Dreadlocks.org

There are two basic ways to remove dreadlocks – and yes, there are ways to do it without cutting your hair, contrary to popular belief.

Myths:

* The only way to remove dreads is to shave your head, or cut them off very close to the scalp.

* If you don’t shave your head, removing dreadlocks is painful and damaging to the scalp and hair.

Fact:

* It is possible to have dreads, and then remove them no matter how long you may have had them.
Here are the 2 basic methods.

1. Shave or cut dreads

By far the easiest method of dreadlock removal if you don’t wish to save any of your hair.

Materials:

* scissors and/or clippers

Duration:

* less than an hour

Directions:

Whether you want to shave close or cut leaving an inch or so of hair is entirely up to you.

1. Begin by using scissors to cut the dreads off one at a time near the root where the hair is less tangled, and then shaving clean with clippers if you so desire.

(You can also leave 4-6 inches and pick out that amount of hair with a lot of conditioner and a strong metal comb if you are willing to put in a little more work in order to keep some hair. For picking instructions – see below).

2. Finish by washing your scalp and remaining hair thoroughly.

2. Picking out dreadlocks

Extremely time consuming but very successful if you are willing to put the time in.

Materials:

* strong comb (preferably metal)
* high quality de-greasing shampoo
* high quality verrrry slippery conditioner

Note* We recommend the Knotty Boy removal kit, for removing dreadlocks. it has both, they also have metal combs for a good price. It is possible that you will run out of conditioner if you have really long hair or a lot of hair, so you can supplement this with another quality conditioner to finish the job.

Duration:

* up to 15 hours total, depending on your locks. We are serious about this. Typically 4-8 hours but we have heard of it taking 2 days!

Directions:

1. Lay in a bath and soak your dreads completely for at least 10 minutes.

2. Wash dreadlocks thoroughly with shampoo, and with water as hot as you can safely stand it. This will help melt the wax or whatever greasiness has built up over the years. Do this by working small amounts of shampoo into each section of each dreadlock to get the soap into the middle as much as possible.

3. Rinse

4. Work conditioner into each dreadlock and begin to GENTLY pick each dread out carefully with a metal comb, beginning from the bottom and working your way up to the scalp. This will take a LONG time – but be patient – you will get your hair back.

5. Once you have picked out all of your dreads, condition all of your hair again with a lot of conditioner and allow it to sit in your hair for 5 minutes. This will help repair some of the damage caused by picking.

6. Go to a salon and get yerself a nice new hairstyle!

Q. Can I bleach or dye my dreads, and should I do it before or after I lock up?

A. You can bleach or dye before or after you dread your hair, it don’t matter.

Before is better, if possible, cuz it will be easier to do without your hair all locked up. Coloring before will also help to fry the hair, which will help the dreading process. It’s not difficult to dye or bleach once your dreads are in, though, just proceed as you would with

Read More >>

Q. Do you happen to know anything about dread breakage? I’ve been bleaching my dreadies for some time now, so using a good dread wax once a week seems to condition them well. But I’ve noticed that they still are often dry…and I’ve heard stories of dreads breaking off. Should I be using oil as well?

A. Hmm… yeah, warm oil probably wouldn’t hurt if you’re really concerned about it. Try jojoba oil from the health food store. But dreads are typically quite dry anyway – maybe next time you see someone with healthy-looking dreads, ask if you can feel them to compare texture, etc. to try and determine whether or not you should be concerned about their condition.

Q. I’ve got really curly hair, and my dreads started really fast, but my dreads tangle up with each other and get out of control. What’s the best way to keep them tamed?

A. You will notice after your dreads have been really nice and formed for a good year or so, that some of your dreads are suddenly starting to grow together into weird branching jumbo-dreads. If they are attaching themselves to other dreads, like three growing into one big one, you can either rip or cut them apart. Other than that, just make an effort to separate them from each other every day, like comb them with your fingers, etc., esp. underneath your hair, close to your neck.

Q. I just got dreads a few days ago. I always thought dreads were dry, but mine are moist with dread wax and probably greasy hair. Does it stay like this, or do they become dry? And my dreads aren’t sticking together too well, they kinda look like twists – will they become better? Is there anything I can do to help them?

A. First of all, did you get them done at a salon or did you do them yourself? Cuz the techniques can vary – some salons do dreads by twisting (not dreads at all, they rarely lock that way for anyone with hair other than afro-american) and some do the backcombing method. If all they are twists, you may need to do them over again and backcomb them properly with a friend, because they will not dread for a very long time in twists.

