When you decide to start your loc journey there are a few things that you will need to think about.
One of those things is how you will maintain your locs as they begin to grow.
The two main ways that people choose to maintain their locs are through either the palm rolling method or interlocking.
Since looking into this, it has been quite the debate.
People usually choose one or the other for various different reasons.
Today we will take a look at palm rolling vs interlocking and the advantages and disadvantages of each of the methods. Which is really the better method?
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What Is Palm Rolling?
Palm rolling your hair is a method whereby you take a loc of hair and roll it in the palm of your hands.
To do the palm roll method, you begin by taking the first loc of hair and twisting the new growth at the root. Once that is done you palm roll the rest of the loc.
You simply place the loc in your palm and then gently roll the loc in your palm all the way down to the end of the lock.
You can use a clip like this one to hold the twisted section of the loc in place so that it doesn’t immediately unravel.
Continue to do this until you have covered your entire head of locs.
What Is Interlocking?
When interlocking some people like to use a tool like this one. I have also seen people interlock without using a tool but that’s a tough call and you must be a professional to know how to do it that way properly.
You are essentially almost knitting the hair as you interlock.
To begin interlocking put the loc of hair into the eye of the tool and simply weave it into the loc.
Continue to do this until the whole loc becomes tight.
Repeat until you have covered your whole head of hair.
Advantages Of Palm Rolling
Let’s take a look at some of the advantages of palm rolling your locs.
- It’s handy for those who don’t want to sit down for hours at a time to re-tighten their hair. It’s fast.
- It’s great for those who don’t like their hair to feel tight. (You don’t always have to retwist the roots if you don’t want to.
- You can literally do it anywhere so you won’t feel the pressure of having to sit in one place and do it.
- Palm rolling your locs gives them a nice rounded shape.
Disadvantages Of Palm Rolling
- Palm rolling your hair doesn’t last very long. Once water hits your hair it can begin to unravel.
- Most people have to keep their hair in a “style” if they want their fresh retwist to last a while longer.
- You may have much more of a frizzy look with your locs if you decide to palm roll.
- As palm rolling has to be done more often it could lead to over manipulation of your locs which could lead to damage and potential breakage.
Advantages Of Interlocking
- Interlocking your hair lasts a good amount of time, in fact until you get new growth.
- The loc is much more compact giving it a very clean and maintained look once completed.
- Once you interlock your hair that’s it, you can pretty much go about your business without having to worry about your hair coming undone.
- You get to decide how compact your hair will be by choosing if you want to do a 2, 3 or 4 point rotation.
- You have a much longer time between each interlocking session. This is perfect for people who don’t like to spend a lot of time on their hair.
Disadvantages Of Interlocking
- It takes longer to interlock your hair than it does to palm roll.
- You must know what you are doing when you interlock otherwise you could be left with holes in the lock which can lead to breakage.
- Interlocking works better with smaller sized locs rather than larger ones because of the technique involved.
Which Technique Is Better?
The answer to this really does depend on the person and their particular lifestyle.
If you are the type that doesn’t mind your hair being a little frizzy from time to time and doesn’t want to sit down for long periods of time then perhaps interlocking is better suited to you.
If you prefer your hair to always have that well kept look then maybe interlocking could be the way to go.
There really is no one method that is technically better just a method that works best for you and your lifestyle.
Can You Use Both Techniques?
Technically yes you can use both methods.
If you are going to do that just make sure that you are able to keep your locs at one size. Interlocking can tend to make the lock tighter whist palm rolling gives a fuller look.
If you switch between the two methods you may end up with a loc that goes from thick to thin and vice versa.
If you are going to decide to switch I wouldn’t do it at every session. If you started with palm rolling and decide to switch to interlocking that’s fine as a one off (although you may still get inconsistencies in the loc).
Final Thoughts On Palm Rolling Vs Interlocking
As you can see both methods have advantages and disadvantages to them. If you are going to make a final decision on either one or the other make sure that it fits in with your particular lifestyle.
Both methods are pretty good.
Which one are you going to pick?
Related posts:
How to start two-strand twist locs
How to install starter microlocs
