Hi Michelle. stay away from rubber bands. They slowly melt in the hair and the stickiness gets sucked in. Use beads or embroidery thread instead. Rubber bands also cause weak spots in the sections....peace
ACV will absolutely help. BS is a base, like I said. It will over dry your hair and make your scalp and hair brittle and itchy. ACV acts like a conditioner, and brings your pH level back to normal. The first wash may not fix it right away. But within a few washes you'll completely stop itching. Also, adding peppermint, rosemary, and tea tree oils to your mixtures will do wonders. Peppermint, alone, cures most itchies. But if you use it outside of a wash, ALWAYS mix it with either a lot of water, Jojoba oil, or almond oil. Peppermint is caustic to your skin and can easily burn you at 100% concentration.
Since you're only 2 weeks in, they will loosen and tighten over and over again for the next ~6 months or so. 2 week old locks should not be tight at all. They won't start getting tight for a number of months. And the tips of healthy locks are pretty wispy. Those wispy ends help your locks dry so much faster. Blunted tips can take 2+ times as long to dry because water gets trapped and has no way to drain out.
Welcome. Don't worry about washing. Baby locks should be washed 2-3 times a week.
Do you have naturally oily hair? If not, then you need to rinse out theBS well, and then do an ACV rinse. Just a cap full of ACV to every 5 cups of water. BS is a base ad will dry out your hair and damage it, if done alone. ACV will reset your scalp and hair back to a healthy pH level
Sorry about the delay, my internet tower came down in a storm and had to wait to get it back. For an itchy scalp, and to just smell good, this is what I use, (I am a smoker, so it helps with odor) I have a small spray bottle which I fill with bottled water and then mix in essential oils, about 10 or so drops of each. Tea tree, lavender, rosemary, and peppermint. Before each use I give it a good shake and spritz it on. If I have an itchy scalp, I spray it directly on to the scalp, otherwise I mist the hair only.
If you are washing with baking soda, this alone can make the scalp itchy, so make sure to follow up with an apple cider vinegar rinse. 1 capful to 5 cups water, pour over washed hair and rinse out within one minute.
Hey there Hulk. Guess you learned that you have to keep up on the separating. Especially on the back of the head. Best to do when the hair is wet, even do it in the shower. Gently start to pull two sections apart, going up towards the scalp. Tug a little at a time. Don't worry about reaching the scalp area, you should leave just a little bit there, it protects the scalp. If you have to do that area almost daily in the beginning, then do so, it does not take long to become a nest...Good luck and take your time....Peace
When you have finished washing, let the water drip of into the tub for a few minutes, just sit on the side of it. You can sway it back and forth to watch it come off. I use a towel the same color as my hair, dreads love to eat towel lint. Just pat it dry with the towel, no wrapping it like a turban. Then put the towel on your back to absorb the water still in it. I also use a micro fiber towel, like a Shamwow, to absorb plenty of water out of it, just give it pats and it will suck the water out.....Peace
Sea salt is a dread accelerator, help the knotting process. There is a Himalayan Sea Salt spray from Dreadlock Shampoo, this one is terrific and is Super rich in minerals and natural nutrients. The formula has been enriched with vitamins, Icelandic kelp, wheat, corn and soy protein along with an infusion of horsetail to strengthen your Dreads. Costs $15
You can also make your own spray. The ratio is 3 1/2 tablespoons to 5 cups of water. You can put it in a spray bottle and spray it on or pour in directly onto you wet hair (wet hair absorbs more, like a wet sponge). With the homemade mixture, it must be rinsed out by the two hour mark or you can dry out your hair. If you do your own, just watch out for over spray onto walls or whatever, as it will leave salt stains.
Where to by sea salt you ask?...Bulk food stores...health food stores...fish aquarium stores as they sell it for salt water fish tanks.
How fat locks do you want? Super fat ones lead to drying problems, and increase your risk of mold. I LOVE fat locks, though. And have a number of them. If you need any tips of drying, let me know.
It's probably your phone. I don't have a smart phone, but I know a number of members were having a few issues with accessing every page on their phones
Hi Michelle. stay away from rubber bands. They slowly melt in the hair and the stickiness gets sucked in. Use beads or embroidery thread instead. Rubber bands also cause weak spots in the sections....peace
Yes it is! its only been 4 weeks but i love them already! haha
your dreads are beautiful! love your pics! how long have u been dreading and what method did u use!?
xX Hugs!
