Redefining The Beauty of African Hair - #SMWLagos 2019

Hello :),

Happy New Year still sounds appropriate even though we are already in the second half of January, 2019. 2018 was a very interesting year, fortunately with more memorable ups than downs. I wouldn't want to bore you with the usual new year tradition of resolutions and reviews as I believe social media does a good job of telling that story in real time. One quick glance at our Instagram feed and you should be up to date. 

In the spirit of looking upwards and moving onwards; I am elated to announce that Locitude will host a session at this years Social Media Week Lagos 2019.

Our talk is themed Redefining the Beauty of African Hair. Having been fortunate enough to found and run Locitude for the past 3 and a half years I have come to realize  that one too many Nigerians disregard their natural hair, it is simply not enough. Not neat enough, not professional enough, not long enough, not just enough as it is. Everyday an African woman on the planet covers her head with someone else's hair of any other race but hers either in shame that their hair is not enough or with the mindset that African hair is unmanageable. In the same vein, a man who chooses to keep his hair in an uncombed fro is deemed irresponsible and has to work extra hard to proof himself to society. This has lead me to ponder why African natural hair is of so much contest.

Interestingly there are obvious and traceable reasons why this happens, colonialism, racism, effects from past slavery; similar subconscious traits associated with skin bleaching. This reasons are in our not so distant past and need to be addressed and reconciled. Quoting  Soren Kierkegaard “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards”; we believe that we owe it to ourselves to  redefine the standard of what is deemed as beautiful hair on an African.

So at SMWLagos 2019, the Locitude team will be asking questions to help us understand the past so we can live freely in our own hair.  

- Why do we feel this way about our natural hair? 
- Why are we the only race that wakes up on a daily basis worrying about the world's perception of how we choose to wear our hair? 

- Who set the standards on what is perceived as acceptable hair on an African? 

- Why are we afraid of the kink in our roots? 

- How do we redefine the standard of Beautiful African hair? 

In recognizing who we are, we able to respect and improve ourselves as individuals; in turn our immediate environment and the world. This conversation will is the first step to understanding our self worth as Africans and having no shame in our looks, starting with our crowns. In the famous words of Lucille Ball "Love yourself first and then everything else falls into line".

We do hope you can join us.  Please click here to register for our session. 

If you managed to get all the way to the end of this blog post, you stand a chance to qualify for a free pass. Please send an email to info@loc-itude.com and we contact you accordingly.

Do take care and live 2019 with no limitations.

One love.

Your Loc Head
Ade.

The Three Year Conundrum.

Hello there,

It's been really quiet on the blog this year :| and the usual come back is along the lines of I'm sorry, I'm back now and OMG where is the year running to? Well this time I'm not making any promises of being back to blogging, neither am I sorry for not writing, but I'm sorry and lastly it has been a really  good year so far, I'm happy I am making the best of it.

You must be wondering what this blog title is about, I'll do you the pleasure of not wasting anymore time blabbing. I have changed jobs subconsciously every three years (Architecture - eCommerce - Entrepreneurship) in the past 9 years post my masters education and Locitude formally turned 3 years in July of 2018, so yes I had an itch.  An itch to see if there's something  else out there that I need to get my hands and mind into. #Phew!

I feel like cheater just typing these words, whilst I never, not in the slightest bit considered completely moving on from Locitude, I indeed considered adding on. Locitude is still an infant in my  mind with so much potential to grow. It has taken a lot of support from family, friends, staff and customers to get this far and abandonment is not an option. :). 

I have exercised my personal nomadic needs in a different way instead - I took on hiking and more running :D and it has been indeed fulfilling. I've run a few races this year including 10km in the Lagos marathon and ARM race, 6.6km in Run for a Cure (Cancer) race and I'm currently  training to attempt 42km in the Lagos Marathon in 2019. I also climbed Mount Kenya and reached pt. Lenana 4985m above sea level. So let's consider my itch crashed.

Everyday hasn't been easy but everyday there's something to look forward to. For Locitude I'm looking forward to the next quarter of the year and a collaboration project we are working to unveil which will focus on men with locs. In my personal life I have 2 hikes planned in Ondo and Jos before the year runs our and a full marathon that I'm literally running towards.

