My hairs not dreading up :(

Howdy,

I decided that I wanted to go down the dreadlock route and that going natural is for me..

I started with a shaved head from the end of last year. Fast forward to now, so six months from my last haircut. Through this period I have not washed my hair with shampoo/conditioner, and I have not brushed my hair at all.

My hair is now 4inches long and it still hasn't started to dread up, infact I don't think I have one knot. Yes it looks a tad messy, kind a like bed hair, but that is all.

What am I doing wrong? Could it be that my type of hair wont dread naturally? Or is it most likely because my hair hasn't gotten long enough yet?

Take Care

Ethan

updated by @itsethan: 01/13/15 09:53:10PM

I was like you in that I shaved my hair, didnt brush and in 7 months didnt get a single knot. If you want to go natural apparently you wont notice it locking up until your hair is abotu 6 inches. I started taking biotin about 3 weeks ago and my hair seems to be growing really fast so I would just take that to speed up your hair growth and continue what youre doing. Make sure youre washing with a suitable shampoo or bs/acv, sleep on wool pillow etc. and let your hair do its thing =]

Hey Ethan!

What have you been washing with? I'm sure you already know that your hair needs to be washed 2-3 times a week with a non resudue shampoo to help the dreading process. I use the baking soda and ACV wash as its super cheap and easy. But there are a other types too.

yea u absolutely need to be patient and let it grow

in rare cases it will dread at 2 or 4 inches

but u should never expect it to till 6

6 is the magic number that will change everything

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

If you have coarse hair then you could just twist them to start your locks.

Thanks guys. You've made me feel better.

Biotin? I'll have to suss that out from the health shop.

I actually don't wash my hair with anything, just water. Is this a no no?

Magic number 6. I thought that might have been one of my problems :P

By just washing your hair with water, you aren't getting rid of most of the hair oils your scalp naturally produces and that could prevent your hair from getting knots.

This.

Try the baking soda / apple cider vinegar rinses discussed on here and see if that does anything for you (hint -- it will)!

Kerry LoCo said:

By just washing your hair with water, you aren't getting rid of most of the hair oils your scalp naturally produces and that could prevent your hair from getting knots.

Yeah, water is not washing. Those oils need to go or it'll never really start to lock up.

Baking Soda is the best way to start out. Once you get a few months in you can use dreadlock bar soap.

For cleanliness AND scent AND scalp health I'd recommend adding two or three drops of a favorite essential oil in your baking soda water squirt bottle. It'll really help a lot of issues you'll get by using baking soda.

For itchies I suggest lavender or basil(that's my fave) in the baking soda wash. Basil kills itch like nobody's business. Just don't leave it on too long cause it'll burn, too. 3-4 mins. max and then rinse.

For just all around coolness and wanna-smell-yumminess I'd say go for verbena, lime,orange, sandalwood,

I'm a chick so I like to alternate between magnolia, basil, and verbena.

To keep buggies away I'd suggest a drop or so of citronella and/or tea tree oil from time to time.

But whatever your EO(Essential Oil) needs are, definitely WASH!!! You gotta wash or you not gonna get those sweet dreadies. That, and no one will wanna smell ya. Unwashed dreads reek.

PS. Baking soda and ACV do not go in the same bottle or on the head at the same time. Just FYI in case you didn't read the page about it yet. It'll cause a really nasty chemical reaction and weaken your hair. Not cool.