Every time you do your hair wash you do not need to run it through to the midlengths and ends of your dreads, its only the roots that need cleaning. Re washing the ends will really strip away any natural condition in your dreads.Use a watered down conditioner that you know what is in it, but not every time you wash your dreads.
moisturizing/conditioning dreadlocks
Thanks for all the new advice guys but this posting is from a year ago and i currently don't have issues with dry locks. I switch off between the dreadlock bars and lush bars and haven't had any problems. I don't do bs deep clean because it makes my scalp itch like mad and make my hair feel like straw. Anytime i feel like I'm getting a bit of a build up then i grab a lush bar and it takes care of it.
I generally stick with the ones that have the least ingredients. Seanik and jumping juniper. Seanik has sea salt in it. Jumping juniper is great for oily hair/scalp. Squeaky green is nice too but fragrance is listed near the beginning of the ingredients so it could leave a bit more residue than the others. They are sls based and i know some people have an issue with that. Also these aren't made specifically for dreads but with a lot of rinsing i haven't had any issues. I do find that my dreads knot up a ton more when i use these. I alternate though with the dreadlock bars because they add the softness that i like.
Noodle-Doo said:
Cool, I always used to use Lush bars. Which ones do you like best? I've not used them much since dreading.
how much baking soda are you using and how long are you leaving it in for? One thing that I learned over the past few months, is that the BEST way to keep your hair in check is to modify the amount, ratio, and time that you leave baking soda in with each wash(depending on the state of your hair). I wash every 2-3 days depending, and use no acv at all. When you start showering, wet your hair down and VERY gentle massage it with very little movement, make sure that all of your hair is wet and that water has ran through it a decent amount. Wetting it beforehand, will help any natural oils gathering at the scalp or roots to reach the rest of the hair before it's ''neutralized'' by the baking soda. THEN add the baking soda, and experiment with times, you seriously don't need it in at all for it to do it's work. I'm not sure of the exact science behind it, but I'd imagine the oils bind to the baking soda and then gets more easily washed out with water afterwards, this shouldn't take very long for this to happen. I leave baking soda in for anywhere from 30 seconds, to 2-3 minutes, then make sure that it's thoroughly washed out.
I don't have exact measurements because I've always eyeballed it and adjusted on my own, but I'm guessing I using a ratio of roughly 2-3 tablespoons with 2 cups of water, which I believe is WAY thinner than what most people use for their ratios. Once I figured out my amounts and times with baking soda, I figured out that acv was only over conditioning my hair and was nothing more than a hassle anyway. Just think about it, we're using baking soda to remove our NATURAL oils, then replace them with ''synthetic'' oils... why not just be careful with the removal of the natural oils, instead of being overly forceful and having to replace them?
Yeah, I've heard soak n' float is pretty harsh so I've avoided that one. I have a tendency towards a dry flakey scalp no matter what i use but I do find seanik to work quite well for me. I have the jumping juniper one too but i ended up giving it to my daughter because she has an oily scalp and its been working wonder for her.
Really, it's all just trial and error. What works for one person may not work for someone else. Case in point "Dr. Bronners". Experiment a little. I promise your dreads will not fall off if you use the wrong shampoo:)
