Ok so I'm considering becoming a DIY'er already. I've never been real good at waiting for someone else to do my hair. I've been a DIY'er for the past six years of this natural journey that I'm on. There are a couple of issues that I'm having with my sisterlocks. The first one is the amount of hair that is left on the end of each lock. I had felt that it might be too much but just kind of kept my mouth shut because I trust my consultant, well technically she's still a trainee. But now that a more experienced sisterlocker has commented about it I see that my concern was a valid one. Second, there were some parts in the front that were crooked so when I went back to my consultant she took some of them down and redid a section. The problem is that when she redid that section she made them smaller than the ones on the other side. So now I have more locks on one side than I do the other. Which would not be a big deal but I feel as if I paid for a system because that was what I wanted. Had I not paid the amount of money that I did I probably wouldn't care so much. Third, when she redid the section she went ahead and retightened the entire front of my head and ran out of time to do the back. Which would not be a problem except she hasn't been able to fit me in to finish the back. I work two jobs so my schedule is limited and she works full time on top of doing sisterlocks so her time is limited as well. So I decided to just wait until my first full retightening but we are still having scheduling conflicts and it looks as if our schedules won't open at the same time until march which would put the back at over 8 weeks for a retightening. Not good.
So my options would be to find another consultant or become a DIY'er. I realize that if I become a DIY'er at this point that there will be some that will not consider my locks sisterlocks anymore. Do I really care what they think or say? No. I just want locks. I have the number to a consultant but have not seen any of her work. She's listed on the sisterlocks website as a certified consultant and I met her cousin in Sally's and she told me that she'd been doing sisterlocks for years. So I will probably give her a call first and let her look and my locks and maybe give me a chance to look at her work. I'm really not afraid of becoming a DIY'er, because honestly the system doesn't look like its hard to do at all. I'm just not sure if I should take that leap or not.
Oh, one last thing I wanted to mention. I'm including this for those who may follow my blog in the future. I listed the Fantasia IC 100% Tea Shampoo as what I was using now. Well I've been informed that this shampoo will loosen the locks over time and is only recommended for locks that have already settled. So I wanted to include this so just in case someone in the future looks to my blog as a research tool. I don't want to recommend a shampoo that will cause more harm than good.
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Hey Sereni,
ReplyDeleteBoy, your blog has definitly had me hooked, and you're newer to this thing than me LOL. Some people are probably going to say since you are a month new to this thing, you should at least wait a little longer before you become a DIYer. However, based on your report on your loctician, if I were you, I would be frustrated and upset too. After all, let's face it, all of us spend good money to get sisterlocks, and continued money thereafter to maintain and groom.
I would recommend though that you visit at least two highly recommended consultants that are listed on the official website and tell them your concerns and get their professional opinion on the matter. If they confirm that there is indeed room for concern, then you should probably pay one of them to make the necessary corrections that need to be made to your sisterlocks and train you in the retightening process.
A lot of money is spent on this package, it is an investment that should be taken seriously by both the client and the consultant, there are people out there who have had traumatic experiences, so you need to take the responsible steps in making sure you are getting your money's worth. I therefore don't blame you for your concern.
Keep us posted on what you decide to do!
Your hair looks good. However, you see it everyday and know what the problems are. If you go DIY, I don't understand why it would be considered no longer Sisterlocks. I am now retightening my own hair and I am glad I was trained before I started fooling with it, because there has been some aggravation with the process. I wouldn't change it for the world though. I am saving time and I retighten on my own schedule and go to my consultant for maintenance issues. If you can find a consultant who has pictures of their work, seeking her out maybe helpful because you can be trained for retightening in 6 months. I believe if you paid for Sisterlocks you have Sisterlocks and how you maintain them doesn't change that.
ReplyDeleteI have been to two highly recommended SLC'S both do really great work the 1st who did my install is pricey does not work around my schedule and tries to pawn me on her assistant most of the time, but I love the fact that she doesnt over book. My current SLC is very cheap,she washes & conditions at every re tight, & you recline back while she does your hair but her down fall is she over over books so I wait a long time before she gets to me & she does not only do locks she also presses and curls, so I can feel you on the Diyer thing cause ive considered it my self cause I hate assistant's and I hate to wait for long periods of time.
ReplyDeleteI got my sisterlocks started in MA 4 years ago by Martine. I am not sure how far you are from the Boston area, but she is good.
ReplyDeleteThanks everybody for giving feedback, I truly appreciate it.
ReplyDelete@Chinue - Thanks for understanding and it good to know that I have at least one loyal reader...lol
@Cashana - I just know that some people consider the process null and void if you don't take the class before becoming a diyer
@Euphoria - I hate waiting too, that was one of my main gripes with beauticians when I was a permie. I have no patience, I just expect a great deal of professionalism when I'm spending my hard earned money, and alot of it too.
@Anon - Actually Martine was my first choice but she's not taking new clients at this time. She's booked out like 3-4 mos. I would have loved to have her as my consultant.
I had take a re-tight lesson out of necessity; I live in the middle of nowhere and there are no SL consultants any less then two days travel from me. So at 5 months Sl'd I took a lesson from a SL consultant ( I had some wicked growth so it was fine). I am happy I did. I am not a pro at it by any means, but I am getting better at it. I take my stuff with me when I travel; I did my locs on the way to Toronto last month; and I have my stuff with me right now to have another session on my next flight( which is in about two hours; I am at the O'Hare Airport as I write this). For me, learning it was money well spent. I will go for grooming when I travel, whenever that my be, but in the meantime, it's up to me, on my own terms.
ReplyDeleteI am starting to see things differently. I NEVER thought the way you maintain them (whether DIYer or via consultant) would determine if you have Sisterlocks.
ReplyDeleteI however used to lean to the side of paying to get trained in how to retighten, since I know of people who have had problems with sisterlocks because of what they or their consultant did which started to show up in their locks or lack of later down.
The way I see it now, if you can find out the authentic way of retightening without paying a bag of money and waiting 6 months to go to the training sessions or if you can get the nappylocs tool (although I still think that consultants who use the nappylocs tool should at least let the client know before using this tool to retighten their locks), then I don't see why not.
As has been mentioned it's harder to find a decent consultant who is near to you in the States, then you seem to have to wait at least 6 months for the training session to learn how to do it. Also it's kinda ridiculous to have to wait til your next retightenining to correct two or so locks that are unravelling or what not. Then there is the economic crisis to consider right now. So we have to save and be practical where we can.
I don't know, I think the longer I have been Sisterlocked it's the more my naivete on these matters are disappearing...