A year ago: scared to shampoo

I left the mirror steamy as a courtesy

A year ago today I was nervous about washing my hair.  It was the first time I was going to try it after the locking, and I had to wear a stocking to make sure I didn't rip them apart.  My hair sucked up shampoo like Jewish cooking does salt, and then, hours later, after they were finally dry, I had to wax them again.

If you're one of those people who believes that white people shouldn't have dreadlocks because all the extra work should be telling us something, you're preaching to the choir here.  By this time a year ago, I realized that making and maintaining dreadlocks, at least using my chosen methods, was much more work than I'd ever done on my hair before.

Of course, I also was starting to have more fun with my silly hair.  I asked a dreadlock poll question which had such epic rhymes that thirteen people have answered since I asked it a year ago.  How cool is that?

One year later, I'm still spending more time than I should be on my locks (well, on half my dreadlocks anyway), and I'm pretty much done with that.  Once this test period ends next month, I will be very, very glad to neglect my locks like a normal person.

5 Reasons Why People Wax Dreadlocks

If you're considering waxing dreadlocks, be advised:  you're about to step into a big pile of hot wax yourself.  Waxing is very controversial, and passionate, intelligent people argue for and against it.  I finally decided to test it out on my own head to benefit people who are thinking about getting dreadlocks.

But the controversy doesn't have much effect on the decision to use wax.  I've compiled these reasons why people use wax in their dreadlocks to help explain why.

1. Google loves wax.  Do a search for "dreadlocks" and what do you see?  If you're like me, your eye drifts down past the paid results, and because I'm looking for more in-depth information, right on past Wikipedia, and I click on Dreadlocks.com.  That site gives a bunch of advice, and has prominent links to DreadHeadHQ, which is where I got my start.
   Bottom line:  sites which advocate wax come up higher in search engine results.
2. Wax replaces patience.  "If you want tighter locks faster, you will use wax."  Dreadlocks, like yoga, is all about patience, but there are plenty of people who are interested in getting the results in as short a time as possible.  If someone wants it badly enough, he or she will decide that the information supporting wax is more compelling than the warnings against it.
   Bottom line:  People believe what they want to believe.
3. Smooth is sexy.  Locking hair involves a lot of fuzzy areas.  Getting dreadlocks tight and smooth is a goal for a lot of people, because it is easier to maintain a clean, simple profile with mature locks.  Fuzzy gets connected with dirty in peoples' mind for some reason.  Smooth, not so much.  Wax can indisputably create less of a flyaway appearance, and that's something a lot of people value.
   Bottom line:  People like the look of waxed locks.



Short dreadlocks laugh at gravity

4. Waxed locks behave.  I've had my locks for a year now, and those first few months were rough!  I had to cover my hair or beat it into submission on days when I simply couldn't afford to look ridiculous.  (There were plenty of times when I actually reveled in how silly my hair looked, but it definitely was ridiculous.)  I used a bunch of techniques, including hats, water, and wax in various combinations, one of which I would not recommend.  A small amount of wax in a dreadlock makes it go where you want it to.  If a waxy core really does build up inside a waxed lock, it's not enough to make it permanently into a bendy figure.
   Bottom line:  Wax gets young locks to lie flat.
5. Marketing.  What wax opponents wish wasn't true is that marketing matters.  Every tale told about the horrors of wax may be true, or they could shameless anti-wax rumors, but none of that matters.  What matters is that dreadlock wax is marketed to fulfill a perceived need.  The information is easier to find, and its reported benefits speak to the desires of a wide swath of people.  Opposition to waxing has little to no money, and without a profit motive it also lacks a really cohesive strategy which would link its facts to the desires people have.  In the "industrialized world," people are programmed to seek out the product which will solve the problem in the most efficient way.  That solution doesn't have to be effective, it just has to be convincing.
   Bottom line:  Marketing works because people want the easy answer.

For every argument against wax, there is a plausible counterargument.  It can be frustrating to try to figure out the truth.  The one thing that is absolutely true is that no harm will come to your hair because you choose not to wax your dreadlocks.  Using wax might make them lock faster, or it could put them on the path to ruin, depending on what you choose to believe.  The truth probably is more complex, containing aspects of both sides of the story.

