How to Dread your hair
Instructions for putting dreads in
Read on for our instructions on how to dread your hair. It will tell you how with just a bit of effort you can get a great looking and really different hairstyle, with new dreads that are well on their way to becoming mature dreads that are in great shape. However, this can take a bit of time, so be patient, and remember, following our instructions and using the right products will mean your dreads will be in better shape, and develop more quickly than if you just let them form naturally. Also read our article on maintaining dreadlocks for important information on immediate after-care once you’ve put the dreadlocks in, and for months and years following.
What you’ll need before you start
· At least 7.5cm (3 inch) long hair
· Around 4-8 hours free to put the dreads in
· Organise a friend or two to help you – it will be much quicker and easier, as it’s quite tricky to put dreads in yourself.
· A dread shampoo, as you need really clean hair with no residues left in it, which is what a dread shampoo is designed to achieve.
· Hair bands for sectioning the hair
· Hair clips to keep hair out of the way when it’s not needed.
· Dreadlock comb, like DreadheadHQ make, which has strong narrow teeth, usually metal or a strong plastic. Normal combs will usually break before you’ve finished putting the dreads in.
· Dread wax which will help to fuse the dreads.
· Distractions for the big day, such as movies and music.
Shampoo hair
As a first step you’ll need to wash your hair well to get all dirt, oil and residue out with a dread soap or shampoo – Knotty Boy and DreadHeadHQ both make dread shampoos. These products remove all the residue and oil from your hair, which is crucial for your hair to form into dreadlocks, and you can continue to use them to keep your scalp healthy without hurting the locking up process in the dreads.
No conditioner should be used as the aim is to get your hair as dry and frizzy as you can so as to encourage dreads to form. A good technique for very straight hair is to plait or braid hair after shampooing while it’s damp and leave it to dry. Alternatively, you could use a crimping iron will also help get hair frizzy.
When hair is dry, brush it out so you get it as frizzy, and with as much volume as you can.
Sectioning
Now it’s time to section the hair into what will become the individual dreads. Doing this will mean you end up with more consistent and better looking dreads. Use a comb, like your dreading comb or even a tail comb to create the sections aiming for sections that are about the size of your index finger, but in line with your hair’s thickness and the size of all the other sections you’ve made. If you’ve got short hair, your sections should be thinner.
It will be easier to section from the base of the head and work upwards. This is where the hair clips will come in handy to hold hair out of the way. On the top of the head, a non-grid pattern will give a more pleasing effect, with no really obvious straight line parts showing. So stagger the sections around the head, making sure not to leave any gaps and aiming for consistency in the sections overall.
Backcombing
You’re now at the crucial stage of backcombing the sections which will see them formed into dreadlocks. Before beginning, you may like to use a dreading accelerator, such as from DreadheadHQ, which can help the hair to form into dreads more quickly.
Take the rubber band from the section you want to backcomb and hold the section lightly in your hand, and with the other hand start combing the section from the root in the direction of the head with the dread comb. Use very small strokes all the way down the section, and underneath as well in order to backcomb evenly. To get the hair really well tangled, backcomb the section twice. If any loops form while your backcombing, pull the hair apart and start backcombing it again.
You should try and get the hair thoroughly backcombed at the root, as the hair will become looser at the scalp as it grows, and you want to encourage it to become part of the dread. If the section is well backcombed, hairs that fall from your head naturally everyday will also get pulled into the dread, which helps the dread to stay nicely locked up. Once it’s backcombed, the section will normally be a fair bit shorter than the untouched hair.
Backcombing can be uncomfortable and painful on your scalp, so movies, books and music can help keep your mind off it. Also keep in mind how cool and different your finished dreads will look!
After backcombing the section, twist it so it looks more like a dreadlock, and now your ready to wax.
Blunted ends
If you’d like dreads with blunt ends, make sure the end of the dread is thoroughly backcombed, and before you wax, then push the ends around in the palm of your end to get it to tangle up better.
Waxing
Use a dread wax like those that Knotty Boy and DreadheadHQ make to apply to the backcombed section. Remove the hard wax from the container with a spoon or tail comb, once you work the wax in your hands it will become a lot more malleable. Remove only a very small amount of wax at first, a pea-sized amount, and start applying it to the section of hair at the root. Work it in well so it gets into the middle of the hair, and make sure you apply it evenly around the section. You only want to use so much wax so the section will stick together and not that it’s totally covered in wax so it doesn’t condition the hair.
It’s possible to do some more backcombing after the wax is in, but it’s a lot harder so ensure it’s backcombed well beforehand. Anytime you put wax in your dreads a hair dryer can really help to melt the wax right into the whole section of the hair which will really assist the locking up process in the dread.
Palm roll
The next step is to roll the dread in the palms of your hands to ensure further locking up in the hair. Palm rolling is crucial not only in creating dreads but in keeping your dreads looking good. Twist the hair again and strongly palm roll the section from root to tip in the palms of your hands.
Now is the time to also get any stray hairs coming off the section and pull them apart so the strands get pulled up into the dread. Any broken off strands will help the dread to form, and helps to keep it together.
You’ve finished your first dread! Repeat the steps for all the other sections of hair to finish putting the dreads in, which will then be a long way to becoming fully mature and healthy dreads. Look after them – make sure you read the article on maintaining dreadlocks - and enjoy your new locks.