CAUGHT UP IN THE LOC...ALL ABOUT HAIR

 I am happy to introduce to you, Olivia Davina from the Netherlands!  She is noted for her beautiful, thick locs showcasing jewels from the Fierce & Fine Collection/Zenith Collection (larger loc category).  She has been an avid supporter of my business over there across the sea, and I am very grateful.  We get a chance to learn all about her loc-keeping secrets, and what it is she's really passionate about!  Stay tuned for some Q & A.

1.  Tell us a bit about yourself (Name, where you grew up, do for a living, your passion)

Ola! My name is Olivia, I was born and grew up in The Netherlands. First in the big city Amsterdam and now I’m located in Almere, nearby. From origin I'm from Surinam, South America. I study Psychology and my passion is playing bass. I'm a bassist in my Reggae- band: 'The Dubbeez'. Right now we are busy with releasing our second single called; 'Hangover'. What I like most about this band, is that I can express my creativity and spend time with lovely people with the same passion. 

2.  When did you start your locs? What do you like best about them and least about them?

       I started with my locs when I was 17 years old. I'm 24 years old right now, so that makes it 7 years that I have them. What I like most about my hair is how thick my hair has grown since I went natural. It also doesn't take a lot time to do my hair. If I have to say something about my locs what I don't like...then I think the fact that I also like braids or an afro and that I can't switch just like that. Because creating locs takes a few years.

3. What are some of your staples for loc maintenance?

I don't use any products for my hair. Only almond oil or coconut oil for my hair and scalp. I go to my hairdresser once in two months to do my hair. The technique that he uses is with a crochet pin.

4. What is the mission/purpose of your band?

My mission with my band is to tour around the world. Play music and make a living of it. I don't need a lot, but that is something that my heart desires. I will always play music, if I can make a living out of it, I'm safe!

5.  What piece of advice would you give someone who wanted to start a band? 

I've been playing in bands since I was 18 years old. That means you’re a team member and you don't just have to deal with yourself, but with others also. My part is not only to play my bass, but I'm also the leader of the band, which I think is the hardest part, because people don't always do what you want them to do. As a leader I think it's important to be able to listen to another (stand open), to make decisions in benefit of the group and to create a safe environment for everyone. You also grow in every little thing you do, don't be afraid to look in the mirror and step up your game. My advice is to surround yourself with people you can learn from and people who support you. Also be someone we can learn from and someone who supports another in what he or she is doing. Give and receive, that's how life works.

6. Which Tiffany's Loc Jewels piece is your favorite and why?

I received a package from Tiffany, from America to Holland. Which I'm very happy about, because I don't know where to buy loc jewels in Holland. I bought some, but my locs are thick so they won't ever fit. The jewels from Tiffany do fit and if I have to pick one that is my favourite, then I would say the one with my initial on it (The Untamed Loc Jewel). That makes it personal.  

