1. Tell us about yourself.
My name is Zaria or Zee, and I am 23-year-old Cincinnati native. Big Scorpio, the best sign haha, but I am the oldest & the only girl out of my 4 siblings. I work full time in office administration in conjunction with doing UGC & content creation.
2. How long have you had locs and how many do you have?
I have had my locs for 10 months. I started them myself on 3/5/22 with 80 two strand twists, but after combining I think I have about 74-ish.
3. How do you take care/wash them?
For daily maintenance I spray my hair in the morning and at night. My spray consists of rose water, various oils, and leave in conditioner. I wash when I feel I need to and it could be 1-2x a month if that.
4. Do your locs have any meaning to you?
At first, I did not realize the true meaning my hair possessed. Of I know I have a “good grade” but being on this loc journey has shown me that my locs truly represent confidence and freedom. For so long, I’ve always worried about my hair and it not being done, and the time-consuming nature of doing braid outs & twist outs. For me, my journey so far has been about self-discovery and elevation. It also taught me patience.
5. Any issues & how do you deal with them?
As much as people think locs are low maintenance, it’s not like you don’t have to do anything at all. It’s not as time consuming as being a loose natural, but you still need to treat them well.
Most issues I face are with frizz and having my hair up for a long period of time. The biggest is LINT because it is the literal devil haha. However, I have grown to love my frizz and for the lint I just use a rat tail comb or a brush to get it out. I did have brief issues with dryness, but to combat that I started to change and focus my moisture routine based on what my hair needs. I found steaming my locs helps as well with dryness.
*** Locs Life Rose Water Sprays***
6. How did you start them?
I started them myself as two strand twists.
7. Tell us about your locs (texture, length, size). Do you think any of these attributes have impacted how you care for your locs?
I would consider my hair to be a mix between 3b/3c, but I do believe I have multi-textured hair. The length of my hair I would say is medium and the size loc I have is smedium.
As for impacting how I care for my locs, I would say yes for sure. Having a finer hair type has affected my hair’s density and the way I have to care for my hair. I’ve noticed that when I was a loose natural, my hair retained a lot more moisture and all I had to do was wet it and be cool. Versus now, my locs require a lot of TLC because I keep my ends curly and I don’t want my hair to dry out.
People will say because my hair is finer, it wouldn’t loc up or it would look funny. However, the crazy thing is my hair is locking up very nicely so I am surprised. Now we are just waiting for my locs to get some weight and not be so limp!
8. What do you like/dislike most about having locs?
Dislikes: There’s not really a lot I don’t like besides retwisting. Cause chile it takes me about 3-4 to retwist and I be so tired lol. Personally though, it’s the perception that comes with having locs. They expect you to be this highly spiritual personality, who does readings, is vegan, and you’re just this earthly creature. Like I am on my spiritual journey, but I’m not here to heal you, I’m trying to heal myself ya know?
Likes: But the thing I love about having locs is the carefreeness and confidence that I have gained. My hairstyles are cute AF, and I have been able to step out my comfort zone. Being natural for so long, you’re always making sure your fro is in the right place or making sure you don’t sweat out your silk press, or worrying about heat damage. Like none of those issues matter for me anymore. I don’t have anxiety about how I’ll look to others. On top of that, I’ve been able to connect with amazing people and creatives.
9. How do you like to style them?
Any variation of a half up half down is my go-to. I feel like that is everybody signature especially starting out. In all honesty, I love just wearing my locs down, but just wait till my pineapple is perfected!
10. Anything else you want to share (tips, locs, life)? Is there a way we can follow you and your endeavors on social media that you would like to share?
Yes,
- Instagram: thatsozee
- TikTok: thatsozee_
- YouTube: Zaria Li
My biggest tips for your loc journey are:
- Take Pics even if you don’t want to post. You’ll get a really clear visual timeline of your hair’s growth
- PAITENCE IS KEY. Girl yo hair aint gon grow down to your back in 3 months.
- FRIZZ IS GOING TO HAPPEN. It is natural & just let it happen cause you not gon’ to be able to fix.
- PLEASE do not base your expectations for your hair on someone else’s because you will be highly disappointed and your journey will not be conducive for you. Hair textures, hair care and genetics play a big role in how your hair will be. Inspo is okay, but don’t have that expectation.
- My rule of thumb is to give the journey 6 months to a year and I say that because
- You are allowing your locs the time to grow and mature.
- Your 2nd month is going to look very different from your 6th month.
- Pour love and positivity into your hair. Do not let negative thoughts and ideas consume your mind because it’ll only hinder your journey.
Just know that there will be good days and bad days, but how you handle those is going to determine your experience. It is not for everybody, but it is for you if you put in the effort.
My biggest tips for Content Creators:
- Post and make the content you like and want see. You never know who will like it and what may come of it.
- Be consistent, but don’t burn yourself out!
