FAQ | Dread Balling | Palm Rolling | Rubbing | Crocheting

Clockwise Rubbing

Finally the key to tight roots!! This seems to be the MOST effective way to lock up roots. Even mature dreads have some unknotted hair at the roots but clockwise rubbing makes an "instant" difference. In 10 minutes of rubbing you will notice results. Just grab a dread at the root about 1cm from the scalp. Squeeze it lightly between your scalp and the tips of your fingers rub it in clockwise circles, switch hands if you need to but remember to stay with the same clockwise direction. Why clockwise? Because nearly everyone's hair grows in a clockwise whirl pattern on their scalp. Rubbing the hair around in this direction works with it's natural "grain" rather than against it.

After a couple minutes the dread should have a little "poof" or wad of knotty hair at the root. This is what you want. After all the roots are like this you can palm roll a tiny bit of wax into each one. These poof's will quickly tighten over the next week or so. Help them along by finger rubbing them and or palm rolling them.

Products can either help or hinder this process depending on when and how you use them so it is important to get this part right. Here are some tips to get the most out of clock wise rubbing and the products:

Clockwise Rubbing is a way of making knots. When you are trying to make knots you want clean hair with as much friction as possible. Locking Accelerator is great for improving friction, especially in clean hair. If you don't have Accelerator, freshly washed and dried hair is much better than dirty hair. You always want to create knots when you have the least amount of wax in the hair. If you try this right after waxing it's not gunna work. The wax can be used after the knots are created to help them lock. Only a small amount is needed.

Clockwise rubbing can be done in the shower as well. For best results wash and rinse your dreads like normal. Then soap them up all over again, you'll get mad suds. Now with the soap all over the hair clockwise rub the dreads...When you're done rinse them well. They will feel tight and fluffy when they dry...shweet!

Rubberbands and Clockwise Rubbing

Rubberbands actually make the clockwise rubbing easier . The hair you are rubbing is usually unlocked growth right at the scalp, and since the rubberbands are about 1cm from the scalp they mark the perfect place to hold it. This will give the hair enough room at the root to form knots easily. You should always have any rubberbands at the roots snug but not tight. They should be tight enough that they will stay where you put them but if you attempt to roll them up or down the dread it should be possible to move the without much effort. The reason for this is that the hair needs a little room to form knots and adjust itself as it's dreading. If it's locked down too tight it can actually work against you.

Tip Rubbing

Grab the dread about 1 1/2cm from the tip (the tip is end that is opposite the root) and squeeze it between your thumb and forefinger. Now press the tip that extends past your thumb and fingers firmly into the palm of your other hand. While pressing, rub the tip against your palm in a circular direction about 50 times or until you get tired. You should notice the hair at the tip start to tangle and tighten and maybe flare out a bit. After you've rolled it and gotten it as tight as you tight and as tangled as you can, roll it in a circular motion between your fingers, much like finger rubbing. This will help tighten the knots a bit. If it doesn't feel very knotted you can go back to rubbing it in your palm and repeat. After you get it nice and knotty it's time to finish it off. Roll it back an forth a few times with a little wax, it will flatten just a little and you'll end up with a nice looking tip. Now you can leave it as is if it feels like it will stay or you can use a rubberband to hold it. The rubberband should be tight enough that it's not going anywhere.

Finger Rubbing

Finger rubbing is great for making knots in the roots, tips and even the body of a dread. It can be used as an alternative to palm rolling in thinner dreads and it's the best way to make dread balls out of loose hairs that need to be stuck back into their dread. Again you're rubbing the hair in a circular motion, clockwise if possible, to create knots. How you hold the hair and the size of the circles will vary and that's fine. You'll figure out what works best for you with some practice. You'll probably do the majority of the rubbing between your thumb and forefinger (pointer finger) and you'll no doubt switch off hands as your fingers get tired. Of course the same ideas apply hear as far as products go. Clean is great, clean and Accelerator is even better.