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advice on beginning my journey please
I have been growing my hair out for about a year and a half. I will have to upload pics later. I have somewhat thin straight/wavy hair. Even when i condition my hair starts to tangle and such. I want to start my dreads as natural as possible, but i would also like them to look as clean and neat as possible as well. I almost ordered the kit from dreadheadhq until finding this site. Not sure where to start. ok i had these pics available. When i say tangle i mean trying to finger comb it pulls at my hair perty good. thanks for the help brothers and sisters! 
I work in healthcare where neatness & appearance equal cleanliness & professionalism, so yeah I get it Cody. I wish I knew then what I know now. As far as techniques, natural free form is the healthiest. Don't fall for any techniques or loctiticans that promise a neat appearance like I did. Guess what they all look "messy" (read: immature) within a few weeks and you'll have to go in for a "touch up". Those techniques are harmful to the hair strands, mine are very weakened where they twisted & interlocked mine, crocheting is even worse! That actually rips the hair strands to shreds. As for wax stay the h*ll away from it. Everything sticks to it, sweat, dirt, dust, pollen & just from one run in the summer it just smelled awful.Shampoo is very important like the locking shampoo promoted on this site. It is natural & safe. Regular shampoos (even "all natural" plant based like Aveda Men's) condition which will work against your dreads. They also have a lot of additives which will start to build up & cake up within your dreads. With that you want to stay away from conditioners or moisturizers of any kind as well until they are fully matured and fully formed. Contrary to what other sites & saloon loctiticans will tell you, you need to wash your hair often but too often at least once every three days. The reason is your scalp produces oil that naturally conditions your hair as well which will also work against your dreads. Before dreading many of us wash our heads daily or more which constantly wash away our scalp oil. In response our scalps in the modern world are working constantly to replenish that lost moisture. So ease into it by washing less & less over a couple of weeks until your scalp gets with the program. The other reason to wash frequently is bacteria, normal skin flora like Staph. Epididymus will flourish so you don't want that old oily rancid smell as well. On the flip side if you wash them too often before they are able to dry then you'll be setting up the perfect conditions for mold to grow. That brings with it the dreaded (no pun intended) wet dog smell. Once you have a fungal infection within your dreads unlike your skin where we can prescribe medications, with hair it is virtually impossible to get rid off without cutting.The only hair/scalp thing that will give that neat appearance is time. The longer you have them the tighter and neater they become, but don't loose hope! They are things you can do to help it along without resorting to crocheting, interlocking or even twist & rip. The absolutely best product I've found other then time is ocean water. If you live close to the coast go snorkel, swim or better yet go out & early every morning & surf (what we call Dawn Patrol). Ocean water will frizz up and tighten your locks like nothing else! I just left Maui where I lost a lot of length but my dreads feel soo much tighter & mature because of it. Mold can't grow in salt so don't worry about that when hitting the waves. If that's not an option then do a sea salt rinse after every wash before you get out of the shower. Don't rinse it off, just like if you were at the beach towel dry & go. When I hear of people burning their scalp it is obvious they are using way too much salt. I've never had burning scalp when out riding waves or at home with my home made sea salt rinse. Remember that ocean water is only 3.5 % salinity. If your using a .5 liter (500mL) sports bottle that translates to only 1 tablespoon (15 mL) and just a pinch more. Don't store the water make it up with before you shower use it all while avoiding your scalp & eyes by bending over. Don't worry about salt build up either, look at my pics do you see any white spots? I think that mainly happens when people overdo the salinity, just stick to the 3.5% ratio and you'll be fine. Other then that they do make gel which I haven't tried that supposedly helps calm the fly aways.As for keeping it looking professional, the natural way is also best in my opinion because it is a slow transition, unlike my abrupt interlocking. The key is keeping it swept back & out of the way while at work. The best way I have found is simply using a headwrap like Buff Sports. http://www.buffusa.com/sports/collections/filter/original They have wool (which is warm, breathable & the texture helps to tighten the dreads even further) as well as technical fabrics. From your profile picture you look like an athlete as well, so you already know the benefits of technical fabrics and how they help pull moisture away from your body. This is good for dreads as well as the dryer they are the more frizzy they become and the more quickly they become. I'll guess that you've struggled with dry hair haven't you? The good news is you are great candidate for dreads they will form quickly on you, which I think you have already begun to sense as well. The key for you is to keep them separated & manageable. You'll also have the 'fro for a while, keep them pulled back while at work and you'll just look like your growing out your hair. If anyone asks that's what you answer them with, your simply growing out your hair which is the truth. Keep them smelling clean in between washes with an essential oil spray. If your getting compliments on how great your hair smells then no one will question it's cleanliness. From one bro to the next, here's a secret oil I use that the girls just love. It has a very masculine smell but it's not the typical sandalwood, cedar or citrus smells. It is Kunzea, it is a small tree/shrub native to Australia and New Zealand. It is hard to find but smells great, very masculine, more outback then woodsy and it is very unique. Good luck bro & keep us posted.
Then Neglect may not be for you. They don't become uniform looking for a very long time and sometimes they never do. Consider your options if you REALLY want that "manicured/perfect" look then go for it but know the risks. We're 6 months deep into our no brush journey and there are loops, lumps, bumps, loose hairs, and it's going well. I actually did TNR on a few 6 months ago and they all ended up doing their own thing. I just did tnr about a month ago on one immature dread and it fell out as well. We don't care much about appearance, and think that companies shouldn't either. If you are at a job where a hairnet is necessary, then it would make the frizz/loose hairs seem more calm. I don't recommend unnatural methods of dreading because of photos and videos I've seen of peoples' horror stories of baldness and the fact that the manicured dreads actually take longer to lock(from what i've seen from a bystanders p.o.v.). There are ways of taming (if you must) semi mature dreads that dont have negative permanent effects: wrapping with embroidery threads, aloe vera for frizzies, and Tams of course. Good luck, whatever your decision.
if your not going natural then tnr is the way to go
awesome! what are your personal views on t&r? really? i wasn't aware of that!
seperate to prevent huge dreads the scalp showing is the result of salon abuse
legaly only natural dreads are protected by law so no job can say anything if they are messy
maybe this happens naturally, idk. By neat i mean sectioned so i don't have large parts of my scalp showing, even width of locks, not having hair out everywhere. I personally could care less about neatness, but for employment sake it would really help if they weren't "messy" looking.. Hope that makes sense.
ok so it tangles real easy so just let it dread naturally good thing you avoided the kit!
whats neat anyway? and why would that matter
define neat
neat is clean just keep em clean and thats that
I've read through several forums here already and the dread techniques. I really just am worried that naturally won't make them look neat.