Can I Cut My Dreadlocks? Can I Wash My Dreads?

Quick question. Can I cut my dreads if they happen to be too long? If so, how would I go about doing it so they stay intact?

I would strongly suggest against cutting our dreadlocks. It's better to have them made the length you need them in the first place. So, hopefully, the dreads will be the right length. Next time, just be really specific if you know the exactly length. A lot of times people will give a range and really don't want the dreads so precise while other times people give exactly lengths.

If the dreads are several inches too long, I suppose you could cut them at the top where you would put them on the scalp. I've never done this and, again, I do not recommend this but if you absolutely feel like you must then I suppose this would be my thought on the matter. Perhaps cutting the dread at an angle be better than a blunt cut for the purposes of attaching the dread to the head after the cut. I would reseal the dread.

Sealing the dread helps to keep it from untangling or from falling apart. Our dreads are tightly backcombed and are all sealed before sent out so people don't have problems with them falling apart. In fact, our dreads tend to get tighter over time. That being said, your dreads will be new and will not have had the opportunity to tighten more, so resealing them might be helpful.

To reseal the dreads just take the end that you cut and place it in boiling water. Just the very end needs to be reboiled - perhaps an inch or so? After the resealed end of the dread has dried, I would suggest taking thread that is the same color of as the dread and wrapping the area that you cut. If you don't want to wait until the dread is dry then blow dry the end of the dread with a normal hair blow dryer.

Assuming you've cut the dread at an angle, it seems likely that you could attach the angled end to your hair directly with the thread - just tie the end of the dread onto your hair as you would if there were a loop. If the resealed dread doesn't look like it will come apart then you might not feel the need to wrap it in thread. Or, you might feel that only a quarter inch needs to be wrapped in thread to re-enforce and protect it.

Again, I do not recommend cutting our dreads (even though our dreads are probably some of the strongest dreads out there). If you do this and you ruin the dreads then this is a choice you are making for yourself and not one that we will feel an responsibility for... Hopefully, the dreads will be a workable length for you. If not, let me know how this option works out for you.

Luckily, I did send you a couple extra dreads which will give you something to experiment on first. You

could try it on one dread first. If it doesn't seem to work, just don't do it on the other dreads and then you'll still have a full set of dreads.

Another option that I don't recommend or endorse is burning the end of the dread. This will discolor the dread and turn the end dark. For your darker dreads this probably wouldn't be an issue. Although, the burnt bottom of the dread might show on the red pepper and lilac purple dreads.

Again, let me know what you try and how it ends up working for you.

What care info would you suggest for my dreads once I have them put in?

Both Sophie and I leave our dreads in for months at a time - until the hair has grown too long and so we need to take them out then put them back in again. Are you planning on taking your dreads out on a regular basis or attaching them on a more permanent basis?

If the dreads are left in your head then just shampoo them with the rest of your hair. If you use a bobby pin or the equivalent so the dreads come out at the end of the day then just wash them with your regular shampoo in the sink.

...thanks a heap! I love this business you have going. It feels more intimate and like you have the best interest of your customer in mind... champion :)

Thanks much! We love making dreads and doing our part in making the world a more beautiful and colorful place for all of us!

Best,

Christine

Crocheting Dreads vs A More Natural Approach

Hey, I was going to order your synthetic dreads.. and extend them onto my existing dreads using a crochet hook. I have about 30 fat & skinny dreads in my hair and theyre all about 2 weeks old. I dont like how short they are. I wanted to know if you have any advice on how I go about doing this? thank you!

Hi Morgan,

Thanks for contacting us! Why not just allow your dreads to be as they are. Buy synthetic dreads and attach them at the root next to your real dreads. This will allow your real dreads to go without harming the ends or look of them while also allowing you additional length with the synthetic dreads.

We've made dreads for several people with short dreads who have supplemented the length with our dreads. It seems to work very well for them.

Also, while I haven't actually seen the look in person, it seems like attaching synthetic dreads to the ends of real dreads would have a high probability of looking like one is trying to hide something... if that makes sense. Like the person doesn't want you to know the real length of their dreads so they are trying to fake it. I could be wrong. I just don't see how it would be very easy to get the synthetic hair to look like real hair on the same dreadlock. Of course, if you have blue dreads and want to add pink to the end for length that might look really cool. But matching blondes or browns might be a bit more difficult.

Real hair and synthetic dreads side-by-side seem to work fine together. In fact, I'm always surprised at how many people assume the dreads are natural. I'd love to find out how you proceed and what you found to work for best.

Either way, we would be happy to make the dreads for you. Just let us know what you need.

All the best!

