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Quick Update and Season's Greetings

Greetings All,

I just wanted to drop by and say hello and thank you to all who check my blog faithfully for updates. It's been forever since my last post and honestly there haven't been many hair news to share. I am happy to report that as of October 11 my locks reached the four year mark. Other than that, there's not much to report. I
have come to a critical decision though...

I always said that I'd give my hair 4 years to fully lock and I happy to report that finally, it appears to be 95% fully locked. My hair has grown immensely and I really need a change. If all goes well, there will be new hair news on the horizon real soon.


Have a happy, safe holiday season.
Much growth (inward and outward) in the new year!

Katika
(These pics are from my SL anniversary, they are a bit distorted so please bear w/ me. I am working on better pictures, but my beloved new camera's battery charger (Canon SD1000) has been misplaced.)

Pics from my Jamaica Vacation!

Another Attempt at Styling

Click on the pics for a closer look!

My Never Ending Quest for Volume

Check out these pics I recently took. My hair looks so thin and lifeless! Since my locks have matured, they have really condensed quite a bit. While the added length is nice, the downside is that my hair hangs straight w/ very little volume after retightening. I must find some hair styles that play up the volume of my hair (I have a big head after all :). This always happens after retightening. I've tried braid outs, roller sets, bantu knots, everything. We are going to Jamaica in a few weeks I need some urgent styling tips...help!

Shout out to the DH for allowing me to share these. I had to sneak him in somehow :)

Could it be I stayed away too long?

You ladies are the best and I have missed you all immensely! Thanks for the warm welcome back (Shout outs to Chosen Vessel, Sunsail, Blaq, Jen and Brenda!!!) I've been busy wrapping us this school year, working on another degree and catching up on everyone's blogs. Everyone's hair is looking marvelous and so many of you have had tremendous growth (inwardly and outwardly). I look forward to more reading and more sharing this summer.

Yours in Locks,
Me :)

( 

I'm in a little lock funk right now...

I am so bored with my hair!!! While the added length has been a good thing over the years, it honestly has made my hair more difficult to syle. My lock puffs aren't puffy anymore, it takes a whole day to roll it and now that my locs are condensing they just hang straight with very little fullness. What's a girl to do? Please let me know if you have any suggestions.

(The pics below show my hair the day of my last retightening, the eve before and yesterday's freestyle and quick updo)

Thanks!

I've Been Tagged!

Thanks to everyone who’s visited my blog lately and especially to those of you who took the time to leave comments. While looking over my comments today, Maryee informed me that I’d been tagged on her site.

So, here it goes…

Five Facts My Readers Don’t Know about Me

1. I am a professional gospel singer. What can I say? I simply love lifting up His name through song. To me, music touches the heart in ways that nothing else can. I was a member of the Georgia Mass Choir (perhaps best known for their accompaniment to Whitney Houston in “The Preacher’s Wife”) but currently perform as a solo artist.

2. I attended Georgia State University and was amongst the inaugural group of students who had the opportunity to live in the Centennial Olympic Village once lived in by athletes from all over the world during the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, GA.

3. My favorite color is Green. In fact, if you review most of the pictures on this site you’ll find that I have on more green clothing than any other. Most of the furniture in my home and the majority of my décor is green as well. Green is life. Abundant in nature, green signifies growth,renewal, health, and environment. It brings me a sense of peace and calm. Heck, if I could get away with green hair I would dye it in a heartbeat !

4. My eyes change colors. Yes, I know it sounds bizarre but it’s true. I think it has something to do with the reflection of light or the colors that I am wearing, but my eye color can range from hazel to green to gray.See for yourself.

5. If I could live anywhere in the world, it would be the US Virgin Islands. There is no place more beautiful in the entire world than St.Thomas. I’m going to retire there one day.

Thanks for the tag Maryee!

Who’s Next??

Karen

Blaqkofi

Linda

Hanging Tough

No, this is not a post about New Kids on the Block (get it? They had a song called Hanging Tough...okay, nevermind :)! I just had to share some quick pics from my soft spike set. It's now day six of my soft spike set and I still have curls. My hair has always had good hang time but this is crazy! No setting lotion, no foam, no holding spray...just plain ole' water (I rolled it partly damp and its been raining all week!) and they are still hanging tough. I've enjoyed they way they've fallen gracefully each day. I'm gonna be sad to wash them out. Wow, I gotta try this styling thing more often.