When it comes down to it, wax is a personal decision.  Some people don't ever know it has baggage, and other people don't care.  There will always be waxers, and those who try to talk them out of it.  Which will you be?

Crochet conundrum

I think that I figured out one of the advantages of using wax. For at least a week at a stretch, when the wax is in, I can't crochet my locks. For a fidgeter like me, you really need an excuse to stop fidgeting. The wax gives that. Since it's kinda addictive and almost certainly can do more harm than good when overdone, these little waxy breaks are a godsend.

Nature vs nurture dreadlock test

This is a better name than the "half-headed challenge," but sometimes it takes awhile for my brain to catch up with itself.

As I gear up for the nature vs nurture dreadlock test, I'm winding down on my residue-free shampoo.  This probably isn't a bad thing, because I'm finding it's harder and harder to rinse it out on the first try. As wholesome as it is, I'm going to move to a baking-soda based shampoo once that stuff is gone, and use it on both sides.  I'll post the recipe for it and the vinegar rinse at some point.

Half a plan for the new year

Right now my locks are pretty fun:  they're still short enough that they can stick just about everywhere when I want them to, but long enough that they'll point more or less down when I ask really nicely.

They're about half-locked, so there's more to go to make this locky thing happen.  Of course, how to take the next steps is going to be important, particularly if I want to do explore the options in anything approaching a systematic fashion.

stop trying to fix them. the more you work on them the longer it will take for them to get really tight..after a year or two you can blunt your tips if they dont do it on their own

That's what Cherubim666999 said on my six-month dreadlock update video.  It's an argument I've heard before.  Messing with them, including the usage of products like wax, slows down the process.  I'd be better off letting time, and the compression of many nights of sleep, do the work.  Naturally, they will lock on their own if I just let things be.

An after-and-before shot.

Ignorance is bliss

I didn't know any of this when I started my locks.  All I knew was how a metal comb could put the locks in, and how using wax to keep them compressed (frequently at first but reducing in the number of applications over time) helps accelerate the process, leading to the tight, stray-hair-free locks I was looking for more quickly.  I knew that there was an alternative; I had considered and discarded a full neglect method as an option.  The only thing I didn't know about at first was the controversy.

Wanted: Doctorate of Dreadlocks

So I started waxy, then I gave wax up.  By October I wanted my wax back, because my hair felt like it was falling apart.  That could also be a sign that wax is bad news in the first place, but I didn't have enough evidence either way.  People swearing up and down that wax is good or bad is terribly interesting, but what I really wanted was some actual research on dreadlock techniques and their effectiveness.

So that's my plan for the new year:  I'm going to go back to using wax on half my head, and leave the other half be.  I'll still wash the whole head as always, but the right side will go back to an alternating cycle of one week of wax, one week of palmrolling, futzing with the crochet hook, and generally screwing around in the hopes that I can make the locks tighten up faster.

It won't be exactly scientific, but at least it will be systematic.  In another six months or so I should have some idea of which method works better.

Reconsidering wax

Last night a business associate whom I hadn't seen in a couple of months asked me if I had given up on the dreads.  I knew that some of them were feeling a bit loose, but it was a bit of a shock to have some think they were on the way out!

I have had a couple of changes in my maintenance routine of late.  I have

• stopped using wax
• not added new rubber bands to replace the old
• aggressively latch-hooked many tips with limited success
• stopped asking my wife to work on them
• run out of Lock Peppa

One or more of these changes have led to my locks loosening instead of tightening.  I don't think it's the rubber bands on their own, but they certainly keep the tips together while they're trying to lock.  It's not the latch-hook; that just pulls hair in, so either it's going to stay there or it's not.

I got frustrated with how much of a big deal it is to have someone else work on my hair - it's more like a hair appointment than just doing something together, and the other person isn't going to have my pain response to regulate the routine.  I know my wife is willing, but guys aren't built with any serious pain tolerance.  However, even though it's easier with someone else's eyes on my head, I don't think I am missing as much as I was back in April.  It takes me more time and it would be good to get the help, but I don't think it really is making my locks fail.

Is wax the best or worst thing for my dreadlocks?

