about a month since backcombing and...

all the knots have have fallen out =\ I've heard a lot of people say a lot of the knots would fall out but im pretty depressed to find almost alllll of it has. If I feel around I just have 2 small clumps.

What a waste of time and pain backcombing. I guess all that's left to do is let it go and see what happens.

Sorry I guess there wasn't much point to this post other then to vent. Did anyone else backcomb only to find it pointless?

I tossed my combs, kept from running my fingers through my hair and used dr bronners so I don't think im doing anything to help my hair in slipping out of knots.

Ohhh well I guess.. Im not buying a brush so I'll see what happens in the months to come.

 

mmmmm it happens dude.
I backcombed about 4 of my dreads in which 2 fell out completaly. Depends on hair texture and what not.
Give the natural route a crack though.. if not the twist and rip method.. many people have had sucess with this method.

Patience child

 

I say neglect, makes the gnarliest lookin locks anyway, dunno if you ever got to see Pat__s locks, but his were the sausage in the sizzle brizzle, and they were neglect

 

Maybe wax really is the key to helping backcombed dreads... lol!

 

Actually it did the trick for me for the first month, then i found out what it really is, and does to your dreads in the long term, and yer, i stopped straight way

 

It turned mine pink!

 

Same thing happened to mine. I think if you have really straight hair (I do) then the backcombing is going to fall out unless you continue backcombing, use wax or elastics at the bottom. After most of mine fell out, I T&R'd them and they stayed in much better.

Don't be sad. You are still on your way to dreads.

 

HETHEN! lol yeah wax held mine in when they started falling out. It's not evil as I believe it can be washed out!

 

I can see how wax would have held them together but im not wanting to use any. I used to pomp my hair with waxes and grease and it would be impossible to wash out. I would have to stat washing with dish soap a week in advance if I was going to get a hiar cut. I can't imagine washing it out of locked hair.

Im done trying to make my hair dread and now am just gonna see if my hair likes it better knotting on its own. My hair gets really oily fast so im thinking that helped it slip the backcombing knots.

 

Were you washing regularly? Clean hair dreads better than oily hair.

 

Yea I was washing every other day or every 3rd day and kinda rinsing inbetween that if I did anything that made me sweaty lol. I do a lot of hiking, bike riding, gym and stuff so by the end of the day my hair would be pretty sweaty/oily.

 

I also ithink maybe it's best not to wash for maybe the first month. Just to get things started?

 

My backcombing all fell out after a month too. I just carried on doing as I did, washing once a week and I have gorgeous locks now. I'd say it was normal as my first TnR job fell out too. If they're still not forming in another 3-5 months maybe start another route of dreading. You should be washing about once a week in the first few months as clean hair = better dreading.

 

unless you're really backcombing the shit out of them, it doesn't do much except section them off. I hardly backcombed at all and after a week there was really no noticeable difference at all. Just leave them be, mine are doing fine. I can't believe I'm coming up on a year...

 

I used TnR and they looked awesome for the first week. They looked good but the weren't locked at all.

Then they started falling out but they stayed sectioned perfectly. I thought "either I can keep TnRing or I can let them be". So I've let them be and it's been just over a month and now I'm seeing real progress.

It's fuckin awesome. Sure they looked cool before but that was just because they are new. Now they're starting to join with others, and lock on their own. It's so fucking awesome.

I was in the same position you were in basically. Just leave them and trust me they'll look cool.

 

Yea im just leave my hair alone and hope for the best. Here's too the looooooong road ahead lol

 

Ahoy … A lot of the time it’s not the backcombing or T&R or what ever accelerating method that is used that is the problem, it’s actually the sectioning. Often people stop combing and / or washing their hair with shampoos that have detangling agents for a week or two and then dive into having their hair sectioned into artificial locks … and then the heavy work starts … and the abuse to one’s hair … backcombing, overusing crochet hooks, hair bombarded with wax, endless palm rolling, etc.

I think what’s happened to you is what happens to many other people; your hair’s natural locks have rejected the artificial sectioning. But you are in an awesome position to let your hair section itself … it’s the best first step to having locks … all the maintenance and neatness issues are actually really the cherry on the cake.

Here’s a quick rundown of an approach that some Rasta taught me a while back for locks through washing your hair:

The obvious is get a decent shampoo … that’s pretty much standard in all approaches. I would recommend hemp shampoo if you can get your hands on any. If you don’t have a decent snug fitting tam or beanie, get one. Also get a pair of the thinnest stockings you can find … cut the legs off, leaving a few inches and tie a knot in each of the remainder of each leg, creating a stocking ‘cap’.

Wash your hair every second day at least. As was mentioned, hair mats quicker the cleaner it is. Start by putting the stocking ‘cap’ on your head, covering all the hair … rinse you hair. Remover the stocking ‘cap’ and scrub your hair in a circular motion using the palms of your hand ‘only’. Use the right hand for the right side and the left hand for the left side. Some people reckon all your hair should be rubbed in a clock wise motion, due to clockwise hair follicle growth … that’s up to you, I always have gone clockwise on the right, anti-clockwise on the left.

When you are scrubbing your hair, don’t be scared to give a bit of pressure, but don’t go overboard. NB. When scrubbing hold your head upside down …it works best in the long run if your hair faces away from your head. Now put the stocking ‘cap’ back on and rinse your hair. The trick here is also to keep your hair upside down … you want the water to run through your hair.

When you are finished … dab your hair with a towel and air dry … NB, no rubbing with a towel and no hair dryers … it will undo what you are doing when washing. When your hair is dry, where a tam or beanie as often as possible and if you are outdoors and the wind is blowing definitely wear a tam or beanie … this can get tricky depending on you line of work too … but wear it as much as possible.

Whenever you sleep always where either a tam or beanie, or a stocking ‘cap’ … I found the best is to alternate.

After a few months, your hair’s natural locks will have started to section, most importantly, the tips of your locks will have started to form knots and this is the most important part … each person looses between 60 to 100 hairs a day and when your locks knot at the tip, the hairs that you loose each day start to gather from the tip to the base of you lock. The hair that is still in your head also matts, but it serves more as a shaft for the hairs that fall out to gather in. The rinsing process, upside down, is so that the water compresses the hairs that have fallen out from the tip to the base.

If after a few months the knots haven formed in the end of your locks and you are getting impatient, then help it along by give the ends a circular rub … or go for backcombing, T&R, etc. Personally, I wouldn’t mess with backcombing, T&R, etc. , but hey it’s up to you … the most important thing is that after a few months your hair’s natural locks will have sectioned themselves, very visibly.

If you have the patience after a few months just carry on washing this way, month after month, the locks will matt, inevitably. If you carry on this way, then this will be the way to was your locks even once they have matured … you won’t have to wash them as often as during the beginning phase, but hey, clean hair is also cool.

The first time I used this method, I took a real back seat approach and let my hair do it’s thing … but the when the tips knotted, they formed really big knots and I never intervened to prevent excess clumping … not saying it’s bad, but check it out if you do use this method, you may want to step in a do some finger rubbing to prevent the knots from forming too far down your locks.

One Love

 

DonBK for mod

 

Thank You DonBK......I Raise My Glass, And Toast Your Post....:cheers2:.



Cheers Glen.

 

Thanks DonBK! Im gonna try that method out!