Dread loc Hairstyle | Crescent Roll Gone Wrong.

I recently had a event to attend and needed to turn  my locs from this free formed lion's mane to a groomed dread.  



With no idea of what to do with my hair, I went searching on the internet for dread loc hairstyle inspiration, and still came up nothing so I decided to revamp a hairstyle that I did a while ago.  

The crescent roll which I learned from watching +honeyroastedalmond dread loc hairstyle tutorial. As seen in

the picture to the right. A very simple hairstyle that only uses a head band and rubber bands. Perfect I thought for me to do again, so I thought.

I attempted that very same hairstyle again, and came up with a completely different result.  Reason being I started the flat twist to high up on and the head band was not black so it would not match my hair color.   So tweaked the hairstyle just enough to look like I meant to create this hairstyle.


I started on freshly washed and retwisted dreads. Starting the same way you would normally with a crescent roll. However when it came to the side of the chunky double twist, I rolled and tucked them onto themselves. Using bobby pins/hair pins to secure each twist into place. 

And I ended up with this "Crescent Roll Gone Bad" dread loc hairstyle. 

You can most certainly do this hairstyle on free form dreads, box braids, micro braids, sister locks. etc.  

Pulled back, neat out the way, and most of importantly it looks good. 

For a list of products that I use in my hair and my daughter's natural hair check out Afrikah's Perspective. 


Stay Blessed

Afrikah's Perspective

Quick Product Review: Alikay Naturals Loc Butter | Dread Loc Hair

I have seen a number of reviews of this company on YouTube, and other social media platforms and was delighted to see +AlikayNaturals Totally Twisted Loc Butter at +NaturalTrendSetters salon. I purchased it their for $10 which is an awesome sale, since the product retails for $25. 

It contains almond, grape seed, and apricot kernel oil. A little of this product goes a very long way. It has a light fragrance not to over whelming, the consistency is similar to whipped Shea butter. So a little goes a long way. When I used this product my locs were freshly washed and essential oils were applied to them.  I noticed that a little of this product goes a long way and you may want to sit under a hooded dryer or apply heat via a blow dryer since it contains beeswax.  

The hold on this has is phenomenal and it does not leave your locs hard. Another great benefit to this product is the fact that the oils will help moisturize your locs for at least three days.  

Day 1 










Day 2               

Day 5         

Day 7

Day 9










As you can see by the photos above +AlikayNaturals Totally Twisted Loc Butter worked wonders on my locs. This product is great for those whose dreads fight being groomed or you are free form and want to tighten up your locs for a special occasion. Either way +AlikayNaturals Totally Twisted Loc Butter is a good product and I will continue use it.

Rope Twist and Pipe Cleaner Curls | Protective Dreadlock Hairstyle

The summer is here and it's hot as hell...well it is for me.

With my dreadlocks slowly reaching my lower back it combined with me living in Miami. The summer heat is another level of hot for me. Also with this blazing summer sun I want to protect my hair it from its UV rays and keep the moisture locked in. 

Per usual I was searching the Internet for protective hairstyles and stumbled upon rope twists along with +chescalocs uploading a recent tutorial on a up-do with twists. I wanted to add a twist to it and add short bangs to the front.

I started with freshly washed and re-twisted hair. I use Taliah Waajid  Lock It Up Tight Hold Locks& Hair  along with coconut, moringa, and Moroccan oil in my hair. On to the style, after the re-twist I sectioned off a piece to the front for my bangs. Then proceeded to do rope twist to the rest of my hair and securing the ends with black rubber bands. After that was done I went on to my bangs, placing that section in pipe cleaners. 
 

So I can manipulate my hair any way I like. You can always search YouTube for tutorials on Pipe Cleaners and Rope Twists.  


Once I had the remaining dreads placed into rope twists. I decided to pull it up in a bun. The great part of the hairstyle is the fact that I did not use not ONE HAIR PIN. The perfect summer up-do and its versatile. I can go from a bun to a Mohawk, to a french roll. 

The maintenance on this is easy, cover my hair with a satin scarf, oil my scalp twice-three times a week. This will be my go to summer hairstyle whether my dreads are re-twisted or not.

Stay Blessed


This was Afrikah's Perspective

Crescent Roll Remixed | Protective Dreadlock Hairstyles

 It's the remix baby...Loc Crescent Roll Remixed.

I originally did this Loc Crescent Roll last year after probing YouTube for a new style to put my dreads in and I came across @HoneyToastedAlmond video

Which was so easy to do. The resulting style as seen to the left was so nice. It took longer to re-twist my dreads than it took to complete the entire hairstyle.

 
A year later, and me in a protective style regiment when I re-twist my dreads. In, addition to it starting to heat up in Miami I must keep the wool scarf which is my dreads off of my neck.