The two products might be the variable to revisit.  The wax, in particular, gave me a set routine:  wax and palmroll one week, pull in loose hair the next, and alternate.  Once the hair is pulled in, the wax keeps it still for awhile, training it to stay there.  As the wax dissipates it has a chance to lock in and tighten.

It could be that the locking process will continue without wax, but much slower.  It could also be that my hair needs the extra help to lock up, and it's just going to get looser without it.

I understand better why wax is so controversial - it's difficult to tell if it's an impediment or an accelerant for the locking process. It's easy to understand how too much wax can lead to mildew and rot, but it's harder to determine if a moderate amount is the right choice.  I think it may have a lot more to do with the quality of one's hair than any other factor.

So I'm thinking of going back to wax, if nothing else.  I want to see this process through, and my months without wax just haven't seen the same progress as the waxen beginnings of the locky journey.

A dream first

Do my locks really look that bad?

I had my first bad-hair dream ever last night.  I was in a high school cafeteria filled with other adults eating.  A woman at the next table turned around to say to me, "Don't you think you should so something about your messy hair?

Dreaming about hair shortcomings tells me that I'm thinking a lot about my hair.  Over the past couple of weeks I've been playing more with the latch hook, trying to pull in loose ends and feathery tips.  The result?  A lot of random loops and ends sticking out of odd places.

What a weird effect.  This is definitely not a "low maintenance" hair style . . . for me, anyway.  I guess I just have too much obsessiveness to leave the little locks alone, giving me yet another opportunity to learn patience.

It's the little things

You wouldn't think that hair washing could be exciting, but I had a moment.

Ever since the first time I washed my locks, my technique has been to get really down into the scalp for a scrub, and squish the shampoo carefully through the locks before wringing them out.  I was originally concerned about ripping the new locks apart. and then fell into a habit.

Well I don't wear a stocking my head anymore (even if I wanted to, there's just no way it would fit now), and I don't squish my hair like it's a delicate flower, either.  I tried going back to washing my hair like it's, well, hair.  Flopping it around.  Getting it messy.

The locks held up fine.  And it felt great.

That is all. 

Tightening the base of my locks

I've continued to replace and use rubber bands on the bases of most of my locks.  It helps keep the looser parts together, and makes it easier to grab one for clockwise rubbing, which is supposed to be encouraging the new hairs to get caught up in the lock rather than making their own way in the world.

My friend AnnMarie, the same one who turned her dreadlocks into a hat before lending them to me for the awesome banner design of this blog, gave me another tip.  This one involves taking the band off (or moving it out of the way) and splitting the lock at the base so you can take its own tip and shove it right through.  Twists the whole base section up, and (as I discovered) if you twist it the wrong way the lock will try like hell to point that direction, so keep that in mind.

So there's all sorts of ways to twist and rub and train those hairs to lock up and behave.  And there's also claims that at some point, all this will just start taking care of itself, and I needn't be concerned.  Being a bit impatient, maybe I will never get to that point.  Since my locks are just under four months old, I'm probably not quite ready to let them go yet, but in a couple of years I should take the plunge and see if it's true.

In the wilds

I spent a few days camping last week, which gave me a chance to see how this "low maintenance" hair style handles the great outdoors, and to make a vlog about it.

I also met two lovely women, each of whom had locks which were six or seven years old.  One had hair similar to mine, and told me that she'd used backcombing to start them.  The other had classic African-style kinky hair, and she's had hers put in professionally.

What interested me most about the latter woman was that she told me that she continues to twist them to make sure the new hair locks in properly.  Sometimes I get the impression that locks will need eternal upkeep, but then some "experts" tell me that this will sometimes not be the case.

Time will tell.

Reason #11: intimacy

This reason only works when people stay within each others' hygiene tolerance range, which for me requires clean hair that's free of odors and . . . stuff.

My wife enjoys things like cuddling a bit more than I do.  She's also really, really good at working on my locks.  Not only is she just flat-out better with fiber work than I am, she can actually see what's going on up there, which is a pain for me.

Evenings in front of the television with my head in her lap certainly can't be bad for a marriage.

