With each technique, you need to be gentle with your locs. Don’t over twist with palm rolling, interlock too tight, or pull too hard with crochet. No matter what maintenance you decide on make sure it's done correctly and isn't painful. Tension will lead to a painful scalp or worse damaged follicles.
MAINTENANCE WITH CROCHET
PROS
-Faster than other options
-Smooth look like palm roll
-Growth Retention
-Usually 6-8 weeks between maintenance
CONS
- Painful if done incorrectly
Crochet is the newest technique in the game, one I believe will be a game-changer. So much can be done with the various sized needles that gather hair strands creating tiny knotts and loops that give an instant matted mature look to locs. Being that this technique is still fairly new there are a lot of learning curves for loctician’s & those looking to try to learn.
Crochet is the #Locd4rmElli speciality and I offer a foundation class on How To Crochet New Growth using my TLC Technique. It requires you to push the needle in and twist it as you pull it back out. This is done in a constant up down side to side motion. The needles are tools – the tools you use and the way you use it determine whether it is good or bad. Let’s say you get the right tool and then use it in the right way so that you get nice tight clean locs. Then it's all good. But if you don't know then it can be all bad and painful.
CLICK HERE TO START LEARNING VIRTUALLY

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MAINTENANCE WITH PALM ROLLING
PROS
-Easy to do yourself
-Usually painless if there isn't any snapping or tugging at the roots
-4 weeks between maintenance
CONS
-Often leads to thin locs over time especially with frequent styling
- Doesn't retain growth
- Usually 7-14 days of wear depending on lifestyle
- Needs products to create a temporary smooth look
-Gets build up easily
By what seems like default, the palm roll method has become the go-to for many. It offers a sleek look and anyone can and does do it. However, palm rolling is usually paired with the usage of creams, gels, waxes, or butters to create a sleek, shellacked, no hair out of place, look that screams perfect in pictures but can lead to damage in the future.
Learn why you want to avoid this by clicking here
Anyone can palm roll! I've literally been told "I'm not paying someone to do what I can do". This is something I heard often in the beginning stages of my career as a loctician when I would try and pass along my business cards. I learned quickly that a lot of people actually find comfort in doing their own hair especially the palm roll technique because it doesn't require much knowledge or know-how. You simply smooth the loose hairs over the loc'd section, twist, and secure with a clip.
From a stylist standpoint, the palm roll method is the quickest way to maintain locs and keep the chair rotating, which is how it became the industry go-to.
My personal belief and observations are that palm rolling doesn't retain growth for all textures unless you have extremely thick hair. If you don't have thick hair this could be the reason for thinning and premature breakage over time and my professional suggestion is to switch methods.

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MAINTENANCE WITH INTERLOCKING
PROS
-Retains growth
- No unraveling
-Creates strong locs
-Usually 6 -10 weeks between maintenance
CONS
-Can leave holes or gaps in locs if done incorrectly
-Can be painful if pulled to tightly
-Uses a tool to tighten roots
As you search the word “interlocking” you may notice a variation of opinions. As with any review, there will be differences in opinions based on experience and technique. Yes, there is miseducation and a bad version of the interlocking method and there is a good way!
Interlock has been around but treated like the black sheep because its misunderstood. It requires the technical know-how to perform without causing damage to the roots. What happens if it's done by someone without that knowledge? Well, it's done incorrectly and gets a bad reputation or outcasted because of it.
There are stylist who will debate that it causes thinning and breakage, and some will be honest and say that it just takes more time. The loc has to be pulled through itself at the root to tighten up which means the longer your locs the more adjusting you have to account for. Interlocking techniques used primarily for micro/ sister/brother locs to prevent snapping. In other loc sizes or straighter hair textures, the technique is not normally used because of the wrapped/braided appearance that it leaves after tightening. This pattern eventually fades over time, but can be off-putting to those who have the smooth sleek look in their vision.
So when you search around the internet about the various maintenance techniques, you must understand that some may have bad experiences not because of the actual technique but because of the service provider. When searching for a loctician, you should ask them more in-depth questions about The holes in the root will create loc breakage and loss. This is why people have mentioned online that “interlocking causes breakage.” Not actually true. It depends on the loctician’s awareness.

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My personal belief is that as a stylist it is our jobs to continue our education and cultivate innovation to correct the things that go wrong, and to invest time into the clients that we service by doing what we know makes sense instead of a one size fits all mentality.
Peace Love & Locs
Elli Marie
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