Forums > Social Discussion > Dying dreadlocks

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
Hey there Ade! Yay for dreadheads!

I've had my dreadies for a few years now. I've dyed them a few times since. The dye out of a box. It worked fine for me. My advice is to buy more than you think you will need. As you know very well, dreads are like ropey sponges. My first time dyeing dreads I bought only one box since my hair wasn't dramatically long. My dreads just drank it right up. Didn't even wet em! (Let alone dye em) Takes me 2 or 3 boxes to do it.

Hope I helped!
Have a dreadful day!

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
I thought you meant they were falling out or something....let your grey run free my friend! How many folks do you know with grey dreads....you'll lead the fasion stakes for sure!

Let's relight this forum

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
custom bug good points!!

and thanks Vague Rant Shawnie for the tips. My dreads are down to my bum, so I think it would take a lot of dye.

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
That'a awesome! How long have you had em?

My estimation box-wise is like... 4, 5 maybe 6
So yes. That indeed would be a lot of dye!

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
VRS - I've had this set of dreads for 14 years.

The last set I had for 2 before cutting them off and starting again. So I've been dreaded for quite some time.

Would you believe I had a mohawk before that

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
14 years! So great. Mine I've had for about 2 and a half years, but I'm still young, lots of time for dread growing.

One question though. How do you swim without drowning or shower without breaking your neck?? dreads that long must weigh a tonne when they're wet! Yikes!

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
you should see me swimming

dreads tied up in a ball generally for swimming - have you ever tried to find a swimming cap for all that hair

It's even worse in the surf - I look soooo funny

but its the drying that takes some time either from swimming or washing my hair.

(eep - mods , maybe this needs to go to social chat....?)

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
Meh. I still need to find a group of friends that will dread my hair. (Lightning...? Kyrian if you're still around on HoP!?) But I want to dye one dread blue and another green. The rest black. Saw a guy with one dread dyed blonde in London at the Clapham Common poi meeting.

Man I want dreads *sigh*
Kinudin

Posted: 14th Apr 2004
at Kinudin

why not let them dread naturally? It's a bit of work when they are first starting up, but I really like that natural dread look....

Posted: 15th Apr 2004
Going through school with frizzy hair = bad. This is like fro-ish curly frizzy hair. Definently not attractive lolz

Posted: 16th Apr 2004
yeah, does anyone know how really curly hair dreads? are they just really fat?i want dreads, and i also want a nose ring, but neither are going to happen anytime soon

if you think that our kiss was all in the lips, come on you got it all wrong man, and if you think that our dance was all in the hips then, oh well, do the twist -The White Stripes

Posted: 16th Apr 2004
Curly hair should dread up quite nicely! Look how nice the dreads of people of African decent are. Cause their hair's so curly. It's the stick strait, fine (and usually blond) hiar that's hard to dread.

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
Yeah back in the days when I had long hair it was like dolly curls all over and sometimes just used to dread itself at the back! Curly/frizzy hair is deffo the best for dreads.
If you want a certain size it could be worth going to a pro to dread it and get it going for you?

Let's relight this forum

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
I too want to get dreads! But I've been asking around, and been going in circles, one person telling me this, and another telling me the opposite! I can't let it happen naturally, because there is no way in hell I'm not brushing my hair for who-knows how long, or something! I've talked to a friend of mine who's a hairdresser, and has done dreads before, and she told me a bunch of things I'm not liking exactly.... Like them taking a year to get proper?

Someday, someday.....

~ Bobo

wie weit, wie weit noch?
fragst mich, wo wir gewesen sind...
du fehlst hier

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
when i was a kid my hair started to dread naurally because i would never brush it, and i wore it the same way every day, but then my mom realized what was happening and brushed it out(ouch!!!!!!!!) I sat there and watched an entire movie (and yelped) while she did it, i know someone else who had dreads and tried to brush them out(not smart) she lost half her hair and ended up cutting it all off anyway, has any one seen the photography book Dreads?, it really cool, all theses different people from all over the world with all these amazing dreads, luv ....

if you think that our kiss was all in the lips, come on you got it all wrong man, and if you think that our dance was all in the hips then, oh well, do the twist -The White Stripes

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
Okay, I dont have dreads, dont really know anyone with them... so a few questions from an ignorant wretch

1. how do you make dreads?
2. how do you wash them?
3. how do you dry them so that they are dry throughout and dont get all mildewy nasty?