The top two pics are from Day 6, the bottom two are from Day 3

Hair is fun again!

Many people have asked why I colored my hair. The answer is very simple...I hated it! Not, my sisterlocks of course, I hated the faded color that had taken over half of my strands. Now when it first started to grow out, it was kind of cute with the two tones and all. But then I started noticing that I did not like any of the photos I took in which the color really stood out. It worked sometimes and sometimes it just didn't. Finally one day I took a picture of my hair out in the sunlight and it looked a hot mess. After that the search was on for a new color. I looked for many, many months and finally just gave up. Then this past Friday, I decided it was time to do something. I went to CVS, found a color I liked and just did it. I'm so glad I did. I look forward to styling or not and get this...going out in the sunlight. Now, having sisterlocks is fun again.

Now Presenting...My New Hair Color!

Greetings,
Well finally after almost 2 years, I re-dyed my hair. I'd been debating it for a while, but I just couldn't take the two-toned look anymore. I was going back and forth between lighter and darker tones and then decided to go with something closer to my natural color. The color I used is Rich Golden Brown by Feria (I always used their line prior to locking, I like that it doesn't deposit a single flat color). It looks much darker on these photos, but you get the point. I'm going to take a few outside shots to get that perspective later. I am much happier with my hair color now! I'll probably go a little lighter in the summmer, but for now this will work. Check me out below...

My New Camera

Greetings,

Well I've finally purchased a new camera. At the suggestion of the Hair Snapping Diva (thanks B!), I decided to go with the Canon Powershot SD800 IS Digital Elph (Okay the name is a bit long). I've only played around with it for a little bit now, but I think I like it. It has far more features that even I can figure out, but I'm sure as I use it a bit more I'll get the hang of it. More pics to come soon (after I retighten my hair, my face clears up and I lose a whole lot more weight...I look a hot mess in these pics;)!

See you soon,
KDL

Since you asked about the weight loss...

Many of you asked about my weight loss. Well, I'm here to tell you it wasn't any magic diet or plan, I joined Weight Watchers. In July of 2006, I basically had gotten to the point where food had become my vice to deal with all the stress I was enduring. From losing my grandma, to missing my DH, the death of a co-worker and a student, and so-on it was a tough time. I didn't realize just how much weight I'd gained until I (get this) looked at some photos I'd taken of my hair. Now, I'm only about 5 ft. 2 and have always been on the petite side, but wearing clothes in the double digits was not even cute on my small frame.

So, at the advice of a friend I went to a Weight Watchers meeting and was instantly hooked. The thing I love about the program is that it is so simple and I still eat what I want. It just made sense to me. The first week I lost 4 lbs, 1.5 the next, 2, then 3, then .5 and finally 23 pounds. The biggest difference has been in my energy level, I just feel better overall and knowing that I'm doing something so loving for myself has just put me on such a high! I even gained a couple of pounds back over my 2 week holiday vacation and its already coming off.

If you are considering losing weight or looking for something that is simple and effective...it might be worth it to you to check it out. I'll gladly share some tips and basic pointers if anyone's interested.

Be blessed and take care of yourself TODAY!

Fall Pictures

I'm still here!

Happy New Year!

Greetings Friends and Lock Buddies. Wow, it is simply amazing how quickly time flies by. Seems like just yesterday I was fretting over my hair (actually it was just yesterday;-) or missing my DH (who has now been home for about 2.5 months). There really isn't a good explanation for my absence on my blog, I've just been really busy adjusting to all the changes I've endured this past year. It was a rough one, but through God's Grace I'm proud to say I've made it. Things are on the up and up, I've lost over twenty pounds and I feel better than ever. I just wanted to check in and let everyone know that I sincerely appreciate those of you who've ever stopped by, left comments or sent me an email. Your words of encouragement and support has made all the difference. I've posted a few pics above, you'll notice that they aren't very clear (most of them were taken on my camera phone) and I guess if there was a reason for my absence here, I'd have to say its due to the fact that my camera is on its last leg. I am replacing it later this month for a much better one. Please let me know if you have any suggestions or reviews.

In the meantime,
Be blessed today and take care of yourself!

--Katika