Regular maintenance is a must to keep your dreadlocks and scalp healthy and caring for your dreads in-between sessions can keep them in tip-top condition. There are several ways you can keep your dreads looking good between sessions so we have put together this handy guide.
However, using a crochet hook can be quite daunting so we would always advise to go a professional every 3-6 months for a good tidy up. We wouldn’t recommend maintenance with a crochet hook too regularly as this can casue damage to dreadlock if they are worked on too much.
Dread Maintenance Techniques
Not got an appointment for a few months? There are ways to keep your dreads healthy in between your maintenance sessions:
Palm Rolling:
Palm rolling is a sure start way to keeping your new baby dreads neat and tidy and it will help them mature with less lumps and bumps. You will expect a bit of fluff, fuzz and loose hair in the early days before your dreads have started to mature and fear not! This is completely normal. Palm rolling is best done after your dreadlocks have been washed and are slightly damp but can also be done when you have a spare minute or so to play around with your dreads (which you’ll be doing, because you can’t stop touching them, we know!) Why not rope some friends in to help too with the back ones too?
Simply grab a dread and roll it forwards and backwards between your palms. The motion will encourage your dreadlocks to keep cylindrical and straight.
Root Separation
We cannot stress how important this is in between maintenance sessions. If left for a long time your regrowth at the root will want to join together, resulting in maybe two or more dreadlocks trying to join forces. If left for a long time, this can make it more difficult to separate the individual dreads at your next maintenance session. The hair going over your sections will also not allow your scalp to breathe - resulting in an itchy, uncomfortable scalp in the long run.
Dreadlocks are sectioned in a particular way to allow comfort and breathing room for the scalp.
How To Separate Dread Roots
To do this simply take hold of two dreads and very gently pull them apart up to where they reach the scalp. Sometimes just a few hairs have started to join up to the neighbouring dreadlock but sometimes a lot of hair may have started to attach and you may need to pull with more force. From personal experience of working with dreads I cannot stress this enough – Do not use scissors to cut your dreadlocks apart. I have had clients come to me In the past who have cut off all their loose regrowth (to make them “neater”) and also cut between the dreads instead of gently pulling them apart. All this will do is weaken your dreadlocks at the root as there will not be enough hair for your loctician to gather in to make your dreadlock strong and consistent. You also may chop a dread off by accident… we’ve seen it all here! No scissors, please.
Getting Your Dreads Established
You may find in the first few months to a year, that your new dreads are quite wild and seem to have a messy look and a forever lasting halo of fluff. Dreadlocks are a journey just like life…roll with it and enjoy it and most of all embrace the fluff! Within time dreads become more and more established with less fluff! Still unsure? Well, one of our gorgeous fair trade dread bands can hide all this too! We also have a stunning selection of dreadlock beads, SpiraLocks and other dread accessories to make your dreads pop.