finding a balance

so as most people on here know i've had a lot of issues finding something that will clean my hair but not leave a bunch of residue or it overly soft. hard water sucks. i have an entire shelf full of shampoos i've tried but i'm back to using baking soda because i'm just so frustrated. i don't normally do the acv because it makes my unknotted hair really slick and soft. now at 16 months i'm really trying to find a balance between hair thats clean and easily knotted and hair thats still feels healthy. lately it feels dried out and scratchy. i'm sure its from the bs and sea salt wash. problem is the texture on the unknotted hair feels perfect for knotting. ugh. i don't know what to do. how do i get soft locks without undoing or preventing knots?

my husband wasn't really thrilled with dreadlocks but he loves me so he accepts it. i want him to be able to touch my hair and not pull back because they're so scratchy and unappealing.

{{help}}

updated by @heather: 02/14/15 06:27:09AM

i'll try it without the sea salt next time. i do add tea tree, rosemary and a few drops of peppermint oil for my scalp.

i've tried the liquid shampoo. i was sent a sample. its nice but i didn't see any knotting happening while using it a couple of weeks. the bars leave a bunch of residue in my hair. most likely my water.

simple

wash with what makes your hair happy

and do not worry about a few hairs that arent knotted

your constantly going on about how hard your hair is to dsread but it looks really well dreaded

why are you so worried abiyt a few hairs here and there?

if they dont want to be dreaded why do they have to be?

99% of your heads dreads

so wash with the shampoo that makes them feel the best..healthiest

and stop worrying about those last few hairs

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

I found sea salt makes my hair feel brittle so I stopped using it. Even if it slows progress I'd prefer to get dreads with healthy hair. Maybe when your dreads are tight all over you can soften them up with the ACV. Just a few thoughts.

actually pictures don't show all the hair underneath thats not dreaded yet. it just turns to silky soft spirals of normal hair after every wash. i have other loose hair all over but that doesn't bother me any. do you think i should do the acv rinse after my wash? if so, how much? a couple tbs?

soaring eagle said:

simple

wash with what makes your hair happy

and do not worry about a few hairs that arent knotted

your constantly going on about how hard your hair is to dsread but it looks really well dreaded

why are you so worried abiyt a few hairs here and there?

if they dont want to be dreaded why do they have to be?

99% of your heads dreads

so wash with the shampoo that makes them feel the best..healthiest

and stop worrying about those last few hairs

yeah. i think i'll cut the sea salt out for now. i could probably just spray a weak solution on the undreaded parts to help out. thanks:)

hippiegal said:

I found sea salt makes my hair feel brittle so I stopped using it. Even if it slows progress I'd prefer to get dreads with healthy hair. Maybe when your dreads are tight all over you can soften them up with the ACV. Just a few thoughts.

my whole underneath is undreaded too, Heather, but I have well defined sections. I bet it will in time, and I bet yours will too. Just use something that smells and feels good for your hair and don't even think about it knotting, you committed to no brush, so just keep it clean soft and comfy. It looks way cool as it is, I think. Part dreaded and part undreaded is a really cool juxtaposition. You could always t & r it, slip beads on to keep it tight and then you wouldn't have to worry about it anymore. Can you get a water conditioner system?Even Brita would help for washing. In my humble opinion, you are lovely whatever it's doing']. My Hubby wasn't thrilled either, haha, but he loves me so he puts up with me being me, too.

Heather, I have some resilient hair too. In time most of it will knot up, but as SE said, there will always be loose bits. Look closely at anyone with long-term dreads and you will see stray hairs. When I see photos on the internet of people with 'perfect' dreads (meaning not a wisp out of place) I wonder if they don't secretly 'tidy' them with a crochet hook. If your top layers are knotting well, as your photos show, the rest WILL follow. Perhaps because your hubby has little enthusiasm for dreads, you feel pressure to have them come out a certain way. Again, just a thought.Sometimes my loose strands frustrate me no end, but that's the lesson of natural dreadlocks - letting go.

yes acv really should be used if u dont soak in it long it shouldnt affect the dreading too much at all but it really is esential to hair health to have a proper ph typicaly id use around the same ammounjt as bs but you can try it at like 1/3 thar t much rto start like a couple spoonfulls and adjust asneeded

Heather said:

actually pictures don't show all the hair underneath thats not dreaded yet. it just turns to silky soft spirals of normal hair after every wash. i have other loose hair all over but that doesn't bother me any. do you think i should do the acv rinse after my wash? if so, how much? a couple tbs?

soaring eagle said:

simple

wash with what makes your hair happy

and do not worry about a few hairs that arent knotted

your constantly going on about how hard your hair is to dsread but it looks really well dreaded

why are you so worried abiyt a few hairs here and there?

if they dont want to be dreaded why do they have to be?

99% of your heads dreads

so wash with the shampoo that makes them feel the best..healthiest

and stop worrying about those last few hairs

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

ever use liquid black soap? i found some at a local organic beauty / health food store. it's residue free but it does condition ever so slightly. and it's amazing for your scalp!