so im halfway through having my friends backcomb my hair and i just stumbled across this forum. luckily i have not used any wax yet, but i think i'll just finish up the job with backcombing. i have rubberbands on my hair and i guess i should remove them right? my hair is short, about 3 to 5 inches (uneven cut) and straight. it gets very oily quickly so i wanted to know if i should leave the bands in during the first few washings? i have one band at the root and one on the tip.. i guess you know where i got my "dreading" instructions from. i have dr bronners soap and the first week how often should i wash? more frequently being that my hair gets really oily? i know these questions have probably been answered a million times but i dont have much time to research since im halfway through and my friend are getting restless. thanks!
no matter how long you wait until your first wash or how long you leave those bands in before hand, after washing they're gonna become a real mess, so It doesn't matter in the long run...its still going to take over 12 months before they start to become dread-like.
Your hair will get used to the less frequent washes. Leave it for one or two weeks before you wash it first, then once every week after that. Your scalp will be very itchy but your scalp will get used to the new routine. I found an afro comb worked wonders for those itchies About the bands- I thought they were doing me good in the first few months of my dreads but looking back they looked so stupid, and a couple melted into my dreads So if it makes you feel better, sure, use them, its your journey. But from experience, I think they look silly ^^ Hope this helped. Oh, and good choice for Dr.B's ^^
take the bands out. I didn't have any and my hair is locking up wonderfully. annd I didn't have to look stupid for a couple weeks. glad you found us just in time but you seem to know a little bit alreadyget your friends some beer maybe? post pictures if you can and welcome!!
As for washing- I have oily hair myself, and it has become less and less of a problem (I used to use Bronners, but I switched to baking soda)....Just wash when it feels bad or itchy, or smells. That may be three times a week, three times a month, when ever. You will see yourself having to wash it less and less over time.....and they will fall out and get loose. Do not let the get in the way of washing, it is the natural process of it all. Rubber bands are found helpful by some, but not for long. Most will say that they turn to goop over time and melt into your hair. (It did on the first day for me, so I took them out. I only had them on the tips of some) Most backcomber-ers worry that their hard work will be gone to waste when they see that their dreadlets are getting looser and looser, but that is what is supposed to happen. Backcombing is really just sectioning it so it can dread on it's own, and to do that, the hairs need to rearrange themselves and find their rightful place (that is the reason most are against wax and bands, they restrict the hair) ...(and are gross and tacky). But good luck and welcome, post pics when you are finished!
thank you thank you!!! i'll post pics as soon as i can!! the bands will be coming out for sure then! one more thing, how many locks do you guys have?? we didn't section them before because i didnt want them to be really uniformed. some are thin and some are a little thicker.
Around 40 I would guess? Your locks will congo anyway, so the number you have now probably won't be the number you have in a year. Good choice on the random sections.. always looks better.
There was a thread about how many dreads people have, I can't find it though. Mine are uncountable at this point...some are congoing, some are falling apart, some are loose hair.... It is all a big mess. Ask me in a year =]
thanks again everyone! just wanted to check cuz from pictures it looks like a lot of people have a bunch of locks and i thought at first i wasnt going to end up with many but now theyre adding up! finally my months and months of growing out hair are paying off! now for months and months and years and years of rewards! lol we're almost done after a hand full of "refreshment" runs lol
Alright, I counted! ....35. But half of those are connected at the root and growing together, and blah.
