wool rubbing/salt spray

One of the methods im considering to start my dreads is the wool rubbing and salt spray. Only guy worth watching on youtube ( by worth watching i mean white guy, because there are a few african americans but they dont help much, i got straight hair) is connor trent, bur he didnt section the hair by ripping it so he got very thin dreads, some of them were too thin, so he crocheted the dreads after a month of his journey. I was wondering how long does it take for the hair to start looking like dreads, and does it have any disadvantages or things to look out for... Has anyone used the method, any tips? Thanks in advance
updated by @filip-radulovic: 01/22/20 09:33:16AM

its not real effective it creates just a general knotty mes that then needs to be ripped apart into sections

your better off letting it dread naturally but sleep on a wool pillowcase

wool f]does help it dread but agressive rubbings not the best way to assist it wool tams and sleeping on a wool pillowcase otr sweatter covering the pillows better

uf u decide to wool rub do it only once

and dont crochet!

id really sggest you read the dreaducation page

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My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

I find that when I surf in the summer the salt water really drys out and frizzes up my hair. I can see it all tighten up and short due to it locking up. Expect some loss of length as the dreading process continues. It's winter so I'm not doing any surfing until snowboard season ends. I do a mild salt water rinse after I was my hair (twice a week). But honestly it is nowhere near as good a mother natures own ocean water. DONOT crochet, interlock, wax, or any other method that will eventually destroy your dreads. Read the Dreaducation section. If you just gotta do something to get them started then twist & rip will be your safest way. But natural is the best. Take it from me a reformed free form. I made the awful mistake of going to a "loctitican" and now I have to grow out that mistake. Also your shampoo makes a BIG difference. Look at the dread specific products linked to from this website. They make shampoos, salt sprays and even locking gels if your really having a hard time locking up. I would go naturally first, give it a year and you'll see progress slowly but it will be a lot safer then any other method. Honestly I don't really see much progress day to day until I post a pic here then it becomes obvious. Good luck and keep us posted.

@soaring-eagle  I'm Caucasian but have super thick curly wavy hair (nappy) Did wool rubbing with my wool beanie yesterday and noticed very light pressure and large circles created those twists more effectively. 

I did use some heavier pressure in the beginning and the result I believe that came from that was the ends of my 6 inch hair were looping around connecting with roots of other hair due to the compression.

This morning using fingers running through hair front to back I found each loop and gently worked it out. It took a while. My hair is still standing about with some twists and the hair considerably roughed up.

Was that neccessary working those loops of the ends of hairs looping over and connecting with roots? In my thinking they seemed counterproductive in creating locks.

I believe I can get more twists back without those loops if I stick to rubbing with very very light pressure more so really holding the beanie touching the tips making wide circles (I found for me clockwise works better, counter clockwise not nearly as effective) then just stop and go neglect.

Or after getting all loops out go for TNR. Is sectioning necessary?

I want randomness and I don't want all the same size. I was going to do 1-2 TNR dreads a day. 

My goal is the length between where they are standing out like flames and when they start to fall and maintain around that length which I assume will change as they mature. Although I'll probably wear a beanie for bried peroids to train them down wards somewhat to make life easier with me and managers even though for religious purposes I am protected for religious reasons (Nazarite Vow in Truth). I'd rather avoid as much as possible that conflict and may even wear a large fitting slouchy beanie (I don't like tams that much).

So length would be short and I may have to cover both for safety purposes as well as I work on Psych Units and patients can grab hair despite being always aware and having a good relationships with patients.

Also wearing loose fitting slouchy beanie may allow me to increase the length some

Can you wearr a loose fitting slouchie beanie without impeding the locking process too much?.

I would go neglect but I work as a Travel Nurse and want to have at least the beginnings of locs done before I return to work (been off contract for surgery).

I was going to find someone in a salon to just do sectioning if that would be better as I couldn't see what I was doing when trying my self. They wouldn't even have to be a loctician 

wool rubbing should only be done once, if at all

it can erase 3 months progres as quickly as it could create a general knotty mess other times

the slouchy can delay dreading but not as bad as a tight hat, just let them be free when not at work

tnr can be done with natural sections  or random sectioning

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

Thanks for the feedback,  I decided to untangle the mess. I think the thicker your hair the more of these loops from the roots you get. It took lots of coconut oil rubbed in and gobs of conditioner then untangling the loops in the shower after the conditioner soaked in, then wide tooth comb, more soaking then regular comb, then back to normal, I strained neck/shoulder muscle during the process too.

I agree with you. With wool rubbing once you get the beginnings of locks formed it is counter productive to keep rubbing which can damage and weaken the hair. I did notice after wearing a loose wool beanie using a circular motion with just my hand very loosely over the ends of new locks for just a minute or less helped to re-awaken them without damaging the hair. In fact even in the beginning light pressure and wider circles did better in forming the twists. Heavy pressure just created a bunch of frizzy hair which may be good when you first start rubbing to rough up the hair then quickly change to light pressure and wide circles to actually form those twists of hair.

So I'm regrouping. Actually in it's natural state my hair divides into natural loose curly locks of hair. If I try again it will be twist and rip with sectioning for medium to thin locks.