Now on to the hairstyle. I did this hairstyle on freshly washed and re-twisted dreads so I could have a more groomed look. But, this can be done on free form dreads and accomplish the same look. Also the products used to achieve this style were black rubber bands and straight hair pins.






Since the concept of the hairstyle is based off of @HoneyToastedAlmond tutorial. Use that as a guide to create the base of the hairstyle. The difference between this Crescent Roll and the previous is the absence of the headband.

 Using the same tuck and rolling motion as seen in the tutorial  and securing it with straight hair pins as I went along. Making sure that there was some sort of uniformity and smoothness in the roll as I went along.

In the back of my head I wrapped it around the roll to continue the smoothness and the"salon-like" appearance to the hairstyle.  On the right side of my head I manipulated the "rope twist" into a french roll and secured it with straight hair pins.  
 
Surprisingly this was not heavy at all, and easy to sleep in. 

Overall, it's a different take on a hairstyle, since I do not like repeating the same hairstyle to often.

This was Afrikah's Perspective.

Stay Blessed

Twisted updo | Protective Style for Dreadlocks

Inspired Dreadlock twisted updo.

In the pursuit of always finding different hairstyles to manipulate my dreadlocks in, I was inspired by a few pins i saw on Pintrest with dreadlock hairstyles. 

I call this hairstyle a twisted up-do. It's a blend of double strand twists, flat twists and then creating a funky "pompadour like" up-do. I started out with freshly washed a re-twisted dreads. 

To create this style I placed my hair in 3 sections as though I was going to put my dreads in large ponytails. Two equal sections in the back and one section in the front. I flat twisted the two back sections going back then double strand twisted the remaining dreads and securing them with black rubber bands. In the front section I only double strand twisted and secured them with rubber bands on the ends.

 Once that was done, I attempted a basket weave going up towards the front of my head. As seen to the left. After that I just tucked and wrapped my hair into the shape that I wanted it to be. Great thing about this style I only used 5 bobby pins to secure my hair.

The majority of the hair is tucked into the "basket weave".  It took longer to re-twist my hair than to put it in this style. Check out @chescalocs, @junglebarbie, and my video below  for more inspired dreadlock hairstyle looks.

This was Afrikah Prepsective

Stay Blessed

She DId That, Pipe Cleaner Curls that is..

I was in search of a different look..

This mood was sparked by a smart ass comment made in passing to me paired with my usual "Holiday Blues" setting in. I wanted to do something to help bring me out of the funk I found my self in. So what's a girl to do?

Switch the style up, I have done up-do's mohawks, big buns, pin curls, flat twist, barrel rolls, roller sets (yes on dreadlocks) curl rods, etc. To my own hair so I didn't want to do the same old thing. So I searched YouTube and looked a few videos and got the bright idea to do this Chescalocs Modified Pipe Cleaner Curls. 

I have watched this video and a few others on YouTube for years doing pipe cleaner curls and I always said I didn't have the patience to do that. Well I found the patience this week to do attempt the look. On the video I watched @Chescalocs did her take on a MUA with long thick beautiful dreads. Who puts her locks in pipe cleaner curls and styles it into an "Afro" is the best way I can describe it. The look is gorgeous on her and her makeup is "Beat to the Gods" but I knew I wasn't going to look that good on the first try. Because our locks our different in texture, thickness, and size. Most importantly she knows what she is doing and I have no clue.

 

I purchased 2 packs of black pipe cleaners from Walmart for $0.88 a piece, cut them in half. As seen in the picture to the left I started out on freshly washed hair, I was allowing it to dry out some more. Before rubbing coconut oil on my scalp and proceeding with the pipe cleaner curls.

Now that my hair is damp I went on with the tedious process of putting all those locks on those pipe cleaners. You can re-twist your locks for a more polished look if you choose to, also make sure your locks are damp and not soaking wet. Wet dreadlocks can lead to stinky, moldy hair, and no one has time for that.

It took me about 6-7 hours to put all those locks on pipe cleaners. I curled my locks in two direction in order for me to have volume when I take the pipe cleaners out. Tip I learned from watching countless hours of wig tutorials. As you can see by the look on my face. I was dead tired, and had a lesson in patience to the fifth power still wondering if this was really worth all that effort. I rocked this look for 3 days to insure I would have something worth my wild out of this long arduous process.

Luckily taking them out is far easier than putting them in. When I started taking them out at first a few of them were looking wonky but, as I took all out my vision of what I wanted my hair to look like started taking shape slowly. I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of curl I achieved on my first attempt.

Evident by the big smile on my face. I did not pull apart any of the curls. I wanted to keep it in this short "asymmetrical bob" type shape with my hair. The amount of volume and curl I attained was crazy. Out of all the times I have curled my locks this is the most curl and bounce I have ever had. While I was still feeling my self with I turned it up and notch and started pinning the longer curls up into a tight curly faux bob situation.

