To demonstrate why deep cleans are important, here’s a photo of the before/after from the first deep clean I ever did, about a year and a half after starting my dreads. Gnarly, yeah?

Now, I realize how gross this looks. Like, eww, that was in your hair? But it isn’t really that dreads are dirty. I was dying my hair every month or two, running around the city, working in a craft store where glitter permeated everything, around smoke- even just using shampoo leaves some amount of residue. Most of what you see is hair dye & smoke residue built up over eighteen months.

So every six months to a year (after your first year), do a deep clean. It’s wonderful, I promise. This particular mix was about 2 cups baking soda, 10 drops tea tree oil, a splash of lemon juice, & a teaspoon of sea salt. For full instructions, read here.