So my buddy is starting to dread my hair using the crochet method any tips for upkeep/maintenance? ive got some dread wax and i know to keep palm rolling them,
Its a little late to reply but i feel strongly compelled to. Please please PLEASE!!! DO NOT crochet and NEVER EVER EVER use wax!!!!!! Crocheting will lead to bald spots and you cant take your dreads out withought cutting your hair really short. Wax is like putting glue in your hair. Its horrible for dreads despite what people who dont have dreads say. Do you wanna know why people say dreads are dirty? Wax. Wax holds in dirt and grime and especially holds in moisture which turns into mold. Ever had a moldy fruit or vegetable in the fridge? Thought it was gross? Imagine that in your hair. Smelly, gross, wax creates these things. If you want to do this properly, then theres better ways. Twist and rip is fine, back combing isnt great, but its acceptable and doesnt cause too much damage, but natural is best.
Never use wax, even the purest beeswax is asking for problems. If your hair is isn't afro, back-combing is a good prep for the hair if you want to up your chances of a proper rasta look. After putting dreads in, don't bother, you're just damaging it. Crotchet hook method..egh. People say it's damaging, which is half true - if you have genuinely correct technique, it is not damaging and should not put any pressure/torque on the hair whatsoever. But it's a risk - most people don't get the technique right, and even then I'd recommend crotchet only as a maintenance thing every few weeks, to tie in loose hair around the edges of the dread. So basically, it's your risk, everyones hair reacts differently, even when they fall into the same hair type, so give palm rolling/twist ripping a try too, and it helps to pretty much always palm roll regardless of what else you're doing. All natural is great, but you must know exactly what sort of dreads you're looking for - if you want them to be perfectly tight like black dudes dreads, and you don't have afro hair, chances are you're going to get lots of loose hair and less defined dreads.