There are many methods for locking hair; ranging from the simple neglect method through to the chemical process of using a perming solution. We don't necessarily endorse either of these processes.
The method that works for us is set out below. It's the method we strongly suggest if you're serious about locking your hair. Human hair is naturally prone to locking. All we're doing is giving it a helping hand.
The first ingredient you'll need is a person who's ready to have their life transformed. And if possible some really patient friends who want to do the work. It's always best if your locks are made by someone you're close to. It means they'll usually make a good job of it.
Preparation for locking hair:
Don’t wash your hair with conditioner for two to six weeks prior to locking.
If possible don’t wash your hair with shampoo for three days or more leading up to locking day (getting your hair wet is fine).
If you have decided to change the colour of your hair at the same time, it’s best to do this about three days before – most hair dyes have a conditioning component and if done the morning of the locking it can make it more difficult to tighten the knots as you do them.
The ideal condition for hair about to be locked is strong, healthy and dry.
A swim in salt water the day before will do it no harm at all. When hair is the right kind of dry it knots very easily. If your hair is very curly this is not as important, as tight curls lock with much less effort then straight hair.
Length
Hair should be around collar length or longer. Each segment needs to be at least 15cm long (6 inches) when pulled out straight. The longer the hair the more time needed to lock the whole head.
Planning your look
Locking is a very personal thing and there are many factors that contribute to making every single head of locks different. It might help to think of your locks as a living entity. They can be as wild as wolves or ‘directed’ to your will like a sheepdog might be, but you never have complete control over their inner spirit. You can prune a tree but each branch will still wind around in it’s own way to the shape it wants to be.
The three major factors that dictate the appearance of any individual set of locks are:
- The hair type ie: How thin, thick, straight, dry the hair is.
- How the locks were designed before they were made. Did you set out to create eighty thin, even locks? Or was your idea for thirty wild locks ? Maybe you chose to include a straight part in the middle?
- The third factor is ongoing maintenance, that is, how you look after and direct them as they grow. Dreamlocks are an artwork in progress. Think of them as living artwork like a bonsai tree or an endless knitted scarf.
Sectioning
Once you have decided what you want to do, you separate the hair at the roots.
The size of the section of hair you make dictates they fatness of the lock. Understanding how much hair makes locks of what fatness is almost an intuitive skill, one that comes with experience as it really depends on how fine the hairs and how sparsely they grow. It’s different for every head.
We’ve found a good way to tell is to pinch the section of hair hard in the middle (the widest part). Whatever the width of the hair section when unlocked imagine that the lock, once it has matured in a few months time will be at least a quarter thicker again.
Section the whole head before you begin.
We recommend you do the first lock somewhere at the back of the head just to see how fat it will be, and if it’s too fat or thin, resection the hair accordingly.
Once you have experimented a little and are happy with the locks you are set up to create start from the top – the crown or the hairline as suits you.
Over time locks shrink as they mat more and more, so the locks you are starting out with will be fatter then the locks you will have in about 3 to twelve months.
Tools
Pile of small rubber bands for sectioning hair.
Butterfly clips to hold finished locks out of the way.
Fine toothed metal comb, the finer and stronger the better.
Locking wax.
And crochet hook – 0.6 or 0.75 – as small as possible.
Locking
Take a sectioned part of the hair, keeping the rest out of your way.
Grip the strand at about two inches away from the scalp.
Take the fine-toothed comb and start back-combing – as you would when making a beehive hairstyle. To make it easier to explain lets assume you are right-handed, so hold the comb in your right hand.
With you left hand you must grip the hair firmly – this is like a battle of wills between your hands – the right hand wants to grab and knot all the strands of hair in the comb, but the left hand doesn’t want to give them up.
Try to hold onto as many as you can. Locks will be even and tight if you release as few hairs at a time as you can. If you roll the unlocked section in your left fingers, not only are individual strands released evenly, but the twisting motion means they are realised from different point of the lock and you are not concentrating all the knots to one side or the other, but forming a nicely balanced evenly-locked dreamlock.
