Bradelocz FAQ: The Beginning Stages
August 16, 2009 by Cherie
Filed under Videos, What's New
Here I answer some common questions about Bradelocz and the beginning/infant stages…
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Cherie,
Very informative video and beautiful locs.
You’re your own product infomercial.
I am sooo happy that you have decided to make videos covering braidlocz!! I have bought your e-book, but I find the YouTube videos to be very helpful as I need visual reinforcement. I started my braidlocz in December 2008. I look forward to *hearing* more from you. Your locz are beautiful!!! I am inspired…
Hey Cherie! I purchased your Braidlocz e-book 2 years ago. I braided my hair into 300 braids and ended up taking them down because I could not keep up with the maintenance. I wished that I had just joined them to half that amount. Oh well. Love the fact that you are doing videos now! I now have 1 year old locks (on April 19th) and started them with tst lbut 150. I am subscribing for assistance with maintaining myself. peace&blessings ~robinc
Hi: Cherie
I want to know if you have use henna hair color on your locs. Or do you know someone who has use henna hair color on their locs. Did they like the product on their locs. I have started my locs on July 22, 2009. I n now going to my second month with my locs , I started with two strand twist. This is my third set of locs. I love how locs look and i know that i will not not ever go back to perm hair. I have enjoed your book so far, good info. I am gald that i got your book on locs. I wash my hair for two or three weeks. I have use the aloe vera plant that i have in my home. What i did was took out the gel from the plant and added some water and some tree oil into a bottel. and i use that every day. I also went to a all natureal store and got some alove vera shampoo for my hair and i like how it feels on my hair. I latch my hair with a blind needle that i made and i have the latch hook and i just ordered a napplu locs toll for my hair to see how that works for me. I had a friend who does locs and natural hair to start my locs for me. I will be taking care of my hair myself instead of giving some one all of my money do do it myself. This way i can be in tune to my hair and see the different phrase that it will go thought myself. Thanks for all of your help on starting and taking care of your natural hair.
Thanks You,
Daeon Cabness
Hi Daeon,
No, I’ve never used henna and have no experience with it. I’m glad you’ve found the info helpful and that you’re also finding your own way in this journey! Good job!
im 18 and im starting my locs of braids because when starting the regular way they always unraveled. i was told later that my hair texture was to soft and it would be best to start off with braids.so far its just really fuzzy and i have had them in for about a month now. Im not sure when i should wash my hair or what to actually do with it. I also have a problem with loose hair out side the braids completely, do i just twist them? answering my questions would prove to be a big help thankyou
Oh p.s. to the woman asking about henna my mother who has had locs for 4 years now uses henna as a means of dying her hair and it comes out beautiful. henna only dyes hair one color (red) and is a lot safer than regular dye because it is natural.
Hi Aliya,
The fuzziness is normal, some simple “light” styling will prove to be a temporary fix for that if you need it. In terms of when you should wash it, I advise that people can wash right away, but if your hair is VERY soft (especially if it is on the shorter side), you may need to “braid and band” them before washing. As for the loose hairs, yes you can either wrap, twist or braid into nearby, existing locs. Do you have my Bradelocz ebook ? I think that it would be a great help to you in a lot of ways!
Also, thank you for the henna feedback!
Cherie
Hi Cherie!
I have joining issues!
I Bradelocz’ed my hair two months ago. I love it! I don’t have to use gel and all that kinda stuff for my hair anymore. However, some of my braids have begun to join pretty badly. So have a really thick base. Also, I have a lot of loose hair too. I’m wondering should I take my hair down and start again in order to get rid of the joining ones and to fix the fuzziness or should I just hang in there and let everything keep going as is.
Thanks so much for any advice that you can give to me.
Sincerely,
Denice Barnes
Hi Denice!
Congrats on your new Bradelocz!
The thing you want to do is make sure…absolutely sure…that after each and every time your hair gets wet (shampooing, swimming, etc.) that you go through and separate your roots. No, I wouldn’t recommend that you start all over again but if you can separate those that have joined, try to do so – doing while the hair is wet is better (dare I say even if this means using scissors to gently and CAREFULLY snipping the hairs in between the two conjoined locs – if you’re unsure, don’t do it or have someone else do it) but if not…then just leave them be but from here on out be sure to separate your locs whenever you first notice them trying to “marry” together.
i always wantwed to brad my hair but i don’t know how,so i started looking about the subjet and i found your video wich by the way i think is very informative and your hair looks wonderful;my Q.is:how long does my hair need to be before i start brading it,i usually cut my hair short on the sides and longer on the top;it’s been for about a month since i had a haircut and i want to start doing it;i thank you for your time and i’ll be checking on your answer,thankyou once again and happy holidays.
