After seeing my post that it took only two hours to retighten the locks pictured below I got a message from one of my clients wondering why it took me longer to retighten her locks and they weren’t half her length…Well, I’m all for transparency. The amount of time to retighten locks can vary for many reasons, some of the most common ones or as follows…

1.The experience of your consultant, in the beginning there’s a huge learning curve that no one gets around, as consultants we’re taught techniques that facilitate our speed not impede it. These techniques take time to master, it took me over a year to get my speed up. Keep in mind that speed isn’t everything, you want a consultant that does a thorough job and won’t take shortcuts when retightening your locks.

2. Separating your locks is crucial to cutting down on the time spent in your consultant’s chair. For some reason many clients forget about the instructions to separate their locks at the root after shampooing. Locks that aren’t separated must be carefully untangled before they can be re tightened. This takes valuable time, you actually end up paying more for your services.

3. The number of locks you have, a client with 600 locks will undoubtedly take more time than a client with 350-400 locks.

4. Getting your locks done in a timely manner will cut down on your length of time in the chair as well. If you miss an appointment reschedule as soon as possible, otherwise you end up with more new growth which will take longer to retighten.

5. For those that feel they must oil their scalp and hair prior to re tightening please expect to spend more time in the chair. Oily locks are slippery and causes your consultant to drop her tool as well as slows down the entire process. Keep in mind oils can build up on your locks and scalp as well, this can lead to your locks not being as bouncy and light as they should be.

6. The circumference of your head also plays a role in how long it takes in retightening your locks, smaller heads take less time…well, it varies because if a smaller head has a thousand plus locks…due to low density, okay, not a thousand but you get the picture, it could end up taking just as long as a person whose head is larger with an average number of locks. Keep in mind that all heads aren’t created equal.

7. Consultants that talk with their hands and clients that move their heads when talking can slow down the process, now you know why your consultant doesn’t have a lot to say while working…LOL!!!

8. Certain hair types are more prone to slippage, slippage increases your time in the chair. Following your consultants instructions on how to care for your locks can minimize slippage and decrease your time in the chair.

9. What you do in the interim can increase your time in the chair as well…

a. Coloring your locks before it’s time can cause movement and slippage at the root due to the amount of water it takes to rinse out the chemicals, that’s why we recommend coloring before your locks are established or waiting until you get the green light from your consultant. If you must color seek out a licensed cosmetologist.

b. Not following your consultants instructions to bundle your baby locks can cause your locks to move around and bunch. Slippage and movement of the locks  will increase your time in the chair.

c. Using the wrong products on your locks can cause them to be greatly compromised, shampoos and conditioners that are laden with ingredients that don’t rinse out completely can cause your locks to slip and in some cases come almost down, this increases your time in the chair immensely. I personally have found the Sisterlocks products to work well in my locks, they rinse out completely.

As consultants we’re always trying to improve our game, we work hard at what we do and love every minute of it. We enjoy our time with our clients but want to minimize their time in the chair without compromising the integrity of what we do, therefore we’re always striving to beat out last times, that way you spend less time in the chair and we get to see more clients. Everybody’s happy!