This is Derek, and his newly dreadful 'do started off my week. Derek and his girlfriend traveled from the great state of California to get styled and see the sights. We finished up his 70+ dreads in just over 6 hours.
Showing posts with label dreadlocks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dreadlocks. Show all posts
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Our Daily Dread
It's summertime, and the shop is crazy busy! As soon as the sun comes out, good folks start coming outta the woodwork looking to get their locks started at the shop. I love being this busy, but with less shop time to spare, the posts get fewer and farther between! Sorry, dudes. I promise I'll post more often, okay? Starting now!
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Kate at 6+ Months
It's always a pleasure to see Kate and catch up, and it's a treat to see how rad her dreads are after just a few months! They're felted up tight, and they look great - if I do say so myself ;)
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Our Daily Dread
When Angela walked in she had her hair tied up in a braid. That was one hella big braid, friends, and you can see what I was dealing with when I took that hair-tie out. I'm not sure the picture really captures the sheer magnitude of hair on this woman's head. It was EPIC. With hair this dense and long, I knew I was settling in for the night. (Didn't think it would take quite as long as it did, ever the optimist. Thank goodness for small noggins!) We kept the sections small, and wove the hair all the way to the bottom. She ended up with over 70 tightly woven and tapered locks, and a ponytail the size of.. well, a pony's tail. From start to finish, this took just over 9 hours. I think we're both pretty happy with the results! (And that we got out before midnight.)
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Dread Week!
Dread Week has come and gone, and as predicted by a realistic few I had no time to update the blog amongst the craziness that was last week! (It's the Terminal City RollerGirls Season Opener on Saturday night, so in addition to making some of the most rad dreads around I've been leaving the shop to go directly to practice. I have no expectations that practice will make perfect, but I'm counting on it making me less prone to falling on my face in front of 2,000 people.)
Here's what was keeping me so busy - a week's worth of Our Daily Dread!
A giant thanks to everyone who came in last week (including Sioban with her maintenance) you made a very, very busy week a ton of fun. And I'm totally not just saying that. Big time good times!
Here's what was keeping me so busy - a week's worth of Our Daily Dread!
You've already met Shanda ;)
This is Salome, who once again proves the point that fine hair is no obstacle to awesome locks!
Caitlyn (and her last "traditional" salon experience in a while) introduced me to Mrs. Brown's Boys, a seriously inappropriate Irish comedy that had me laughing so hard I snorted. In public. And yet I still really like her ;)
Kathryn's pre-lightened hair was so wicked to dread! I love blond locks, and I'm really stoked to see how they look come maintenance time! (She also brought a day's worth of 'Community' episodes, thus introducing me to the the reason I got nothing accomplished on my day off.)
A giant thanks to everyone who came in last week (including Sioban with her maintenance) you made a very, very busy week a ton of fun. And I'm totally not just saying that. Big time good times!
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Our Daily Dread
Welcome to Dread Week! Yes, I know some of you insist on calling it Spring Break, but you get a big fat "whatever, dude" from me. I'm just going on what I've got on the books every day this week, and trust me - it's DREAD WEEK! Starting us off is Shanda and her 74 new locks!
Check back for more pics of my super fresh shop-started locks every day this week! As always, feel free to leave your questions in the comments below. If you're looking for dreads (or just a little advice) shoot me an email any time at scissorninja@gmail.com
Check back for more pics of my super fresh shop-started locks every day this week! As always, feel free to leave your questions in the comments below. If you're looking for dreads (or just a little advice) shoot me an email any time at scissorninja@gmail.com
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Check In!
It's been a month since we started Ingrid's dreads, and look at the difference already! They're really coming into their own, and thanks to her attention to maintenance they're already felting. It still makes me smile every time I compare fresh dreads to their slightly lived-in counterparts!
Ingrid had a few very small dreads at her hairline that she was concerned would unravel, so we rewove the new growth to lend support at the base (you can see the one in the first picture that's sticking out again!) but otherwise, they're good to wait until we get a bit more length at the roots. Other than that, we tidied up a few ends that were curling loose - a totally normal (though wicked frustrating) situation for new locks. With a little extra work incorporated into her normal maintenance routine I expect they'll be coming together nicely when next we meet!
Ingrid had a few very small dreads at her hairline that she was concerned would unravel, so we rewove the new growth to lend support at the base (you can see the one in the first picture that's sticking out again!) but otherwise, they're good to wait until we get a bit more length at the roots. Other than that, we tidied up a few ends that were curling loose - a totally normal (though wicked frustrating) situation for new locks. With a little extra work incorporated into her normal maintenance routine I expect they'll be coming together nicely when next we meet!