Hi Vidal,
Thank you for the compliment on my video and hair!
When you say “braid” do you mean just as a style (cornrows, etc.) or to start locs?
Either way, I would say it depends on the braiding skills of yourself or your braider. Some people can braid hair that is really, REALLY short while others (such as myself) can’t braid worth a darn unless the hair is at least 3-4 inches or longer!
Now if you are talking about starting locs, then again, it will depend on the braiding skills AND the texture of your hair. Sometimes the hair can be too soft to braid up for locs at a very short length and should be at least 3 inches to prevent a lot of excessive unraveling.
Did I answer your question?
Cherie
Hi Cherri,
It has taken almost a year to take the journey with locking my hair with the Briadlocz method. I first started with having my hair braided professionally. It was done in September. I thought that I was going to die when I went through this process. It hurt like HELL! I knew that the next step was to start the latch hook method. It was suggessted that I come back in 30 days when I got my first growth. I did not do that thinking about that painful ordeal. After 3 months, I relunctantly went back because my hair was really looking jacked. Any way, I had it latched and that hurt like HELL! After having it done, it is still uncomfortable after 4 days. Should this process be painful? I have not read of anyone complaining about pain. If I have to go through these painful episodes, I gonna just take this down! I’m also afraid of alopecia developing. My hair is soft with a somewhat loose curl.
Is it no pain, no gain? What is your comment?
Hi Vicke,
First, I wanted to congratulate you on your new Braidlocz! Second, NO…it should not “hurt like hell”! Whomever is doing your hair is doing it too tightly. The braids did NOT have to be so tight that they caused you so much pain. Sure there might be some tenderness that should go away by the next day, but it should not have been so bad that it hurt to sleep on it or anything like that…same with the tightening. That definitely should not have still been hurting after 4 days!
So yeah, if you don’t already have it, get a copy of my ebook and learn to do it yourself or find someone else (if possible) who can do it for you but not so tight. I state in my ebook that when you tighten the roots with the latch hook, there should be a little “give” of about 1/8″. I know that just as with braids, some women will suffer pain or inflict it upon others just to have it super-tight and neat (this goes for locks and braids alike) …but in the end, it’s just not worth it.
So, suggest to the person doing your hair to ease up and not go so tightly to the scalp for the sake of making it meticulous and express the pain that you are experiencing. Have her do a couple and whenever you begin to feel it’s uncomfortable, tell her. If she does a few more and same thing…tell her you will find someone else or do it yourself and leave.
Try to hang in there and not take them down…it’s not supposed to be a “no pain, no gain” situation here.
Hope this helps,
Cherie
P.S. Now in retrospect and in all fairness to your stylist, perhaps your Loctician/Braider felt it necessary to make it tight due to the soft, loosely-curled texture of your hair and if this is the case, then perhaps s/he was “somewhat” justified HOWEVER… I’m still not totally convinced that it should have hurt THAT badly. I think all that is needed is some communication between the two of you to find out why your hair is being done so tightly and how it is affecting you, as well as your concerns about alopecia.
But I also wanted to say that once your hair locks up or at the least, settles in to where there is minimal-to-no chance of it unraveling, you definitely will not need your hair to be done as tightly as your stylists may feel is necessary in these beginning stages.
I was wondering if you both latch hooked and palm rolled your hair and also how often. I’ve been growing my braidlocs for about 4 months now and currently I’m doing both. Was wondering what would happen if I only latch hooked my hair every 2 or 3 weeks. Please help! Your hair is beautiful as well!
Hi Jon and thank you for the compliment!
No, I don’t do both. In my earlier years of locking I would, however, latch the roots and then sometimes “finger twirl” the length of the locs. Later on as years went by, I started free-forming and then if there was some reason I wanted a “neater” appearance, I’d lightly palmroll some of my locs along the front and sides. But to latch and palm together, no. You asked “what would happen if you only latch hooked your hair every 2 or 3 weeks?” How often are you currently doing it? Latching should ONLY be done like once a month anyway. Anything more than that is too much and could cause potential weakening and breakage, so if you’re currently doing it more frequently than 2-3 weeks, please stop.
Cherie
Hey Cherie!
