This has honestly been something that I've thought about doing for a long time. I discovered recently in my different hairstyles over the years that I look best with big hair. It just suits me better. I tried perming several months back and it pretty much fell out already. In order for it to be curly like it was, I have to use a ton of hair products. After a few days when it finally looks good, I end up washing it and we start all over again. I've been told at least 3 times in the past 2 months that I should dread my hair. Seeing as it's something that I have thought about in the past, I've been seriously considering it. But here's my delima. I have had a long history of fucking up my hair. I've bleached, dyed, highlighted, stripped the color out, recolored, bleached and multicolors, and recently permed. Not only that, but I have been growing out my hair for a long time now (my hair grows ridiculously slow) and it's finally out to a length I like and will continue to. The LAST thing I want to do is to fuck up my hair so bad that I have to cut out the dreads if and when I get sick of them. Granted, I don't know that I will. Then there's also work. I am a hard worker and I don't want to give someone a reason to cause problems because of them and/or just not hire me at all. Because I know I will be switching jobs sometime in the near future, as well as distant future. Then again I also feel like, if I really want them, and it's a place that won't accept them, then I probably won't want to work there anyways. I dunno. I need some experienced dread'ers here to give me advice. Do you think it will cause more trouble than it's worth for me? Do you think I'll regret them later?
you dont know unless you try ive also bleached, dyed, lightened, coloured, re coloured, straightened, curled, stripped, redyed my hair, pretty much non stop since i was 14, i also had two sets of dreads before this set, so my hair is probably not the best it could be in terms of health/strength/quality (but its never fallen out, so cant be that bad) depending on which method you choose to start your dreads, youll get a lot of shrinkage - think of dreads like wool, it shrinks when it gets wet/dry, which is why dreads get tighter over time. they gatta shrink before they grow. im also a hard worker - bosses dont like it when i prove them wrong with regards to my work ethic. they like to think im a layabout druggie, but im actually a hard, dedicated worker if you give them reason to think youre a tramp/druggie/lazy arse then you gatta deal with the consequences i guess. ive found ways of disguising my dreads at interviews and stuff, headbands etc, and there are ways of tidying them and reducing frizz etc. ive never really found it to be an issue (or, employers here are too polite to say its because of my hair) i think you need to think on it some more. look at pics of people with dreads, read a few timelines on here, if you see a dready go and talk to them
SHE. And the reason I asked on here is because I want some experienced opinions and tips. I've already posted elsewhere and asked other people as well.
I would like to save you time and frustration by just telling you to not do it if you are not able to commit to it...It is honestly very rewarding and comfortable.The extra fun random people asking about it once in a while in public can make you smile for the rest of the day sometimes...But it's not an instant hairstyle either. I had them up until 2 years ago and had an accident to where they had to be removed.I recently decided to get them again.The first set of locks were too crazy to hide,but locked without much frustration or time,and I didn't have any problems at work because I did my job the right way.These dreads I am patiently waiting on to lock up tighter are not a problem where I work now either,and I'm a waiter at an italian joint. 1.Be patient(time will go by faster than you know it) 2.you can't tame them 100%,so if you're a neat freak it'll be frustrating. 3.don't go overboard with crazy products. wish you luck with whatever your decision is.Thanks for a good thread for my first post here:sunny:
You're welcome. I definitely want to do it. I'm tired of the mess of dying my hair all the time, perming, all the products to keep my hair exactly the way I want it, which is honestly just big. That's all I want, but my hair is so thin that perms fall out so easily. I'm just ready for something where I won't have to fuck with it every few months and break the bank getting it dyed and permed again. And after everything I've done to it, the under side of my hair is fried and has started clumping up already and there's absolutely no fixing it. I've tried conditioning and everything and the under side of my hair is just done. I've tried different things and studied my hair in the mirror for hours on end and I really feel like it's the best thing to do with my hair and I feel like it will look totally awesome. I'm willing to do it, if work would just not throw a fit and make it hard on me. I plan on doing my best to keep them as neat and clean as I can and making my own personal handbook to take with me to interviews for future jobs in case they want to try and make it a problem.
This leads me to believe you change your hair alot, if thats true, dreads are probably not for you you will definitely have trouble with work at some stage, dreads do not conform to the presentable appearance rules most companies have, you may not have an issue with your current place but you will have trouble finding a new job, every dreadhead does This will probably be your opinion right up until your on the breadline and decide to cut to get a job, its what a lot of people here have had to do, again it's just another part of having dreads. It will cause you trouble, being more than its worth is up to the person, if you want to change your hair all the time, have perfect hair every day and no trouble with your job then dreads are not for you. If you want a hairstyle that reflects who you are as a person, lets you stand out from a crowd and make sure nobody ever forgets who you are then get dreads, there very easy to take care of as they require very little maintenance, especially after the first year. They also allow you to look in the mirror everyday and smile because you accomplished something in your life that changed how people view you, changed fundamentally peoples first impressions of what type of person you are, allows you to look societies idea of normal in the face, and tell it to go fuck itself
If you know you will be applying for new jobs in the future, depending on the job, dreading your hair might not be a good idea. Then again, That's what I figure. IMO if it's something you've always wanted, why not try it out?
