Washing dreadlocks is more important than you think...

In the first three weeks your dreadlocks be will very delicate and you'll want to wash them about every 5 days. After they have had a chance to establish themselves a bit, usually after the 1st month, you should begin washing them every 2-3 days. Always use residue free shampoo when you wash your dreads. Not only will it help them mature faster, it will ensure that new growth continues to lock up. Soap residues slow down and in some cases prevent the hair from locking. Residues can also build up inside dreads increasing the time it takes for them to dry. This often leads to mildew growing inside the dreads. Growing mildew is unhealthy and it smells like you're wearing a sour gym bag on your head. Fortunately you don't have to go through all that!

You can keep a nylon stocking on your head while you shower for the first month or so. Yeah, I know you'll look a little ridiculous but it keeps the dreads from loosening up while they're wet. Pour some soap on your head, and lather it up through the stocking, then rinse it out really good. If you have rubber bands at the roots and tips wearing the nylon on your head is less necessary. More on using rubber bands later on...

After you wash your dreads, squeeze and shake the extra water out, then put them in a dry towel (one that doesn't shed) for about 10min. If your dreads are pretty thick you may need to put them in a second towel to suck more of the water out. Squeezing them with the towel works well to. Then let them air dry or dry them with a hair dryer. Do not stick your damp dreads in a tam and leave them there. Getting them dry is very important. You'll probably notice that the inside of the dreads, especially thicker mature dreads, takes quite a while to dry. As long as you get the outside as dry as possible the inside will air dry without a problem unless it's packed full of slimy soap residue... They also have these nifty hair dryers that have a plastic bag which fills with hot air and dries your dreads faster. These will leave your dreads tight and fluffy. I found one at Sally's Beauty Supply. On a side note: If you have a Sally's near you and you would like to be able to buy DreadHead products there ask the cashier for a product request form. Fill it out and hand it in. If there are enough requests for DreadHead Dread Products everyone near a Sally's will be able to get our stuff locally... very sweet!

Some tips on maintenance and the A B routine...

Only wax your dreads when they're dry. Warm them with a blow dryer while you wax them if possible. This will help the wax settle into the dreads. More wax does not make dreads lock up faster. You want to put enough that you can feel it on the dread, no more. Your not making candles, you know. During the first three weeks you'll want to keep some wax on the dreads all the time, you won't have to add wax every day, every 2-3 days should be plenty. Add more only when you can't feel it in the hair. A little goes a long way, when you are adding wax add small amounts at a time and work it in completely before moving on the next dread. As your dreadlocks mature a bit and feel tighter they will need less and less wax. Any time your dreads start to feel dry work some wax in to moisturize them. This will ensure you don't loose dreads due to breakage.

For best results wax your dreads a day or so after you wash them. Use this wax free period to create new knots by clockwise rubbing. One routine that works really well is to alternate your maintenance weekly:

Week A: Use wax and concentrate on palm rolling. This period will give your knots time to settle into dreads. Use the accelerator sparingly if at all. Don't worry about twisting, rubbing and creating new knots. If you have loose hair that needs to be dread balled do so right after you shower and dry the hair.. Wax after you finish.

Week B: Use accelerator and lock pepper to create lots of knots. Don't add any wax. This is the best time to use clockwise rubbing, finger rubbing and dread balling. Your dreads may look a lil' frizzy during this week but that's normal. As they mature their appearance will grow steadily better.

Switching back and forth like this helps the dreads mature much faster.