Hey guys, This is a great forum, very informative. Ok I put my dreads in a week ago, and up til last night i hadnt found any of these forums so my source of info was ofcoarse Knotty boy and the like. So i made the aparent mistake of using wax to put them in. I love the dreads and how they look, but now im not sure whether just to stop using the wax and try to get the wax out with hot water etc and continue trying to let my hair dread, or to brush it out? I think making the decision soon will help as it will be easier to brush out. I have mid back length hair so i dont really want to cut it at all. Has anyone had any success in brushing them out? and was you hair in good condition afterward? My hair was in amazing condition beforehand. Totally confused on what to do and any help would be greatly appreciated, my eyes have been opened with all the information here, thank you.
i read at knotty locks forum to dip your hair (not scalp) into hot-as-you-can-stand water to melt it away. i'd prolly just start over if i was you. =(
Thanks, i think after reading more posts on hear about wax and it never coming out im more geared towards brushing it out and letting hair repair a while then begin again. My main concern is how damaged will my hair be if i brush it out, i dont know if it will be too bad since it was only done a week ago. Anyone whos brushed it out, how was the condition of your hair afterward? and did you take any measures towards getting it in healthy condition again? thanks
geez..u said it was 1/2 waty down your back when u put wax in huh..with yourt hair that long i bet a week wiytthout brushin woulda got dreads poppin .. to brush out n start oiver is your choice but what id do is very hot hot water, bronners alternating with the deep cleanse. scrubbing deep as u can, it will most likely all fall out anyways since its mostly just gluesd together i dont think u gotta completely brush it out (iui hope ) but it may noyt hurt to if u can get poure orange esential oil u might try adding a few drops to the deep clense (test it though, ive never tried it but it should dissolve wax as long as it wont also dissolve hair) if scrubbing breakls up the candlres and they fall apart too much then u might as well go all the way and make sure u get out all out then just start over clean & residue free
I would say just stop using the wax.. how much damage can be done by 1 week's worth of waxing? theres such a thing as being over paranoid... I waxed when I backcombed and havent since and theyve been doing fine so far.. but thats just my opinion...
well i would try getting the wax out, but with dreads that baby, you can brush them out. Actually i am in the process of brushing out my dreads that are 7 months old, its annoying, but not as hard as you think. What i did: Take a shower and use conditioner dry your hair, and put some more conditioner on wait about 1 day wash it out take some great lotion and olive oil, and put it on your hair start combing out from the bottom and work your way up. I doubt any places in your hair is really locked up (because of their age), but if it is, just pull it apart somewhat, then comb through. I am taking them out because i used wax for the 7 months i had them, and really dont want my dreads to get moldy about the same time they get nice, so i am combing them out and doing them again in a few months. best of luck to you either way. I would keep them and just clean the hec outa' them...just my opinion though.
brushing them out and starting again is just plain silly. a waste of time. they will not have locked up at all so will be very loose still so the worry about the wax getting trapped within the dread is no longer there. do as suggested above. nice hot shower and dunking in hot hot water. use bronners and the like and it'll come out eventually. may take a few washes but it will come out. just wash it once a week or so and you'll be fine. dreads take time. stopping and starting again is taking a step back. best take a step forward and learn to not worry too much, they'll sort themselves! do you know what brand of wax was used? some disolves really easily. some doesn't
Thanks guys for all the replies. It was Knotty boy wax i used. I think i may deep clean them and as they loosen just brush them out and start over fresh. Although i feel it may not be needed to brush them out completely, i feel it may be for the best so i can also get rid of all the sectioning lines on my head also. Soaring Eagle, my hair is as i said mid back length, it is also very curly, how long do you think it will tke to begin dreading up on its own? Also is there any previous post you guys would reccomend reading for information on doing it all natural? Many thanks again
your hair sounds like it would begin dreading in just weeks at a giuess, how long till theyre tight mature dreads though is anyones guess when u wash it and comb it normaly (if u dont also vccondition heavily) how much does it hutrt getting knots out? if u left the knots in, how long would u guess till the knots were knotty enough to hold together in sections? once the process gets started, it tends to accfelerrtate once they are well formed the tightening quicklens its just a matter of how long it will take till the knots pull in enouigh to form dreads id suspect the initial dreadlings might show up in a few weeks or so.. they wont be dreads as u know dreads yet, but areas of hair that are definately attracting eachother..clumping up pull 1 from another into sections.. the sections will knot more andfd tighten.. as soon as they resemble dreads the progress will be more aparent week buy week but keep ij n mind real progress takes months not weeks
Ok im trying to comb them out right now. I soaked the hair, scrubbed it with knotty boy removal shampoo and got all the wax out, then rinsed in off, and applied conditioner. The front ones came out ok, but were very knotted, but all of the back ones seem to have went into this crazy loop thing at the bottom of the dread, like as if half of the hair has tied on itself, these are really difficult to get out, what has happened and how do i get them out? i cant even see where the end of the hair is
Not sue how there matts formed, i think the knots from backcombing from the top and bottom moved together, they were completely solid. It took my mate seven hours to brush them out. I lost alot of hair in the process, alot was ripped out. My hair looks ok now, lost some original length and thickness( lucky i had really thick hair to begin with) The hair itself is in fne condition, just alot was broken off or ripped out. Im gonna let my hair recover and repair a bit, and regian some thickness before i even think about going natural. Anybody have any suggestions on the best course of action to get it back to normal again? I know it will take time, but what steps can i take now?