Watched a lot of TNR tutorials of which some were terrible. Noticed many locticians almost on purpose making the TNR locks very loose so they then could show more skill you'll need to rely on using the crochet hook in the beginning and for maintenance.

The one good video from 9 years ago

 

Shows the friend doing TNR tight to begin with and using backcomb for seconds minimally while twisting and ripping to tightening up some loose areas then continue TNR. They look pretty good from the beginning but still have some loose hairs coming out but no where as near as other videos where loctician purposely leaves them extra loose so she can crochet the heck out of them.

So far in what I've read is:

Don't twist to much

Twist to the root even though there inevitably be loose hair at the root that will lock more later although not too tight

When ripping use different sections each time you rip after you bring hair together after last rip and give a half to one twist to avoid the braided look although even if you get the braided look some it will dissipate in time.

Now I've also read you want the TNR new locks to be somewhat loose for hair movement but you need to balance that (tightness vs looseness) enough to where the don't go undone while being gentle with them as well so they won't become loose (hands off).

Some say don't wash to often and just the roots but my question is:

Should you gently wash all of dreads too with say a diluted residue free shampoo (I'm using Free and Clear from Walgreens) enough to clean and also rinse easily but not scrubbing new dreads but gently allow the diluted shampoo in the dread and maybe gently squeeze then rinse?

How often should you wash all of dreads vs roots?

I sweat a lot either working or working out so I need to at least rinse my hair every day adjusting shower head add-on if you have one for a narrow more powerful stream of water to rinse effectively without having to squeeze locks except at the end gently to get the water out  then blot dry with very absorbent towel or old cotton t-shirt or two.

I've changed to No-poo method years ago and maybe shampoo and condition once a month with my regular hair along with leave in coconut oil (expeller pressed).

This really improved the condition of my hair over time and the coconut oil is one of the few oils (medium chain fatty acids) that can be absorbed into the hair.

Others through scientific testing (I'll find link to research study) were olive oil, cotton seed oil but I found the coconut oil absorbs the best and easier to find. In fact I have to add more over time, especially my beard.

I'm thinking in preparation for dreadlocks no-poo except maybe once a month and using coconut oil on hair after bone dry and letting it soak in for 24 hours before getting wet in the shower, super saturate and comb through to disperse oils even more through hair and leave in.

This will strengthen and improve the quality the hair, plus getting scalp use to no-poo and allowing natural oils to remain. Combing in the shower helps prevent sebum build up. Along with eating well, staying hydrated, ensuring getting enough biotin. I take a supplement along with multi-vitamin.mineral supplement. The biotin as made a noticable difference in hair thickness and growth

I think sebum build up would not be an isssue with new dreads as I would actually shampoo my hair (diluted) more often than I'm doing now.

I'm writing this all out in detail so feel free anybody to correct or add to anything I wrote as despite reading a lot and watching a lot of videos and asking questions over several years experience wise I am still very new.

I still like the wool rubbing method because of it's minimal approach as a good start for neglect dreads (if done minimally) . No sectioning as the sections form naturally where they are meant to form which makes me think of another idea:

Using initial wool rubbing just enough to define the beginnings of sections to then guide you to where you to start  TNR locks. 

It also makes since to have loose hair at the roots even though frizzy at first for strength plus I think it looks more natural versus tight to the scalp and bald spots between sections. For the life of me I can't understand people's obsession with having tight to the scalp locks.

Lastly speaking philosophically I believe (on my opinion) locks are a spiritual thing to separate from as the in the Nazarite vow or other spiritual traditions as opposed to dreads done for fashion or I call vanity dreadlocks that are perfect, uniform, tight to the scalp, requiring much maintenance leading to destruction like baldness or thinning locks about to fall off.

Vanity leads to destruction. Spirituality leads to growth. Not to judge as a middle ground can be found.

Even too much neglect can be bad like the homeless mentally ill that enter the psych ward with the hair matted completely filled with lice  and dirt that we have to treat and/or shave which requires time consuming procedures and cleanup.

Like the lyrics of the late great reggae singer Jacob Miller, Rasta friend to Bob Marley "I'm a Natty, Not a Dreadlock"

youj want tnr to be loose thelooser ones dread faster then tight ones the tighter they are the slower they dread

make thenm loose  but just barely tight enough to hoild together no tighter then that

the looser they are the better

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

It’s not possible to have instant natural dreads. It’s a process. Everyone’s journey is different. If you’re worried just T&R the sections in and leave them alone. I brushed out my T&R locs after a month I found it very uncomfortable but others stick it out. Freeform is most comfortable and natural.

Avoid coconut out now that you’re dreading or about to dread. It will hold on to your hair and hold on to lots of dirt. I used coconut oil in the beginning of my last freeform set, I used it regularly before dreads and haven’t used shampoo in 5 years, I get what you’re doing; but with dreads it will not turn out well from my experience! I was glad to brush out my dreads when I realized how much dirt and residue from the coconut oil I had in my hair!! (4 months of brushing).... I’ll never put coconut oil in my dreads again it was a LOT of work.

yea just not brushing and washing often will give tyou amaziung dreads

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1