**READ ME** - Dread Newbies FAQ/ PLUS Basic Care and maintenance Guide

I kind of suspected that some bands might get swallowed in my dreads but I still decided to use them when I started, it seemed like a good way to keep sections on their own, seemed like a good idea, anyway, long story short in the end none of them did. I only had one incident of one breaking down. I noticed after about 2 days of putting one of them on it had gone a bit odd, like all sticky and slimy (I washed all this out straight away!), but it was the only one thankfully. I used a Neoprene based band, not just pure elastic ones because they're more suited to being exposed to the kind of natural oils that ones head produces and shouldn't break down at all, guess I got one duff one though. The rest were all fine, they stayed in my hair for about a month and just all broke off at various times, I kept an eye on them and none of them got swallowed.

The hair where they were isn't prefect dread, but it's locked and tight, my hair was pretty short so you can't really notice, but if you have long hair you might see a slight thin bit where they were, perhaps if you go for thick ones, but I doubt it'll be too severe.

I guess it's up to you, just a bit of info, I did go on a bit though, if you've made it this far, congrats!

 

Greetings,
I have 20 years, am male, and am considering starting dreads. Glad I found this forum before I purchased an 'unnessisary' kit from a website, like few of my friend have done. I would like to do it the most natural way, with best locking.
Question though about soaps: Can someone reccomend me a residue free from Bronners' site? It would be easier for me to order, because I dont get off campus much.
And a question I feel like is asked alot: My hair is about 6 inches: should I start with some backcombing as the initial influence? At about a week or so after last scalp wash, my hair starts to stick on its on.

 

google dr bronners but im not certain they sell direct from theyre site or u have to order from local venders
as for your hair if it starts to lock on its own u might want to let it go totaly natural, but if after a montjh or 2 your not seeing much progress then backcomb....or twist n rip..u might find twist n rip a beyter methid
basicly just enjoy the journey have fun & remember theres no such thing as perfect dreads in facytt over time u find u love the most imperfect ones the most for theyre uniqueness

 

Thanks SE.

 

Dr.Bonners:
http://www.drbronner.com
However I get my Dr. Bonners from www.drugstore.com, free shipping and slightly cheaper (by like 50 cents)

 

ok so i have a big question.....i just washed my hair after only having my dreadies for a week and i dont plan on washing for another month but anywho one of my dreads undid its self and i had to split it into two how do i keep this from happining later on when i wash em again?

 

hi guys, it's probably been adressed somewhere but i can't find it, so I'll ask: what's the best course of action when your dreads all matt together at the roots. the sides of my head have both done this- so there's like 10 dreads coming out out of one big clump. i can't seperate by tearing - it's too far gone. i got the scissors out but am afraid i'll do bad irreversible damage. help?!!!

 

Basically same question here. The tips of each dread are not dreaded, they just are like my normal hair, and they are just a bit curly. is there any way to dread them or are they supposed to be undreaded? I don't want the dreads to undread if the end will just pull apart them. do I leave them be? keep them tight together with rubber bands? aye!

Thanks!

 

Hi! i'm new to the board. i tried to dread my hair a few years back but i lost my patience after three weeks because i was grossly misinformed and was told not to wash my hair for 6 weeks- my hair got so filthy and disgusting finaly i gave in and washed it and they all fell out (i hadn't backcmbd, i had just been twisting them, hairspraying and blow drying them) well now its been a few months and they are going along well. i don't use wax or any other products but i need something because they are extremely dry, to the point i fear for their heaqlth lol and they just look kinda bad being so dry. what is safe to put in, and will moisturize them without interfering with the locking process, also i don't want them to look really greasy either. also i have a lump and loop problem, each dread (i have 25 i think) has like 3-6 huge lumps, i was thinking of trying the crochet thing, and advice? thank you!!!!!