Poolside manner

Hot day, high humidity, recent swim in pool

The heat skyrocketed this past weekend, so I decided to throw caution to the winds and test my locks in a chlorinated pool.  I'd been warned off by two experienced lockists (one of whom told me that the chlorine would actually unlock my hair), so it took hundred-degree temperatures for me to risk it.  I finally realized in my delirium that the worst that could happen is that my experiment would be prematurely ended; I half hoped to see my hair all floating away just to have something really interesting to report.

So into the breach I went, to the local pool, and I immersed myself in the cooling 97-degree water (yes, it really was that hot).  I swam for the better part of an hour, got out, dried off, went home, and then returned in the early evening to do it again.  It felt wonderful.

My hair seemed none the worse for wear.  The first picture was a day after the pool event, and the second is from this morning, a couple of days after that.  The difference in craziness I can attribute to the fact that it was cool enough for me to fall asleep with my took on last night.  That hat does wonders for keeping my hair under control.  Probably the best lock-control mechanism I've found yet.

The fact that I spend so much time trying to keep these low-maintenance masses under control makes it clear that I'm doing this wrong.  Anyone who seriously will have their lives impacted by a thick lock of hair sticking out from the scalp at a sharp angle probably isn't going to have a low-key time with dreadlocks.

Merely hot day, low humidity, took training

So I guess I do have something to report:  this hair is forcing me to work a lot harder on a decent appearance than I ever have before, and is a whole lot less forgiving than a short haircut or shaven head would be.

Some days I just don't have the luxury to allow my head to look completely insane, so I'm finding myself coming up with shortcuts to save the day when the hair is bad.  Like washing it hard and putting it away wet.  A good, hot shower or bath will get my hair down where I want it, so if I'm in a pinch I'll wring them out and then shove them under the took for awhile.  It works even better if there's some wax in the locks, softened by the water.  (The "tame" picture here was achieved without any wax, though).  When I do that, I still need to get the hat off and allow the locks to dry so something horrible doesn't happen in there.  Did I mention that mildew is a deal-breaker?

Maybe at some point down the line I'll be able to just let the hair do whatever the hell it wants, and see how that feels.  This year, though, I'm just going to have to fight with it sometimes.

Sorry I'm late, I was doing my hair

Self-portrait experiment number 37

The myth that dreadlocks are low-maintenance has been debunked in my mind.  Well, it's probably safer to say that dreadlocks are like political campaigns:  you can put into them as much time and energy as you want to.

The other night I was late for a party because, for the first time in my life, I was held up doing my hair.

Are you kidding me?

I had a collision of priorities, namely:

1. Wash my hair
2. Wax my hair

It may seem simple enough to do both, but it can be screwed up.  I'd put off waxing for an extra week so my wife could focus more on blunting the tips (she felt she had the technique down, but wanted more time to have it on lockdown), so wax was on my mind.  Moreso it was hot and humid and a good waxing makes for a more party-ready appearance.

The washing, like the waxing, could have been put off a day without it being disastrous.  I'm more likely to err on the side of caution when it comes to hygiene, though, particularly since this is my first summer with matted coils of hair on my head.

So I showered, and washed my hair, and only then did I realize that I didn't have the time to let the locks air-dry.  I got busy blow-drying the hell out of them, but this was no time to be forced to master patience!  I hadn't budgeted for that extra time.

After wringing, toweling, shaking, and hot-air drying for longer than I wanted to I gave up with the locks damp, and set to waxing.  I'd have to blow-dry them again anyway.

Waxing dry locks isn't just a good idea - it's damned near the law of physics.  The wax slid off moist hair until I mashed on far more than is good for them, and my next round of blow drying was difficult because the wet hair held the heat, and burned the hell out of scalp whenever I pointed the dryer at any spot for more than about three seconds.

I moved the dryer around a lot, softening but not melting the wax.  My wife noticed, and forced me back into the bathroom where she all but held me down and gave me a stern drying so that I wouldn't look like I was wearing candles on my head.

I think the blisters should be healed any day now.

Reason #7: longer, healthier hair

I've never had my hair grow as long as it has since I started my dreadlocks.  Putting them in made the hair a lot shorter, but withing a month it was clear that there was growth, which was not at all what I expected.  Locking and tightening, yes, but lengthening?  Not even.