I went from feeling myself to "She Did That" which resulted in a impromptu photo session. I haven't had hair this short since college. Thankfully I look better now than I did in college.


Despite the long tedious nature of pipe cleaner curls they allow for style versatility. In this blog post I showed you three styles already and as the curls drop I can manipulate them in to something else. These curls should last about three days with proper upkeep. This is a keeper in my style portfolio.


This was Afrikah's Perspective
Stay Blessed.

 

 

From Pin Curls to Sexy Swoop | Dreadlock hairstyle

From 1920/30's vintage to  70's throwback

These hairstyles were done on freshly washed dreads, I did not re-twist my dreads afterwards only oiled my scalp with natural oils(coconut, sweet almond, grape seed, etc.) and went to work.

1920/30's vintage

To achieve pin curls, I took small sections of damp dreads and started to roll my dreads upwards into a coil all the way to my scalp, laid it flat then secured it with two bobby pins. I continued on until my whole head was finished. You can find tutorials on how to do pin curls on dreads from @BronzeGoddess01, @chescalocs, and @JungleBarbie to name a few.

I rocked that look for 2-3 days I could have stayed longer but I wanted to see how my hair was going to look.

Check out my video on the complete story behind the look.

1970's throwback

After leaving my pin curls in for about 3 days I took them down and this was the result. Sexy swoop bang and body for days. If I would have left well enough alone I and left the pin curls in for even more bouncy curls. 


Either way I am pleased with the results I attained. I will definitely do this two for one hair style again. 











Check out my YouTube video on both hairstyles.

Always remember Consistency is the key to change.


This was Afrikah's Perspective
Stay blessed

Practice makes perfect, ....well that's what they say.

Another day another simple look,

Searching online for hairstyles as I usually do I came across a YouTuber(Honeyroastedalmomd) that had a cool style (crescent roll) with minimum effort. So I tried my hand at it. I know it will not be exactly like hers because our dreads are totally different.  However,  I got the gist of it and I must say it came out quite nicely.  All I used was an elastic headband, rubberbands, and three bobby pins. Simple, quick and easy to keep long dreads off of your neck during the summer months.

The style took about 15 minutes to do. So its great for a quick twist on an updo.

Check out Honeyroastedalmond channel on YouTube  for the tutorial on this hairstyle.

Check my out photo below on my attempt on a crescent roll.

Quick Sum Up: Natural Oils what are they and how to use them

Natural Oils a quick run down...

Long before YouTube natural hair "gurus" and way before it was ever a trend. People have been using natural oils to cleanse, moisturize,promote hair growth and healthy skin for ages. So nothing I am about to say is new, nor do I profess to be knowledgeable in all things natural.

Natural/Essential Oils: who they are and what they are good for.

(the oils listed below can be easily found at beauty supply stores, Grocery Stores (ie, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Wal-Mart), beauty salons. )



Jojoba oil- Balances hair glands, helps leave hair shiny, light weight oil non greasy.

Castor oil- Moisturizes and seals ends of hair. Great for thick and tight curly natural hair less refined products such as Jamaican Castor oil, helps promote hair growth.

Coconut oil- A sealant,a moisturizer if used with another oil. Also it helps with frizz control (curly hair especially) and bonds with protein structures of hair shaft.


Extra Virgin Olive Oil- A deep conditioner that, helps fight hair loss and controls dandruff.

Grape Seed Oil- A natural heat protectorate,that can  strengthen and allow hair to be more manageable.

Sweet Almond Oil- A moisturizer that helps seals in the moisture and smooths hair shaft.

Argan Oil- A moisturizer that helps strengthen hair.

Avocado Oil- A ultra rich deep conditioner when added to your regular conditioner. This oil can help strengthen your hair.

Tea-Tree Oil -A natural anti-septic, anti-bacterial which helps rid the scalp of fungus and helps removes build up that will hinder hair growth.


Safflower Oil- A sealant locks in moisture to hair shaft.

Macadamia Oil - A natural heat protectant, moisturizer,it also helps with hair breakage and  frizz control

How to use these oils ?

Heavier oils like avocado,Castor,olive should be used lightly for fine textured hair because these oils can weigh that hair down. 

They also can be added to your regular conditioner for a deep condition treatment to your hair. 

Medium/light weight oils not mentioned earlier can be blended with the heavier oils for a super serum for your hair.

Medium/light weight oils are best used when hair is still damp in order to seal in the moisture also these oils are great for a more curly hair type to help control frizz.

Use oils in accordance to your hair needs and type. I am not expert only someone who has tried and failed in maintaining moisture in my hair.

And So...

I researched and it all came back to the same thing. The very same oils that you ingest as a part of a healthy diet are the very same essential oils that can be used in your hair to promote growth, maintain moisture, control frizz and have healthy hair.

This was Afrikah's Perspective
Stay Blessed