The L.O.C. Method for Skin Care?

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Has anyone tried the LOC Method as a part of their skin care routine? I know under normal circumstances this is a bit much, but I’m currently six month pregnant and my stomach is getting noticeably bigger now.  All of that skin stretching going on (in such a short period of time) has me worried about stretch marks.  Plus, I’m prone to stretch marks; I’ve had them on my lower back, legs, and arms since my growth spurt as a kid.  Despite being prone to getting them, I still want to do what I can to limit (but preferably avoid) stretch marks in the last few months of this pregnancy.  I know that there is no definitive proof that an updated skin care routine will prevent stretch marks, but that’s not going to keep me from giving it a try. I’ve modified my typical “apply a moisturizer and keep it moving” skin care routine in the hopes that it means that I won’t get stretch marks.  Let me know what you think.

What is the LOC Method?  The L.O.C. Method is used in the hair community as a method for ensuring that the hair is properly moisturized between wash days, especially in the winter months when the hair can get very dry and brittle.  It maximizes moisture retention to make certain that the hair strands are properly conditioned, elastic and protected from the elements.  It is a three step process that involves a Leave-in conditioner (or Liquid), an Oil and a Cream (LOC).  The leave-in is typically water-based and applied to the hair first.  Then the Oil is applied to create a layer of protection, which prevents the water from evaporating off of the surface of the hair.  The last step is to apply a heavy butter or Cream, preferably one that is heavy and does not contain water as an ingredient.

Have I used it? I’ve never attempted to use it on my own hair, because it seemed to be a too much product for me.  But now that I’ve been researching ways to keep my skin moisturized and elastic, it seems like a great method for accomplishing this goal.
How I want to test it out? Up to this point, I’ve been using Water as my Liquid, Shea Moisture Argan Oil & Raw Shea Bath Body & Message Oil as my Oil and Burt’s Bees Mama Bee Belly Butter as my cream.  The Belly Butter does contain water, which it’s not supposed to according to the required steps for the method, but it does contain glycerin, which is a humectant that draws in moisture from the surrounding air.  I felt that would a good thing for keeping my skin moisturized through out the day.   Another things is that I’m starting to run low on the Argan/Shea Oil and while this product is known for its ability to soften and moisturize the skin I’m thinking that elasticity would be a better benefit to have at this point. So, I will be replacing it with Avocado Oil, which is great for improving the skin’s elasticity — a perk that seems better suited for the task of supporting my expanding waist line in these last few months.  So, what do you think?
Has anyone tried this method on their skin or expanding stomach? Has it worked for you? What did you use/do? What was your experience? 

Update August 7, 2014: I’ve been keeping up with the LOC method on my stomach every morning since writing this post.  I even switched over to Avocado Oil once my Argan Oil started to run low.  And every things was looking so amazingly great — not a stretch mark in sight.  Then around 37 weeks pregnant (end of July) my stomach was feeling really itchy.  At that point I increased my moisturizing to twice a day (once in the morning and once at night).  But last night while I was moisturizing I saw the beginning stages of what looks like stretch marks on the lower left side of my belly button.  I’m not sure how pronounced they will end up being because I can barely see them right now.  But today I sit here at 38 weeks, 3 days pregnant, I have stretch marks and I still have a week or two left of growth.  So who know where things will fall in the end.  But I will continue to use the LOC method to the bitter end because I’m sure without it, I would have seen the stretch marks weeks ago. (For reference I was 26 weeks pregnant when this post was originally published).

24 Comments


  1. Interesting… It had occurred to me a while ago, that the method may be great for dry skin, but I never tried it. Seems like it's a great idea to avoid stretch marks, I would love to hear your results! Btw congratulations 🎊 on your pregnancy!!!!!!


  2. Congratulations on your pregnancy. I too, have thought of using this technique on my body but not got round to it yet. Please keep us updated on how it works for you


  3. Congratulations! Only three more months to go!

    I always use the loc method. A bit simpler though. As liquid i either use Aloe Vera gel or 30/70 glycerine/Water. As seal i have either macadonia oil ( which is Said to Speed up the renewal of the skin and that will help to limit acne scars and dark areas) or a cream called active solutions blemish cream (with kojic acid that will limit Melania on the skin) all natural things.

    Good luck with your skin!


  5. Congrats on your pregnancy Kim! I think the LOC method would be great for keeping the skin as moisturised as possible, and it's definitely worth giving it a go if you want to avoid stretch marks x


  6. Thanks! I googled it and saw a few others mentioned it for dry skin and thought let's see how this works for stretch marks prevention. I will definitely report back. Thanks for commenting!


  13. Congrats on the pregnancy! I've never thought to try the LOC method for my skin, but I also have very oily skin so extra moisture has never been my goal!


  16. Lol, sometimes I wish that were the case for me. My skin is always dry, especially in the winter. But thanks, Courtnea!


  17. Thanks, Divachyk! I'm glad to hear that someone else has been using this method. My skin is the same way during the winter months. So hopefully, this method plus the less dry summer air will work for me.


  18. Awww….Congratulations my dear!!! I used Bio-oil my entire pregnancy and I have NO stretch marks on my tummy. Hopefully this Method works for you but if you still have the itches try Bio-Oil its the baddest in the game.


  19. Congrats on your pregnancy, Kim!! That's such awesome news! I have very dry skin so I actually have tried this method before. It worked well for me as far as keeping my skin hydrated, but I can't report on stretch mark prevention. The only reason I didn't keep it up was because I made a shea butter mixed which saved time and still did a great job on my skin.


  20. Congrats on your pregnancy!!! I need to give this a try, I hardly ever wear short clothes so I neglect my legs, one time my daughter said I look like I have scales lol


  21. My sister-in-law told me just told me about the bio oil too. I might have to try that one out. Thanks, Sammy!


  24. Congratulations! My loc method that i use on my sensitive skin is aloe vera gel for the liquid, grapeseed oil for the oil and Jergens Shea Butter Deep Conditioning Moisturizer. Also I use Dove sensitive skin soap. I use this method twice per day. The results will amaze you.

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