Welcome to my 400th post! In honor of this milestone, I'm embarking on a new project. Read on:
The tag line for my FB Page is "a slightly crunchy momma sliding down the slippery slope to full-on hippydom." I've been a bit of a hippie for a while and it just seems to get... worse? Ha! And you know what, I have wanted to try out dreadlocks for a long time. I'd been told that "white chicks can't pull off dreads." Pfft. Actually, I worried that it was true. I asked several friends for their opinions on this, including a black friend. Even she was supportive! (I'd read on some forums that it is thought that white people shouldn't have dreads.)
I'd been thinking about them again... began researching them. I brought the idea to my husband again and he was supportive. I even learned that you don't have to shave your head to come back from dreads.
So I knew I wanted to do this dread thing. And I knew I wanted to blog about it. I found and contacted a company that makes all natural dread products. Knotty Boy was willing to sponsor a review / blog project for me. I was giddy! I'd already found a couple of friends willing to participate in a "dread party."
 I received a Deluxe Dreadlock Starter Kit plus a few extras. |
There are some dreadlock products available on the market that contain some nasty ingredients. If you're reading this blog, you probably prefer to go natural when possible. Not only are Knotty Boy products all natural, all but one of their products are even vegan! (Their dread wax is made with beeswax, which they source from small local beekeepers who treat their bees very nicely indeed.)
How in the heck to get started?! Well, Knotty Boy also offers tutorials that aren't bogged down with too much information (like I found elsewhere). Your friends can watch 20 minutes worth of videos and be ready to dread your hair! But I am getting ahead of myself...
I started by cutting shampoo out of my routine. I started washing with Bee-Washed Pre-Dreading & De-Waxing Soap. I can not seem to figure out a way to describe the scent of this stuff. It almost has no scent. It smells very natural, clean and a tiny bit sweet. I love it! You can absolutely tell that it leaves no residue behind!
 Ingredients: Saponified Organic Oils of Palm, Coconut, Castor Bean and Hemp, Red Kaolinite Clay, Organic Essential Oils of Cedar Wood, Fir Needle, Pine and Spruce |
I used it for a couple weeks before my dread party, but since I dyed my hair a few days prior, I went ahead and did the recommended double-wash with this soap before the party. I could definitely feel the difference. I think my hair color may have had conditioners in it.
I did that double-wash the day before my dread party. I towel-dried my hair and then I braided it. I think I could have done better with more, smaller braids, but I am terribly inexperienced with braiding my own hair. Plus I already had to steal hair bands from Sasha to hold some of the braids!
I'll leave you with a night-before picture.
 I was squinting my eyes like crazy due to the bright sun of the day. |
I threw on an upcycled t-shirt head band (just a sleeve) for sleeping and called it a night. Stay tuned for updates and photos!
