What exactly are soft locs? What makes them different from other loc hairstyles? And what about the naturals who wear them? Here are 8 facts you didn’t know about soft locs, one of the most popular natural hairstyles around.
They are trendy
Although soft locs have been around for ages, they are making a major comeback in recent years. They’re a hot new trend among African-American women who have become tired of their natural hair. Women across all races are getting them too! If you like what you see on celebrities like Jada Pinkett Smith and Rihanna, why not consider adding soft locs to your hairstyle repertoire?
They are easy to make
While soft locs are a lot easier to make than their ropey counterparts, there is still some technique involved. Before starting your DIY project, you’ll want to research different techniques and tutorials. There are many online how-to videos and forums dedicated to DIYers. Don’t feel like you need to start with your entire head of hair; try one or two locs for your first go at it.
They are healthy
There is some debate over whether or not soft locs are healthy. On one hand, they appear to be an effective protective style for African-American hair. But on another, there have been many reports of women who’ve had their hair permanently damaged and even lost their natural hair due to improper installation.
They make natural hair look beautiful
Locs are a great protective style that comes in handy during hot and humid weather, and they make your natural hair look beautiful. They’re versatile: If you don’t want to rock your locs all on their own, you can braid them or add extensions to them for more variety. They last forever: Once you start growing out you’re locs, they last forever—well, almost forever! They just get longer as time goes on. They require little maintenance: As long as you keep up with regular washing and conditioning of your locs (you can do it yourself), there isn’t much else required to maintain them.
They can be found in any color
Want to rock bright purple locs? Go for it. Prefer hot pink, grape, or turquoise? That’s cool too. Because each strand of hair is wrapped individually, soft loc styles can be colored as you like. Some women opt for a solid color throughout, while others choose to dye different sections of their hair different shades. Whatever your color preference may be, go ahead and wear your locs any way you want!
They are cute
If you’re into that sort of thing. Like, people say they look like Cabbage Patch dolls, so if you have a soft spot for dolls, go right ahead and rock those little curls.
The maintenance level is low
One of the big draws to soft locs is how easy they are to maintain. While some people choose to give themselves a new hairstyle by taking out one or two locs, you can create a whole look with just a few styling tools. To refresh and reinvigorate your braids, all you have to do is: brush, shake or cut off old loc extensions, spritz them with some water and apply an oil-based moisturizer. That’s it!
They have been around for a long time
While some may assume that soft locs are a recent trend, they have been around for quite some time. A study conducted by the University of Central Florida in 2015 concluded that locs were once only worn by Rastafarians in Jamaica and Ethiopia but today they can be found all over Europe and North America. Back in 2007, another study by Dr.