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
www.dreadheadhq.com can answer all those questions. I have them. Only had them for a few months, but they've been quite a bit of work to keep looking nice but my hair is terriable for dreadlocking anyway.

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
another site that'll have answers to all yer questions is

www.knottyboy.com

Cheers

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
yep dreads do take a while to 'look proper' and you can usually see the difference between dreds that are like 1 yo or 2 or 4 etc. I've had mine for about 5 years and they look different every year.

One thing I think its important to know is that its very unlikely you will get neat dreads by just leaving your hair to knot up naturally. Very very unlikely. Most likely you will get a big knotty doormat of a hairstyle.

Dreads are usually a LOT of work for the first few years - but it depends on how you sort em out. Personally we were (Katinca and I) putting in a few hours a week to maintenance for the first 2 years or so - and then about an hour a week from then on. cept the last year or so - I've been quite slack , and now my dreads are fluffy - but they used to be very orderly.

The way I dry them is to squeegy them out by twisting them like a big rope. Then I wrap em in a dry towel which absorbs more water. Its a bitch tho, cuz I dont think there is any way that you can dry them super quick. As for the mildew - you can tell mildewy dreds cuz they stink. Not all dreds stink and so I know that therefore not all dreds are mildewy The whole dreads are rotted hair encased with dead hair is an misconception you will have to live with all the time if you get dreads. Sure its possible that some really phat dreads are like that, but not all dreads.

Also - the phatter they are the longer they take to dry.

Have fun,

Josh

--
Help! My personality got stuck in this signature machine and I cant get it out!

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
Shawnie, I've just spent.. oh, four hours on the knottyboy site, and now I want to do NOTHING but hop on a bus to the black market, gettin me some wax, and dread up!!! Talking to Taniwha on chat right now, and practically spamming him with questions! I want to do this *so* bad now!!

Just need money, and someone to do them for me

(don't need to tell the parents... do I??? *makes puppy eyes*)

~ Bobo

wie weit, wie weit noch?
fragst mich, wo wir gewesen sind...
du fehlst hier

Posted: 17th Apr 2004

Quote:

---

Most likely you will get a big knotty doormat of a hairstyle.

---

Should I be taking offence of that hehe...yeah I let mine dread on there own...(with gentle persuasion ) they could deffinately use some maintenance though... very messy round the roots as they're starting to grow out a little... If you want neat straight even dreads, go to the hair dresser, or profetional dreadlock maker

...But my hair dreaded on it's own quite nicely... They are knobley and twisty and all different lengths and sizes, but I quite like the organic look of them. I love getting all creative with them and putting wraps and beads, bells, rings and shells and stuff in them...

As for dying them... I've only dyed a few of mine before... using henna (an ochre based dye that comes in a variety of reds and browns... and possibley black?) which my dreads just soked up... loved it! and coz my hair is already red, the henna (which was also red) just brought out this amazing rich vibrant colour...the dreads took the dye really well...but maybe that could have something to do with my natural hair colouring...

Washing and drying dreads takes a while (specially when they're down to your bum ) and yes... sometimes it feels like my neck is about to break when I'm washing them in the shower and ocassionally I'll freak myself out with my own dreadlock brushing across me while swimming in the ocean
...I use the ring them out like rope and towl method too And also when I want to speed up the drying pocess, i get out the hair dryer .... quite a good invention really

Yay for dreads!!!