 *****If you would like to read more about Olivia and her current projects, you can find her at:

www.instagram.com/xoliviadavinax

www.facebook.com/thedubbeez

~~~HOW TO DEAL WITH LOC ENVY~~~

“I love her locks, they’re nice and thick!”, “Oooh, those sisterlocks are pretty, I wonder what it would be like to have locs that small”, “Her color is the bom!” “I love the length of her locks. I can’t wait til mine get that long.” Loc Envy. We all have it. Let’s just admit it. For those of us who’ve taken the loc plunge, we’ve already signed up for some self-maintenance, watching our locs go through its stages, and letting it grow. But while its growing, we’ve got a little loc envy to deal with. So how do we deal with it?

Well first, give yourself permission to admire someone elses’ locs. That is healthy and it is okay. It allows us to enjoy the wait while we are reaching toward our hair goals. Admiring someone elses’ locs or their journey can be a good thing because we can learn from them and hopefully steer our loc process in the right direction. However, there are a few things to remember.

CELEBRATE YOUR JOURNEY

Realize that while another person’s locs are nice, yours will be fantastic also. Rest in the fact that your locs are unique because they are growing from your head, and you are unique. Just as God has made no two snowflakes the same, know that no two locs are the same and therefore no two peoples’ head of locs will be the same. Celebrate your locs and your journey.

CONCENTRATE ON THE HEALTH OF YOUR LOCS

Concentrate on the health of your locs. Research products, compare results against your own skin and scalp. What may work for some one else, may not work out well for you. For instance, some people may have a peanut allergy and can not use certain products that others deem successful in the treatments for their hair. Your results may be slightly different than someone elses. Concentrate on providing moisture to your locs, tying your hair up at night or sleeping on a silk pillow case. Seek out products made specifically for locs, which have a lighter consistency, and won’t cause buildup. Hair products can be somewhat like makeup, or perfume, in that, what may look right on someone else, may not quite look so well on you. Accept what works and dismiss what doesn’t work.

TRY NEW STYLES

Try interesting styles with your own locs at your current length. There are some short loc styles that are so cute, which cannot be done once your hair gets longer. Enjoy this stage by playing around with different looks and accessories, to invent a new look for yourself. Perhaps, let your loctician try a new style on you, which they think will better fit your face for a change. Why not? It can’t hurt.

LOCS HAVE HISTORY

Understand that while you have a bit of loc envy, you may not know the history of another person’s locs. They may have started with two-strand twists, then switched to tightening. They may have never used color before, while another may have colored their hair ten times! Another loc wearer may never have styled their hair much, while someone else may have constantly styled their hair. Unfortunately, some may have gone through a health crisis, or more stress at certain times of their life and have taken different medications, which can affect the strength of our locs. And finally, what we eat may be different. Some people follow a more nutritious food regime than others, some people get more rest and drink more water, and so on. Strive to be the best you can be and give your body and locs the nourishment they need to grow in the best environment.

All in all, though it’s alright to have a little admiration, the most admiration should be in admiring your own!

XOXO,

Tiffany

I’m so excited to introduce to you a fellow loc beauty, Kanyika Yorke, from Toronto, Canada. She is one of many who will be interviewed on my blog to share their loc journey, loc stages, products and maintenance. She has been so supportive in promoting the Tiffany’s Loc Jewels brand on her Instagram and blog. Kanyika is celebrated because of her smooth and even locs! Many even say, she has "the smoothest locs they've ever seen". Stay tuned for some Q & A to get to know her better!

1. Tell us a bit about yourself (Name, where you grew up, do for a living, your passion)

LOCS! LOCS! LOCS! Sometimes I love 'em, and sometimes I hate 'em.  Well, I don't really hate my actual locs, I hate the mistakes I made with my locs which are currently yielding this present result.  What result would that be, you may ask?  Why would you have issues with your locs Tiffany when they are long and beautiful?  What could you possibly see wrong with them?

Well, years I ago I wanted layers, and I was deathly afraid to go to a stylist, any stylist, it didn't matter if you were a loctician, a colorist, one who cuts, or only styles locs, I simply wanted to do it myself, because I trusted myself.  And so, my logic was, if I cut it, then only I can be upset with whatever mistakes I make with my locs.  And that was true.  Definitely!  So I set out to self-teach myself how to cut my locs into layers.  I was successful in trimming my all-natural hair while it was a 'fro and maintained it beautifully for three and a half years.  Rarely did you see any split ends or "dead hair", and my hair was thicker and stronger than ever since I did the big chop back to natural.  All in all, I decided to get onto Youtube and search 'how to cut your hair into layers yourself', and studied and studied and studied and studied, until I felt confident enough that I wouldn't screw my own hair up.  Well, I remember doing the cutting in parts, starting with the bottom first and then working my way up.  It looked good for awhile, until I came to the part where your locs frame your face.  One side I managed to cut absolutely perfect, but the other side....well, not so much.  I ended up cutting one side across in a straight line by accident instead of a gradual, layered framing.  Since that was wrong and looked horrible, I had to cut even more in order to "make it look right", ha ha.  At this point you are probably laughing, and well, it is kinda funny.  But later on, oh boy, later on, when it grows out, its tough to tweak and watch one side of your locs look more lopsided than the other.  Now years later, when I want all my locs one length, its a little harder to achieve and will take much longer.

Because of how I've colored my hair down through the years, the ends would pop off.  Some of it is perfectly natural, and some of it is due to color treatments which I also did myself with box dye. Eeww! You hair stylists out there are probably saying right now, and that's right, eeww! Now my hair looks good only when its curly or crinkled.  Every time I wear it straight, I like it for the first 24 hours, and then I hate it.  I'm patiently waiting for the day when I can wear it all one length.

