Jan
18
2010
18
2010
Three Year Dreadiversary
Filed under: Dreadlocks, Simplifying
I have made it to the THREE year mark…that “magical” time when dreads come into their own. The rumored “three year bliss” does exist. My dreads are finally long enough, tight enough, wonderful enough to love fully every day.
This year has been a crazy one. Full of wonder and magical moments. Deep joy…and deep sorrow. Endings and beginnings.
It started out with us being back in Bozeman and living in a house.
We found an amazing midwife and friend.
We lived temporarily in Boulder, CO for 6 weeks.
Then, my brother almost died.
Then, my grandma died.
Lucy was born!
Family visited.
And more family visited.
We bought the Minnie Winnie.
We did some traveling and some more traveling.
We sold the Minnie Winnie.
We bought the Big Alpine.
Then, we sold everything AGAIN and went back on the road.
With TWO kids this time.
We explored Washington, Oregon, and California.
We flew back to Iowa.
We flew back to Montana.
We drove 15 hours back to Minnesota.
We flew back to the RV in California.
Whew!
And that was the year of 2009. All without the stress of doing my hair.
LOVE IT.
Yes, LOVE. I have not once regretted my decision to dread my hair. I really can’t imagine myself without them now. They’re just a part of my being.
Some observations in the third year:
- My washing/drying process hasn’t changed much. I still wash about once a week (every 2-3 days in the summer) with diluted Dr. Bronner’s peppermint soap and rinse with diluted apple cider vinegar. I usually dry them a little bit to fluff them up. I will occasionally wash just my bangs mid-way through the week.
- Many of you have commented about the loose hair that I have in the front. It’s always been that way…they just never dreaded up, and I like them that way!
- I dye them blonde about every 3-4 months. I go to the Aveda training school in West Des Moines whenever we’re back in Iowa. The first time was pretty funny…they didn’t really know what to do with me and my crazy hair, but after they figured it out, it was fast and cheap! I love them blonde and I don’t really ever plan on dying them back to my natural color. I have been throwing around the idea of putting in some color on a few dreads…like purple. I love purple.
- My hair continues to be a spiritual journey for me. They have taught me about acceptance, change, contentment…and I continue to learn from them daily! I choose to be “set apart” from the norm of our culture…which parallels my walk with Jesus.
- I’ve been wearing them down a lot more now that they are longer and I like the versatility. I wore them back/up/under a bandana for 3 years and I paid those dues…it’s time to let them fly! I wear a rubber band around my wrist all the time though…I probably put them up and down 3-4 times a day depending on what I’m doing at the time.
- They still do their own thing. Some ends are looser than others. Some are super short, some are very long. Some are stick straight and others are like a winding country road. Some of the roots are loose and some are tight. And I like it that way. You cannot “tame” dreads, and that’s the beauty of it. I really don’t mess with them much except to wash them.
- Lucy loves my dreads. They are her built in toys and teether.
- I looove beads in my dreads. They make me happy.
- I have an incredibly supportive husband who loves my dreads.
- How long will I keep them? Forever I hope. When I am old, I shall wear purple…and DREADS!
In this third year of dreadiness, I have had the chance to meet up with more fun dready mamas. In Portland, I met up with Shauna and Monica. I love those beautiful, talented women! And of course Bethany and Jordan and Gillian in Eugene with their crazy amazing dreads.
In October, I was able to experience the “dready love fest”. I had the chance to visit Stephanie, “The Dread Goddess” at Akemi Salon in Portland (on far right in photo below). She did some much needed maintenance on my dreads…I recommend her HIGHLY! You can read about it on Denise’s blog here. For those of you just starting out and want to skip a lot of the craziness, she “crochets” dreads instead of just backcombing and they look great right from the beginning. It’s worth traveling to Portland to see her! Love love love.
When you have dreads and you are able to spend time in the presence of others who have dreads…especially other women, there is just something magical about it. There is such acceptance and love…it’s awesome. That’s why I love traveling so much…so I can find all of you!! Anyone up for a huge dready retreat somewhere where we can all be together? Hmmmmm….
Fast forward to right now…we are in San Diego, where we have spent time with the lovely Boho Girl, Denise and her family again. She took all of the amazing photos of my dreads. Thank you thank you thank you Denise…for making me feel beautiful!! We had a wonderful time communing and eating together…the time flew by too fast. She wrote about our time together on her blog here. If you aren’t reading her blog on a regular basis, you should be!
Here’s to another year of adventures…on the road, with dreadlocks!
If you are new to my blog, here are the links to:
Why I Have Dreadlocks
One Year Dreadiversary
Two Year Dreadiversary
My Dreadlock Journey – A Photo Gallery
Photos used with permission – by Denise Andrade – Boho Photography
Posted by Sara @ 11:42 pm | Leave a Comment
23
2010
Hi Anna…they just dye it like normal hair. It does have chemicals…but Aveda is about as gentle as you can get…they use plant extracts, etc. It’s fun, but it’s a lot of work to “maintain” it if you don’t want dark roots all the time.
23
2010
what a fun blog!! cool dreads, congrats on three years!
24
2010
Love them. I have thought about having them numbers of times. Love the new look on your header!
