Advice to a newb wanting to get dreads

Hey, well to start off, as you see, I'm a newb at this whole dread process. That means I know nothing of how to get, let alone start, dreads. Well, at the moment my hair is only 2 and a half inches in length, but, its not down, so to speak, it's kinda in a curly afro, or S-curl style. So, I'm looking for advice as to if I should relax my hair and make it fall down(i guess). Also, if I should let my hair grow more before I start doing anything. And basically, ANY advice that you can give me to help me with my dread process. And keep in mind, that I'm in total ignorance of dreads, so some stuff might not come across to me as easy, like certain terms like 'locking' and other stuff.
Well, thanks for any advice you shall give me.

 

My advice is to read basically this entire forum. That is what I did. It was super informative, and you get to see who did what and if it worked and why. Plus you learn terminology along the way.

I personally would wait for the length to grow some more, but others will suggest starting now.

 

Hm, alright thank you for your advice, I'll start lurking the forums.:]

 

after you've read a bit, i'm sure you've seen that natural is the best way to go.

2 inches is probably too short for anything to start on its own, although you can start changing your routine now to help your hair.

you'll read things about not using regular shampoos, getting dr. bronners, shampooing less and all of that stuff. although you probably wont be seeing locks for a while, its best to get into a lock friendly routine now so you dont have to change anything when you have the length for it.

 

Thanks, for the advice, you see, I didn't know you couldnt use regular shampoo, I guess I have to lurk more :]. Well thanks.

 

don't use wax.

 

Yeah, stay well clear of wax!!! Dreadhead HQ, Knottyboy etc are a no-go. I think about 3 inches is the absolute minimum for dreading? Agreed with Glacius, you can begin preparing your hair and scalp while your hair grows a bit.

Just read through this forum and ask any questions you have, you'll get all the advice you need.

 

try plenty of shampoos, some will probbably make your hair greesy, Peppermint Bronners is no good for me but the tea tree works a treat!

 

Locking is what hair does when it wants to dread. Once you're locked, the hairs don't want to leave. But you can pick it out eventually if you've got enough time on your hands. But why would you want to?

1. Wash your hair. If it feels itchy, wash it again. Once a week should be the bare minimum if you're living in the cold tundra or jungles without water. Smelly dreads=icky. Plus, clean dreads like each other better and want to mesh together. Would you want to hang around greasy, stinky, assholes? Neither does your hair.

2. WAX IS BAD. Don't do it to yourself. The few cases that it worked out on people were smart enough to use less than an M&M's worth per dread. Or they're just shitting themselves because I know I can smell a candlehead from a mile away.

3. You can start at ANY length. I started from a bald head and didn't want to look for my Afro pick. My hair is similar to yours, but nappier. Not quite "Z"-curl nappy, but nappier than an "S-curl" I don't have full-blown dreads yet because I was being an idiot and didn't separate at all then I messed it up by braiding then taking them out. But I do have like 3 or 4 in the back of my head (those are babysoft straight hairs back there) that dreaded up 1st when I was playing with them.

4. All that stuff like backcombing, braiding, crocheting, whatever--is cool if you want your dreads to look neat or not too big or the same size or whatever. But all that fiddling around messes up the dreading process that your hair will naturally do on its own.

5. If you are going natural and don't want one big "congo" in the back of your head, some mild separation is fine after you get out of the shower. Doesn't matter what you do to it or how you sleep on it and flatten it out, your hair WILL remember what shape it wants to be when it grows up. Playing with it when you're bored once in a while does help the shape to come along and look for defined. But really, leave it alone the rest of the day.

6. Don't let random people (even your mom) run their fingers through your hair. A lot of people just want to be assholes and get under your skin and ruin your dread process because you don't look the way they want you to look. Honestly, if you let the real you shine through you can do anything and most people stop noticing the dreads and will let you do your thing if you've proven yourself. But if you want to neaten them up a bit, a ponytail or even just pat it down into a good size fro will help.

7. Have PATIENCE and have FUN. You're getting to know your hair and what it likes and can't stand. It's gonna take a while even if you do decide to get twists or whatever. And I'm loving this process because it's been a real BS detector. You're going to get to know who's really down for you and who isn't, especially if you're going full-blown natural. Trust me, I'm a female and it's been a stretch for me to not wanna just slap some people with what they say. But you're gonna have it differently because you're a dude and your process will be different.

pax.

X.

 

Lol thanks for your advice X. And yea I'm getting mine natural, but it sucks cuz it seems like my hair takes FOREVER to grow :/. Also, I didn't getting braids would mess it up, cuz i was planning on braiding my hair untill it gets long enough to just let loose and let the dread process take its course. But idk now. Hm, one big question that I couldn't figure is, should I take my down, so to speak, like i guess basically get all the curls out, because I chemically curled my hair, so should i put some relaxer on my hair, so its down?

 

Well Eagle started his around 2 inches i think.Remember to get some bronners tho. You can backcomb a lil bit just to get some knots formed an then natural it out from there

 

Read around more. You'll discover if you want to go natural there's one step:

1. Forget about your hair.


Don't comb it, wash it only when needed with baking soda (or other natural products [SEE ALSO: Dr. Bronner's detergent]), and get ready- cause it's going to take a LONG time. There are some who will note that dreads can take over a year to form and mature. It's going to take a ton of patience, and a willingness to look [what the world considers] "weird" for a few months, at best. Forget the braids, forget the relaxers, forget the chemicals. As far as braiding goes, you can braid it, but it won't dread with braids in it. (Theoretically, braids COULD dread after probably years and years of neglect, but you'd be better off pulling the braids out first- if you decide to go that route.)


Knowledge will be a great ally on this journey. Keep reading!

 

Yea after a while once you read stuff you learn so much

 

Hm, ok. I'm ready to wait this long journey, and I will take all the criticism my hair get like a man :]. I'll be sure to read around, and learn more about bronners and other stuff, thank you guys for the advice.