Post pics of YOUR dreads!

Here are some pics I took last night while I was playing around with my new camera:


My dreads are almost 5 years old, wax free and clean.
I noticed that someone reccommended not washing your locks for the first year: please wash your dreads! The build up of your natural oils will hinder the knotting process and dirty dreads are just plain nasty.

 

I have to disagree if you look at my locks you will see they are shiny and clean.They do not stink and neither are they "nasty",so please refrain from tarring me with that brush.I havent washed my hair for years and years all except for swimming in my river and surfing.In saying that I live in the bush on the west coast of clean green New Zealand,and rarely go to town (cept to dj and band practice).I am guessing the difference for city dwellers would be the cooking grime and pollution that wafts around and sticks in your hair.When I lived in London I do remember my hair got pretty stinky and I was on the outskirts of town.So no wonder you wash your hair regularly if in the city.Who would want pollutants and the likes in their hair?!
I have even been told on many occasions that my hair smells natural even nice and one lady even found it a turn on and couldnt stop sniffing them which kinda grossed me out.What a great way to take a photo of your hair am goin to tryt do the same thing and post it up so you can see my hair is DEFINITELY NOT NASTY!!!

 

There you go clean as a whistle so dont believe everything thats said about washing as I havent for many years.Natural is not "nasty" but like I said if your in the city a lot you may need to wash just to keep them from getting stinky.

heres a few more random pics of me in the river that runs 10metres from my house and right through my property.And one of my American Staffordshire terrior wearing his colours proudly.




These ar big files so if anyone out there is still on dial-up dont bother it will take for ever.Just click the image which will take you to imagevenue and then click again for fullsize

 

oops heres the one of my two year old American Staffordshire Terrior wearing his colours with pride.

 

aww man.....Im not knockin your style or anything....if not washing for years works for you than more power to ya! But wowza! I cant even imagine not washing for that long! Doesnt your head get itchy?

 

Dude, you have awesome looking dreads!
But in my experiences, unwashed dreads, hair, scalp and skin is just not healthy. I have yet to smell unwashed dreads that don't smell funky after a few months. I do not live in a city, I have been a mountain dweller for over 10years now, as are the people that I meet, so we are not polluted city slickers.
As an herbalist I have treated a few different conditions that could have been prevented by regular washing. Being clean is a healthy thing, especially when you use gentle, herbal based products.
Do you clean your scalp at all? If not, why? If yes, with what? I'm just curious what works for you.

 

im pretty sure if you dont use harsh shampoo for long enough your body adjusts and should produce the right amount of oils for your hair and scalp not to have problem i dont know how it works for your sweat glands though. im embarrassed by the smell if i dont shower for a day, but i only clean with water or a bit of dr. b's occasionally.

it would be nice to simply use the lake to wash in, but where i live its frozen half the year and unbearably cold for the 3/4's of the year.

 

Once again hitting the nail on the head there glacius.Its true if you use any "product" natural or not it will strip the natural oils from your head.Thus causing over-production of oils to compensate.Hence greasy stinky itchy locks and scalp.
If you use NO product whatsoever your scalp produces just the right amount of oil to bind the hair,as it grows there is never any excess (so no stink or gunk) because it is producing only small amounts.Like I keep saying natural is better folks!You can tell by looking at my locks they are not dirty,I eat strictly ethical food and treat my body as a temple(haha as best as I can no-ones perfect),so I would be offended if anyone said my temple was messy and stinky.So I hope no-one is implying this as it simply isnt so!

 

No!And does my hair look dirty to you?Its all about doing it RIGHT first time nothing more to it.Its true so many people are clouded by de Babylon system they will end up scratching their heads out of pure confusion(maybe thats what it is aye all you itchy domes?).Once you know just how complex in its simplicity it is then you will realise that just letting them do their own thing is the only way.What about the desert dreads who never wash their hair they dont complain about itchy sweaty domes I am sure.

 

Trying to get my head to start doing that...now that the rain has started to ease off a little can start using my pool (salt water ) as a substitute for washing so often...who knows, might be able to stop using soap all together...

 

Your skin produces natural oils too, but a build up of those oils can cause many skin conditions and irritations. Your scalp needs to be washed, even if you are not washing your dreads.
Even if you are living a pure lifestyle, life gets dirty sometimes. Dirt and dust are going to get in your dreads, just as they get on your skin and clothes. Why wash your skin and clothes and ignore the locks?

 

i dont think its that you dont wash them, you just dont use soap to do it.

 

That's cool. There are alot of options other than soap to keep yourself clean.

 

hah, thanks. nz aye! go nz!!!!!



as far as soap goes... after much thought i brought "dread soap" maybe out of sheer naievity? i was expensive... and after it'd gone i started just using ecosoap and can't say there was much diff.


then i started using shampoo (at this point my scalp was drying out and driving me insane...!)... and it worked ok... but... apart from using the deep cleanse suggested on this site... i haven't washed my hair in a couple of weeks. it's getting oily (like it did when i didn't have dreads.... mmm straight hair and oil...) but i'm hoping my head adjusts and... i can not wash my hair! (and not in a dirty way.)

not sure if that makes much sense...

 

Perfect sense.Your scalp only dried out and drove you nuts because of the unbalance with your naturals oils I would say.
Hey are you from NZ?How come your name ends in tui?Thats a beautiful bell bird that lives in around my house and country.

 

wow, don't know how i missed that, ur a kiwi..lol....

my partners a Maori, should be visiting NZ soon.

 

For sure i live in NZ! and Tui's my name! I was born in Christchurch, and then moved up here to Rotorua when i was 10. And, it is indeed a gorgeous bird.

As far as the scalp goes, it's doing better for it. About a month ago I was on antibiotics for an infection which caused 3 or 4 glands in my neck to swell up. All because of some nasty rash that came up on the hairline on the back of my neck. Does this sound familiar at all?

 

that can happen for a lot of reasons...and i really doubt its from the washing. I had that kinda thing before i had dreads and i was washing 2 times a week.

 

They will be two years old this December yay!



http://photos-d.ll.************/photos-ll-sf2p/v356/108/122/725495475/n725495475_1983587_9569.jpg

 

kthought has some sick dreads. i want them on my head. haha