I had some warnings about wax given to me today, and they're so far the most credible ones I've heard.
The young lady told me that she'd started her locks with wax six years ago, and showed me that on close inspection tiny white specks could be seen on them.
"That's the wax working it's way out," she explained. She'd stopped using the stuff after a year.
It stands to reason that if you use too much wax it's going to build up. Some naturalists say that the so-called "residue-free shampoo" is designed to strip the wax out just to prevent that sort of thing. Wax buildup leads to moisture buildup, which can lead to mildew or lock rot.
Not pretty.
So I still think that it's the misuse of wax that causes problems. What I don't know is how much wax is really too much, and that's worth thinking about. I've always been confident that I can detect the wax in the lock, but maybe I can't. As I write this I note that my nurtured side is still moist from this morning's ablutions, but the natural side is quite dry.
Better still, I think my waxing hand has been getting heavier. That's much more insidious. Wax could very well be a wonderful locking agent, but if it's easy to misuse or overuse, well that would automatically make it inappropriate for American consumers.
My five-year mission: to explore strange new hairstyles, to seek out ways to keep locks neat and clean, to boldly go where no man has gone before with dreadlocks.
i used wax when i first got my dreads about two and a half years ago - for several months. prob bout 6. now the wax is working its way out of the dreads - white residue - looks like wads of fluff. i dislike it so much i am forced to dismantle that part of the dread and remove it. avoid wax at all costs.
ReplyDeleteYou're not the first person to tell me that . . . I've even seen it up close! I am trying to locate wax users who have NOT had this experience, if they exist.
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