The areas that suffered from hair thinning late last year is getting much better. In one area I have the stickies, in another area I have slow growth. At times I get bum about the area that is slow to grow but at least it stop thinning and I'm happy about that. I also decided to go back to Biotin. You can read more on why I decided to quit here. This post will be a in dept review of my sisterlocks.

My Stickies Soon I hope this area won't be sticking out anymore.

My Slow Growth Area The hair in that area is slowing growing back.

Hair History Hair Growth, Hair Thinning, then Hair Growth Again.

My locks has fully mature for the most part. I don't need to braid and band anymore. I'm also notice a lot of my locks are sporting the fully mature look. I still have some curly tips, which for some odd reason I like better then the budded look. I still can't stand the ball ends, which forms at the end of your locks. Those ball ends signal locks maturity, and basically states you are entering the adult stage of the locking process. I still have a lot of those ends in the back of my head.

Mature/Bud Ends Finding it difficult to do twists and braid-out because of those ends.

Curly Ends Love these ends! They are perfect for holding on to twists and braid-outs

Ball Ends Yucky!! I hate these end.

Back View of My Locks Have a lot of curly ends there, and suffer from extreme shrinkage in that area

Even though the lock amount that I have is daunting, it does a great job of covering my area that is thin and may get thin in the future. So as far as sizing is concern I still believe I made the wise choice for me. All and all, my locks are doing well and I'm ready to begin a another year of being sisterlocked.

One of the blogs I follow had a contest where she was giving away Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter Moisture Retention Shampoo and Shea Moisture Raw Shea Butter Restorative Conditioning Milk. Well I'm happy to annouce that I WON! I just received my prize! I plan on doing a BSW & ACV Rinse prior to trying this shampoo and conditioner out, and will release a review shorty after.
Special thanks goes out to Jungle Barbie!

I separated my hair and told my friend to braid my sisterlocks going up. This style was for my 2001 Class Reunion. Wow how times fly! Anyway...I didn't leave a "how to" on this post since I had help with this style.
Note: You can click on any of the images to enlarge. All image are copyright by me. Please ask for permission if you want to use any of my pictures.

I ran into an article that looks promising for Alopecia suffers. I wanted to share it with you guys.

Below is a brief snippet

A team of researchers from UCLA and the Veterans Administration was experimenting with mice to learn more about how stress affects gastrointestinal function. Think: mice colons.

The mice had been genetically altered to overproduce a stress hormone called corticotrophin-releasing factor.

As the altered, stressed out mice aged, they lost their hair.

Sound familiar?

The researchers injected the bald mice with a chemical compound called astressin-B, which blocks the action of the stress hormone.

Then they put them back in their cages.

They expected to monitor how astressin-B affected the mice guts, but when they returned to the mice three months later, they couldn't tell the treated mice from their hairy brethren.

All of them were covered with fur.

"We thought they were mixed up," said Million Mulugeta, an adjunct professor of medicine in the division of digestive diseases at UCLA, by telephone.

The researchers checked the ID tags and discovered they were, in fact, the mice that had been bald just three months earlier.

Read More of the Article Here >>

Also they has been an update of the Astressin-B finding here

This year was a lot less eventful then last year. The only issue that is worth mentioning is my thinning hair, as well as finding out I have Telogen Effluvium (Alopecia). I was able to stop the issue with thinning hair by taking Multivitamin, Biotin, and ReGrow Massage Oil . I also became very active at the GYM which helped relieve some of the stress I had going on. For a full detail of my thinning issue you can visit this post. I will do an in-depth review of my sisterlocks in a couple of days from now.

Today I just want to mark my anniversary with some comparison shots, my current maintenance routine, as well as a realistic goal for my next anniversary. Once again I would like to thank everyone for following me and commenting on my blog posts.

Growth & More End Buds My side doesn’t show nearly as much growth as the back.The back of my hair has always been looser and the growth is very apparent.
Side @ 1 Year My locks were much fuzzier then	Side @ 2 Year Not as fuzzy as year one but still some fuzz
Back @ 1 Year Back wasn't locked at all	Back @ 2 Year More mature with buds in the back

Maturity & The Fuzz My hair is looking more like locks now.
Fuzz @ 1 Year As you can see, very fuzzy!	Fuzz @ 2 Year Not as fuzzy as year one and looking more like locks =)

My Current Product for Maintaining My Sisterlocks I receive great results with what I have now and will continue to use them as needed. I haven't used my sisterlocks moisture treatment for a while now, and that is mostly due to the humidity in Florida.
My Shampoos & Conditioners More Detail Click Here	Left (Oils for Growth) & Right (Oils/Others for Dry Locks)

My Goal for Next Anniversary
-Healthier Locks
-No More Stickies (Doubtful...will explain more later)
-Shoulder Length Sisterlocks

I had a poll on the right hand side of my blog  asking about what topic you would like to read more of. The poll is now closed and it was a tie between "...don't change" and "more style".  I will leave my topics as is, and try to include more styling post from now on. I will be adding another poll again two month prior to my next anniversary.