Christine

Shipping Dreads to South Africa

I would like to know how many dreads I need for a full head (sharpie dreads), how to put it the dreadlocks in and what the cost will be I'm from South Africa and if you have any shop that can implant the dreads. Are all the dreads the same hair type or are the different. I have black hair.

Hi Ronelle!

I would use between 60-85 sharpie thickness dreadlocks for a full head of hair. We usually make synthetic dreadlocks but we can also make wool dreadlocks. Both can come in just about any color you can dream up. We definitely have black!

Yes, we do ship to South Africa. In fact, we have made dreads for several people in South Africa.

We only make dreadlocks. We do not put them in for people. South Africa would probably be a little out of the way even if we did put them in. ;-) But there are a lot of salons around the world that off the service. I would think that it would not be too difficult to find a salon there that would do it for you. That being said, although it takes a little time to put the dreads in

it is a relatively easy process and a friend might be able to help you out with it!

I will send two invoices. One for 60 dreads and one for 85 dreads. Let me know if there you have any other questions!

Best,

Christine

Synthetic vs Real Dreads

When I do get the synthetic dreads and attach them (I don't have natural dreads yet) I read that keeping them in longer than usual can cause your hair to start dreading on it's own, is that true?

My personal experience is that when I have left the dreads in for 4 weeks or more my hair had begun to dread naturally. That being said, I would just use a healthy amount of conditioner and the dreads would naturally unravel. I would assume that there is a way to encourage the growth of those dreads to continue. Since that has never been my goal, I have no experience or knowledge to share on it.

I'm debating on whether I want to dread my hair now and add synthetic or add the synthetic and continue the dreading after.
Well, I guess that would be a personal choice. If you've never had dreads then synthetic dreadlocks would allow you to see what having dreads is like and give you the immediate gratification of having them right away. You could then take them out and start up your own dreads. Remember, your hair will be a couple inches longer then. Then, you could always put the same synthetic dreads back in your hair!

Sorry for all these weird/dumb questions.

Not weird or dumb. Rather, they are perfect normal questions to think about when considering dreads and how you might want them to interact in your life.

I just don't want to spend a ton of time, not to mention pain in my arms, dreading my hair if it will start naturally with the synthetic.

Oh, well... then I would go with synthetic first. :-)

Attaching & Washing Synthetic Dreadlocks

Hello,

Hi Leah!

I was wondering. I used to have dreads and I was not able to get them to "lock" like they should have. I'm not sure why. I waited a while after doing them to wash it, and when I did I used a bar of organic soap to do so, no conditioner. Anyway, I was thinking about doing them again and was wondering how long I should wait before washing and then how long before adding extensions?

I think you might be on a mission to do something that is not something we do. We make synthetic dreadlocks which we attach to real human hair that is currently alive and growing out of your head.

There is no downtime, no need to wait dread your own hair. That is a completely different process. There is no need to wait for your hair to grow. And! We don't

attach dreads to your own dreads that are growing in.

If you want to grow your own dreads and they are still quite short but you want long dreads, it is possible to attach the synthetic dread at the root/scalp along side the real dread and in no way affecting the growth of the real dread. This would allow for length while allowing your real dreads to grow in naturally.

I've never had any desire to grow real dreads and therefore have no actual experience with the process of it.

With our dreads, just wash your scalp and hair as often as you normally would. Personally, I have found that wet dreads are a little heavy and ours are very tight so they can hold a rich, thick shampoo very well. This means it takes a while to wash

it out. Therefore, I generally just dilute the shampoo which I'm

washing the dreads with while also using full shampoo at my scalp. That works best for me.

We don't put and leave any kind of soap or wax in the dreads. It's all very clean and fabulous smelling! :-) It also looks great and is easy to care as you're growing your real dreads.

Also, when I do get the extensions, which I want for length not fullness.

Right away! There is nothing to wait for.

I saw a video once where the "fake" dread was placed at the end of the natural dread and then sort of knotted into eachother.

I can't imagine why a person would do that. Just let your real dreads grow and compliment them with the synthetic dreads until your real dreads are the length you

want them. I'd worry that the real dreads might not fair too well if you tried to add extensions to them. Plus, real hair and synthetic hair are not the same so the top half being real hair mixed with the bottom half of the same dread being fake doesn't

seem like it would look good. Now, I've seen a lot of real dreads mixed in with synthetic dreads - side by side - and that looks great perhaps because one isn't trying to turn a dread into something it's not. Real dreads are real. Synthetic dreads are synthetic. Perhaps posing one as the other doesn't work but putting them side-by-side and allowing them both to shine in their full glory works great!

