It is only the proper dreadlock maintenance that draws the line of distinction between average-looking dreadlocks and good-looking dreadlocks. Are your dreads giving you a tough time maintaining them? Consider methods like palm rolling, dread balling and others and you would soon find a solution to almost all your problems associated with the maintenance of your locks.

No matter if it is smoothing out loose hair or the undesirable lumps in your dreads spoiling their appeal, these easy to follow dreadlock maintenance methods simply work in an amazing way. They are the secrets to the droves of people who flaunt tidy and healthy dreads and make a style statement of their own.

In case, you find that your locks have accumulated some lint and dust with time, you can anytime wash them with a residue-free shampoo. However, a natural way of eliminating the build-up is to apply apple-cider and vinegar. You can then rinse them with water for clean dreadlocks.

Another important thing is, when you wash your locks with a residue-free shampoo, it is advisable to let them dry naturally or to towel dry them. In case you become irritated over the pieces of towel that can often break off into your dreadlocks, it is best for you to use lint-free towels or the micro-fiber towel. Using a hair dryer would only damage and weaken your locks and is not recommended at all.

Though, twisting your locks often is a good habit, you should avoid doing them continuously all throughout the day. Re-twisting dreadlocks while your hair is still damp is the best time to finger twist your dreads for tightening. Hence, these are some simple maintenance tips that can help your locks stay intact and look attractive all the time. Do not let your dreads appear neglected. The longer and tighter they are, the better!

Until next time..  keep ‘em tight!

Dreadlocks are a popular rope-like hairstyle among both men and women. This is particularly common among the African folks and is now gaining admiration with Americans as well. There are a few set of steps that needs to be followed for making dreadlocks. Twisting is one important step that not only helps in the making of the dreads but also in maintaining them later.

As you section your hair, apply the wax and start twisting them with your fingers in whichever direction you like, it may be clockwise or anticlockwise. However, make sure that you twist all the sections into the same direction only. Twisting helps to tighten and bind hair into locks. It is advisable to initiate twisting from the tip of hair in the downward direction towards the scalp. At times, twisting in the upward direction from scalp thins the roots.

During the initial weeks, it should be done for up to 3 weeks regularly and then you can continue doing them whenever you can squeeze out time from your schedule. You may do it while watching TV or when you are listening to music as well. Instead of wax, you may also use dread cream whenever you twist your dreads to lock them together. It is a good idea to clamp the newly twisted locks with clips or rubber bands. You may grab different sections of hair randomly and repeat this with rest of the sections of your hair.

Many people often refrain from putting rubber bands as they think that they lead to breakage of hair. Well, this is undoubtedly true but you can avert it anytime as it is all depends upon you! If you do not put the rubber bands too tightly, it will never cause breakage of hair. Now, you can easily twist and turn your dreadlocks and ensure well-maintained locks without much hassle.

Loose hair is nothing less than a nightmare for people with dreadlocks and often makes the locks appear neglected. Dread balling dreadlocks is a good method to smooth out loose frizzles from locks and make them look attractive. This is especially useful to tame hair near the roots and towards the center of the locks. 

You may go to a hair stylist for this or try this out at home by yourself. Make sure that the hair is absolutely clean. Now, gather the strayed hair and roll them into the shape of a ball and identify the most closely associated dread to it. This will help you to recognize the dread to which these loose hairs belong. Once you know this, you can knot up the ball and put them into the nearest dread and start rubbing and twisting that dread in a clockwise manner. 

Continue this clockwise movement for a few minutes so that the hair ball attaches well to the remaining dread.  Now, you can put the rubber band towards the root of the dreadlock where you have placed that dread ball. The rubber band should not be very tight but just tight enough to hold the ball with the dread. This is perhaps the best method that is suggested for maintenance of dreadlocks. 

 So, in case you are tired of the untidy look of your dreadlocks, give the dread balling method a try and you will surely not be disappointed! You may also take the help from any of your friends for this method, if you find it difficult to reach out to the locks at the back of your head. Now, get set to rock the party with your ravishing hairdo of neat dreadlocks. You may also consider tying them at the back so that you can easily manage them. 

Among the long series of myths that surround dreadlocks, one of the most commonly heard is that in order to have good and mature dreadlocks, you must make your hair really dirty. Now, that may sound impossible but there are many people who actually get carried away by this and do not wash their hair from around 2 weeks to one whole year.

It is basically the dirty sebum of their scalp along with grime from their everyday life that holds their strands of hair together. This obviously is an unhealthy way of forming dreadlocks and is not recommended at all. The truth is that you can wash your hair on a regular basis and still have neat dreadlocks. The only thing you need to understand is how to wash them properly to maintain healthy dreadlocks.

The foremost thing in washing dreadlocks is to divide your hair into quarters and putting rubber bands on every quarter. This makes it easy for you to manage dreads while washing them. Your prime focus should be to clean the scalp and then work on hair towards the end. After this, you can rinse and repeat shampooing, if required. A conditioner is not recommended for dreadlocks.

While you select hair products for washing dreadlocks, it is a good idea to go for products that are specifically made for dreads. Knowing the texture of your hair also proves to be of great help. For example, finer and softer hair benefits more from the shampoo bar than any liquid shampoo. Cleaners such as a mild residue free shampoo or a castile soap can be preferred; in case special dread shampoos are not available in your vicinity.

So, please do not be misguided by such dreadlock myths unless you know the truth. Washing dreadlocks is necessary to make them appear neat and appealing and also ensure that they are healthy.