Seems that all the clockwise rubbing, palmrolling, and waxing has been stimulating my scalp something fierce.  Even my hairwashing is a lot more scalp-intensive, because I kinda scrub between the locks before I wash them.

I guess all this talk about brushing your hair to make it grow has some merit.

Low maintenance hair?

Maybe if my commitment had been to leave my hair completely to its own devices for five years and see what happens, I would have ended up with low maintenance hair, kind of like how letting a field return to forestland is low maintenance.

But alas, my commitment is more like training bonsai than letting land lie fallow.  And, like bonsai, it takes as much work as patience.

So how low-maintenance is this mass of hair?

• For starters, I'm using a blow dryer.  I've done that maybe three times in my life up until I started this experiment, but now I use it to melt wax, as well as to dry my hair if I'm going to wear a hat or it's just really humid out.
• Then, there's loose hair management and blunting the tips.  These are both activities that take teamwork to do somewhat easily, and they also both often have to be repeated.
• Yesterday I rebackcombed a couple of stubbornly loose locks.  I wasn't expecting to have to do that again, ever, but for at least one of the two it definitely helped tighten it up.
• Every day I take a few minutes to palmroll, and days without wax I also do some clockwise rubbing to create new knots.

Here's a video about blunting those tips:

I'll talk a bit about specialty products in an upcoming post.

So no, I'm not finding this to be an experiment in low maintenance.  It's actually one of the longest-term, highest-time-investment commitments I've ever made.

State of the locks

A brief report on how these locks of mine are maturing.

Rounding out two months or so, about two-thirds of my locks are definitely tightening up and becoming solid.  The remainder are in varying states of "mushy," and are mostly being held together by the base and tip bands alone.

As to the tips, we started to blunt some of them yesterday.

We tried it out on a handful, with some success . . . I put bands back on one or two but I'm pretty sure te others we tried will tighten up sweetly.

The loose hairs being fed into the locks seems to be an endless chore.  I've gotten pretty good at making dread balls, but I can't for the life of me get them into the lock without help.  I have a halo of hairs above my head, and little by little I hope to see them all go where they belong.

Trickier is going to be the flyaway stuff on the surface of the tighter locks.  Time and good advice should help me figure out if there's anything I need to be doing about them.

So far, so good.  I don't think wax is slowing my locking down, and my haberdasher bears that out.  Maureen is African-American, has had locks for twenty years, and recommends the use of wax in them.

Countdown to zero

I've worked out a large-scale plan for these locks of mine, still in their infancy.

Still so young . . . what will five years bring?

• I'm keeping them for five years, barring a serious hygiene crisis.  I think that should be enough time for me to understand the non-spiritual reasons for dreadlocks, as well as the challenges and detriments.
• I won't buy more dread wax after this container is finished.  Sure, it's deductible (when you're a professional writer, stuff you buy to write about is), but it's not intended for permanent use.  Besides, plenty of people vehemently oppose waxing dreads, and I want to see what difference I notice.
• Likewise, I will phase out the rest of my dreadlocks products as they run out.  I haven't seen any occasion to use locking accelerator since day one, so if anyone wants a premixed bottle, 90% full, hit me up.

Having a deadline allows me to decide if I have fallen in love with my locks, or if I want to test the theory that they can be unlocked without just cutting them off.  Honestly, that claim is intriguing to me, so I might have to divest myself just to see how well that works.  Check out my dreadlock countdown clock.

After all, it's just hair, right?

Tips for tips

The advice keeps coming, and I'm really appreciative.  If nothing else, it's validating my experimentation.

Tame locks are happy locks

One tip I got after lamenting my epic bed head was something I had tried with remarkably good results:  soaking in a hot tub.  It got those bad boys to settle down, and stay settled for days.  I don't think I will need to use wax for cosmetic reasons if a half hour of glorious immersion will do the same thing.

That same friend of mine, who tells me that she studied locking techniques for a year before she began her first set, also suggested aloe for conditioning/taming, spoke highly of tea tree oil, and suggested a semiannual vinegar rinse as well.