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Our Daily Dread
I admit it. All last week, I was mentally prepping for Ingrid's dreadlock sesh on Thursday. I had sat down with her the week previous and discussed the game plan, and her plan included LOTS of locks! After seeing my post on Susan's dreads, she was ready to move forward on achieving her vision (and I was ready for another very late night! )
Like Susan, Ingrid's hair was a dream to dread - but by the first row I knew that the time was going to fly by a little faster on this one. We broke once for lunch, but otherwise powered our way through bottom-to-top in just about 8 and a half hours! Props to Ingrid for being so patient with a process that isn't necessarily painful, but isn't always so pleasant, either. Seriously, she managed to work! And read! Mind blowing!
We had a goal of approximately 150 dreads for Ingrid's final count, and we came damn close at 148. (This is me feeling kinda smug, actually.) She's got a lot of homework ahead of her to keep these dreads separate and knotting at the roots, but she's up for it! I'm really excited to see her in a few months for maintenance, and I'll keep you posted ;)
(These dreads were totally made possible by my buddy Chic (of Public Frenemy) who answered my desperate call for caffeine at hour 6.5. Thanks Chic!)
Like Susan, Ingrid's hair was a dream to dread - but by the first row I knew that the time was going to fly by a little faster on this one. We broke once for lunch, but otherwise powered our way through bottom-to-top in just about 8 and a half hours! Props to Ingrid for being so patient with a process that isn't necessarily painful, but isn't always so pleasant, either. Seriously, she managed to work! And read! Mind blowing!
We had a goal of approximately 150 dreads for Ingrid's final count, and we came damn close at 148. (This is me feeling kinda smug, actually.) She's got a lot of homework ahead of her to keep these dreads separate and knotting at the roots, but she's up for it! I'm really excited to see her in a few months for maintenance, and I'll keep you posted ;)
(These dreads were totally made possible by my buddy Chic (of Public Frenemy) who answered my desperate call for caffeine at hour 6.5. Thanks Chic!)
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Our Daily Dread
Our before and after today comes from Lindsey, who dropped in on Saturday on her way back out east. Lindsey's hair was in great shape - too great, in fact. She had a ton of hair, and it was like silk! Fine hair often works just awesome for dreadlocks, but very healthy hair with a tight cuticle is slippery as hell. I promise, I can dread any hair type with any combination of texture and density (yes, even yours) but some are certainly more difficult than others and this is one of those cases. I knew that to knot it up tight I'd have to backcomb more than I like and it'd take me forever, so instead I busted out one of my favourite tricks and did a little pre-treatment.
When I know a client's hair is going to fight me, there are a couple things I can do to stack the deck in my favour. The easiest is using one of Knotty Boy's most popular maintenance products to give the hair a slightly rougher texture. I misted Lindsey's hair all over with water and massaged in a small amount of Locksteady Tightening Gel. (It's a wicked tip for people starting dreads themselves at home, too!) When blowdried, the all- natural gel coats the hair and gives it just the smallest bit of "grip". Lindsey was able to retain so much more length than she would have otherwise, and I'm sure that 45 minutes under the dryer saved us at least 3 hours in the end! Here she is after her 8 hour sesh, with her 68 new dreadlocks!
Friday, February 4, 2011
3 Month Update: Kate
It's been a couple of months since Kate was in for her bang trim and checkup. Here she is after her first real maintenance, with six synth highlights added for some flash.
Last time Kate was in I was impressed, her dreads were well on their way. In the photo on the right you can see the difference between the freshly woven roots I worked on today, and her locked up felted mids and ends. I'm really stoked to see how this head of hair changes with all the adventures Kate has planned for the next couple years!
Last time Kate was in I was impressed, her dreads were well on their way. In the photo on the right you can see the difference between the freshly woven roots I worked on today, and her locked up felted mids and ends. I'm really stoked to see how this head of hair changes with all the adventures Kate has planned for the next couple years!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Our Daily Dread
Yay! Today's the day I finally got to meet Jeff!
We've been emailing back and forth over the last couple weeks gearing up for the big dread sesh today. I totally knew what look Jeff was going for when he came in, the x factor being what he and his hair already had going on. (Knowing someone wants lots of smallish dreads is daunting enough, but without a personal consult I don't know if I'm looking at 4 hours of work or 10.) Jeff's hair was pretty dense, with coarse strands in a nice wave, so I already knew that I could get good sized locks without having to sacrifice a smaller section size. As for the coarseness, I'd have to do a test row.
There's a misconception out there that coarser hair is easier to dread. Sooooo not the case. I'll take fine hair over coarse any day of the week. The coarser the actual strand is, the more resistant it is to doing what the hell I tell it to, and staying put. It absolutely will dread up, but it'll take more diligence to keep it that way. I've had coarser hair unweave itself in front of my very eyes, and had dread sessions take double the length as I had to crochet everything twice! I have a few tricks up my sleeve for dealing with resistance, hence the test row. Luckily, the first few sections dreaded up a dream; no need to bring out my bag of tricks. We got rolling proper just after 11am.
