Hairstyle Ideas: Dreadlocks

Hairstyle ideas can be never-ending but there are quite a few that are here to stay. When Bob Marley let his hair grow into dreads, little did he know he was actually starting a new trend. Dreadlocks are one such kind of hairstyle ideas that are often confused with hair braids. Dreadlocks are a natty kind of a hairstyle; the hair is matted in this case. Braids are created by plaiting the hair.

What makes these Dreadlocks so deadly?
Dreadlocks are really of ancient origin. Lenny Kravitz, with his deadly dreadlocks in Are you Gonna Go My Way caused quite a few to definitely go his way! Most of the time, the use of hair and scissors is avoided to allow the formations of such dreads. Dreadlocks refer to that particular hairstyle that is achieved naturally by letting the hair mat together. There are several methods to achieve dreadlocks.

Dreadlocks can be traced to the Rastafarians of Jamaica. People from various communities, across the globe have sported dreadlocks with great élan. Dreadlocks can even be traced to Hinduism. The Hindu Diety, Lord Shiva is described in the scriptures to wear twisted locks of hair (Ja Taa). The sadhus are known to wear these even today. The Rastafari wear these dreadlocks to express their inner spirituality. Besides, with the reggae music and culture gaining popularity as time went by, these were worn to make a notable fashion statement by most rappers, actors, authors and even athletes. Some people consider it, as a style and others, seem to think of it as a religious belief to wear such dreadlocks.

Various ways to achieve Dreadlocks:
One can use backcombing to achieve dreadlocks. Here, you can control the size and the shape of the dreads and they can range from being thick to really thin and sexy. There are certain disadvantages when it comes to backcombing your hair. The initial hours are pretty trying and would need you to go slow with the process. Another method to achieve dreadlocks would be the wool hat rubbing method. The individual can do this on his/her own. For this process, you need to take a woolen sweater and rub it over the hair in circles. The problem with this method is that your head can really hurt and it may sometimes takes as long as three years for your hair to actually start looking like dreadlocks. The dreads may even form in an uneven fashion, sometimes huge or sometimes flat in their appearance. Yet another way to achieve dreadlocks is called the dread perming. This is an instant way to achieve dreadlocks. But the disadvantage of the process is that it is a chemical process and would require professional maintenance. Twisting your hair is an all-natural way to have dreads as well. Here, you can control the size of dreads and the way they form. Besides, this method is easily available in most beauty salons and the charge is usually lower than the perming method.

Some hairstyle ideas have downsides as well but as far as dreadlocks are concerned, there are many rumors associated with it. Having dreadlocks does not mean you cannot wash your hair. Dreads can be washed in the same manner as one would wash a sponge. Wash your dreadlock with residue free soaps and shampoos. Another such wild rumor that exists about dreadlocks is that avoiding the use of a comb would help one to get better dreads. Neglecting your hair is not the only way to maintain dreadlocks. In fact, this makes it less pleasing to the eye.

Rubber bands do not always break hair and cause the thinning of dreadlocks. If used correctly, rubber bands can help prevent the loose hair from straying and can help the locking of the hair.

If you are planning to wear dreadlocks, then I would suggest you have a word with your hair stylist to go about the right way, which would suit your hair type. Once you have the proper know-how, go ahead and sport your new dreadlocks with great confidence.