i've had it. i'm done. dreading the natural way. wish me luck! here's to day 1 ps. if anyone wants to share a list of essentials for natural dreading, feel free to hook a brother up!
um dont brush your hair use a conditioner free shampoo like dr bronners and that is it! good luck and post pics
And play with it, and mess it up with your hands, and wear a wool hat etc... Maybe rinse with apple cider vinegar during your first few washings to get all the built up residue out.
thank you! I was worried about residue, i don't want any crap in my hair....main reason for doing it naturally. I just want the purest of dreads I was so excited to finally make up my mind that i couldn't even sleep last night. Is there a sticky or somewhere where we keep up with each other's progress? i'm so pumped! And colorfulhippie, i'd like you to know it was a couple of your posts that really inspired me to start NOW!
oh my stars, that's so nice i'm totally stoked about mine, that's for sure. it must radiate lol my progress thus far (even though there's just one pic so far) is in a thread titled "natural dreads check in" there's a few posters who've posted their mature dreads as inspiration and that, i think, is totally awesome. feel free to join in there or start your own progression thread. as for the apple cider vinegar, seriously, it will strip your hair. i had mine dyed a fairly good shade of pink (considering my natural darkness that is ) and every time i rinse with acv, the pink just comes pouring out! that said, i don't do it every time as it's a bit drying on my scalp.
I'm comin' up on a year with my nattys... the best tip I can offer is PATIENCE!!!! It can get supa' frustrating at times
Natural dreads are so fun. I was once opposed to the idea, until they started forming on my own head, amongst all my loose hair. I've had quite the collection of wee dreadies form on their own, and it's always neat to see. As for advice, I'd say get a nice wool toque, put it on, and just rub your head in circular motions. It really helps to nap those bastards up. That is, if that doesn't violate the idea of "natural" dreads, I'm not sure. Works, though! Good luck on your dreads.
haha nope, no violation. I 'member you bein' so pro-wax but i just can't do it, i've seen what it looks like & i just don't wanna deal. i'm fucking pumped now that i've started; i can't sleep at night because dreads are all i think about. funny thing is my hair is softer now that i'm using knotty boy than it's ever been. i have sexy beach hair ^_^ i expect i'm going to give in eventually and backcomb, so i'm looking to you kids for support. natural natural natural eeeeeee im sleep deprived :\
When I first started I constantly thought about and dreamt about locks... don't give in! If you let em form natural they'll become what they're meant to be... size, shape, etc. They'll match your personality more than backcombed locks ever could. Locks will start forming before you know it.
at this point, how often should i be washing them? It's been about 3 days and my head is feeling pretty nasty. it's not helping that i'm really sick and i'm doing that cold/really sweaty thing every 5 mins...... :\ oh and at what point should i start doing a sea salt water rinse? i'm tempted to do it right away to dry it out some more?
You should wash them pretty often at first...grease and knots don't mix...they make them fall right out. It might seem like you shouldn't wash it and it might seem like they fall right out when you wash them...but in the long run you'll be better off. And I did sea salt rinses almost right away because it dries your hair out and makes it dread better...just my experience.
all of the above was exactly what i was thinking, i just thought i'd confirm it with someone who actually knows. Thanks annie
I used to be pro-wax, until I saw what that shit does to dreads. Though, I still favour the actual backcombing method, to just leaving them to do their thing. Dunno why, just me. I say go for it! There's nothing "unnatural" about taking a comb and backcombing the hair with it, to help them lock up. And from there, yeah, let them go naturally.
Yesterday I made my own little mixture of Vitamin E, lemon juice & sea salt in some water and sprayed it on my head... This helped with the itchies I've been having more than the aloe. I've been washing every 5 days or so. More if I've been active & sweaty. A little sweat won't hurt, it actually will probably help a bit due to the salt. Good luck!
oh my god, i did sea salt yesterday and today....and today i took a wool poncho to my head for about a half hour......my hair is FUCKING MAD!!! I am LOVING IT! i already have a couple of solid babies starting....the messier it gets, the more pumped i get for how AWESOME they will beeeeeeeeee!!!! weeeeeeeeeee..........!!!! i just can't believe it's only been a few days!!! i couldn't get a good pic of the couple i have starting, but here's my massive head...hehe:
