Aneesah's Loc Journey: 1 Year Loc'd

Sep 25

5 min read

One year loc’d, and Aneesah’s journey is such a beautiful example of what can happen when you allow your locs time to develop, make intentional adjustments along the way, and stay consistent both in and outside of the salon.

Aneesah started her journey with SMedium Traditional 2 Strand Starter Locs with square parts and no middle part. From the beginning, she had a clear vision: she wanted locs that were thicker and fuller, while still staying within the SMedium size range.

One year later, I’m confident in saying we’ve achieved the locs she envisioned 🌱

Before the Locs:

Aneesah's Natural Hair

Before we ever started Aneesah’s locs, her journey began with her consultation.

As part of that process, Aneesah submitted photos of her natural hair so I could see her hair in its natural state and better understand the foundation we would be working with.

These photos are such an important part of documenting her journey because they give us a true look at where everything began—before the grid, before the two strands and before a full year of loc development.

The Inspiration

Behind Her Locs

Aneesah also submitted an inspiration photo during her consultation that helped communicate the look she was drawn to.

Inspiration photos can be a helpful reference when planning a loc journey.

They give us a visual understanding of the overall size, fullness and aesthetic a client is hoping to achieve. At the same time, every head of hair is different. Density, texture, strand size and natural growth patterns all influence how someone’s locs will ultimately develop.

For Aneesah, the goal wasn’t to duplicate someone else’s locs—it was to use her inspiration as a guide while creating a foundation specifically for her hair.

She wanted a fuller, thicker look while still maintaining an overall SMedium loc size.

And that became the vision we worked toward.

Where Her Loc Journey Started

With her goals in mind, we started Aneesah’s journey with:

Starter Method: SMedium Traditional 2 Strand Starter Locs

Parting Pattern: Square Parts w/o Middle Part

Initial Loc Count: 88 Locs

The initial install created the foundation, but the foundation isn’t necessarily the final picture.

Locs change. They bud. They expand. They condense. They mature.

And as they develop, we get a much clearer picture of their eventual size and density.

That’s why I believe there can be value in allowing the loc journey to unfold before making certain adjustments.

From 88 Locs to 81 Locs

As Aneesah’s locs continued developing, we could see that combining select locs would help us move closer to the thicker SMedium appearance she originally wanted.

At 11 months loc’d, we combined a few of her locs, bringing her count from 88 to 85 locs.

Then, at her one-year maintenance appointment, we made a few additional combinations.

Her current loc count is now 81 locs.

88 Locs → 85 Locs → 81 Locs 🌱

These changes weren’t about completely altering her original foundation.

They were intentional refinements based on what her locs showed us as they matured and the vision Aneesah had from the beginning.

And I love where we landed.

Her locs now have the fuller, thicker appearance she wanted while still maintaining that SMedium feel.

Growing Into Her Dream Locs

Sometimes your dream locs are something you grow into.

Looking back at Aneesah’s original consultation photos, her inspiration picture, her starter locs and where she is today tells the story better than any single finished photo could.

Instead of trying to force the final result during her initial install, we created a solid foundation and allowed her locs time to show us how they naturally wanted to develop.

Then we refined along the way.

Over time, I’m confident in saying that we’ve achieved Aneesah’s dream locs.

And getting here has been a team effort.

A Team Effort 🌱

A healthy loc journey isn’t created during maintenance appointments alone.

What happens at home matters, too.

Aneesah has been consistent with caring for her locs between appointments, while during her appointments with me, we’ve continued to maintain, monitor and refine her locs as they mature.

That combination of at-home care + ongoing professional maintenance has played an important role in the progress we see today.

Consistency really does show over time.

In Aneesah’s Words

For her one-year anniversary, I wanted Aneesah to have an opportunity to tell part of her own story.

I asked her why she decided to loc her hair, what she has enjoyed most about having locs and what caring for them looks like in her everyday life.

Q: Why did you decide to loc your hair?

“I decided to loc my hair initially because I'd just had my first son and taking care of my hair was on the bottom of my list of priorities. I simply didn't have enough time for natural loose curly hair. I wanted a stress free, go with the flow natural hairstyle that also represented who I was.”

Her answer adds so much context to the journey.

Starting her locs wasn’t simply about choosing a new hairstyle. She had entered a new season of life as a mother and wanted her hair to fit into that life—not constantly compete with it for her time.

She wanted something natural, freeing and representative of who she was.

Q: What’s been the best part of having locs?

“The freedom and versatility. Not having to worry about my hair looking perfect but also being able to go out and not stress whether I look a hot mess.”

Freedom and versatility have become part of Aneesah’s everyday experience with her locs.

And I think there’s something special about getting to a place where your hair doesn't always need to be freshly styled or perfectly maintained for you to feel comfortable wearing it.

There’s beauty in seeing locs in every stage.

Q: What does your at-home care routine look like?

“I typically wash or get wet once a week and use a good leave in. I do a soft palm roll every other week and spray with rose water daily!!"

Aneesah’s routine is also a reminder that your loctician only sees your hair for a small portion of your journey.

The work you do between appointments matters.

Her consistency at home, combined with her ongoing maintenance appointments with me, has helped us protect the foundation we created while continuing to work toward her long-term loc goals.

Locs in Real Life

One of my favorite parts of this anniversary feature is that Aneesah also shared photos of herself wearing her locs naturally in her everyday life—including moments with her family.