That probably makes no sense...what I mean is the girl who was doing it used a

crochet hook to pull up parts of the synthetic and pull down parts of the natural so they would end up locking together. Would you recommend this with this type?

No.

I'm just wondering because I want kind of a "seamless" transition into the synthetic dreads. Thanks!!

I'd put them side-by-side. Let your real dreads grow into the fabulous long dreads they will become. Attach the synthetic dreads at the root of them. I would assume the look would be more nature... freer... and not trying to be something it is not. Even synthetic dreads are based in one's own nature and organic style. It is still about being true to one's self, one's taste and one's perceptions. I don't see how trying to turn something into something it isn't would work.

I understand how you could want to take this person's word for it, especially if she seems more knowledgeble than yourself or if you're looking for suggestions but I just don't agree with her approach on this. It might work for some and that's wonderful for them. But it's not something we do, have any desire to do or could in any way help you to reach that end.

Synthetic dreads of fabulous length we can do!

Thanks for your interesting dilemma. I hope this helps and best of luck figuring it all out!

Kind regards,

Christine

How to Put Single-Ended Dreads In?

How do I put single-ended dreads in?

You have options. You can braid it around the dread before tying the dread off. Or, after looking the hair through the dread it can be braided. Both techniques work well and look good. It's really more of a personal choice.

Best,

Christine

Dyeing Dreadlocks

You can't dye your hair while synthetic dreads are in.

That being said, dreads need to be taken out and put back in about as often as hair needs to be re-dyed.

So, the easiest thing to do would be to re-dye the hair at the same time you are planning on re-attaching the dreadlocks!

Dread Questions for the Newbie

Hello!

Hi Ell!

I never had dreads before and i need to ask a few questions, so I'd appreciate if you answer.

Sounds good! I'll do my best to answer your questions as effectively as I can!

I have attatched a photo of my hair length right now, How many dreads will i need to make like a streaked kind of look?

Love the photo!

I'm guessing you mean that you want the dreads placed intermingled and randomly throughout your hair. If that be the case, I'd guess you'd want between 30-40 single-ended dreads.

I don't want a full head of dreads. I want them to look evenly placed out in my hair if that

makes sense...

Yeah! I think I got it! Totally makes sense and sounds cool!

Does it?

Yup! Totally makes sense. :-)

Or do you think that will go horribly wrong?

No, I don't think it would go horribly wrong as far as how it would look. I think it would look absolutely fantastic. Sophie has a friend who did exactly what you are describing and it seemed to work fine for her. The pictures are of that girl's half dread/half hair look. Although I didn't do her hair, I believe she had dreads, braids and loose hair, as well.

I think i might actually go for a half head look,

make the dreads longer than my actual hair length too. What do you think?

I'm not sure how it would look with the dreads longer than your real hair. That's up to you. Personally, I can't envision it. I would opt for the dreads the same approximate length as your hair. But you should do whatever makes you most comfortable and what you would like to wear. It's your hairstyle!

Also, single end or double end?

I would suggest single-ended but either would work fine.

Which ones are better? And how can i attatch them?

Both single-ended dreads and double-ended dreads are great. It just depends on preference and/or purpose. Double-ended dreadlocks are easier and quicker to put in. But if you plan on leaving the dreads in for a while then single-ended dreadlocks will last longer before you need to take them out and put them back in. Also, if you decide that it is hard to wash your hair and dreads at the same time and want to be able to take the dreads out before washing your hair and then easily put the dreadlocks back in you might want to attach bobby pins to the single-ended dreads. For your purposes, single-ended dreads just seem a little more versatile. But both would work fine. Bobby pins could be attached to double-ended dreadlocks as well.

Sorry for all the silly questions but im really interested in this and I'd love to get some dreads.

No problem at all. It's important that you ask the questions you need the answers to so that you can get the right set of dreads for your personal style!

I'd appreciate a reply, thank you!

Ell

My pleasure. I'll send you an invoice. If that works for you just let me know the color(s) you want if different than the hair color in the photo, or if you have any other questions.

Best,

Christine

What's the difference between single and double ended dreads?

What's the difference between single and double ended dreads?

Double-ended dreadlocks do not have a look on one end. Single-ended dreads do.

Double-ended dreads are quicker to put in.

Single-ended dreads stay in more securely and for much longer.

Single-ended dreads offer a clearer look and look better near the front of the scalp line.

Attaching Dreads with Thread

Synthetic dreadlocks sound like a good option.

I definitely want to keep them in at all times, so I'd use the thread.

Use new thread. From experience, I've learned that old thread (that was left in storage for a few years... or something equivalent to that, isn't as strong, can become brittle and break. I always use cotton thread.