I’m going to be locking my hair in the next few weeks, most likely using the braidlocz method. I have a question regarding the size of the braid and how it tightens. When the loc is tightened, will the size of it progressively change? I guess I’m asking if I should make the braids the exact size I want the locs, or slightly smaller or larger to allow for the tightening or loosening?
Hi Kirsten,
You will want to make your SECTIONS (don’t focus on the braids as they will NOT be the size you want your locs to ultimately be…they will be smaller) a smidge bigger than what you want your locs to ultimately be. I have a sizing chart in my Bradelocz ebook that may help you even further.
Cherie
Hello Cherie i just wanted to say thank you for the dread locks myths exposed it was informative and enlightening i took the time and unraveled those twist that needed it and braided my hair in small braids and it’s really cute but will the ends lock up by them self or is there something i should do to undo the curly ends? Thank you again
Hey Cherie,
I live in the UK, and I have to say I have struggled to find sensible support for making my transition to dreadlocks. There is quite a style over substance culture here, the emphasis being on smaller dreads, so that they can be done in more complex stylings. I’m not so inclined to this culture. I think I would only style my hair in some of these upstyles perhaps once a year when once I had the length to, and the rest of the time I’d either where my hair down or tied back.
I’ve been inspired by your site to go down the bradelocz route as it seems like a much more user and hair friendly means of making the transition. That and aside from taking the neglect approach this seems like the most natural and healthy experience one can give their hair.
I see that you advocate a styling existence without the need for gels and other chemicals, which I strongly support. I’m curious to know though, as the braid softens and starts to matt, I’m guessing that hairs would fray. To keep the braids neat during this transition would it be ok tame free hairs with a mixture of organic coconut oil and organic shea butter applied to the braid, but not the route so as to limit build up on the scalp. Or would you say that this would be too heavy a dressing?
Thank you in advance.
DeMarco
Hi DeMarco,
Yes, you will have some straying/fraying hairs but that is really part of the process. What I personally did to calm those down (when they bothered me enough) was to style with rollers/rods or do twist/braid-outs.
But using a LIGHT amount of the mixture of which you speak should be fine…just don’t be too heavy-handed as shea butter has a tendency to cause a build-up and a dull appearance to the locs overtime if you over-use it.
Cherie
Hi Cherie,
I have had my bradelocz for a week now and wow what a feeling. I cannot believe the positive from my friends and co-workers on my hair. They love it. I feel like I have been set free!!! No more synthetic or human hair braided in my hair. The weight has been lifted. And not to mention my hair moves freely and can style it with ease. Thanks for your braidelocz journey which inspired me to start my bradelocz journey.
Jeannie
Hi Lisa,
First, about the gunk and build-up…it is a very common ocurance with locs ESPECIALLY when you use a lot of products on your hair. What are you using on your locs in terms of products (shea butter, wax, gels, butters, etc), how often and how much do you use when you put it on – IF you use any of them?
Also, make sure that you do some deep cleansings every now and then with clarifying shampoo OR shampoo about a tablespoon of baking soda mixed in.
I won’t promise/guarantee that this will totally avoid build up but it will probably greatly reduce it.
Now as for combining them, I actually have a video I did a while back on how to do that and you can view it here: http://naturalhaircarebooks.com/videos/how-to-combine-locks
Cherie
Hi Jeannie,
Wow, thank you SO much for your awesome testimonial! I definitely know how you feel!
Thanks again,
Cherie
Hello Cherie,
I am considering using braids to lock my hair, so Bradelocz seem like the perfect choice. I don’t think that I can loc by two strand twists, because they seem to always unravel on me. I prefer to do the maintenance by myself. Honestly, I know that I would never be able to latch my locs, because I am hopeless at sewing and I don’t think I would ever get the hang of it, no matter how I try. To make a long story short, can Bradelocz be maintained by twisting instead of latching? If so, I plan to twist once every 6 to 8 weeks or so to re tighten. I hope my question makes sense. Many thanks for your reply
Hi Brook,
Well, they “can” but…well, just try the method at least. Get the ebook (if you haven’t already) and follow my instructions. You just may grasp it! And if not, then you can try it using your fingers instead of the latch hook. And if that still doesn’t work, then use twisting/rolling as a last resort.
Cherie
Hi Cherie,
I wanted to start my bradelocz soon as I get back to Va.I wanted to thank you for all your time and info about bradelocz and how to save money instead of going for sisterlocs.I don’t understand why sisters can’t help each other out. Anyway, my question is that I wanted to start my 3yr old daughter’s hair and I was wondering if I could braid her hair first than latch it once to keep it from unraveling?
