’t give a damn.

Coloring baby locs or while in your teen phase of locking will cause so much slippage, holes, shedding & unraveling, you’ll hinder the locking process tenfold.

And then you also lifted a level or three? Phew— it’s taking even longer to lock.
Because that’s the whole point of these things. Is to loc up to add more leisure to your life.

Color is a beautiful thing but something I dont greenlight for clients until I know for sure that their locs are ready. The same practice went for me.
Being blonde now, mainly consists of fighting the brassiness & dryness that comes with lifting. Often with any type of hair, maintaining requires a purple shampoo/conditoner combo.

I found mines with alma extract conditoner mixed in with violet cream conditioner & daddy-o shampoo. After a good shampoo & scratch of the scalp, I load both products on scalp & locs— go scroll tiktok for 15 to 25 minutes of 🧠rot, then 🚿 with cool water.

This combo (minus the tiktok) has kept the ash blonde color intact, shiny, soft & moisture intact.
My last color touch up was in March & it still looks great. So—who’s thinking of color?

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Coloring locs has become one of my favorite subjects this past year.
Maybe because im a natural blonde now🙂‍↔️

Or maybe, because summers returned, the tan lines are ready to debut & its just some ting about popping up in a new hair color at the bbq in your fave sundress with a chilled wine cooler in hand.

But with color you always have to be aware, it will grow out and you can either color again or leave it be in the mean time.

The first 3 photos is my clients color, grown out over a year with trims here & there to keep a comfortable length. The crimsons faded to a nice auburn brown thats given an ombre effect with her new growth.

Her crimson from summer 23’ was bold & her roots a tinge of burgundy, that lasted her thru the holidays🎄

Now, will she return to coloring her hair? Its all a personal choice of if, when & what color she’ll do next.

Either way its fun & its summertime. If your locs are MATURE & healthy then I say by all means just into the summer with a splash🌈

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Hair color brought to you by Zakiya’s blessed hands at the here in Houston.
Lack of decent photos in DC, brought to you by Kevin & his weaponized incompetence to understand lighting & angles.

DC is back on list of places to return. Im a person that can visit spots repeatedly & find something new every time. I also enjoy familiarity when I visit & DC gave me reasons to return along with just seeming to blend in & vibe. Nobody was on time except & the 🦪🦪🦪 were plentiful.
It was cold, it was culture shock, so much to learn from the countless museums, monuments & history at every turn—And a beef with the entire country of Ethiopia was ignited while visiting 14th street. Please respect my privacy while I prepare a rumble in the jungle with them😂.

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Texture shots to show:
A) Im still alive
B) Having 300+ locs on your head means every individual loc looks different.

Clients will always ask, “This loc looks weird. Why?”
And my genuine reply in my head is, “Locs just be doing ish.”
Not the most professional but, I clean it up before it passes my lips🤫.

The loc’ing process always starts mid loc & works its way down & up to the new growth, hence the need for a retie every few weeks.
If your hair is long (over 6 inches at install) it’s going to take longer to loc, plus how you care for it & youre protecting your unsealed ends.

Youre going to have curly ends for AWHILE. And no—I DO NOT RECOMMEND KEEPING SAID CURLY ENDS CURLY. Let them seal.
Yall gon stop listening to these ladies on here keeping their ends open for clickbait—working against the loc’ing process eventually will cause issues😤.
But we’re all grown🙄

Either way, you’ll experience bunching, curly ends, swelling, shrinkage, frizz, some locs sealing at the ends & some may keep a curl or two. Hell—some might not even make it & need to be combined with a sister.

They’ll never all grow at the same length & yes we all experience marrying at the scalp between reties. It’s just their nature.

But don’t be insecure with how they look. Theyre just doing their thing & enjoying the freedom of little no manipulation.

Remember sis, besides wanting length (yall aint got to lie to me, thats everyone main goal Narcissus😂❤️🪞) the point of these locs was to make your life easier. To make your routine lighter. To TRULY wash & go for any occasion.

