Forum Activity for @baba-fats

brand new dreads, am I doing it right?!

Dread Maintenance

Don't redo anything.

When you use a starter method, all you are really doing is setting up a blueprint of where you want the sections. mature locks don't usually form in the exact same place. They almost always untangle a bit, if not completely before they retangle and mature.
When you reTnR them, you just be setting your progress back to day 1 and you'll lose all the progress you made so far.

For the first few months, it's a 1 step forward 2 steps back process. So don't worry if they untangle a bit. It will all come together in time

brand new dreads, am I doing it right?!

Dread Maintenance

Talk to Eagle, but unless the school's dress code says something specific about dreadlocks, they can't make you tame your hair. And if they do say something about dreadlocks, it's illegal. That would be like telling muslims and jews from wearing their headpieces

brand new dreads, am I doing it right?!

Dread Maintenance

If you are growing them for any type of spiritual reasons, they don't have to took presentable, by law. But I understand the desire to. I make mine look neat when I go to interviews and work. A ponytail is fine, but tends to slow down the process. A tam would be better, because it allows for them to move around and brush up against eachother. A bandanna would work as a good middle ground and still look neat if you have a nice looking one

brand new dreads, am I doing it right?!

Dread Maintenance

You can wash them as soon as you want. There's no timeline for it. But try to wash at least once a week. 2-3 times is best.

The ACV doesn't actually smell strong in the wash. It's extremely diluted, and you can mix whatever essential oils you want into it. Or you could check out dreadlockshampoo.com. They are amazing.

There are a thousand an one factors that go into how your locks will form and what your timeline will look like. It took me a year to see any progress. Ixchel is 8 months in and just seeing some knots.

Look at the timeline forums and see how others are doing. Natural locks do flatten out. But there will always be frizzies that you will see because you're closer to them than everyone else

brand new dreads, am I doing it right?!

Dread Maintenance

All you need to do is wash 2-3 times a week with a non residue soap. I think Lush is ok, but ask Eagle. Dreadlockshampoo.com has the best soaps. Or you could look into the Baking Soda/Apple Cider Vinegar wash

Then Separate them as needed.

The tips should be loose. Blunted tips take HOURS longer to dry. This can lead to them rotting.

Baby locks NEED to have about 1-3 inches of straight hair at the root. Don't do anything to fix this. That loose hair is what snags and tangle with new growth and promotes healthy roots. If you tighten them and pull in those loose hairs, it will weaken and thin out your roots which will make it harder for them to hold the weight of the lock itself. As they mature that straight hair will tangle. Mature ocks have about 1/4 - 1 inch of straight hair at the root. It is normal

Be Kind

General Talk

Thanks. Like I said, I'mguiltyof it too. I get passionate. Even today I had to delete part of a comment because I felt like it may have been getting a bit out of hand

Be Kind

General Talk

So Recently I got an email from a former member about how she posted a discussion about wanting to help people do maintenance on their locks. She advertised that she crocheted, palm rolled, and something about wool wrapping (Not sure what that means).

Well, this member asked me to delete everything that had her nameassociatedwith it, as well as her account. I did, out of respect. But I also sent her an email back that I hope calmed her down.

Her main concern was about how some members got an angry tone in their responses and she felt attacked.

So this post is a plea to everyone for a little more respect to members who use destructive methods for their locks.

I am definitely not asking us to stop telling people how bad wax, crocheting, interlocking, and palm rolling are. But I do think there are ways to go about it better. It may take more activity by some of us. But It will be worth it. Quite a few people have signed up and then quit because they felt they were being attacked (I am guilty of this too). I would like to help these people out as much as possible. But I would also really like to keep them as members so they can keepbenefitingfrom this great community.

So please, when you find someone who used wax, or crocheted their hair, or did anything else we know is destructive, and damaging, please be kind and calm with them. Have facts straight and if at all possible, maybe post links to other posts or videos to help emphasize your point. When they see a video, it will help them relate to the issue better

updated by @baba-fats: 02/14/15 05:50:12AM

Journey. Two Weeks

General Questions

Yeah, with Dr. B's you want to mix it between 1 part soap to 12 parts water, up to 1 part soap to 40 parts water.

updated by @baba-fats: 07/13/15 04:44:51PM

Journey. Two Weeks

General Questions

It's not. If you have residue from using a non dreadlock-friendly soap, you use it once to get rid of the residue. It should only be used 1-2 times a year.

It could probably be what is causing your itchies. Find a non-residue soap like Dr. Bronners (Only if you have soft water), or dreadlockshampoo.com (The work in any water type)

Journey. Two Weeks

General Questions

Anti residue is not non residue. In fact, it leaves a residue all by itself. Anti-residue shampoos are used to strip other oils and residue from your hair. But then they leave some. It's a weird cycle. Stop using that on your locks.

Plus Neutrogena shampoos contain toxic chemicals like SLS and Formaldehyde.

SLS is extremely bad for your hair and health. In California it is listed under Prop 65 to cause Cancer.