FAQ: Product FAQs

If you use Knotty Boy and the backcombing method, they will stick up a bit for the first week or so — but one thing you can do to minimize the Side Show Bob look is this: When you begin backcombing your hair, hold each lock straight down beside your head rather than straight out or up, and then backcomb it. Then at least it won't be everywhere. It will still stand out a bit, but that will calm down a lot over the next week or so, especially if you wear a hat or beanie to mash it down. Also it will calm down after your first washing, but be sure to read up on that on our FAQ and Instruction pages before you do that.

See our Shipping FAQ pages for detailed information on this and other shipping related questions!

You should probably let your new dreads go for at LEAST a week before you wash them for the first time, two weeks if you can stand it. When you first put your dreads in, they will be only made up of loose hair stuck together in locks with the wax, until about 3-6 weeks later when they actually start to mat and dread. So they are pretty fragile in the first few weeks and don't take to getting washed too well. The longer you can wait, the better, but if you have to, it's ok to wash them sooner than that, and use the dread shampoo.

For your first wash, wet your head down and wet the shampoo bar. Lather
up some soap on the bar and gently rub it on your head, like a regular soap bar. Once you have some soap on your head, take your fingertips and do a gentle scrub around the base of your newbie dreads, trying not to rub the dreads themselves too much.

Then rinse the shampoo off your scalp, letting the suds run through your dreads. This will clean your dreads without actually having to rub them. Be sure to rinse them out really well, so none of the soap stays in the dreads and dries there. Than pat your dreadies dry with a towel and let them to air dry completely. Apply some more wax and re-twist them once they're totally dry, and then you're ready to party!

Yes, you can start dreads from braids, BUT they will always kind of look like braids. Now if you don't mind that, then by all means go for it, but people often braid their hair and leave it expecting that one day they will have nice fat Marley locks, but that rarely is the case. Your dread braids will always look very thin and kinky like braids, which can be a very cool look – just different. And definitely get a good shampoo like our Shampoo Bar which has NO conditioners in it and a high concentration of tea tree and peppermint oils in it - you want to keep washing your scalp to prevent problems like oily buildup that leads to bad dandruff and smelly hair. Washing your scalp will not prevent the development of dreads and in many cases will help the process along by drying the hair out so it's not so greasy and more tangley.

Knotty Boy Dread Wax binds the undreaded hair together really tight so that your new dreads get a good chance to knot up, rather than them just getting matted over time and after not washing for months and gross stuff like that. It lets them start dreading right away, plus it makes you look like you have dreads even if it's the first day you put the stuff in your hair. It's still just tangled hair for the first few weeks, but then those locks start getting tighter and harder, and that's when they're turning into dreads! Usually this process takes months, even years without anything in your dreads to help – Knotty Boy Dread Wax gets them going in a matter of weeks.

Nope, no need to refrigerate Knotty Boy products – the natural preservatives in them, like Vitamin E and beeswax, prevent them from going bad.

There are no chemicals or perfumes in the wax. All ingredients are totally non-allergenic and natural. Although, the Kukui is classified as a nut. But like Coconut, there are very few, if any, documented cases of allergic reactions to this nut. Having said this, it is always good to exercise extreme caution if you have severe nut allergies and discuss usage of this product with your doctor. Please see http://www.knottyboy.com/learn/ingredients.php for more information on the health benefits of Kukui Nut Oil. As far as preventing breakouts go, just keep your dreads away from your face with a hat or visor after you've just freshly waxed them up. The wax absorbs into the dreads after a day or so, binding them from the inside, so they don't stay tacky for long.

Although it is beeswax-based, Knotty Boy Dread Wax does not attract any more dust or lint than any other hair product. It is slightly tacky when it is first used, for the first day or so, but it quickly absorbs and binds the dreadlock from the inside. Knotty Boy does not attract lint or dust, UNLESS you have over-waxed, or are doing something excessively dirty and not wearing a hat to keep them clean. Otherwise, the wax doesn't attract anything associated with normal, everyday living.

About the 'new' wax versus the 'old' wax recipes, we hate to tell you this, but nothing has changed! What sometimes makes a big difference is the current temp and time of year - if you are where it's really hot during the summer, that makes a huge difference in it's consistency. Try keeping your new wax in the fridge and taking it out an hour before you use, or something like that if it's really hot where you are.

It’s also normal to notice the wax slightly different from jar to jar, as the wax’s actual make-up varies slightly according to the season in which the beeswax was gathered. It's an all-natural product, so it's not like buying the same hair gel from the drug store and knowing it's going to be exactly the same every time because of all the chemicals and emulsifiers added. Even if it's a bit softer, it still works well on your dreads - you don't need to use that much at a time, just enough to bind the loose hair together.