The thing is that I don't really trust my friends or parents to do it so I guess I'd go to a salon.

You know your circumstances best. Everyone's situation is different.

So with threading do they just connect it to the base of your hair somehow?

See the picture with the loop? That is a single-ended dread. Put the hair through the dread. Then wrap the thread around the dreadlock and hair. I usually wrap a couple time then tie a knot, then wrap, then knot, then wrap, then knot. It makes the knot more secure so that even if the thread breaks in one part it'll still hold from the other knots. I also like to double the thread before tying it onto the dread.

And when you say they last through many washes, what do you mean?

I mean our dreads do not fall apart. A lot of dreads are machine made. They tend to be lose and fall apart easily. Our dreadlocks are handmade and I've never had one fall apart. In fact, they only seem to get stronger over time.

I'm interested in keeping them permanently (wear them constantly for at least a year or so). Would that work?

Your hair grows. Therefore where you tie the dread into the hair will move further and further away from your scalp as your hair grows. Dreads generally need to be taken out and put back in every 6-8 weeks. Therefore, given the above parameters, you could wear them for a year.

I saw you wrote to another customer that you can sew them in.

I'm guessing the other customer had real dreadlocks and wanted to add synthetic dreadlock extensions onto the real dreads or to increase the overall number of dreadlocks to give the look of a fuller head of hair. That's a different circumstance than your situation.

Sorry I have so many questions! But I appreciate it.

No problem. Glad to help!

Attaching Dreads to Short Hair

My hair is black but I don't have the slightest clue how to lock my hair it is soooo short.

Hi again, Harley!

Do you want to dread your real hair?
I've never had 'real' natural hair dreadlocks and with how thin my hair is it probably wouldn't look very good unless I added some synthetic dreads into the mix. Therefore, I don't know anything about starting new 'real' deads from hair already attached on the head.

We create custom wool and synthetic dreadlocks only.

Our dreads can be put in and taken out on a daily basis or they can be be attached to be semi-permanent lasting anywhere for approximately 1-2 months depending on hair thickness and growth.

My hair is thin so as it grows out and the dread starts pulling at the root of my scalp it hurts and I get headaches if I've left the dreads in for more than a month.

On the other hand, my daughter has really thick hair, so no matter how long her roots get it never feels like it individual hairs are pulling on the scalp. Therefore, she tends to reattach her dreadlocks every 6-8 weeks because by then the root hair is long enough to wear the dreadlocks don't hang right anymore.

Are you asking how long your hair must be before you can attach synthetic dreadlocks?
I've dreaded my hair when it was three inches long. It's easier to attach the dreadlocks to hair that is at least 4" but not necessary to wait until the hair grows out to that length.

A bad haircut can make waiting until hair is four inches long feel like an eternity. :-)

Well, I'm not sure what your question is but I've tried to answer it to the best of my ability. It would help if you were a little more clear in what you are looking for (advice for making real dreads, how to attach synthetic dreads, how long hair needs to be before dreads can be attached to short hair, etc?).

Note: I don't know what 'lock my hair' means but it really sounds like your hair is going to the slammer! ;-)

Adding Synthetic Dreadlocks to Real Ones

Hi,

Hi Tevyn!

I already have existing dreadlocks in, but I would like them to be fuller and longer. I was wondering if your extensions can be put into already existing dreads or strictly hair that is not dreaded?
Over the years, we have had several people purchase our dreadlocks to add to their own existing, natural dreadlocks. I know it has been done and can be done. We've had great feedback on it!


Would the single-ended or double-ended dreadlocks work best?
I think this would be personal preference. The dreads could be attached with thread, sewn in or a rubber band could be used. Any of these ways of attaching dreadlocks would work with both the single and double ended dreads.

I also am curious when my hair does grow out, is it possible to take out the extensions and reapply them at the root?
Absolutely! I need to reattach my dreads every 4 weeks and my daughter reattaches her about every 6 weeks. I have thinner hair so the dreads pull sooner on mine than on hers.

Thank you for your time.

You're Welcome!

Lavender & Purple Dreadhawk

I would like to do this with my hair, but I need the extensions.

Very cool!

I would like them Lavender with some darker purple pieces.

No problem. We have the colors on hand. We could do that!

How many do you think I would need for this style? 30-40 of various lengths and thicknesses

How much would it cost? We'll send you and invoice for both 30 and 40 pieces.

Can they just be braided in or how would you suggest to put them in? Yes, the dreads could be braided in and that is how I would suggest doing it. We use thread. You can pick your thread color to match the color of the dreads and it seems most durable and flexible.

Thank You!
Anita

You're welcome! We look forward to doing business with you!

Christine