Hi. My husband and I have had some experiences since he first decided that he wanted dreads. I'd like to share them with you and get peoples opinions and advice. Not interested in hearing people slamming this and that.My husband and I are both white, there are a few people that we work with the have dreads but all of them are black. He asked alot of questions and eventually we were led to a lady that could start them, we'll call her Ani for our story. In my ignorance at first I didn't think dreads would be a good idea, "they're dirty and nasty", no they're not or rather they shouldnt be. But I told him that I didn't have a problem with him getting dreads if they were going to be clean. Bare with me on this and be patient, I hope your ready for a book.We woke up that morning and Den, my husband was excited, he was finally getting dreadlocks! Ani had said that she would start them and help him to maintain them, to start them would cost $65. When we got there we walked into this rinky-dink, hole-in-the-wall shop. Ani washed his hair twice and them gooped this deep conditioner stuff on his hair and put him under the dryer for 15 minutes, them she rinsed his hair and we went into her room where she proceeded to section his hair, which she did a very nice job of by the way. After she was done sectioning she pulls out this spray consisting of tea tree oil and a variety of other things, also a large tub of gel. She continues onto starting his dreads by taking a section and splitting it into two parts and twisting the sections together while twisting them each in turn, if that explaination makes sense. She was working the gel into his hair while she did this. When she was done he had 52 little cords of rope. Back under the dryer for probly 30 minutes and we were on our way home with instructions on how to take care of them and the products we needed to buy, her personal number in case we had any questions.Den had to schedual an appointment to come back in a month, in the mean time I would help him with his hair. Once a day he was to spray the tea tree oil stuff, it was like an anti-itch spray and every other day we were to put a bit more gel on his hair and tighten the twists up. He was in no way supposed to get his hair even WET until he came back to her a month later.At this point I'm a bit doubtful about the whole not washing your hair or even getting it wet for a month. Um... yuck?So I worked on it and worked on it... Did I mention that we even bought a hood dryer for $50 because we had to dry his hair after putting the gel on his 'dread' thingys, and she said we shouldn't use a regular blow dryer because it would make them frizzy. About a week and a half of spending 2 and a half hours every other night on his hair and having goopey gel to have to mess with, not to mention him keeping his hair in a wave cap every night. It was wearing, but being the good wifey that I am I continued on. If my husband really wanted dreads that bad then damn it I was going to do my best. I was hoping it would pay off...Then the smell started at the end of week two. *GAG* It was a faint whiff here and there, another day and a bit smellier... Then it started smelling like... like... well like dirty nasty head.So after some discussion and some research it was decided that this way we were trying to lock my husbands hair up just wasnt going to work for us white folk's hair. Not to mention.. he stank. I love my husband. I hated his hair.We found our way to dreadheadhq.comI'm not attacking anyone and prefer not to be attacked or to start arguements.We washed my husbands hair! YAY! And washed it again. Still could smell the faint coconut of that gel crap, wash again. Ordered DHHQ's kit. Did I mention we had to comb those irritating little twists out of his hair, greasy smelly things, I almost threw up. We've got pictures. He washed with DHHQ's shampoo, which he really enjoys and we will continue to use, though we found it cheaper on amazon.com than their site. Hes not big into smells and really likes that its scent free. And it does a good job. At this point we are probly in the last week of July.I'm going to backcomb his hair. So we sectioned and we started backcombing. Three weekends and two full weeks later we backcombed his last dread into nappy exhistance. My fingers were killing me, but there was satisfaction in completing the fete. Perhaps I was combing them tight, I wanted to do a good job, DHHQ said it would take like 6 to 8 hours... not two full weeks plus a weekend. 62 nappy dreads grace his head. We waxed lightly, and heated with a blow dryer, fingerrolling and palmrolling to work the wax in. Two weeks later I did a bit more wax, havent wanted to mess with it since. Messy stuff, smells awsome though and for some reason our dog is infatuated with it. We are much happier with these results, and the people he works with that have dreads were surprised at what we did because they all went through the "twisty ordeal". "They look locked already" they all said with envy. LOL! He now washes his hair with DHHQ's shampoo every three days. CLEAN HAIR! We started using a latchhook to pull the ends up inside so they are blunted neatly. A bit frizzy since we haven't used the wax, but I'm not so sure I want to mess with it.I'd like some advice about what we could use to smooth them out a bit, they arent poofy because I was careful backcombing them, they're pretty dense.I'd like to know what some other people have used to help their dreads look good. I've got an herb garden, with thyme, peppermint, rosemary, sage, basil, and a few others. How could they be useful to us?I'd like peoples friendly comments about our experience, I've been contemplating doing dreadlocks myself.Hope you enjoyed my short story and I look forward to hearing some great ideas!