We finished up tonight at 5. I think I counted 64 dreads, a number we're both happy with, and in a couple of weeks the coverage is going to be awesome. He's pretty stoked to show them off, which sorta makes me a proud mama... which is a bit weird, I admit. (But not as weird as 'Dancing With Cats', and Jeff'll back me up on that.)
We've been emailing back and forth over the last couple weeks gearing up for the big dread sesh today. I totally knew what look Jeff was going for when he came in, the x factor being what he and his hair already had going on. (Knowing someone wants lots of smallish dreads is daunting enough, but without a personal consult I don't know if I'm looking at 4 hours of work or 10.) Jeff's hair was pretty dense, with coarse strands in a nice wave, so I already knew that I could get good sized locks without having to sacrifice a smaller section size. As for the coarseness, I'd have to do a test row.
There's a misconception out there that coarser hair is easier to dread. Sooooo not the case. I'll take fine hair over coarse any day of the week. The coarser the actual strand is, the more resistant it is to doing what the hell I tell it to, and staying put. It absolutely will dread up, but it'll take more diligence to keep it that way. I've had coarser hair unweave itself in front of my very eyes, and had dread sessions take double the length as I had to crochet everything twice! I have a few tricks up my sleeve for dealing with resistance, hence the test row. Luckily, the first few sections dreaded up a dream; no need to bring out my bag of tricks. We got rolling proper just after 11am.
We finished up tonight at 5. I think I counted 64 dreads, a number we're both happy with, and in a couple of weeks the coverage is going to be awesome. He's pretty stoked to show them off, which sorta makes me a proud mama... which is a bit weird, I admit. (But not as weird as 'Dancing With Cats', and Jeff'll back me up on that.)
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Our Daily Dread
It's a documented fact: the holidays make people do crazy things. Take me, for instance. Last week, when Susan came in for her dreadlock appointment she presented me with this inspiration image:
And like a crazy person, I said "Sure! No problem!"
Sheesh...
After explaining the amount of homework and aftercare required, I attained Susan's solemn promise to meticulously maintain and palmroll each of her million tiny locks, and we got started. Eleven (yeah, eleven) hours later, we had transformed her hair completely from a frustrating curly mop to the dreadlocks of her dreams. (She even let me call her Chad, thus allowing me to fulfill my oath to never again attempt to install that many dreads on anyone except Chad.)
I will not do this for just anyone who asks. There are certain textures of hair that will be so maintenance-heavy with this number of dreads that I won't even start it. Tiny dreads are like the puppy a kid desperately wants at Christmas. When that kid realizes how much work goes into taking care of it, the level of attention goes way down. And who gets stuck with taking care of things? Me! I'm not going to spend twelve hours creating 150 dreads that will just become 75 anyways. (At least 90% of my Reconstruction jobs are due to sections being started far too small with way too many dreads - leading to neglect, massive joining, or falling apart.) Every once in a while, I'll meet someone who's got both the texture and the temperament to take it on.
I was beyond stoked to see Susan so happy with the outcome. We had a great time hanging out and talking about books, and laughing about stuff I can't even remember I was so tired! I got an email from her the next day promising to do me proud, and letting me know that her palmrolling routine takes 2.5 hours! See?! It really is a lot of work!
And like a crazy person, I said "Sure! No problem!"
Sheesh...
After explaining the amount of homework and aftercare required, I attained Susan's solemn promise to meticulously maintain and palmroll each of her million tiny locks, and we got started. Eleven (yeah, eleven) hours later, we had transformed her hair completely from a frustrating curly mop to the dreadlocks of her dreams. (She even let me call her Chad, thus allowing me to fulfill my oath to never again attempt to install that many dreads on anyone except Chad.)
I will not do this for just anyone who asks. There are certain textures of hair that will be so maintenance-heavy with this number of dreads that I won't even start it. Tiny dreads are like the puppy a kid desperately wants at Christmas. When that kid realizes how much work goes into taking care of it, the level of attention goes way down. And who gets stuck with taking care of things? Me! I'm not going to spend twelve hours creating 150 dreads that will just become 75 anyways. (At least 90% of my Reconstruction jobs are due to sections being started far too small with way too many dreads - leading to neglect, massive joining, or falling apart.) Every once in a while, I'll meet someone who's got both the texture and the temperament to take it on.
I was beyond stoked to see Susan so happy with the outcome. We had a great time hanging out and talking about books, and laughing about stuff I can't even remember I was so tired! I got an email from her the next day promising to do me proud, and letting me know that her palmrolling routine takes 2.5 hours! See?! It really is a lot of work!