Hi Brandy,
Thank you for your kind words. As a former hair stylist, I feel that the time and energy placed into doing Sisterlocks is probably worth the cost. I’ve never done actual Sisterlocks before, but since the latchin’ method is similar in some ways, I have seen how tedious it can be to do them…especially when they are very small, tiny locs. But I do understand what you’re saying and where you’re coming from. Just thought I’d give you a different perspective
As for your 3-year old, let me make sure I’m understanding you correctly. Do you mean all done during the first initial installation of the braids? Like, if you braided her hair today, can you latch her hair…TODAY? That would depend on how loosely or how tightly you braided her hair. You don’t want to put too much stress on her scalp, but if there is some “give” between her scalp and the base of the braid, then you should be able to.
Cherie
Hi Cherie,
Thanks so much for responding so quickly. Yes, I wanted to braid her hair 1st and then latch it,since her hair unravels and also when she gets upset/mad she pulls her hair out.I really don’t have the time to be braiding her hair everyday, so I thought braidlocz would be the best thing for us. I’m not going to do her hair as small as sisterlocs maybe the the size that you have on your e-book the (sec square)from the top.I understand that you can’t latch everyday or twist.I mainly wanted to reinforce the braid so she can’t pull it out(one time thing until she’s locked)Then from there,let nature do it’s thing.Also do you think that it’s too soon to start her hair now or should I wait until she’s a little older? Thanks for your understanding and your time.
Brandy
Glad I was able to respond quickly Brandy!
Sometimes, due to my schedule, it doesn’t always turn out this way.
Okay, yes that sounds good and I understand what you’re saying.
As for her age, I don’t think it’s too soon at all. My two youngest children were each 2 years old when I started theirs. The only thing with locking young children is that you have to make sure you keep a close eye on lint because if you don’t, it’s very easy for lint to get trapped and embedded into their locs – that and the fact that sometimes they don’t want you touching their hair so retightening sessions could be challenging depending on the child…which was the case with my youngest son. That boy HATED me doing anything to his head!
But other than that, it’s fine…I’ve known people who started their children’s locs even younger. I know some debate it but as a mom who’s done it, I feel it’s perfectly fine. So I see no problem with you starting her locs now, but you’re her mother and you know her best and therefore should use your own discretion.
Cherie
Hi Cherie,
I wanted you to know that after reading your email,I started my daughter’s hair.It wasn’t that bad since she’s use to getting her hair done.The only thing was that we had to stop for this and that.”I’M SO HAPPY IT’S DONE”!!!It looks so nice on her and I hope she will learn to appreciate her natural hair.I really took my time to make sure her parts was right and now I’m jealous(can’t wait to get my head done)I will send you pics as soon as I get a medical minute(lol)Thanks again for all your help and I will keep you posted.
Have a Blessed one
Brandy
Hi Cherie
My sister has the same name
I had locs for over 9 yrs and cut it over a year ago because of balding at the top of my head it is finally growing back but you can still see the patches. I think bradelocz would be a great alternative for me. What do you think, I know that I overtwisted my hair and that is what caused the breakage. I will be ordering your guide book very soon.
So there is no twisting at all involved with bradelocz right?
Your hair is beautiful, I miss my locs it was half way dowm my back, looking forward to starting my bradelocz soon. So glad I found your website had no idea there were so many ways to start locs.
Thanks again
Hey Brandy,
Awww…congrats on getting her hair done! I’d love to see pictures of your little one’s hair!
Be blessed,
Cherie
Hi Gillian,
Cool that your sister and I share this beautiful name!
Wow, 9 years…that’s how long mine have currently been in. I’m so sorry about your hair loss!
No, there is absolutely no twisting with Bradelocz…you will use an interlock technique by way of a standard latch hook and it is only required to be done every 4-6 weeks…longer if you wish. Thank you for the compliment on my hair and kind words!
Cherie
Hi Cherie,
I am 1 week into my braidlocs (did them myself). My hair is curly so my braids are curly. I guess they’ve hang after a while. Everyone thinks I cut my hair cause I have a lot of curly q’s. I didn’t use any gels just water and essential oil in a spray bottle. After my first week I washed my hair and the braids curled up again.
Is there something I should do to straighten them or just let them do their thang?
I have your ebook…it’s great btw.
I meant they’ll not they’ve. Brain moving faster than my hands.
I want to start mine but I have real short hair. I would say about 2-3 inches and a little shorter in other areas. Can this still be done?