updated by @australe: 02/15/15 08:31:28AM
newbies looking for some answers
wowokwhere to start1 dreads would hgappen if u did nothing but wash(see my pictures i did nothing used nothing)so right off the bat trying to make dreads was sorta an oxymoron since you have spennt a lifetime preventing dreadsall salons screw you.. and i hate to tell ya this so did dreadheadhq\sure hes got dreadlike backcombed hair that looks dreadish now, but the wax will mske them actualy dread much slower..and is next to impossible tiol remove and can lead to dirt and water being trapped in them eventualy causinmjg mold (u got her just in time tomoro is our wax removal chat)once we get the wax out use aloe vera gell instead..but you shouldnt need to except for formal occassionsyou should expect and accept a few months of messiness to get to full on dreadiness and dreads that last a lifetimewax dreads rarelt last 3 yearseven 2 applicationbs can leave a wax core caked in lint and dust thar you wont find t\ill you chop and disect years laterwax is nasty stuff and the dreadkit a scamalso dont use the dread tool or crochert hook as those break hairs weakening dreads and making a klow maintenance hairstyle become very high maintenanbce (crochet dreads can require 15 houirs work a week every week for life..i spent maybe 3 hours max omj mine spread out over 20 years (not counting washinmg)so..in conclusion tomorow attend the wax removal, get the wax outthen use just sea salt spraws and a wool tam to toghten (no rubbing or rolling)use aloe vera when you need to smooth out frizz for a formal, but..the rest of the time just get used to it it will be less as it tightyens but never really go awaydreads are not instant..they aee not made no msatter what effort you put into em only time really will make dreads dreadthe only thing that needs to be done to dread ijs not comb or condition..and keep em clean(washing weekly is ideal for monst but more often wont hurt)glad you found us now lets get ya on the right track finalyread dreaducation and wax removal threads
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
Welcome!I can't believe I beat SE to this one. lolI am very new myself. I have been allowing my hair to dread for about 2 months now. I lightly backcombed after sectioning just to train them up a bit but I took the bands off strait away and abstained from the evil waxy scam. I keep the in a wool tam mostly and wash 2-3 times a week. Once with my Dr. Bronners based shampoo (1part Bronners, 12 parts water, 4 T baking soda) and once or twice with just the baking soda rinse. You can get info on that from SE. Its amazing!I also rinse them in sea salt water every week or 2.My contribution to your husband is this:STOP WAX! Let it frizz out and allow the loose hairs to become baby dreads. Mine is already starting to develop new ones to fil out certain areas. The wax will damage and impede your hair. You can view the many threads about wax for details...Anyway stop buying the dread head shampoo. 2 reasons...1. Don't support them cause they are liars and scammers.2. Make your own waayyyy cheaper. A 20oz bottle of mine probly ends up costing about $1.70 or something. Baking soda is like a couple of bucks for a HUGE box.Herb garden sounds great. Ask MountainWillow about all that. I could tell you how nutritious they are but she can tell you the million other things they can do for your hair, nails, skin, etc. Shes a wiz with all that.Stay natural and let them do their thing.Good Luck
you must have submitted this before I finished mine soaringeagle said: wow
ok
where to start
1 dreads would hgappen if u did nothing but wash
(see my pictures i did nothing used nothing)
so right off the bat trying to make dreads was sorta an oxymoron since you have spennt a lifetime preventing dreads
all salons screw you.. and i hate to tell ya this so did dreadheadhq
\sure hes got dreadlike backcombed hair that looks dreadish now, but the wax will mske them actualy dread much slower..and is next to impossible tiol remove and can lead to dirt and water being trapped in them eventualy causinmjg mold (u got her just in time tomoro is our wax removal chat)
once we get the wax out use aloe vera gell instead..but you shouldnt need to except for formal occassions
you should expect and accept a few months of messiness to get to full on dreadiness and dreads that last a lifetime
wax dreads rarelt last 3 years
even 2 applicationbs can leave a wax core caked in lint and dust thar you wont find t\ill you chop and disect years later
wax is nasty stuff and the dreadkit a scam
also dont use the dread tool or crochert hook as those break hairs weakening dreads and making a klow maintenance hairstyle become very high maintenanbce (crochet dreads can require 15 houirs work a week every week for life..i spent maybe 3 hours max omj mine spread out over 20 years (not counting washinmg)
so..in conclusion tomorow attend the wax removal, get the wax out
then use just sea salt spraws and a wool tam to toghten (no rubbing or rolling)
use aloe vera when you need to smooth out frizz for a formal, but..the rest of the time just get used to it it will be less as it tightyens but never really go away
dreads are not instant..they aee not made no msatter what effort you put into em only time really will make dreads dread
the only thing that needs to be done to dread ijs not comb or condition..and keep em clean
(washing weekly is ideal for monst but more often wont hurt)