As the knots form at the base of the lock, make sure you firmly push them down to The scalp with the comb. They will pile onto of each other and gradually move up the section of hair. Move your left hand along the length and away from the comb as needed. Its good to have about two inches between the comb base point and your left fingers griping point. As much as you can.
See how Helen runs her hands up the length of the lock in regularly. This insures you get the most knotting for each individual hair as pos
Ensure you look at the under side of the lock as you go to make sure it’s knotting too.
We have found that the comb stokes are more effective if you do short quick strokes.
It’s not a good idea to do long strokes, especially if you are not gripping firmly with your left fingers, as you will find this results in a short, fat, lumpy ball of a lock.
The more careful you are and the shorter the strokes and the more evenly and slowly your release hairs to become knots from your left hand, the more of the hairs original length you will retain.
You must expect to loose from between a third and two thirds of the hair original length. Depending on the technique you use, the hair type, length and condition.
Once you have reached the end of the lock pay particular attention to the end and keep going with the comb until you only have a few strands to hold on to.
Then using the comb work along the length again, pushing through the lock body and compacting the knot down towards the scalp as much as you can.
Lock Rolling
Now you need to roll the lock. This helps a great deal in forming the shape and how even the lock will be. Grip the lock as close to the roots as possible and roll it backwards and forwards between your palms as if you are making a snake with playdough. Work along the length of the lock as you do this. This is an important part of ongoing lock maintenance too as this action encourages the lock to stay a cylindrical shape rather then a flat tape like shape. Nice and round lock! I also moves any lumps down the lock and help them find their groove, leaving the lock lovely and even.
Finishing Ends of new locks.
There are many ways to leave the ends of locks. Some people who have naturally curly hair leave them unlocked and they form a little ringlet that holds the lock together. If your hair is relatively straight, you might find that leaving the ends unlocked will result in the locks unravelling annoyingly.
After much trial and error, including leaving rubber bands over the tips in the hope they would lock themselves over time, we developed the following technique to lock the ends.
First fold the loose strands of hair over and rub the end with your palms trying to knot it all as much as you can.
Next take the hook and push it through the locked part hooking it around the loose hairs, now pull the hook back through the body of the lock, dragging those unlock bit of hair with it. Once though to the other side turn the hook so it releases the strands of hair effectively leaving them in the body of the lock.
Do this many times and randomly – don’t forget the whole idea here is to knot it all up as much as you can!
This can be done by feel between your fingers after time with practice.
Once you have pulled heaps through then roll the lock again. This flattens them down, and also will reveal to you and strands that were only pretending to be locked in or not firmly locked enough.
Waxing.
Take the tub of wax and with the back of your thumbnail scoop out a small amount of wax. Don’t use too much – you can always get more later if you feel you need it!
Place the wax in the palm of your other hand and then rub your hands together to soften and heat the wax.
It is now a simple matter of rolling the lock as before, to rub the wax that is in you palms into the lock. It is only to be a fine layer of wax. The wax keeps the lock moisturised, supple and to an extent holds the flyway hairs down to the lock.
And important thing to remember here is the rub as fast as you can. Part of the secret to applying locking wax is to heat the lock up as much as possible. This means it will shape more easily, but it also means the wax can penetrate as deeply into the lock as possible, which it what you want my friend!
Locking wax also protects you locks from the elements, and keeps them snug and happy.
You are ready to start on the next lock!
Continue like this until the whole head is locked.
Have fun! For more info have a look at the Maintenance page.
If you have followed the instructions above to make some locks we’d love to hear from you – email us at info(remove this text)@dreamlocks.com - we'd love to hear all about your locking adventures.
Now you know the basics- take a look at our Maintenance page. Then have a look at our Tips and Tricks page.