I went for the smallest possible size for the Flexi Rods and here are the results.
I received the same result of spiral curls that I got from the Pipe Cleaners, so if you are concern with the cost I would stick with the Pipe Cleaners. Flexi rods are NOT cheap, at 6 rods per packages at a cost range of $2.99-$3.99 they are more expensive then perm rods and pipe cleaners.

Even though they are more expensive, I prefer Flexi Rods over the Pipe Clearners because they don't shed and they don't snag my sisterlocks when I'm removing them. So I will be retiring my pipe cleaners as of today. To view the "how to" click here. Note: Flexi Rods are also known as Twist-flex Rods and Flexible Rods.

Note: You can click on any of the images to enlarge. All image are copyright by me. Please ask for permission if you want to use any of my pictures.

The application of the flexi rods are very similar to pipe cleaners, but I found the flexi rod took longer for me to put on vs. the pipe cleaners. I think this stem from the fact that it was my first attempt, so I believe my speed should only improve as I keep applying them. I plan on sticking with the flex rods due to the fact that it gave me the same result as the pipe cleaners, and it doesn't snag my locks.

Once the flexi rods are installed, you will notice they are a whole lot bulkier vs the pipe cleaners which I believe is a HUGE disadvantage. To see the result of the flexi rods click here.

Material Needed

Flexible Rods
Settling Lotion (Optional)
Spray Bottle

Step 1) Lightly sprays your locks with your spray bottle (please don't drench your locks, a light spray will do). I found my curls lasted without a settling lotion, but if you feel the need for one apply it here.
Step 2) Take the Flexi Rod and slowing start wrapping a small amount of locks around the rods. When you are wrapping your locks around the rod, make sure you are overlaying the starting point of your locks at least once. This will prevent your locks from unraveling and getting loose. If you take a look at the picture on the right, you will notice it was done incorrectly, which mean it had to be redone. Note: If you want Shirley template curls, you will have to wrap your locks upward covering the flexi rods as much as you can.
Step 3) Once you have reach the end of your scalp, you will bend the excess end. Note: If you plan on sleeping with your rods, bend your rods in the direction that is comfortable for you. Even though the picture in the bottom show full length, I did indeed bend them to make them more comfortable to sleep in.
Step 4) Do step 1-3 throughout your head. This will take about 1 hour to 2 hours to complete.

To Remove, unbend the flex rods, roll them out of your locks. I slept with this over night, and even though it looks uncomfortable, it really wasn't. But then again I do sleep on my stomach.

With the summer temperature continuing rising, I found myself washing my sisterlocks every week vs every two weeks. Usually there is nothing wrong with that, but now it seem that I have a set of shampoo and conditioner that I use solely for a scalp and a light cleaning, and another set for a clarifying washes. I briefly talked about the light cleaning shampoo on a previous post, but I decided to to do a review of the shampoo and conditioner now.

Crème de la Curl Cleansing Crème

What it Claims
Finally the ultimate ultra conditioning super soft daily curl wash especially made for us - dry, parched, damaged, used and abused, chemically treated, color treated, natural, kinky, curly hair. Crème de la Curl is a non-sulfate curl wash specifically formulated for the dry, coarse, tightly coiled curl, but any hair type longing for a super moisturizing curl wash will benefit. You can never wash your hair too much with this carefully formulated non-sudsy cleansing crème. Excellent for curlies who want clean freshly prepped supple tangle free hair that's ready to receive any Miss Jessie's styling product. THIS PRODUCT IS NOT CHEMICALLY ALTERING Crème De La Curl Cleansing creme has a thicker consistency than our Crème De La Creme daily conditioner


Likes
- Very Nice Scent
- Not Striping
- No Build Up
- Safe for Colored/Dye Hair
- Non-sulfate Product

Dislikes
- Not Sudsy ( which is the case for all non-sulfate products)

Final Note: I loved this shampoo as a former natural headed girl, and I'm loving it as a sisterlocks wearer. The fact that it doesn't sud doesn't change the fact that it does clean.

Crème de la Crème Conditioner

What it Claims
A must have follow up daily conditioner to the Crème de la Curl Cleansing Crème. Finally this ultra-creamy super rich conditioner for your natural hair, dehydrated, naturally curly, color and chemically treated hair. Crème de la Crème moisturizes, protects and detangles dry hair like nothing else. It eliminates tangled strands and leaves hair slickety smooth. Crème de la Curl restores moisture balance to your hair and scalp. A softening conditioner Crème de la Crème allows you to retain all your natural hair growth by banishing dry and brittle strands forever. Experience this creamy luxury. THIS PRODUCT IS NOT CHEMICALLY ALTERING Creme De La Creme daily conditioner has a finer consistency than our Creme De La Curl cleansing crème.

Likes
- Very Nice Scent
- Soften
- No Build Up
- Safe for colored/Dye Hair

Dislikes
- N/A

Final Note: This conditioner soften my sisterlocks and makes them so light and fluffy. I just love it! When I'm done washing my hair with both of these products, my sisterlocks smells so divine. The smell of these two product is by far the most comforting out of all of my products.

I use these two products to do a light washing of my sisterlocks and use Aura Rosemary Mint Rejuvenating Shampoo & Rosemary Mint Rejuvenating Conditioner to do a clarify wash a day prior to my sisterlocks appointment now.