Friday, November 12, 2010
I'm Just A Girl Who Can't Say No...
So I've been laid up with the Fresh Meat Flu for the last few days, major side-effects including runny nose, exhaustion, and near-constant complaining. I know you're thinking, "Hey! Isn't being stuck in bed the perfect opportunity for blogging?", and I feel you - but really, you didn't want to hear about it. Really. Thanks to a couple of immune buddies, some homemade ice cream, and a sh*tload of comic books, I'm on the mend and back at work. Too bad my client wasn't able to show up. Burn, dude! But, as lame as a no-show can be (life happens!) there's a flipside to every coin...
So last Saturday, I rolled into work after spending a very early, very long morning at a meeting for the Derby league. I was stoked to come in and spend a mellow couple hours with some long-time haircut clients. So I get started on my 2 o'clock...when my other 2 o'clock shows. Wha? Yeah. My 2 o'clock dreadlock appointment. From out of town. Who can't come back. Who I've never heard of.
Oh man. Clearly there's been a pretty major miscommunication at some point... what to do? I couldn't bail on my booked appointments, so Brenna and I struck a deal to start a late night dread sesh at 4pm.
This lady has a lot of hair. A lot of long hair. She pretty much made my week when she told me that she wanted "quarter-sized" locks. (Translate that to bigger than normal.) Oh man, her hair dreaded like a dream! (Mad props to Carolyn the Coffee Fairy for keeping that dream alive.) She was really sweet to boot. Even in the larger size Brenna ended up with 59 locks. At 6.5 hours, it was definitely a later night than either of us had bargained for - and it ended up being a 12 hour day for me in the end. But we were both so happy with the outcome, I'm really glad we took the time.
The only real downside to taking the appointment was that I ended up missing Derby practice that night. According to firsthand accounts, it was "the most brutal" seen yet. So it's probably safe to assume I'll get my ass handed to me tonight. If you want to see the carnage firsthand, I'll be showing off my bruises afterwards at The Cobalt for the 4th Team Unveiling Party. Deets here.
So last Saturday, I rolled into work after spending a very early, very long morning at a meeting for the Derby league. I was stoked to come in and spend a mellow couple hours with some long-time haircut clients. So I get started on my 2 o'clock...when my other 2 o'clock shows. Wha? Yeah. My 2 o'clock dreadlock appointment. From out of town. Who can't come back. Who I've never heard of.
Oh man. Clearly there's been a pretty major miscommunication at some point... what to do? I couldn't bail on my booked appointments, so Brenna and I struck a deal to start a late night dread sesh at 4pm.
This lady has a lot of hair. A lot of long hair. She pretty much made my week when she told me that she wanted "quarter-sized" locks. (Translate that to bigger than normal.) Oh man, her hair dreaded like a dream! (Mad props to Carolyn the Coffee Fairy for keeping that dream alive.) She was really sweet to boot. Even in the larger size Brenna ended up with 59 locks. At 6.5 hours, it was definitely a later night than either of us had bargained for - and it ended up being a 12 hour day for me in the end. But we were both so happy with the outcome, I'm really glad we took the time.
The only real downside to taking the appointment was that I ended up missing Derby practice that night. According to firsthand accounts, it was "the most brutal" seen yet. So it's probably safe to assume I'll get my ass handed to me tonight. If you want to see the carnage firsthand, I'll be showing off my bruises afterwards at The Cobalt for the 4th Team Unveiling Party. Deets here.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Our Daily Dread
Yesterday, I had the pleasure of hanging out with Vincent. We first met about two months ago when he dropped in for a consult, only to have me turn him away; alas, his hair was too short.
So I was happy to see his name on the books in the morning, and stoked because dreads are the perfect way to dust off the cobwebs from the weekend!
Vincent requested average/slightly-larger-than-average sections, so I gave him the spiel about length loss (a la Ariel) and when I got the okay, off we went.
It's not tuff to tell that Vincent is a pretty fun guy to spend an afternoon with. We chatted about all sorts of stuff, which is how I learned about his awesome Origami CD cases - a really great idea for bands who don't wanna have to buy a case-lot of jewel cases. For more info, check out Vincent's website here!
So I was happy to see his name on the books in the morning, and stoked because dreads are the perfect way to dust off the cobwebs from the weekend!
Vincent requested average/slightly-larger-than-average sections, so I gave him the spiel about length loss (a la Ariel) and when I got the okay, off we went.
It's not tuff to tell that Vincent is a pretty fun guy to spend an afternoon with. We chatted about all sorts of stuff, which is how I learned about his awesome Origami CD cases - a really great idea for bands who don't wanna have to buy a case-lot of jewel cases. For more info, check out Vincent's website here!
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