Enjoy them—and watch them flourish💐

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Behold—
The power of hotel lighting, a root touch up & flexirods💛

Ive decided to stay on this course of blonde because I can genuinely say there’s a 82% chance I wont be blonde again after this era😂

But I will be keeping the locs & when the timings right again— I’ll switch color combo.

Bleach/color does add extra dryness/itchiness of the scalp & combatting that has made for a chore. But I have the loc conditioners & hydrating sprays on deck plus a satin pillow case to combat breakage.

Always consult with your loctician about coloring your locs, especially if youre in this micro/SL community. Newbies under a year/ year in a half—dont even think about it.

But once you hit your stride with ends sealing proper then the convo can occur. I waited 4 years for personal reasons—but my first two years it wasn’t possible due to my locs still going thru the locking process.
Which I hope yall realize at this point starts from within the loc. What you see on the outside means the hairs been doing to work & is ready to show.

So enjoy your journey & maybe play around with hair wax or these filters that add a bit of color. And remember to enjoy it.

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Your favorite persons has been in her filler arc this summer☀️ but they doesn’t stop the work.

I strive here, in this sisterlocks/microlocs arena, to show not only the locs flowing past one’s ear or nape—but to the equal beauty of shorter locs & color.
If I constructed a pie chart of reasons why folks get locs, I’d bet my right pinky toe 50% is to achieve length.

Nothing wrong with this goal. But while on your journey from 4 inches of baby locs to a 24 inch buss down of rope, keep dem blinders off & enjoy/embrace every phase.

We could have a whole convo on how Eurocentric beauty standards got still hating yourselves with short hair, no matter the medium (🗣️cough, cough: getting extensions off the rip when 82% of yall dont need em).

But I’m not at the podium for that. I’m here to say take a photo of your hair from beginning to now. Embrace having your locs at every length & phase. Get them cute pins, scarves & ribbons now & use em.

Starting with shorter locs is better anyway—once they hit a certain point, they “drop” and shrinkage becomes a thing of the past.

Anyone starting with long locs has to fight shrinkage twice as long due to the loc process taking longer to go up/down the loc, therefore all that length disappears for awhile. Simple math, innit?

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Its been a brutal summer☀️ so far and yet one is required to leave their AC controlled home & venture outside to play…

Besides sunscreen & shades, sis, get you one of these visor hats. They come small visor sizes for tennis🎾 to this comfortably oversized brim for great 180 protection.

Having sister or microlocs, this is THE sunhat to have in your arsenal: mainly because it allows the top of you head to breathe.
Trapping locs under a fisher or bucket hat this summer will cause a damn heatstroke. Trust and believe I would know (Key West 2021, I was BOILING spaghetti under that bucket hat🤣).

You can wear your locs with this up or down—but seeing as how its so darn hot, you’ll probably have your locs off your neck. These visors work well with short & long hair. Always hydrate both inside🚰 and out🧊 & keep cool this summer.

Available on or any local sporting goods store (S/O to for holding it down) grab them in all the colors & keep that pretty face in the shade & the sun out ya eyes…

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One thang we gon do round’ here is trim a branch of a 🌳. Both literally, figuratively & with locs.

Combining locs (AKA dragon heads) is a natural occurrence with hair, especially these small/tiny guys. Combining locs happen when a loc is struggling & cannot be mended. Meaning its struggle starts at the base (root).

It can happen to “perfectly” good locs later on after the teenage phase—but normally you start to see who’s going to make it & who will need to combine HORIZONTALLY with their neighbor, pretty early in the game.

There’s such a dramatic stigma around combining/trimming when needed. I know Yall all want the rapunzel fantasy with 500+ locs looking like shiny yarn—but babes…

Combining locs happens to us all. And this is what stylists (locticians) see in the back of your head once combined & time has passed. The weaker loc will branch its self off & start to thin at the connecting spot, ready for them ✂️.

Your hair is really a living, breathing tomato plant, sis. And if you know anything about plants, trimming the weaker branch focuses growth where it needs to be🌱

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