Using Aloe on Dreads

Bonjour.

Never really used aloe before, ie the gunk straight from a leaf. I bought an aloe plant a few months back and used it on my skin once but haven't used it since.

Think I need to start using it on my locks.. they're dry and prickly and spiky, and I can pull the ends off of some of the thinner ones (have done it this lots, have quite the collection of unattached dread ends).

Do I literally cut the leaf and smear gunk onto dreads, and palm roll it in?
Or do I cut the gunk out and blend it into a gel, and then apply it?

Any words of wisdom appreciated!

 

Your hair is so dry that the tips are flaking off? I've never seen/heard of that. What are you washing them with to cause them to become so dry? Bronners?

I'd think twice about my soap before using aloe. Not that there's anything wrong with aloe, in Norway it seems to be a cure-all for most things. I doubt it will cause your hair any extra damage, but also I'm not sure how much good it will do in the long term and it'll probably make them sticky while it's in.

 

i used to bleach my hair. a lot. the dread ends (which were backcombed) are all sorts of fucked. repeated bleaching, dying, lightning, dying, being dipped in paint, and the initial backcombing, not to mention split ends.. the tips of my dreads tend to be bulbous and heavier than the dread length. i get weak points, usually where my dreads become unknotted, before they knot up again and make loops and shit. sometimes these unknotted weak parts kinda break. im known for pulling my hair (literally) when im stressed, and this is has resulted in me pulling off 3-4 inches of dread. i have pics.

the new growth that hasnt been bleached, backbombed or generally fucked with is fine. strong and knotty. i have been thinking about cutting a few tips off but theyre the parts with character! im also congoing a lot of dreads, but this only really affects the new growth

i used lush hard shampoo bars. some shit with nettles in atm. though i have been known to use anything from water, shower gel, bicarb & vinegar, soap..

 

i think i just want a way to make my dreads softer and less prickly. they feel like coarse wool

 

Ah cool, I see. Well give the aloe a go, you can always stop if it isn't helping and it should wash out without too much fuss. I'm afraid I'm not very versed in treating bleach damaged hair but I would think that there was some sort of special soap to help it out, but that probably has a strong conditioner in it...hmmm.

If there's something without a conditioner then that would be my go-to. You can get away with using most things on dreads, residue-free or not, as long as they're used in moderation and rinsed properly. I use Head+Shoulders at the moment because I was getting some dandruff. I can get away with using it because I only use a small amount on my scalp and then I rinse thoroughly. I know from experience that if I use it too much and too often then I'll get some residue build-up pretty soon.

As I said, I don't know much about bleached hair, but I do know about the annoying back-combed hair being different from the new growth. Mine were started as backcombed and I had all sorts of problems with the initial dreads. So I've cut all the original dreads back slowly, so now it's all just new growth. Much softer, bend-ier and they don't retain water as bad - so dry quicker. It's not nice to have to cut length, especially original length that has character, but in my case the benefits outweighed the sentimental value and the length grew back before I knew it.

 

My bleached tips were as hard as rocks, I cut them off eventually, Much nicer and less heavy. Certainly aids drying out. I also used conditioner a lot, no noticable increase of loosies.

I'd first try conditioning the tips, see if that helps, but apart from that, there ain't nowt you can do cept chop a couple of inches off Tells ya what though, it is worth it

 

hmmm. may be a time to get scissor happy. i do sometimes use conditioner, just for the shit of it, but it doesnt really do anything. cant use head & shoulders as im allllllllergic.

 

Ah the head and shoulders bit was just my example that you can use 'normal' products on dreads as long as you're using it in moderation.

 

What you cooooould do, is get some sexy Hello Hydration Herbal Esseccncenscecsss (super duper bean approved), put it on the ends of your dreads (a good blob per tip) and wrap in a plastic bag or something, leave it in for a few hours (if you have an afternoon free) and wash off... that might work

 

i haz aloe'd my dreads. and my bedroom. and my arms. the stuff is gross! but anyway, it is done. i shall wash and aloe them again in the week and then report back next weekend :2thumbsup:

 

also. i have used intense conditioners and hair masks before on my dread ends. never did much. maybe i need to sand paper them smooth?

 

It's not gross, it's like a cool alien slime, if enough of it masses together it will be able to absorb people and take over the.... ok yeah, it's gross.

 

Work your way from 200 grit and up. Finish off with some 8000 micromesh and buff to a polished sheen.

 

i'd say stop bleaching/dyeing them with chemically stuff. henna would be good, it gives an amazing natural colour and makes your hair so so healthy. it's a fucking chore to do, i used to henna my dreads and it's messy, time consuming and A LOT of rinsing needed, but it's all worth it.

 

yeah, ive decided to stop bleaching my hair, and im not going to bleach or dye my new growth. i recently dyed the ends, but that was already light from bleaching etc.

 

I use 100% organic aloe vera juice with no additives (other than a bit of citric acid as a preservative, which helps dread as well) I just dip my dreadies in it and give them some good palm rolling as they dry.

 

OK. I aloe'd once, soon after the first post. I literally cut a leaf off the plant and used the inner gunk. I used a whole leaf over my head, on all dreads. It stank. Gross. I washed my hair two or three days later, but didn't aloe again - my plant is only small, so I would've used all the leaves before it had chance to grow more! I haven't aloe'd since.

I didn't feel much difference after the one aloe session, but I don't think one quick gunking session is anywhere near enough. Maybe when I have another plant, or more leaves to cut, I shall try again and try and get into a routine with it, maybe once a week after washing or something.

One of the things that also put me off the aloe was the smell of it, and the slimey texture. Icky icky icky! I'm such a girl.

If anyone else has any experience of aloe as a end-softener, do let me know!

 

I've used bits of aloe in the past as a gel for crazy frizz days, but I didn't notice it was major conditioning. Shea Butter is pretty impressive tho for the ends.

 

I use to use jojoba oil once and awhile in my hair when it was normal.. maybe try warming some of that up and putting it in?

 

I'm also getting lots of hair breakage at the ends - lots of little bits just break off. When I've washed my hair, I'm generally covered in little annoying bits and they're annoying.