I've noticed a lot more posts lately from people reluctant to wash their knotty heads! Actually, when I came here to check on new posts earlier, the number of these posts prompted me to get up to take a shower and wash my own! Now my head is feelin' all tingly and clean, I thought I'd start a post about how much I enjoy that feeling! I admit, in the winter time I tend to get lazy about it. It's so cold, I don't want to walk around with wet hair for a whole day. I tend, this time of year, to only wash about once a month or so. But for a good 8 months of the year while we have warmer weather (here in TN at least) I usually do it about once a week. I love the feeling and smell of a clean dreadie head. I also really like how pliable and easy to work with the entire length of my locks becomes when it's freshly washed. I always wash in the morning when I know I'll be out-on-the-town at night, because by the time I'm getting ready to go it's 95% dry, but that extra little bit of moisture makes me able to do cool things and put it up in new ways. I also really like how the baby-soft curly hair around my temples doesn't really want to dread, and after I wash it I end up with all these cute little curly-cues around my face. Soooo... What do YOU love about washing?
mmm, i'll join you hb! i actually wash my hair more now that i'm growing dreads. i want it to stay clean so that i'll be more inclined to dread and lock up. i love the way it feels and smells after a nice super sudsy wash. i wash every 3-4 days. i also love how much i get to touch and feel my hair while i wash. yum!
I wash my hair now with dreadies than i ever did when i had straight hair. I love it. The feeling is great. Keep washing your hair!!
I have been washing every 3 days. Sometimes more if I'm hitting the gym a lot. With new dreads there are pros and not exactly cons, just annoyances with washing. I like the way my hair smells right after being washed & my scalp feels better (I use 1/2 tea tree & 1/2 peppermint dr. bronners so that my head feels nice and cool when I'm done). The annoyances, they are a plenty... The stragglers that I've just re-worked at getting them in a dread, usually come out when I wash. It takes forever to dry (I have to use a blow dryer, can't go to work looking like a wet rat! Though, I don't dry it 100% from the blow dryer.) I washed this morning & I'm sitting here at work with a pretty big mess on my head because I didn't have enough time to go through and aloe them all so they weren't frizzy as hell. OH - the spritz I made, some salt, lemon juice, water & liquid vitamin E. The problem is the vitamin E smells funky. It makes my hair smell weird. I hate it. I've been thinking about leaving the vitamin E out, but the whole reason I wanted to use that is because my head is really dry & the aloe alone isn't cutting it. Is there a happy medium here? Is there some other suggestions anyone has to condition my scalp? I keep saying I'm going to post updated pics... maybe I'll get to it tonight. However I just bought some new equipment and have been going to the gym to take some of this weight off so needless to say I've been so busy. Thanks friends.
lol, I was about to say exactly that about drinking water before I saw your note at the end! I don't think it's necessarily "bad" for your locks... but in time you might start to smell funky. If you do most of your sweating in the early morning or something, you might wait a while (have breakfast, meditate, yoga, etc.) and then have a shower before you get on with your day. But you don't want moisture (of any kind - sweat or shower-water) to linger in your locks and stagnate, as this can cause mold and related problems. I'd say, all things considered, it probably isn't bad to just let it be after a workout. You probably aren't drenched, and as long as you're uber-hydrated and eating healthy there won't be much nastiness there, just salty water! Instead of taking out the E, maybe add some tea tree, eucalyptus, peppermint, or something along those lines to cover up the smell? Other than that, the only thing I can think of is olive oil. Myself and a few others have added it (a VERY little bit, and you'll have to shake it well immediately before use) as a conditioning agent to an ACV rinse, and it works pretty well for both the scalp and the locks. BUT, that too comes with a unique smell, which you might not find preferable. I think your best bet is to add a strong smelling oil you like to cover it up.
Yeah, I'm sure my washing habits are different from a lot of yours, since y'all are just starting your locks and mine have been around and established for quite some time...
I like washing my hair because it gets fuller looking and wavier after its dried. I also have a bunch of hair around my face that doesnt want to dread, and it looks better right after its washed.
rofl i wash prolly almost to much, depending on my mood/swim meets i wash either every 2 days or 6 days a week (swim practice and work) but yeah i do love to sudse them and then just rub them around and even palm roll then, and rip them while sudsy just cause it feels good Plus the itching in a swim cap is ridiculous...so the water/suds on my scalp feels so goood
It is spiritual. I make my lock potion early in the day then I take my shower. I wash with my own hair soap and dry it by dancing around the backyard. Its awesome
mmm i love showering. its funny, because there is this myth or whatever that people with dreadlocks don't wash their hair (as we all know this is ridiculous!) and its funny because there isnt one person one here that has said "i think having a dirty head is better!" haha. ironic. anyways, i love washing my hair. theres this international grocery store around here, and they have this AWESOME sandalwood bar soap, smells sooo good. i wash probably every couple of days. sometimes my hair gets EXTREMELY dry, so i make up an aloe conditioner and just slather it all up in my locks. and then take a towel straight from the dryer, and wrap my hair up in it. i like to think that the heat makes my hair more conditioned because it penetrates my hair better. who knows. mmm i love having freshly washed hair, because when i go out to the bar or whatever it gets all cigerette nasty smellings, so then when i get that bar smell outta there, i just feel that much better! i didnt know i could write so much about washing my hair heh hee hah
