If you can’t make it to your loctician and feel that it’s time to retwist your locs, here’s what you’ll need to know.
Depending on what phase you're in, you may need to retwist your locs every 4-6 weeks, but that’ll depend on your maintenance routine and your hair texture. How often you retwist will also depend on your preferences. Those of us who love a very neat look will usually aim for retwisting around every four weeks.
However, those of us who don't mind the look of our new growth can go for longer. What’s most important to us is that you never over-twist your locs, or make it a nervous habit to unconsciously twist your locs while you’re on the phone or waiting for someone or something. That being said, let’s have a look at what you’ll need to know in order to retwist your locs on your own.
Before You Start Twisting
It’s important to always start your grooming routine after going through the entire Dr Locs line. You’ll want to thoroughly shampoo your locs, 2-3 times, depending on your lifestyle and work environment. Go through the entire line as usual, spray the Jinan Leave-In Conditioner, over your new growth and then, when it’s time, you’ll want to reach for your Imani Locking Spray.
What You’ll Need for Your Retwist
The Imani Locking Spray!
We didn't want to use cream, we wanted to stick to something light and alcohol free which is a natural holding agent. You’ll also need some clips to hold the new twist in place.
How to Retwist Locs
1. If you have longer locs you’ll want to start to section off your locs and begin retwisting the section down by your nape first.
2. Start with the back of your head and have a towel around your shoulders. Put your hair up into a ponytail and pull out a few locs from the back.
3. Spray with the Imani locking spray, aim towards the root and the newgrowth area.
4. Section the first loc off, pay attention to the strands of your hair, separate them carefully in between locs and assign each strand to the new root, and twist clockwise.
5. Twist, and after each twist of moving your finger away from the scalp from left to right, you won't want to leave your fingers in the same position, it will make your hair coil up and it will be too tight. You’ll want the loc to lay flat, twist with your palm or fingertips. (You can use palms or fingers depending on what's best for you.) Just don't over do it. You don't want it to be too tight. You want the loc to lay down flat without any kinks or coils.
Word of wisdom: If you let it coil it can break over time and your locs will dry like that.
1. After twisting your loc, run your finger all the way down from root to tip for some love.
2. Then place a silver clip a few inches from the root, right where the hair starts to mature (if it has matured at this point. If you're in the baby stage with your locs, or the teenage phase, you’ll want to double clip a few inches away from your scalp and at the bottom of the loc to give your roots and tips equal attention so that it all matures equally.)
More Wisdom: Only twisting the roots will encourage the locs to mature in a strange way and it will make them appear more frizzy. This requires consistency. Consistency and attention will help your hair loc on track, and maybe even faster.
When You’ve Finished with Your Re-twist
Then let your hair dry under the dryer for about 40-minutes, pull the clips off, put the hair in two pigtails and go back under the dryer for a second round of 30-minutes. This allows the heat to flow from the ends to the top. Test your hair, pinch it to see if it's dry. Then pour some Yaya oil in your palm, rub your palms together and wipe them up and down your locs for a neat finished look.
