“How do I wash my locks?”

How to Properly Wash Mature Patterned Locks

I have found that newly loc’d individuals think they should already know how to wash their locks. But nothing could be farther from the truth. Hair maintenance is an ongoing, ever changing process, especially when you make a change like locking your hair. A professional hair technician should walk you through each step of the journey and there are a few things to consider when working with locked hair.

Audience: Individuals who have stable, mature, pattern locks

(Right click on links &"Save As" to download videos.  Please be patient.  The files may be large, but they're worth it.)

01 - Hair Washing Intro - (Click here to watch video clip)

Locs are made up of many strands of hair. It is important to keep them clean as you allow them to twist, tangle and loc together.

02 - Shampoo Description - (Click here to watch video clip)

Use a clarifying shampoo to completely clean your locs. Using a spray bottle dilute one part shampoo to one part water and mix well. This will help you distribute the shampoo more evenly throughout the hair and scalp.

03 - Saturating The Locs - (Click here to watch video clip)

Fully saturate the hair with mild temperature water before you begin to spray and distribute your shampoo.

04 - First Shampoo & Rinse - (Click here to watch video clip)

During the first shampoo, focus on getting the scalp and roots of your locs as clean as possible. Work up a rich lather, and scrub the scalp clean with the tips of your fingers. Avoid using your nails as it can result in scalp damage, breakage, and unraveled locs. Rinse the shampoo clear from the hair and scalp.

05 - Second Shampoo - (Click here to watch video clip)

During the second shampoo, focus on soaking the core of the loc with shampoo and rinsing well to remove buildup. If your locs are not pliable, if they don’t move freely in the wind, that usually indicates there as a buildup at the core of each loc. Work to remove that buildup for healthy, sweet-smelling locs. Pretend your locs are a sponge as you squeeze the lather through and around the loc structure. Work the lather down the entire length of the locs from root to tip. If necessary, use this time to agitate the locs in order to break through the core build up.  Again, the goal is to thoroughly clean the entire loc – inside and out. The thinker the locs the harder it is to keep the core clean. Please take your time; it will pay off in the long run. 

06 - Final Rinse - (Click here to watch video clip)

Rinse the hair and scalp thoroughly. Try not to leave any residue on your hair. I like to rinse until it is “squeaky-clean”.

07 - Separate Your Locs - (Click here to watch video clip)

To avoid heat damage, it is better to towel dry your hair and then allow the hair to fully air dry. When you towel-dry your hair, remember to pat the hair, do not rub the hair. The cotton fibers in the towel will cling to and unravel your looser strands causing fuzz and breakage. Again, take your time with each process; it will pay off in the end.

After you have towel-dried your hair, but before your hair is fully dry, be sure to separate your locs. Go through each loc and pull them away from the surrounding locs. It is important to never let your locs dry together, or they will form a new, bigger loc with each other.

08 - Moisturize Your Locs - (Click here to watch video clip)

Moisturizer is important to use to protect your hair from over-dryness. Using a light moisturizer, dilute the product in a spray bottle of water so that you are better able to distribute the product more evenly across your entire head of hair. I like to make my spray the consistency of skim milk, that provides me with enough product to seal in the moisture. 

Question: “How do I wash my locks?”

It’s almost comical to ponder why my clients so rarely ask this question of me. Maybe it has to do with the feeling we get from the question itself. It is almost a guarantee when in conversation with Caucasians about my hair, no matter the style, one of the first questions they ask me is, “Can you wash it?” Sometimes I feel “on display” or even like an animal with special bathing requirements. After a while, I began to hate the interaction itself because I knew the question was coming. I would respond with a catty remark like, “Of course I can wash it – its HAIR! Can you wash your hair?” (I know. I’m not proud of it.) So, I stopped talking about washing hair entirely and as a result, my technique never changed over the years – until after I locked it.  But I still understand the uneasy feeling this topic may arise in someone and that’s why I want to help. There is a difference between asking CAN you wash it, and HOW do you wash it, and I hope my clips helped to answer the unasked question.