25
2010
Lovely, I have wanted dreads for a little over a year now and am ready to do it now that my hair has finally grown to between my chin and shoulders. Unfortunately I can’t find any friends or family that will help. I guess I get to keep staring at yours in longing.
26
2010
It’s interesting to read about your 2009. My 2009 was quite sporadic as well and involved my husband and I traveling a lot, moving, more travel and selling things that we owned. It feels good to be settled for at least now, although now I have the travel bug!
27
2010
Can I ask you where you got your beautiful hoodie?
27
2010
Karin…it’s made by Bethany at One Love Creations. http://www.onelovecreations.etsy.com
I did a giveaway on my blog about a month ago:
http://walkslowlylivewildly.com/2009/12/14/one-love-creations-and-indigo-inspired-giveaway/
It’s super comfy! That one is the Lady Hawk, but I also have the Bella Top and several wraps. Love them all! She is not actively stocking until March (they just moved) but she does have some things in stock now in limited sizes.
29
2010
Sara,
Love the dreads! I’ve thought about it off and on for years…now I’m ready to commit. Glad to find out about the Thai crochet. I’m a Christian, unschooling, home-birthing mama to 4 and my dh says he doesn’t mind. My 9 year-old daughter is extremely upset about my decision…thinks they look like “junk” (smile). We are having dialogue about how everyone is different. Any suggestions? I don’t want to upset her, and I feel strongly pulled toward experiencing my own Dreadlock Journey. Any thoughts or suggestions?
God Bless Dreads,
Caroline
31
2010
Hi Sara,
Just had to say how much I enjoyed this post. Goodness, it seems like just yesterday you made the decision to do the dreads (I was fairly new to your blog at the time). They look fabulous now. Love that you can track the last few years major events by them
.
Libby
1
2010
Thank you for the link to One Love Creations!
I would love to try dreads, unfortunately the hospital does not look too kindly upon self expression…I can dream, though!
5
2010
hi sara. today is the first day i have read your blog (i had to trace my steps back to remember how i found you. i read http://abeautifulmess.typepad.com…and clicked over to http://mimresponds.blogspot.com/ via a comment she had left and then she linked me to your blog post about minnie-winnie)… i got to reading and funny thing is, i just got dreads myself. they took waaay longer than yours. my boyfriend put all but 2 of them in himself (i couldnt get anyone else to do it, but he did a good job). we (he) started sun jan 24th and didnt finish until thurs the 28th. i dont have any dready girlfriends yet but i hope to make some along the way. we actually do a lot of traveling too. we were living in asheville, nc this past fall. now we live in tahoe. we are planning to check out portland, or and seattle for possible this summer. anywho. nice to “meet” you
jess
17
2010
Hi Sara,
I was wondering if you know of any other reputable stylists who off the dreading service? I would consider making a trip to Portland, but only if there wasn’t anyone else closer to home (CO.)
Thanks so much!
~Ruby
5
2010
Ok, I quite liked you before, but “When I am old I shall wear purple…and dreads” completely cemented it
I’m still loling from that.
17
2010
Hi Sara! I love the journey over the three year span! They have really turned out Gorgeous!!! I have a question though, do you find that you avoid activities that would involve your hair getting dirty? I would love to get dreadlocks, but our family and I love riding four wheelers, working in our woods, ect….and that would mean dust, mud, and sandy/crick water getting into them. I guess I’m wondering if dreads are more appropriate for certain lifestyles.
17
2010
Hi Jes…
It’s really not that hard to wash dreads either…if you wanted to wash them more often. Dreads are great…but especially for those with busy lifestyles who don’t want to “do” their hair much.
No, I would just put a bandana or wrap over my hair and go for it!
7
2010
AHHH, its my 2 favorite bloggers in one post – my heart might explode with happiness!!
Love boho girl, love you!
janene
23
2010
hey sara!
congratulations on your 3 years! a couple of years ago i found your blog and felt inspired to dread my hair and do something “out of the ordinary” that i knew so many people, including my teenager, wouldn’t understand. then i chickened out… bad. today i was thinking about it again and wondering just *when* i would be grown up enough to step out of my comfort zone – then tonight i find myself back at your blog. strange the way things work. i can’t promise it will happen this week, this month or at all but you’ve given me cause to wonder what am i so afraid of? what do i stand for? what am i waiting for? thanks for continuing to provide inspiration and the example of a woman living a powerful love filled life!
12
2010
Hello dude,i like this Your New site in truth much. attain u allow suggestion as my blog? thanks for Your attention
17
2010
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18
2010
Hallo adminstrator , i w/ u site. LOL Please come to my blog
6
2010
Hi Sara,
I’ve been a reader for a long time and also a new dreadie. Thanks for all the info and inspiration! Your dreads look great – how will you get the new growth at the roots to dread up? I’ve read about a method of taking the root in between 2 fingers and “rubbing” it in to capture the new hairs. Wonder how well this will work to dread up the hair…What are your ideas?
Thanks!
25
2010
I have really long, red hair, and I am VERY close to getting them spun into dreads. I feel that it’s an extenuation of the new person the Father is making me into as Christ rises again to live His life through me. Thanks for the inspiration — I’m reading through all your dread posts to see if it’s easier or less work than regular maintenance (I gave up shampoo two years ago).
Love,
Lauren.