*:...one day all the fairy fridges will be aligned and my pixie world will be complete...:*

Posted: 17th Apr 2004
*rushes in super very excitedly...*

well, I ordered my dready making materials today [muchos gracias to knottyboy.com] and am due to be dreaded in about a months time....

super happy

Most of the stuff I've read seem to say that dreads are best dried by a hair dryer, the wringing out method... It seems to be leaving them wet that makes them smell all weirdy?

anyways, wish me luck everyone

Flynty

Currently on the right side up of the world.

Posted: 18th Apr 2004

Quote:

---

Should I be taking offence of that hehe.

---

sounds like you have beautiful organic dreads, not a door mat! although I guess even a doormat might be beautiful to some?

Josh

--
Help! My personality got stuck in this signature machine and I cant get it out!

Posted: 18th Apr 2004
Yay for Bobo! Get the dreads! Nova Scotia really needs more dreadheads! I live in rural NS in an Acadian village and I can't go anywhere without being stared at! People have literally walked into signs at stores because they were looking at my head instead of where they were going. More than once! I recall one time a man almost drove into a building in his truck!!

You'll probably want to tell your parents. If you don't they're definitely gonna find out anyway. Mine were really cool about it.

Posted: 18th Apr 2004
Wow. Sounds like everybody who's dreaded here has high maintenance dreads. For me getting dreads was to make my hair less high maintenance. Of course my 24 dreadies aren't symetrically tubular, but hey, I didn't get dreads to look all polished and perfect. They also have slightly frayed tips from dread haircuts. (I know, it's not good for them, but I'm an athlete. Didn't want them in my way or for them to become 'ropes' for my opponents to pull on or get caught up in) I admit, they are a bit scrappy looking, but that's the way I like em. So not everybody has to put in hours of maintenace every week. Depends on what look you want.

Posted: 18th Apr 2004
Not me! Mine are knobley and twisty organic dreadies...right with ya on the low maintenance thing... I don't do anything with them ...exept pixie them up from time to time ... They are a bit scrapy looking...and not in the least bit neat and tidy, but I love them earthy and organic... sacred, sentimental and precious to me.

Josh, i know you didn't mean offence... you're a sweety

I do love the look of nice neat treated well dreads too though... I've seen some gorgeously well kept dreads...lush ...but that kinda thing is alot of work.... Just depends what look...or feeling you're going for

hehehe....sitting round with all these dread heads makes me wanna get out my threads and beads and things and have a little dready bonding play

*:...one day all the fairy fridges will be aligned and my pixie world will be complete...:*

Posted: 20th Apr 2004
I was surprised how much work the dreads took at first, pulling, ripping, separating them out. Mine are over 5 now, I've dyed them lots of times with henna. (I'm gettin wiry white hairs, now...) The little leafy bits of henna do get stuck in there (as well as sawdust, paint chips, sand, etc.) For this, we SHOP-VAC! It feels good but gives you fluffy bits... I cut 8 inches off the bottom, too.
My mom came to visit me in NZ in 2000 and offered me $600. US to cut them off. Nag, nag, nag!I told her to go home of she was so upset.
Luckily I live in a dry climate where mold is no problem- after wringing I slap them across my arm to flick the extra water out. Who has found the perfect way to compress and cover them, for fire spinning?

take the schneak-tip

Posted: 20th Apr 2004
I just wring my out for drying then wrap them in a towel for a bit. Their quite thin So I don't think mold from being wet would be a problem. Does anyone know if castor seed oil would be bad for dreads?

Posted: 21st Apr 2004
its funny that some people consider dreads a statement against vanity, but in fact they can take alot of maintenence and care and love and all that

if you think that our kiss was all in the lips, come on you got it all wrong man, and if you think that our dance was all in the hips then, oh well, do the twist -The White Stripes

Posted: 21st Apr 2004
Ooooorrgh, in the past two weeks, there have been two guys who both got dreadlocks... The only two in the school... Now I really want to get them, but don't want to, because they did, and if I did it soon, people'd think I was copying them!! Do ya see my dilema?

Oh well, going to see how much the stuff costs tonight

~ Bobo

wie weit, wie weit noch?
fragst mich, wo wir gewesen sind...
du fehlst hier