This is really good news to me, because my long-term plan is to divest myself of commercial products.  The shampoo I was using prior to locking is just baking soda and water with a little bit of tea tree oil, and the rinse is apple cider vinegar with a drop of vanilla and a cinnamon stick.  I still need to find out if that drop of vanilla in the formula will cause problems, but I think it's only for scent, so I'm fine with dropping it from the recipe.

One of my local locked friends, Amanda Catherine, has really amazing blunt tips on her locks.  She explained that they come from a technique which she'd been taught, but for which she did not have a name:

1. Take a lock near the base and put it between the second and third fingers of your non-dominant hand.  Your palm should be facing away from your scalp.
2. With the fingers of your other hand, grab the lock, leaving less than an inch between the two hands.
3. Use clockwise rubbing against the non-dominant hand, slowly moving that hand away from the scalp, along the length of the lock.
4. Hold the tip between thumb and forefinger, and rub your palm clockwise over it to encourage locking and blunting.

I might try using the Lock Peppa with that technique, since that's what it's for.

Lock maintenance party!

I was also fortunate enough to get an offer of working on my locks, by one master locker and one apprentice.  It's always more uncomfortable to have other people yanking and tugging at your hair, but I gratefully accepted.  It wasn't nearly as agonizing as the six hours of backcombing.

Crisp and clean, and no caffeine

I got a few more compliments on my wife's backcombing skills, and we were able to identify which locks are slower to tighten and which ones are coming along really quickly.  I am really excited about using the latch hook my wife brought home to tighten them all the more.  She didn't think we needed a lock-specific tool; it's great to have a skilled fiber artist in the house if you don't happen to live with someone who is already experienced with dreadlocks.

I also got feedback from some of my friends who hadn't seem me since this adventure began, and I was pleasantly surprised by the positive reactions of these largely traditional, professional people.  I think the fact that I didn't look like my head was exploding had something to do with it . . . I just can't imagine anyone who isn't living on the road thinking I looked remotely decent that day.

Next up:  I've worked out a timeline for what in the hell I'm doing with this hair of mine.  If you fail to plan, you plan to fail, and all that, so I'm planning on not planning to fail by failing to plan to plan.

More advice? Really?

I keep getting more advice about how to maintain my locks.  That's all well and good, but invariably the tips are contradictory.  Two examples:

• I got introduced to the guy who, until last September, was probably the only Republican in the county with locks.  (He cut them off after twenty years, so I guess that mantle falls to me.)  That's a lot of years, so I figure he knows what he's talking about.  His wisdom:  " Be patient, it will take some time for them to grow in. DO NOT use shampoo or soap on them! DO try and find a gentle pomade -- not pure beeswax -- that will help them cosmetically and naturally."  I pressed for details about the washing, and he said he recommends "just plain ol hot water.  Summer swimming holes work great too.  Pools and salt water, not so much."
• A friend of mine is helping her elementary-school daughter with locks (it's apparently all the rage with the tween set these days), and it was suggested to her that ocean swimming will help a lot.  My wife agreed, saying that salt water always makes her hair tangle.

I will continue to gather info, but I'm sticking to my plan and seeing it through.  It seems to be working, and changing things could make things worse if I do get problems.  So far, I'm not so committed that I don't mind cutting them off if the experiment fails, but I'm otherwise committed to five years.  That should be enough for me to learn everything I need to from dreadlocks.

Reason #3: discipline

Discipline:  it's needed for dreadlocks as well as for drills

Why am I getting dreadlocks?  Because it requires discipline.  Not all methods do, but I'm working on my hair every single day.

There is no other similar period of time in my life when I paid this much attention to my head.  Even when I was shaving it bald, I only attended to my duties every three or four days.

Each day there are tasks I must perform to keep my hair on course:

• Palmrolling to compress the locks
• Adjusting rubber bands
• Clockwise rubbing to form new knots

I also have to form dread balls out of hairs which are between the locks and shove them inside (something I'm still not very good at), and there's a whole process to getting the loose hairs on the dreads themselves pulled in and lookin' trim.

Anyone who sets out to make professional-looking dreadlocks is going to learn discipline, or they will never succeed.