People often ask me about growing dreadlocks and they are always surprised at my consistent answer. Don’t do it. This is because I know so many people who have started and given up soon after. For this reason, I always advise people against dreads because the average person doesn’t have the patience for it. One of my friends entered my locticians and declared, I want you to do my dreads like Masuka’s. This was after I had kept them for five years. We have all laughed about it since them, my loctician included.
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| Back in the day, when I didn’t have proper eyebrows. Lol! |
So, here is my little list of things I always tell people who inform me that they want to do dreads.
1. As already stated, the first thing I tell them is don’t do it. Why?
2. Dreads require patience. Most people’s hair takes, on average, six months or more to loc. Mine took 18 months (a year and a half). I almost gave up on them.
3. Decide what kind of dreads you want. Thick dreads are quicker, but may not look as nice, depending on how much hair you have. If your hair is thinning, dreads may emphasise just how little hair you have left. Tiny, thin dreads will require longer visits to the hair salon.
4. Everyone’s hair is different. You cannot expect it to look like your friend’s hair, even if you started on the same day with the same length of beginner locs.
5. Your hair will definitely grow, probably quite long if you want it to. Dreadlocks proudly debunk the myth that African hair doesn’t grow
6. You still need to look after your hair when it is locked. Dreads needs to be washed and styled like any other hair style. Washing is especially important if you want your locs to be soft and smell clean and fresh. Lint, dirt and build-up is a constant danger, but is NOT a must have for dreads. Maintaining soft and beautiful locs means that you must invest a little time and money to either do it yourself or pay someone to do it for you.
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ZedHair 