 

leave the lumps alone theyre not a problem
to condition e,m do an acv rince put a lil apple cidar vinagar in water rince your hair with it wait a lil bit 5 min or so then rince out
you can also use aloe gel from the plant or buy a bittle of 100% pure aloe gel

if its really really dry and your dreads are tight enough that they wont fall apsrt you can use cocoa butter or ive mixed jojoba oil tea tree oil and any other oil u like the scent of (u can cut it with olive oil to make it last longer ..then dilute that mix in water and rince it thru..but thats only for extreme dryness as the oils can loosen up new dreads

 

hi im new here and ive had my dreads for about a month. ill prolly post a pic later and stuff i just wanted to know, can you use aloe vera to kinda tame down the lost hairs on the dreads? i usually spend time everyday sewing them in. but can i use aloe like what you put on a sunburn in a bottle or does it have to be the straight up plant itself? also how often should i use salt water

 

Hi all. I began my dreads two days ago. I had a friend divide my hair into 1 inch square sections. She braided some of them and some she left in rubber bands. She backcombed the hair underneath. (She said the ones that were braided worked better - she ieft them in the braid.) So now I have a mix of braids, dreads, and regular hair. Another friend is going to help me finish them tonight. I began dreading the front hair, and found that the ones that dreaded the best were the ones that were not braided. The dreads are pretty thin and are not locking well.
I don't want to use wax, but I'm wondering what I should be doing after I finish backcombing them all. The hair is very frizzy now on the top.
I used some lemon juice, water, and sea salt and worked it into the roots, because someone said this would help them lock.
I'm worried that my hair will fall out. Is this true?
How do I wash my hair? I have Dr. Bronner's soap. Do I pour shampoo on the top and then rinse it out? How do I make sure I get all the soap out?
I've heard people say that they use thread or yarn to secure the dreads. Is this necessary?
I have so many questions!
Thanks.

 

Okay I've got a couple of questions. Let me first just say that I do not have dreads but i want to once my hair grows out.
1) I am prone to dandruff and am wondering if maybe this would be a bad idea. Is there any way to control it?
2) I have very short hair ATM (approx. 2 inches long since i just had a haircut last month) and was wondering how long I should grow my hair before i begin the process, in order to get some decent dreadies?
3) How often do you wash your hair in a week? Because I have oily hair, like somebody who posted previously, and was wondering if there is any way of controlling this?

I'm sorry I could not answer anybody's questions for the time being, and thank you in advance,

Quest

 

hey fellow vermonter =) good luck on your journey =) mine just started and I am wicked excited!!!

 

ok
to answer some of those questions
no dont use aloe for sunburns thats 5% aloe 95% who knows what
instead fromn a health food store get 100% (or 99.9%) pure aloe gel
or use it straight from the plant

washing weekly is good twice a weeks good every 2 weeks isnt great but isnt bad either
scrub the scalp (bronners should be diluted 12 parts water 1 part bronners) then rince it thru

rubber bands should be removed within a couple days of backcombing backcombing should never be repeated after the 1st time even if they fall out entirely, time will take care of things and dreads will foejm on theyre own

sewing dreads weakens them, poking holes throiugh dreads is not a good idea
aloe will control friz

sea salt sprays should be used before not after u wash your dreads, u can leave in a few hours but no longer

dandruf is controllable with tea tre oil and rosemary opil
wash when u feel itchy
use bronners tea tree oil (diluted) if its bad add a dropperfull of rosemary oil to the full undiluted bottle before u dilute it

did i miss anything?

 

oh the thread/yarn question yes u can no its not nesacary u may loose the yarn inside the dread though
and the length question

if u go natural u can begin the process at boirth or with a shaved head but locks may not form till u get a few inches of hair
if u go backcombing 4-6 inches i guess is the minumum
mine started naturaly with just 2-3 inches
and whenever the fuzz on my scalp get to maybe 3 inches new baby dreads are formed

 

nope i think you got it =)

 

I know this a newbie question and I'm sorry if its been asked several times but, if you want to get rid of dreads is there any way at all to do it without shaving your head? For a while I was determined to get dreads but I decided against it because I wasn't willing to eventually shave the hair I've come to know and love.

 

well u can with tons of conditioner lotsa effort and some hair loss but yea u can comb em out especialy if theyre still not mature yet
but id advise ya to not get em till your sure u wanna keep em for years ora lifetime
sure u can mannage to unknot em if your lucky but you'll do alotta dammage in the process and thin ypoir hair ad it'll look like crap after probly awhile till u get all the dammage trimmed out..
before u decide to take the plunge try picturin yourself with dreads to the ground if u cant picture yourself that wayyou maybe shouldnt even start the process because it is a commitment, not anythimng like decfiding to part your hair different or wear it up or down its not a hairstyle but a lifestyle so if youir not gonna fully commit to it theres no real reason to even try it

 

amen.