Tagged Again!

Okay, so I was tagged again. The last time, I didn't do a very good job following the rules, so I will try to do better! I am also taking advantage and posting more pics of my latest retightening--I really like the way my hair looks today!

Here are the rules:
1.Link to the person that tagged you..... I was tagged by HappilyNappilyNish
2.Post the rules on your blog
3.Share 6 non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself that have not been shared already
3.Tag 6 random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs
4.Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog

I'm tagging

1. Sereni-T
2. Loc'd Lady
3. Wendi
4. Ayankha
5. Brenda
6. Tammy

Here are my 6 random facts:

1. I am currently teaching African-American History 2 on the web at Ursuline College.
2. I drink coffee every day and am a snob about it--I have to buy whole beans and grind them right before brewing. Despite their advertising, McDonald's McCafe options are not good coffee!
3. The experience of teaching medical students has made me more critical of the medical profession. I have a regular doctor--and you should too!!--but I ask lots of questions. It is a partnership, not a dictatorship.
4. My two dogs (labs) set of my house alarm at least once a month.
5. I work so much I have accumulated almost 8 weeks of vacation!
6. I am singing in a concert on February 8th, at a friend's church.
   

I Think I Finally Got It!!

I think I finally figured out the best way to do this retightening thang so that I get the results I want and don't spend the whole weekend on my hair. Let me know what you think about these pictures, please!

First, I banded and washed my hair thoroughly with bar soap--yes bar soap. I really needed to strip all the stuff out of it and get my scalp sqeaky clean--it had been too long between washes.

Then, working from the back, I used my fingers to do the interlocking--if you haven't seen Nubian Locked Princess' YouTube video on this, check it out--instead of the NappyLocs tool. I used a little of Carol's Daughter Loc Butter on wet hair. After the loc was as tight as I could get with my finger method, I used a little Organic Root Stimulator Twist n Lock Gel to smooth it down. I held finished locs in place with metal clips and kept a spray bottle handy to keep misting.

Once my whole head was done, I spritzed my hari with Carol's Daughter Black Vanilla Leave In Conditioner (my scalp needed the moisture after the bar soap).

The whole process took about 6 hours--much improved from 10-14 that I spent the last three times I retightened! And I like these results much better.

Retightening #3 December 2008

I retightened about 2 weeks ago, but didn't take pictures until today. I was way overdo for a session--I was at a conference in DC and intended to do it in the evenings, but my luggage was lost for two days!

I retightened a couple last night because I had some slippage. For my second retightening, I thought I might have retightened too much. My head hurt til they loosened up some in a couple days. So this time, I didn't tighten as much as I could have. I think I actually undertightened. Thus the need, just two weeks later, to retighten some again.

So, I am working on finding the right balance. I am also joining some of my braids/locks. After 3 months, I think some are just too small, especially given my hair texture.

I am beginning to wonder if it would have been better to interlock my hair (or have Sisterlocks installed), instead of starting with braids. I would have still gone to DIY. But the braided part of my hair won't lock, so I will eventually have to cut it. I did this with my first set of locks. I started with much bigger braids, though (only had about 100 on my head). Once my dreads were shoulder length, I cut the braid part off. It just looked really weird, especially after the dreads got to that mature, swollen stage. I don't think I'll wait til my hair grows out that much!

Another thing I am struggling with is the time it takes to retighten. When I had traditional locks, I washed my hair every couple weeks and spent only about an hour twisting the new growth with some lock gel. Retightening takes a lot more time. This last session took me about 8 hours. I think I may take some time every week to tighten, if I can manage it. We will see.