The lesson learned: please go to a professional, no matter how much you'd like to do it yourself.  Spend the money, pay them what they're worth, seek out the best in your area and get referrals. Then go in with a peaceful assurance that you are in good hands.  Don't make the mistakes that I did, which has years of consequence.  But such is life, isn't it?

I've pulled my hair up to the top of my head, in one of my nifty hairties, and had to learn to art of tucking.  Sometimes, I wasn't quite sure what to do with my topknot.  Should I make it into a donut bun?Have it swayed off to the side? Leave some out in the front? Some out in the bottom? Decisions?! Decisions?! But what ever I finally decided to do, I had to learn the art of tucking.

I always started with one of my For The Gym Hairties, where I could establish my base creation, if you will.  Then after I've constructed some sort of form, I'd start to wrap my locs around in various directions, until finally I had several loose ends (loose locs) sticking out and needed to be tucked.  What's so nice about our hair is its versatility and how we don't really need bobby pins and such.  If you have a good hairtie, or even if you don't, you can still create a decent style.

So once I've got my hair just as I like it, I'll grab one of my gemstone hairties for the finale'!  I'll place it around the front, side or back, and anchor it in such a way that the gems get the most visibility.  Usually, I'll double it up, to facilitate the level of tightness I'm looking for. A comfortable accent is just what's needed to finish the look!

Xoxo,

Tiffany

Please check out my gemstone hairtie collection and choose which one you'd like.

I'm sure we all love to give our locs special treatment! It's fun to spend time baby-ing our locs with different oils, and all the right conditioners.  But going blonde requires even more TLC!  This is because you have already stripped the hair of its top layers and caused it to become weaker and more porous.  Because of this, manufacturers have created many different products for those who choose to wear color.  In this article, I will share what I am currently using and loving, and what I used before I went blonde.

Prior to coloring my hair blonde, I used many different shampoos and conditioners, and didn't really have many that I disliked at all.  I used Shea Moisture, TheraNeem Shampoo, Crème of Nature, Alba Botanicals, Fair Trade Organic Black Soap (both liquid and bar soap), a sampling of different organic shampoos/conditioners, and different oils to apply, such as Olive Oil, Castor Oil, and Coconut Oil.  I loved to mix a few different kinds together at once.  Many times due to the consistency of the traditional shampoos, I tended to water down my shampoos to decrease the level of build up on my locs.  I do have to say my staple is black soap in bar format.

Lightening my locs required me to add to this repertoire, so I picked up Redken All Soft Shampoo, and their corresponding Blonde Idol mask conditioners, as well as Matrix Biolage Shampoo.  I'm also using what I was asked to buy to prep my locs for the initial color treatment as well, which was Joico Moisture Recovery, and Redken Anti-Snap Leave-in Conditioner.  So far I am very pleased with the products and how it is maintaining my hair.  To keep my locs moisturized and fresh, I'll use my Natural Hair Mist every morning and evening.  My current favorites are Pursuit, Delight and Euphoria.  I also keep a bottle in my gym bag and purse to stay fresh and moisturized in this Texas heat. 

Photos above were taken directly after the initial color, prior to product application and twisting. Photos below were from a braid out, two weeks later.  Bottom two photos were after products were applied, palm-rolling roots, etc.  

 Till the next post, 

XOXO

Tiffany

I decided to venture back into the land of blondom after being brown, red and natural black for many years and was finally ready for a change.  I had previously been blonde when wearing an afro during my time as a naturally curly gal.  I had always done my hair myself, and only went to the salon for two-strand twist styles on occasion.  I had had a few bad experiences with colorists turning my hair orange, and then going from blond back to natural black (my hair turned out green and other shades, mind you, when it was not fashionable to do so) years later as a loc-wearer. 

So what convinced me to going back to a professional? Well, I was looking for more products to lift my color two more levels up, and an Ulta stylist shared that if I planned to go to a lighter shade that it was imperative I look for a salon that uses Olaplex, which prevents further color damage to my hair.  She proceeded to tell me of all the horror stories her clients had had coming to her after they had somehow fried their hair, and although I had the confidence that I could once again color my hair blonde, I somehow took this as a warning that I should heed this time.  Plus, I had heard so many great things about this "Olaplex", that I was curious to try it for myself and see if was all that it cracked up to be. I searched on Instagram #olaplex, #dallas, to find a salon that might suit me.  I stumbled upon Pepperbox Design www.pepperboxdesign.net in Plano, Texas with colorist, Sara Reed. She stated that she had worked on locs before, and even wore locs herself years ago!

Well, for sure, they were right!  Olaplex does hold up to its high standard.  It prevents the bonds that would break in your hair during the coloring process, not to break.  (See photo explaining this below).  However, before going to the salon, I must first tell you of the products I was asked to get prior to coming in for the service. 

I was asked to get a protein leave-in conditioner, and a moisturizing conditioner, and see if I could do a couple of treatments before going in.  I was able to do one or two applications, actually using both products as a leave-in, even though the moisturizer you were to wash out.  I figured, what the heck, why not this time, it will wash out in a few days anyways. I bought Redken Extreme Anti-Snap Protein Leave-in and Joico Moisture Recovery.  Both left my hair soft and prepared for the service. From start to finish I was pleased with how my hair turned out.  I was to return for a follow-up session to remove more of those pesky, lingering red tones and actually lay some color.

Going blonde is a process, and is not easily achieved overnight.  If you choose to make this decision, be sure to arm yourself with all of the latest information as to how to make this a smooth, healthy transition.  Stay tuned to learn of all the products I sampled, and which products I loved even before going blonde.

XOXO,

Tiffany