glad you found us now lets get ya on the right track finaly
read dreaducation and wax removal threads
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
updated by @soaring-eagle: 02/05/15 10:12:49AM
read up on izzy's intro(i think it was her anyway) her waxy dreads kepot poking her bf in the face when they slept they were stiff and sticky and caused breakoutsread other threads where after dewaxing they dreaded 3 times fasteri dont want to come off as a purist saying you must go natural (although i do believe its the best way) instead i urge yoiu to learn from others mistakes and experieences1 girl who jopined yesterday used wax twice like yyouthen 6 years later chopped em only to find the core waxy lint and dust..grossanyone whgo seeks to proffit will steer you wrong to make moneyim spending money i cant really afford to combat the liesand steer you rightyou know if they said you can grow or make everythijng u will ever need they wouldnt exist as an "expert" on dreads.. to run a company fiorst they have to sell you lies to make theyre products seem worthwhilethen they have to create thousands of pages forcing all the truth out of sightofcourse they also have to prevent any negative comments on theyre sites and youtube lies toothey will nevber allow anything bad about wax to ever be seenthey are scumbags
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
i feel bad about all you went through and still had been steered wrong..so if you'd like, send me a message with your number or requesting mine and i'll talk to both you and your husband by phone and we can talk as much as is needed to gret ya on the right path to dready gloryor when you and he can both be on join us in the chat..its sort of hard to say when the chats busy though..
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
Yes it was me with the poking the boyfriend. I have learned dreads take time.. My hair does need a little guidance but I've learned to let them do their own thing and not worry about them. THey will do their own thing and if you let them your dreadies will love you for it! I used the twist and rip method on them last night just to get them started.. (my hair with help will stays pretty untangled when left on its own) and ALREADY mine are1 million times better than the candlesticks i had before. I sprayed some sea salt water on them this morning and let them air dry and I will be making my washing mixture later this week. btw if they are still new and you are combing them out Olive oil works quite well for removing the wax... still takes a while and the combing may hurt but the oil worked very well on my wax disasters.
He wanted relatively uniform dreads, so they would be close to the same size and also a bit smaller. It doesn't seem from the pictures offered that 'natural dreads' end up being that way, I would want mine to be the same way. Some of the pictures of back combed dreads were messy dreads, when we did his they ended up looking very clean.And as far as a tam, there is no way he would wear one. I've looked around online for them and its a big no go. Its just not his style I suppose. I've even offered to crochet him a hat that he could wear, hes just not a big hat person. He has been wearing bandannas to keep them somewhat covered when hes out and about.We have stopped using the wax. Question I have is how do you get the roots to continue to lock up without rubbing or waxing? And yes I know and I've read that wax slows down the locking process so this isn't something that needs to be covered again.Heres a picture of his dreads while we were in the process of back combing them, these hadnt had any wax added to them yet. I wasn't overly impressed with the pictures of backcombed dreads that were posted. When seeing dreads being back combed like these what would be the downside? Lets say we chose to start mine this way but went all natural from there and didn't use wax, which I probly wouldn't to begin with. Why not? I know that dreads aren't going to be perfect that not what they are, but I would prefer mine to be a bit more uniform and not all crazy like the examples of backcombed dreads that were shown. With how tight they were backcombed they wouldn't really need to be waxed anyway.I'm glad that I've gotten some good replies and I look forward to this discussion going a but further. soaringeagle said:
i feel bad about all you went through and still had been steered wrong..so if you'd like, send me a message with your number or requesting mine and i'll talk to both you and your husband by phone and we can talk as much as is needed to gret ya on the right path to dready glory
or when you and he can both be on join us in the chat..its sort of hard to say when the chats busy though..
id gop with twist n rip ovrer backcombtwist n rip dreads look good early theyre easy especialy on thinner dreads and do alot less dammagethery often hold together better early on tooroots...do nothing\rootrs take care of themselves but you will always havge 2 things.. 1 an inch or 2 loose hair at the root this gives em room to move and knot..without it they stand straight up and can even hurt2 loose hairs ariund the scalp..again normal, it prevents bald spots between dreads and protects from sunvburn when it reaches 3-4 inches it will join a dread or become a baby dreadnatural dreads form in all sizes most of mine are very thin some thickbut u can control that by ripping into smaller sections as they form
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1