Yep, Knotty Boy Dread Wax works awesome for that purpose. It's just like a heavy-duty pomade - when used as a gel or styling aid it's great and it doesn't take too much to wash out, just be sure to use it very sparingly. It's also great for spiking up short hair. And it's all natural – that’s the best part!

Actually, we have TONS of people that do not have locks, but use Knotty Boy Dread Wax for their every styling need. We often hear that people have thrown out their gels and sprays and only use Knotty Boy for their frizzy, fly-away hair because it leaves their hair with a soft, thicker texture, rather than a crispy one... So just go ahead with it and see what happens with your hair. Again, use it sparingly, especially because it is beeswax and not the easiest thing to remove from soft hair. But you may notice a big difference!

As far as we know, Bed Head is as good as any gel or heavy-duty pomade out there for regular hair, but much more expensive (paying for the name) and it is water-soluble - which means that in order for your dreads to stay in using BH, you can't wash them or they'll fall out! That's what makes KBoy different from any other product out there - it is very non-water soluble and you can scrub your scalp really well without fear of the wax (and your dreads) washing out! And they don't leave you with crispy, stiff locks of hair like they would feel if you made them with gel. Gel and other hair products are good for making temporary locks for parties, etc, but not for real dreads.

One jar will definitely lock up the average user's hair to start, and have enough left to maintain it for a few weeks at least after. If you have super long and thick hair, or are wanting to do a lot of tiny dreads, think about grabbing a second jar. Or if you want, order two jars even if you don’t have long or thick hair, just so that when you run out, you don't need to order online and wait again for it to arrive.

Knotty Boy Dread Shampoo is good for dreaded and undreaded hair of all types. Anybody with dandruff or scalp problems, or wanting to prevent them can use it with great success. People with healthy scalps should only use the shampoo once a week, to prevent over-drying.

You can use the shampoo whenever you want, before or after dreading.

You just have to smooth the clumps out with your fingers. There's a high beeswax content in the ingredients so it's quite stiff and waxy, but it's better that way then too greasy. And don't use too much! Your new dreads will dry out in a few days, takes a little while for the wax to sink in. As your dreads develop and get more spongey, it will take less time for the wax to absorb.

Whenever your locks are really tight, together and strong - fully developed - without many loose ends anymore, you can just use KBoy for maintenance after that . Its just for giving them a little help in the first year or two, keeping them together so they lock faster, getting the loose hairs in, etc. You may just want to smooth down the frizzes with it every once in a while, or use it to condition them against breakage and brittleness. That’s a good thing to keep doing, too.

Good question... it doesn't actually tend to build up all that much. Once a person starts washing their hair regularly, like once every week or two, the wax does melt from the heat of the shower and rinse out a bit. And it also really absorbs into the dread over the following days after applying it, too. Wax buildup hasn’t proven to be a problem at all.

Hmm. Wow, never heard that one before. Hair really isn't that complicated, so it would be a stretch to think that a product that is applied externally can really crawl inside hair and make it fall out. I think it has more to do with lifestyle and genetics. We do know that people have been using beeswax and beeswax-based products on their dreads for decades and we've never heard back from a single one of our own Knotty Boy customers saying that our product caused their hair to fall out. If you have a strong, healthy noggin of locks, you don't have too much to worry about.

Ok, here's the scoop. The wax is good in the beginning stages of your dreadies. It's good to start out with the wax and use it for at least the first 3-5 months of your newly formed dreads. Remember, you don't need much wax, just a thumbnail or so per dread, and really work it in. Give your dread a good twist as you're applying the wax so as there are no clumps of wax hanging out in your head. When you think your dreads are ready to stand up on their own and they're starting to grow in solid, then you could consider using our gel. When that time comes, it's still good to use the wax, but not as much as you were before. It's awesome for when you get a bad case of the frizzies. It's good to use the gel after a shower or a swim when your hair's still damp. Towel dry your hair, and put some gel into the palm of your hand. Now, dread by dread palm roll that gel in. You'll notice when your hair dries completely your dreads are already much tighter. Voila!

Knotty Boy uses Kukui Nut Oil in our dread wax as it is an outstanding emollient that is absorbed quickly and thoroughly, and leaves no greasy after feel. The oil is expeller pressed from the nut of the kukui tree. In Hawaii where the oil is from, the native Hawaiians treasured “kukui” (meaning “enlightened”) oil for its soothing and healing properties. It is valued today by islanders for those same qualities of making skin supple and renewed.

In our wax the oil functions the same way as a moisturizer for your hair in dreads. However, it is indeed from a nut and if someone has severe nut allergies they should discuss using this product with their doctor. But like Coconut, there are very few, if any, documented cases of allergic reactions to this nut. Please see http://www.knottyboy.com/learn/ingredients.php for more information on the health benefits of Kukui Nut Oil.

None of our other products have any nuts in them whatsoever and because we make everything in small batches none of our products use the same containers or instruments. Our other products are all nut-free!

Happy dreading, with or or without nuts!