How to Maintain Toddler's Dreads

One thing is you don't have to separate them all at once - just do one a day, a great way to keep them separate is to put dread sleeves on each dread while he is just starting out, if you need help with advice i can help you with making the dread sleeves, it would look sooo cute on him, they are temporary - it would just help the dreads stay apart while there getting established and its what the sleeves are made out of that makes the difference on being able to remove them, if you have clear plastic bendable tubing i can guide you from there on, if your not into that I have plenty of other ideas

updated by @sweet: 07/13/15 10:01:05AM

Hi Sweet,

Thanks for the advice. I'm not sure what you mean by sleeve...?? I heard about using thread around dreads that are lumpy...in Xs down to the end of the dread. Is that what you mean?

ive been thinking about letting my 18 month old girls hair just be natural myself. im not sick or anything, i just dont think theres anything wrong with allowing her hair to be as it was made. have you caught any flak from others about your choice? how long to you plan to let his hair dread.

There are a couple of dreadie-parent support groups on this site. Maybe you ladies can join and get some advice from other parents.

http://www.dreadlockssite.com/groups/group/search?q=children#.UCKT8aDNkYI

You have to be confident and positive in your decision & that will help your child & you avoid negative contact. Some people stare, other people compliment him, some people snarl but I just smile because he's happy and comfortable. I'm well enough to comb out his hair now, but why, he likes his dreads. Sometimes he wears a ponytail & other times his dreads are out. It helps that he's happy and friendly, it's easy for people to smile & laugh with him.

I think because we're confident & he wears them so well people aren't as aggressive as I thought they would be. I wanted to dread my 1st son's hair but his curls were too bouncy. I wanted them to knot it up naturally, without having to make him sit out the knotting process & it was just easier to finger comb his ringlets.

That's a great resource! Thank you!

Valrie said:

There are a couple of dreadie-parent support groups on this site. Maybe you ladies can join and get some advice from other parents.

http://www.dreadlockssite.com/groups/group/search?q=children#.UCKT8...

my little girl had two little dreads started but my mom brushed them out. when i first did mine she grabbed my hair and said "pretty" (sounds more like 'furdy' lol) and the other morning she wouldnt let me have my hair back. she kept tellin me it was pretty. i asked if she wanted hair like mommies and she said "yeah!" im just concerned my mom and my husbands mom arent going to be thrilled or respect my decision. i dont brush her hair and i bathe her when i wash my hair with baking soda/acv. she had the cutest lil baby dreads started.

Stand strong. It sounds like your mom shares the same views as my mom & long time best friends. It wasn't a problem for me until the dreads got to the middle stage (set in the back but scraggly on top). They all threatened to cut his hair but I told them that it wasn't going to happen & if they felt a need to change what is naturally happening then they can choose to stay away. I love them but his hair isn't their concern. & when I my mom had to babysit my baby I put his hair in a pony tail.

We live a natural lifestyle based on maintaining peace and balance. I focus more on my children's emotional & cognitive balance than style...and as long as they are clean I am not concerned with them being lined up. My 13 year old son has beautiful curls but he doesn't want to do anything to them so now they're long curls around his face. Everyone says that he should get a hair cut but I am standing by him to have naturally long hair too.

I wash my baby's hair with regular shampoo & then separate the naturally formed dreads while he plays in the bath tub. I haven't done any knotting, tangling or teasing. We haven't used wax or any other goop. The back is dreaded really nicely; the top & around his face is finally starting to dread. I found that pulling it back helped form the top & face dreads.

Good luck with your daughter's dread process!

you should post w timeline of his dreads progression evrryone would love to see it

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

thank you. i mentioned the idea to a couple friends and got the response that i shouldnt let it dread because of school and other peoples reactions but i personally think that the school needs to mind their own business and if other people are petty enough to discriminate on something like hair then they can go somewhere else. dreads are a great asshole filter. i would just worry that one day she might not like them and resent me for letting it dread or that she would want to take them out. and then maybe she would regret taking them out. i am more concerned about her feelings than other peoples feelings.

sara said:

Stand strong. It sounds like your mom shares the same views as my mom & long time best friends. It wasn't a problem for me until the dreads got to the middle stage (set in the back but scraggly on top). They all threatened to cut his hair but I told them that it wasn't going to happen & if they felt a need to change what is naturally happening then they can choose to stay away. I love them but his hair isn't their concern. & when I my mom had to babysit my baby I put his hair in a pony tail.

We live a natural lifestyle based on maintaining peace and balance. I focus more on my children's emotional & cognitive balance than style...and as long as they are clean I am not concerned with them being lined up. My 13 year old son has beautiful curls but he doesn't want to do anything to them so now they're long curls around his face. Everyone says that he should get a hair cut but I am standing by him to have naturally long hair too.

I wash my baby's hair with regular shampoo & then separate the naturally formed dreads while he plays in the bath tub. I haven't done any knotting, tangling or teasing. We haven't used wax or any other goop. The back is dreaded really nicely; the top & around his face is finally starting to dread. I found that pulling it back helped form the top & face dreads.

Good luck with your daughter's dread process!