I have learnt in the past 3 years to always follow my heart even when it makes no sense to anyone else. I just followed my heart writing this here especially since it's not a hair post, so I hope this post inspires someone out there.

I'll leave you now to enjoy the rest of your day. Between I'm still loc'd and keeping a positive attitude. 

Ade Balogun, Chief Loc Officer.

xoxo

Your Loc Head 

Ade.

Long Locs Problems!

Hello World,

February is about ending and I hope you are all kicking a$$ in 2018 already. This year has been interesting, upbeat and fast paced on my end. I guess this is how you begin to see life when you get older. In the meantime, the sun in Lagos is scorching as expected for this time of the year and my mid-back-length locs are becoming a bother, hence the inspiration for this post. I promise not cutting them off just yet. I'm just here to complain about my beautiful long locs which I love and tell you how I am coping with all this hair :D.

1. It's getting heavy.

With my recent (constant) pursuit of weight loss, I can bet that my locs are the cause of the extra 2kg on the 12kg I intend to loose by the end of the year. Whilst my locs are still a decent, relatable weight when they are dry, it's a different story when they are wet or packed in certain ways. A low bun can sometimes feel like there's a cute puppy hanging on my head.

2. The Heat

I am actually one of those people who likes to wear my hair in a ponytail but 5 mins in Balogun market under the Lagos sun and I'm looking for anyway to get my locs off my neck and back. These are the moments when I ask myself  "who send me?".

3. Styling

I know you must be thinking oh please your styling options endless, but infact therein lies the problem, half the time I spoilt for choice so I end up with the most reliable style there is - The Ponytail. Unfortunately the heat brings me back to the point where I'm thinking of what style to do. It's a cycle. #Phew!

4. Eating my Hair.

I have ended up with the ends of my hair in my food countless times. I know it sounds gross but it happens. :|. Don't ask me how.

5. Leaving my locs behind.

Yep, sometimes my locs just can't keep up. For instance when I'm dancing salsa my locs get trapped in my partner's watch mid spin, thereby pulling me back and causing confusion. Other times, when sharing couch or bed and I try to get up, I tend to leave my locs behind with someone resting on them. This can be painful and frustrating.

6. Takes forever to dry.

I miss those days when I could get under the shower, run water through my locs, towel dry and be on my way. These days I have to have a plan around when I wash and the activities I will engage in 24 hours after, else you will find me walking around town with a wet patch on my back and a cold. Yes there's the drier option which I avoid like a plague and even that takes time.

7. Still have Length goals

I have always have this dream to take a mami water (water goddess) looking picture with me rising out of the Atlantic with my locs as my top covering. My locs are currently playing catch up with my boobs... So despite my rant on long hair problems, I still want longer hair.

Here's a picture from the gram, with my locs in loops. This was my solution to getting my locs off my back and out of my way when I ran a 10k race in the recent Lagos City Marathon. (of course I finished). The style lasted a whole week, before I started carving for my ponytail.

Alright, this was fun. I tell myself I should write more and I really should.

Till my next post.

Xoxo.
Your Loc Head,
Ade.

Happy New Year, 2018

Hello world,

January is almost over, imagine that. 2018 feels like it's half way gone already, it has been super busy and go go go since day 1, literally. Whilst I am super grateful for feeling the rush that life has recently brought me, I am also dreaming of a holiday sometime this year when I can just sit back and smell the coffee as opposed to rushing before I leave the house every other morning.

Oooops, I am rushing away with all my thoughts when all I really want to say Happy New Year to you. So Happy New (slightly old) Year!

2017 was a very interesting year in my personal life, made mistakes but grew through them. I do hope you get to see the shiny new me in 2018. 2017 was the year Locitude improved and had more opportunities to have the conversation around Locs, in 2017 I felt the principle of consistency come to pass for Locitude. Some people walked into the studio based on posts I had written on here from 2014, a time I had no clue that I would be a fancy "hair dresser" in the future. I have basically learnt that staying true to yourself no matter the odds is definitely worth it. I hope to remember this any time I am tempted by the juicy benefits of a full time job.

Here's to a fantastic year 2018 to all our blog readers, customers, fans, supporters, loc heads and aspiring loc heads. Keep your ears to the ground, 2018 is going to exciting.