Make sure the wax you are using is NOT petroleum-based or containing mineral (sometimes called ‘white’) oils or parafin waxes. These waxes are far too slippery and wet to lock most hair types.

If you are using a good all-natural dread wax in your new dreads, you will still feel the product in there for the first few days, and you won’t need to rewax them unless you want to. Give them a few days to dry out a bit, keep them back from your face, etc., and then rewax if they are coming apart. Just use your good judgment, if you need to get some loose pieces in, use wax. If not, then don’t.

And when you rewax, it helps to use a comb to knot them up again, cuz it’s by knotting them up that they become locks, right?

If you find that the twists are just coming undone, get a friend and start them yourself from the beginning – unfortunately you may need to do the whole process again, just to try and nap your hair up a bit so it starts dreading. Again, it does take much patience and time and weeks of crappy-looking hair until it starts to lock, so if you want to leave it and just see what happens, you can do that too.

But seriously, don’t give up because they WILL happen, promise. I know it’s frustrating; on the really bad days just wear a hat or pull them back and don’t worry about it. Love them for what they are and they’ll be fine. And see if there’s anything else you could be doing from the tips here on the website, etc. Good luck, and don’t give up!

Q. I’ve been a dreadhead for nearly a month, but the problem is that my hair is really thin and no matter how much I play with, separate and add additional wax, they seem very flat and shitty. They’re really flat, especially on the scalp and have trouble holding shape in general. I just wondered if you had any advice because I would really love a cool head of dreads.

A. There could be a few things that are not helping… first of all, if you have really fine hair, sometimes if the dreads are started too thin they don’t look so hot for the first few months until they start fattening up. Perhaps they weren’t started tight enough…

But the good news is, after about 3-6 months they do start getting good dreadlocks shapes and looking like real dreads. It’s harder for some of us than others in the beginning, but have no fear, they will be awesome if you just stick it out. You can easily keep them under a bandana or tam for a while until they start smartening up, without any danger of that hindering the locking process.

Q. I have to wear a bandanna most of the day to cover my dreads for work. Is this bad or going to cause them not to work out correctly?

A. Nope, that shouldn’t hinder the locking process at all – don’t worry, it’s pretty hard to STOP dreads from happening, really, especially if you are giving them a little help getting going by backcombing and using wax, etc. Have patience, my pretty…

Read More >>

Q. Here now we have a heart-warming story about one girl’s experience with lice – so get comfy and TAKE NOTE! You do not want this to happen to you!

Read More >>

Q. I have had dreads for about two years now, but they never seem to get any longer. Is this normal and is there anything I can do to make them longer?

A. Well, the first thing that I can tell you about your dreads not growing is… dreadlocks sometimes shrink. I have a friend who’s had his dreads for over 2 years himself and his dreads are still getting tighter and shorter, a.k.a. shrinking. So I wouldn’t sweat it, this is all normal. Eventually they get as tight as they are gonna, and then you’ll notice them growing again.

Q. I cut my dreads open and found greasy crap in it!

A. If you are talking about a greasy mess, then you probably created your dreadlocks the wrong way. Either you used too much wax or gel or you have not allowed your locs to dry after washing them. The hair products are not the problem here, it is the use of them, and the care afterwards.

Despite what you may read elsewhere, all dreadlocks have some amount of hair product, skin flakes, and skin oil in them. This is simply a fact of having matted hair on your head.

There is no such thing as a “residue free soap”. However there are certainly soaps that leave less residue – this is why it is important to use all natural ingredients in your hair products. Wash as often as you can, and DRY YOUR DREADLOCKS. Use a hair dryer!

If your dreads are too greasy to fix, then pick them out and start over. Use a quality, all natural gel or wax to create your dreads, then wash often and DRY YOUR DREADLOCKS.

If your hair is just a little greasy, soak them in hot water to help loosen anything out of them, then wash them deeply with a NATURAL soap. Then dry them out as best you can – use a hair dryer, this is very imrportant. Other than that -  don’t worry about it too much – that is just the way it is when you have dreadlocks.

Read More >>

Q. Hey, I have a problem. I rinse my dreads everyday, and use either shampoo or bar soap like 2 times a week. I have had dreads since February and my dreads smell pretty bad. They smell like mold, or when clothes or towels are wet and old. How do I get rid of this smell?

A. Well, I think I know what the problem is… You’re wetting/washing them too much and they are always staying wet inside! If you wash them every day, they are like sponges, and they never get to fully dry out before they get wet all over again, and they start to smell. I would wash them

Read More >>