Moisturizing your hair with the LOC Method

What is the LOC Method?
The LOC method is the three steps of moisturizing your hair and sealing in the mositure into your hair to keep it from drying and breaking.  This method can be done as often as needed.  I like to do this especially to my edges and my ends which tend to be drier than other parts of my hair. But at least once a week, I do this to my entire hair.

Step 1:  (L)iquid

Liquid can be derived from when you wash or co-wash your hair or simply spraying your hair lightly with water.  What I do on a regular basis is wet my hands with water and just run my wet hands through my hair.

I read somewhere that when you wash your hair with water, do so using lukewarm water because hot water actually dries up your hair.

Step 2:  (O)ils

Oils are SO good for your hair. They are one of the most natural products to use to moisturize your hair. Apply your oils to your hair making sure that it thoroughly penetrates your hair shaft.

I like using a mixture of essential oils such as coconut oil and jojoba oil.  I like coconut oil because it is very moisturizing and penetrates my hair shaft, reduces frizziness and promotes shine.  I use jojoba oil because it moisturizes my scalp and doesn't evaporate like other oils.  It is also a good moisture sealent. It is also known to strengthen your hair shaft, keeping it from being brittle. Try different types of oils to see which one works well with your hair. 


Step 3: (C)ream

Applying your hair cream is the last step of the LOC method. Use a rich cream product to seal in the moisture into your hair. Make sure that you apply a generous amount to the ends of your hair since that is the part of your hair that gets really dry.

The cream that I use is my Shea butter mix.  Another product that I use in the Shea Moisture line of products. Some people use grease, but I personally don't like using it when doing the LOC method because it leaves my hair feeling weighed down.



Final Note:
It is important to check ingredients of products you use to moisturize your hair. If those products have ingredients that dry hair, such as alcohol, please consider not using them.

 
Try out the LOC method for a week, and comment on how your hair feels. 



Comments

  1. AnonymousFebruary 16, 2012 at 10:30 PM

    Can u do the oil after you apply your leave-in?

    ReplyDelete
  2. DiscoveringNaturalFebruary 17, 2012 at 3:26 PM

    @Anonymous Feb 16, 2012 08:30PM:
    Yes, you can apply the oil after your leave-in. However, I only do this on wash days in when sealing in the moisture. I find that when I am only moisturizing my hair as a non-wash routine, when I do the LCO method (Liquid-Cream-Oil), the oil does not penetrate the hair shaft, instead it sits on top of my hair, making it more greasy looking. However, when I do the LOC method (Liquid-Oil-Cream), the oil locks into the hair shaft and and the cream seals in the moisture better. I will suggest trying both methods and seeing which one works better for you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownOctober 17, 2016 at 12:25 PM

      Yes, I did the LCO yesterday after washing and today it feels completely dry, brittle, and greasy. What should I do? Should I rewash my hair and do LOC?

      Delete
  3. AnonymousApril 4, 2012 at 1:36 PM

    I referenced your website today on Curly Nikki "Curly Manifesto:I hate hair butters". I have never heard of the LOC method and will try it! Thank you

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DiscoveringNaturalApril 5, 2012 at 10:13 AM

      I love using the LOC method. I credit the lack of dryness of my hair and my daughters to this method. IT WORKS!.. Give it a try. You might also be interested in the "Sealing your ends" post on my blog.

      Delete
  4. AnonymousSeptember 12, 2012 at 10:09 PM

    When you use Shea Butter, do you use the good Ol' African Shea butter, or do you mix it with something else? Or do you use a different type of Shea butter?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DiscoveringNaturalSeptember 13, 2012 at 6:44 AM

      When I use Shea Butter, I do use the "good Ol' African Shea butter" (unrefined). I mix this butter with some essential oils to give it more yummy goodness for my hair.

      Delete
  5. TanyaJanuary 1, 2013 at 3:21 PM

    Hi there! Still enjoying your site! I am having some trouble getting with the LOC method. My dilemma with the LOC method is this: It seems counterproductive to put anything on top of an oil when the oil has already done the job of sealing the hair. I know that some oils penetrate the hair shaft, and those are used by some naturals who do the LOC method, but I've seen others who use very heavy oils, such as castor oil while doing the LOC method, and this oil won't penetrate the strand. To then put a creme or butter on top of it would seem to weigh down the hair. I've seen others put a water-based moisturizer on top of the oil, which while not weighing down the hair, doesn't seem to serve much of a purpose.

    Can you share with me how this has worked for you? Have you ever used a product other than the shea butter mix for your third step?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DiscoveringNaturalJanuary 1, 2013 at 4:00 PM

      I have been reading the book, "The Science of Black Hair", and this really opened up my eyes to understand that there might be some issues with the LOC method. I came to the conclusion a couple days ago to try the LCO method putting oil after cream instead of before. (http://discoveringnatural.blogspot.com/2012/12/loc-method-vs-lco-method.html)

      When I was doing the LOC method, it did work for me. I did have to moisturize every 2 days. Today is day #4 now since I used did my LCO moisturizing and my hair still feels great.

      So, there is a point in what you are saying. I am always learning and that is why I appreciate people like yourself that help me out during this journey!!

      Have a blessed 2013!!

      Delete
  6. AleeshaDecember 6, 2013 at 8:20 AM

    How often do you do the LOC method and can you blow dry after expecting the same results?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DiscoveringNaturalDecember 6, 2013 at 5:19 PM

      I have updated the blog post with a video showing you how I do it. If you blow dry your hair afterwards you will lose some of the moisture you just put in.

      Delete

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