ACV will absolutely help. BS is a base, like I said. It will over dry your hair and make your scalp and hair brittle and itchy. ACV acts like a conditioner, and brings your pH level back to normal. The first wash may not fix it right away. But within a few washes you'll completely stop itching. Also, adding peppermint, rosemary, and tea tree oils to your mixtures will do wonders. Peppermint, alone, cures most itchies. But if you use it outside of a wash, ALWAYS mix it with either a lot of water, Jojoba oil, or almond oil. Peppermint is caustic to your skin and can easily burn you at 100% concentration.
Since you're only 2 weeks in, they will loosen and tighten over and over again for the next ~6 months or so. 2 week old locks should not be tight at all. They won't start getting tight for a number of months. And the tips of healthy locks are pretty wispy. Those wispy ends help your locks dry so much faster. Blunted tips can take 2+ times as long to dry because water gets trapped and has no way to drain out.
Welcome. Don't worry about washing. Baby locks should be washed 2-3 times a week.
Do you have naturally oily hair? If not, then you need to rinse out theBS well, and then do an ACV rinse. Just a cap full of ACV to every 5 cups of water. BS is a base ad will dry out your hair and damage it, if done alone. ACV will reset your scalp and hair back to a healthy pH level
Sorry about the delay, my internet tower came down in a storm and had to wait to get it back. For an itchy scalp, and to just smell good, this is what I use, (I am a smoker, so it helps with odor) I have a small spray bottle which I fill with bottled water and then mix in essential oils, about 10 or so drops of each. Tea tree, lavender, rosemary, and peppermint. Before each use I give it a good shake and spritz it on. If I have an itchy scalp, I spray it directly on to the scalp, otherwise I mist the hair only.
If you are washing with baking soda, this alone can make the scalp itchy, so make sure to follow up with an apple cider vinegar rinse. 1 capful to 5 cups water, pour over washed hair and rinse out within one minute.
Here is a link for essential oils and the benefits: http://www.dreadlockssite.com/forum/topics/essential-oils-for-dreads-and-scalp-health
Any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask....Peace
Hey there Hulk. Guess you learned that you have to keep up on the separating. Especially on the back of the head. Best to do when the hair is wet, even do it in the shower. Gently start to pull two sections apart, going up towards the scalp. Tug a little at a time. Don't worry about reaching the scalp area, you should leave just a little bit there, it protects the scalp. If you have to do that area almost daily in the beginning, then do so, it does not take long to become a nest...Good luck and take your time....Peace
When you have finished washing, let the water drip of into the tub for a few minutes, just sit on the side of it. You can sway it back and forth to watch it come off. I use a towel the same color as my hair, dreads love to eat towel lint. Just pat it dry with the towel, no wrapping it like a turban. Then put the towel on your back to absorb the water still in it. I also use a micro fiber towel, like a Shamwow, to absorb plenty of water out of it, just give it pats and it will suck the water out.....Peace
Sea salt is a dread accelerator, help the knotting process. There is a Himalayan Sea Salt spray from Dreadlock Shampoo, this one is terrific and is Super rich in minerals and natural nutrients. The formula has been enriched with vitamins, Icelandic kelp, wheat, corn and soy protein along with an infusion of horsetail to strengthen your Dreads. Costs $15
You can also make your own spray. The ratio is 3 1/2 tablespoons to 5 cups of water. You can put it in a spray bottle and spray it on or pour in directly onto you wet hair (wet hair absorbs more, like a wet sponge). With the homemade mixture, it must be rinsed out by the two hour mark or you can dry out your hair. If you do your own, just watch out for over spray onto walls or whatever, as it will leave salt stains.
Where to by sea salt you ask?...Bulk food stores...health food stores...fish aquarium stores as they sell it for salt water fish tanks.
Peace
How fat locks do you want? Super fat ones lead to drying problems, and increase your risk of mold. I LOVE fat locks, though. And have a number of them. If you need any tips of drying, let me know.
It's probably your phone. I don't have a smart phone, but I know a number of members were having a few issues with accessing every page on their phones