Any Dreadlock people??

[Amber_Maiden]

Anyone on here have dreads? I'm considering getting them... But I have some questions first....

1. How often do you wash them, and how often do you maintain them (ie. make sure that stray hairs are being dreaded into other dreads, etc)?
2. Do you have natural dreads or formed dreads?
3. How do you clean them?
4. How long have you had them?
5. Do you regret choosing to have them?
6. Have you experienced people being mean to you because of them?
7. Have anything else at all to add about your experience with dreads?

Thank you!! I really appreciate it!

[pennyroyal]

There are actually several dreadlock threads floating around on here. I have had them & sometimes want them again but i have been holding back. If you choose to go for it please do not use wax! It is actually very harmful to hair.

Washing dreads is pretty much the same as with normal hair-just no conditioner & it's better to use non-residue shampoo. But you can wash as often as needed. Once they mature it takes a lot longer for them to dry tho so be careful of mold.

People will judge you-trust me. Too many people think dreads=dirty hair or bugs. Not true but be sure you do not care what anyone thinks before taking the plunge.

Dreads take lots of patience as they will just look messy for at least a year but after that they will only get better & better. You can do some maintenance (ie, crotcheting...) on them after they mature but it can be damaging to your hair.

Hope that helps & let us kno if you do it!

I adore them & like i said, i am always considering having them again. :)

[Cassie 123]

I have had them, and loved them briefly, but I wasn't able to keep them looking good, so I ended up cutting them off. Tried again a few years later (formed in a salon this time, using wax) - again, wore them for a few months and then cut them off. The wax is disgusting; it made the skin on my face feel greasy all the time.

Once (with my first, homemade dreads) I was walking across an intersection and a person in one of the stopped cars shouted out, "When you're black you can't go back!". That made me feel pretty uncomfortable.

[truepeacenik]

I had a cluster for a couple years, so they were barely mature when I had to cut and take them out.

i never used wax. I'm anti wax, and wax can start arguments like vegans at a Texas barbecue. Fun!

Had my job situation been different, I might yet have them.
I was bummed at the amount of shrinkage (I started then by sectioning and backcombing, but then I let them be after the tops locked enough to stay).

I used Nature's gate herbal shampoo.

I was in Colorado, so a good towel squeeze and some batting dried them.

for giggles, i cut one open as I was unlocking them (not very productive but I felt like i was trying to salvage them). No critters, but lots of lint, so if you sleep on flannel, you might become one with your sheets!