As dreads become more popular,

and more accepted, many people are asking “should I dye my dreads?”  My response is usually “certainly, depending on what stage of development the dreads are in”.   There are a few requirements to be met before colour should be done.

Should I dye my dreads

should only be asked if the following conditions have been met:

• If your dreads are over a year old.  Again, this is only applies if your dreads are over a year old and locked.  There are many who have just gotten dreadlocks that feel they can do anything right away.  Rinsing out the colour will ruin the new dreads and require you to start over from scratch possibly.
• If you dreads are in great condition:  not thin and breaking in certain areas or super dry.  You condition and oil very well and ensure you moisturize regularly.  
• The colour you have chosen is not very light so you have to lighten or bleach the dreads to death.  If you lighten or bleach the hair to be a very light blond, you have to be careful not to breaks the ends of the dreads where they are usually thinner.
• You are eating properly so the hair is getting the nutrients it needs to revitalize itself so the dreads maintain their good condition.

I have had occasion when people

get tired of their dreads having a reddish tint after a while and wanted them coloured.  If you chose to colour your dreads, please note that the above recommendations still apply.  The colour also needs to be  squeezed out of the whole dread to remove.   

Should I dye my dreads: at home; try not to do this near your walls.  One slight movement will splatter a wide area, and that is a lot of cleanup.

By Paula Barker, Silkie Locks Hair Design

Buy my e-book:  Dreadlocks:  A Hairstylist’s Manifest (Silkielock.com/Amazon.com)