Do something progressive everyday, for example rocking your locs with an attitude.

Happy New Year  From us At Locitude.

Xoxo.

Your Loc Head
Ade.

The African Hair Revolution - TedxYaba 2017 - Ade Balogun

Hello you,

2017 has come to an end and it has been a very mercurial year. The Locitude team and I are grateful for making it this far. One of my best moments was having to opportunity to speak at a local Tedx event in Lagos, Nigeria. It was indeed an honour to have spoken on such a platform. Nervous, is an understatement for how I felt addressing about 200 people in an auditorium and even more so knowing that a video of my presentation would be on YouTube potentially for life. However, I was pleased to have this conversation on what is likely insignificant to many but yet subconsciously relevant in our day to day existence. Our African Hair.

The talk was given on the 19^th of August 2017 at the Ozone Cinema’s Yaba. If you haven’t already clicked play on the video link below, I think now is the perfect time.

I am glad I gave this TedTalk and more than anything I have had the opportunity to look inwards and to myself be true. In the New Year I hope to find purity and connections to who I am as an African, what it really means and how in my own little way I can change my world for better. I sincerely hope you are inspired to do the same.

I hope you enjoyed my presentation and please feel free to drop a comment if you will. I will love to hear from you.

Lastly , here is a big thank you to everyone who in one way of the other supported me through this memorable experience. All of your script reading, fine-tuning, rehearsal listening, rights to images and video, additions, omissions, attendance and love shown will be forever appreciated.

Xoxo

Your Loc Head.

Ade.

#TeamLocitude

Locitude Interview on TVContinental - 25th September, 2017.

Hello people,

It's been an interesting turn of events since Loc Appreciation Day, 2017 and Locitude has had good fortune of catching the eye of the media. On the 19th of August, 2017 I had the pleasure of speaking at a TEDx event here in Lagos and that was awesome. The official video is not yet out and it still makes me so nervous as I desperately want to see it, but hey I have no choice but to wait till it is out.

Baby steps have brought us from 2015 to this point where there is value in choosing to wear your hair loc'd. The conversation has evolved from a hairstyle that is largely unacceptable to a conscious effort to embrace that which is truly ours as people of African decent. The conversation must continue, to the point where being you has no other label but to be you.

 I know you are here to see the video so I'll let you. Please click on the link below the image and fast forward to 1hr:17mins of the video. Titi was pleasant and easy to vibe with.

Link to Locitude interview. Starts at 1hr:17mins

The entire TVC crew were super pleasant, resourceful and professional, Christie, Ozi and Seun who is a fellow loc head. Looking forward to our follow up interview where I will do some live demonstrations with a model.

Ok people, I will be here keeping it loc'd with an attitude, till later, xoxo.

Your Loc Head,
Ade.

Linda's Hair Journey to Locs - Appointment No. 2

Hello people,

A lot has been going on for me, in business and in my personal life and it's a lot to be grateful for. Today, is going to be all about Linda's locs while I take a private moment to savor the on-goings in my life.

So, I called Linda to check on her locs a couple of weeks after our first appointment and to my surprise she said everything had loosened. "OMG, what did you do?" where the words that fell out of my mouth. Linda had washed her locs twice on her own in about 2 weeks of having them; because I had told her "Locs are freedom" and she should never let her locs hold her back in life. Well, I really believe those words but I didn't expect so much independence in less than 2 weeks.

I asked her to please come on over to the studio so we can but her twists back in and her locs can begin to set.

This appointment took place on the 12th of August, 2017.

Linda's locs after 2 and a half weeks and 2 washes.

Fortunately Linda's parts were still intact and all we had to do was continue her locs using the palm roll method.

 '

Video showing palm roll method used to continue Linda's locs

Fresh out of the dryer

Linda got our traditional first loc style
which helps keep locs  in place for longer.

Linda also talks about her dandruff problem which we have to work on through her journey, wearing wigs and how she feels about her locs after 2 weeks and a bit. You can listen here.

Got to run now. Work and life calls.

How you enjoy this series and I really do hope it encourages someone out there, locs are more beautiful than we tend to perceive.

Much love, I will be here keeping it loc'd with an attitude as always.

Your loc head

Ade.