Tag: peppermint oil for locs

Healthy Dreads: Daily Maintenance of My Locs

dreadlocks essential oils
Nourishing Oils for Locs

Since I start growing locs, I take daily maintenance of my locs seriously. Therefore, I make it my duty to do whatever it takes to keep my hair looking its best. I am way past starter locs stage, so there is no reason to walk around with unkempt hair. Well, except for those days when I just feel like going for the messy look, which is not always a bad thing. Stick around to see how I care for my dreads on a daily basis.

Keeping My Locs Hydrated

I keep a spray bottle handy with some water and my favorite oils. In addition to the oils that I choose, I like to also drop a few drops of peppermint oil in it to eliminate odor from my hair. Every day I spray some of the mixture on my dreadlocks and then massage it in. As you may already know, oil and water won’t stay mixed unless you shake the spray bottle as you are about to spray it in your hair.

spray bottle with oils for dreads
Spray Bottle

 

 

 

 

 

I generally spray my hair with the water and essential oils mixture two times per day. I’ll do it in the morning and in the night. Spraying it at night a few minutes before tying it with a scarf, helps to keep my hairstyle in place and looking great the next morning.

Hydrating locs with essential oil and water
Spraying Locs for Hydration

 

 

 

Nourishing My Scalp

Don’t forget to moisturize your scalp. That is the root of success. I use my favorite oil—which a lot of you who already read my previous blog posts may already know—to massage my scalp. I may massage it every other day or so. Some oils are thick and sticky, so you may want to mix them together to give them a smoother texture.

The  Benefits of Scalp Massage

After doing my scalp massage for a while now, I’ve noticed the difference in my locs. They seem to be more thicker, longer, and richer looking, compared to when I wasn’t doing it on a regular basis.

Massage your hairline to help grow bald edges fast. Some people have seen great results in as little as two weeks.

All of this is great, but don’t forgot to pay attention to what you put in your body as well. Maintaining a natural healthy lifestyle will enhance the beauty of your locs, while making your hair grow faster.

Covering My Locs at Night

To prevent breakage and to lock in moisture in my dreads, I typically tie my hair at nights before going to bed. This is also great for preventing pieces of lint or other debris from getting trapped in your locs.

Choosing the Right Cover for Your Locs

Du Rag
Tying My Locs at Nigh

Choose something such as a Du Rag that won’t slip off while you’re sleeping. I love the one you see me wearing in the image below. You can use the extra length at the back to rap around your dreads if they are long. These are the basic  steps I use to keep for regular dreadlocks maintenance.

Odor Control – Keeping Your Locs Smelling Fresh

Having beautiful, fresh smelling locs requires some basic maintenance, which you can do at home, using some simple haircare techniques. I have my locs now for 15 months, and have learned a lot about taking care of them. I am excited to pass on some of the great information that I learned along the way. Here are a few of the tips that I use to keep my hair smelling clean, and free from mildew or mold.

Drying Your Locs Properly

When you are just beginning your starter locs, you will find that it dries very quickly after washing it. This is most likely because your hair is not yet locked. During the baby stages of locking your hair, the strands are not yet intertwined, therefore, air can easily pass through them. However, as your locs starts to mature and grow, it will need more time to dry out all the water that has accumulated.

Always make sure that you dry your dreads thoroughly using a clean lint-free towel or hair dryer. Gently squeeze a few locs, especially the ones that are in the middle or the back, to make sure there is no excess water. You should never tie your hair when it is still wet, as this will cause a build-up of mold or mildew.

Once this happen, you may end up having a hard time getting rid of it, or even more worse, may have to cut your hair. We all know how much hard work we locs lovers have to put in to get it to the beautiful stage that it is, so this would be the last thing we would want to happen.

Get Rid of Odor From Locs

Do you want to know my secret for keeping my locs smelling fresh all the time? I bet you do. I simply just add a few drops of my favorite essential oil in a spray bottle with some water. I don’t know if you know this already, but locs love water, so adding some oils to water and spraying your hair with it daily, is the perfect solution. This helps to keep your hair smelling fresh and looking soft and beautiful.

Well, my favorite oil is peppermint. Sometimes I add a few more oils to it as well. I love the smell of it and the tingling sensation in my scalp. There is also an added benefit when you use peppermint essential oil to massage your scalp. It helps to stimulate the hair follicles and promote hair growth.

I noticed that after spraying my locs with a mixture or peppermint oil and water, it eliminates odor and keeps my hair smelling fresh for the day.  Check out my other blog posts to see my loc journey, and stay tuned for more great tips!