When you start dreads, there are so many things you have to think about, how to keep dreads

smelling good probably never comes up!  It should not, but I have found that lifestyle choices have a significant impact on how other people accept your dreadlocks!

There are many who will dismiss others who will not accept them and this necessary for 

your self esteem.  If you try anything in life, some are going to like it and some won’t.  In the case of wearing dreadlocks, you will find a few of the former.  Many do not like dreadlocks because of various reasons, but in this case we will deal with how they smell. 

I mentioned lifestyle choices because some who wear dreadlocks, also like to smoke up.  They may have started this recreationally

and it developed into a habit while their hair was not locked.  It was easy to wash out the smell by taking a quick shower but with dreadlocks, it is more complicated.  You will have some challenges washing your dreadlocks so frequently. Not only do they take time to dry, they will need to be retwisted more regularly.  If you don’t wash them regularly, the smell tends to stay in the hair, and over time it starts to become familiar.

When you are in an area for long periods, smells etc. become familiar, and soon you cannot 

tell the difference.  This is the same thing that happens to smokers of cigarettes and otherwise. Your sense of smell deteriorates and you are unaware of the effect of your smell on others.  Hair picks up smells from cooking, oils you use and from the environment you frequent. If you think you are disguising that pot smell by using scents, be warned that eventually, a regular shampoo is the only thing that will get rid of it.  

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Yes, you take a shower and that removes the smells on your

body but what to do about the hair?  Here are a few things you should consider if this is something you do:

• Wear a cover on your hair if you will be in that environment
• Air out the area you are in so smells do not cling to walls or carpets etc.
• Close your closets or move far away so the smell does not stay in your clothes
• If you can, try to have sufficient air time before you mingle with others.

Many times it is the little things that get people starting stereotypes, so to stop this happening,  you need to know how to keep dreads smelling good.

By Paula Barker, Silkie Locks Hair Design