sorry for the ignorance but...I have some need to knows

So, Im considering the natural method of dreading my hair. I have questions.. lots o questions.. but I'll start with just a few for now. I know I shouldn't condition my hair but what are a few types of shampoo I should use that I can find somewhat easy. and another ? I've got a lot of frizzy big hair that I'm basically going to do nothing to. Can I pull it up in the beginning? pony tail it or bun it up? And approx how long before they start looking dreadful?
updated by @msfunkadelic: 01/13/15 08:45:20PM

1 use the baking soda deep cleanse or the maylees bar in our shops here (in menu)2 u can but id leave em down more if u can3very hard to guess could be 2 weeks 2 months its really hard to guessbut from yoir description a few weeks to a month or 2 at a guess


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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

Can I start with a normal shampoo for now and change it when they start knotting up some? I know it will tangle with out conditioner and just normal shampoo.. shit it tangles with conditioner soaringeagle said:

1 use the baking soda deep cleanse or the maylees bar in our shops here (in menu)
2 u can but id leave em down more if u can 3very hard to guess could be 2 weeks 2 months its really hard to guessbut from yoir description a few weeks to a month or 2 at a guess

Your hair sounds about the same as mine before i had dreads, and i can tell you if its anything like mine stop combing for about 3-4 days and you have the start of dreads in your hair already. I crochet most of mine in at the end of July I let 3 do the natural thing all the way through and at first they started off a little loose and weren't coming together but now I've stopped crocheting they have caught up to all my other dreads so lets say my dreads are around 6 - 7 weeks old and the ones that are natural look as much like dreads as the rest of my crochet ones do. Oh and if your worried about messy wild hair while your waiting for your hair to do its knotty thing head bands or scarfs whatever you wish to call them are now your new best friend I found that in the beginning putting it up just made it look more unruly and crazy cat lady then it would have been had i left it down.

my first day and I'm already not able to get my fingers through it and from the curl I have it's wanting to group together, this may be easier than I thought...other than the "bang" section of my hair which is long but for whatever reason more straight than the rest of my head maybe pulling it behind my ears or something.. I dunno. I'm thinking of cutting that part anyway and giving myself some long undredded shaggy bangs or something.

do you know anything about the neutrogena anti residue shampoo? bobbi blaine said:

you want to use a shampoo that doesn't leave a residue. SLS (sodium laurel sulfate/sodium laureth sulfate) is bad too so that leaves very few choices for dreads. i would order some maylees.. we don't endorse her or anything, her bars are just awesome. some people use dr bronners soap, but only if you don't have hard water. baking soda is good though. a couple of tablespoons to a few cups of water and soak your hair. rinse it out well. thats it! if you want, you can add a couple of drops of rosemary oil, tea tree oil, or lavender oil... those seem to be the most popular but they all have different uses.

Thanks so much, you're all over my ?'s tonight I'm only at day 1 and it's already knotting up so that's a bonus. I hear that you are only supposed to wash your hair every 2 to 3 days, which I guess is normal for me knots or not. I had to rewash my hair again today because I was at the zoo and I swear to you I got shit on by a bird 3 freakin times in the time it took me to get up and move off my bench.. what the heck... I heard that's good luck or something though lol, so I better be having a ton of good luck coming my way. lol Knottysleeves said:

Yeah, it's expensive but does basically the same job as the baking soda + ACV wash.

The whole "OMG RESIDUE!!!!" thing is kind of overhyped, if you ask me. Any regular bar soap, gentle dish detergent, or the baking soda wash all work fine for dreads. As long as you're not using anything with conditioners, your hair will knot up. Just rinse well and you'll be fine. If you're paranoid about residues then you can do a deep clean soak every few months.

msfunkadelic said:

do you know anything about the neutrogena anti residue shampoo?

That's pretty much my washing schedule with out locks in my hair already(unless I get shit on. mer). My skin/hair gets too dry if I wash it too often, we need our natural oils, Knottysleeves said:

That doesn't sound like fun.

You have to find a washing schedule that works for you. Clean hair dreads best so you'll want to keep it clean, but if you wash it TOO often then your dreads won't have time to fully dry inside, which can lead to mildew & rot. Every 3 or 4 days is a happy medium for most people.

msfunkadelic said:

Thanks so much, you're all over my ?'s tonight I'm only at day 1 and it's already knotting up so that's a bonus. I hear that you are only supposed to wash your hair every 2 to 3 days, which I guess is normal for me knots or not. I had to rewash my hair again today because I was at the zoo and I swear to you I got shit on by a bird 3 freakin times in the time it took me to get up and move off my bench.. what the heck... I heard that's good luck or something though lol, so I better be having a ton of good luck coming my way. lol