Links

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Dreadlocks at The Hip Forums

Before you even scroll down this page to look at the other links, go to the Dreadlocks forum at www.hipforums.com.

I can confidently say that this is the only resource you need to refer to for growing and maintaining dreadlocks. Whatever ideas you may have about dreadlocks, you can guarantee that the people here will show no shame or hesitation in telling you exactly what they think of them. Whatever method you choose for growing your dreads, you will find honest advice, support, encouragement, maybe the occasional bollocking if you’ve done something dumb, followed by help getting back on track - from experienced dreadheads without the slightest interest in promoting anything other than healthy, natural locks.

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Knotty Boy

The Knotty Boy company doesn’t exactly need my advertising, but I’ll still give them a mention anyway. If you’re planning to go down the backcombing route for growing your dreadlocks, you will find plenty of helpful information here, including a video of some dreadlocks being made. However, skip the waxing stage! Their products are pretty nice too. The soap bars are lush, and I also recommend the conditioning spray. As waxes go, the wax is nice enough, but use it for furniture polish or something, NOT ON YOUR DREADS. I reckon their various scalp-soothing sprays might be fun too, although you could probably just come up with a home-made version if you wanted.

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Dread Head HQ

Another company that’s hardly gonna go bust if I don’t link them, Dread Head HQ also have a very good helpful website in terms of taking you on the fast-track to growing dreadlocks. Obviously if you have chosen the truly natural locking route, you won’t want to look here As with the site above, skip any advice with the word ‘wax’ in it. Their wax is a bit crap anyway. The shampoo won’t be loved by those seeking all-natural products, but it does give a thorough clean with no residues, confirmed by its disturbing lack of odour. Lock Peppa helps a lot with creating knots fast, despite leaving a bit of gunk in your hair for a while. Their Locking Accelerator is also really good at speeding the tightening process, but is essentially a salt solution, so you may want to look into making your own version. I read the Dread Head HQ site from cover to cover, so to speak, before getting my dreads, and was glad I did so

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Altered States

Altered States is a U.K.-based hairdresser and dreadcare distributor with international shipping. They offer the usual dreadlock product brands, plus various accessories. I bought my dreadlock kit here.

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Dreadworx

Dreadworx is another U.K.-based supplier of dreadlock products with international shipping. This is a well-designed site, offering a good range of brands, accessories and tools. I currently order my dread products here. The prices are good and the delivery is always prompt.

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Dreadlocks.org

Dreadlocks.org is a cleanly designed site with a good layout. Includes blogs, discussions and various pieces of dreadlock info. It doesn’t seem to be the busiest of websites, but is still worth a look.

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Dreadlocks.com

A clean and simple site, Dreadlocks.com probably won’t tell you much that you didn’t know already, unless this topic is completely new to you, but it’s still worth a browse; sometimes just one useful sentence can make a difference to how you go about your dreadlock journey.

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Knatty Dread

Knatty Dread is another brand of dreadlock product, which I haven’t tried. The site is good, with a decent layout and plenty of information and thorough instructions about different methods of making dreadlocks.

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HowToDread.com

Howtodread.com is simple and straightforward. There’s not a mountain of revelations here, but you might still find something of interest, and if you are completely new to the subject of dreadlocks it’s definitely worth a browse.

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PerfectDreadlocks.com

I’ve seen better visual design…but PerfectDreadlocks.com does have a fair bit of decent info, including an interesting product review section, paying particular attention to residue, scent, ease of use etc. A pretty thorough website overall.

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