Dreadlocks on a budget

This is my before picture.

4 hrs into making dreads.

Finished after 9 hrs total.

:: I haven't decided if I like the soft ends or the blunt ends better. I thought I could make them blunt later if I decide to.

I have always been fascinated with dreadlocks, but my curiosity had really peaked in the last 2 years about how it would be to have dreadlocks myself. I've discussed it off & on with my husband always coming to the conclusion that it's probably not the best idea.  However, recently I realized that this is going to be one of those things that continues to haunt my curiosity until I finally just do it. 

I started looking to see where I could have them done at. Since there isn't anyone in amish county currently doing dreads I figured I'd have to travel to Chicago. The best price I found was $300 + travel expenses.  I was just not willing to pay that much, so I turned to the internet. The great big fountain of information that it is.

I found several great websites & youtube videos on how to make them. They also wanted me to by all kinds of crazy products to make them with.  A no residue shampoo, special wax, special shampoo to wash the wax out, locking accelerator, rubber bands, fancy combs blah, blah, blah. It would cost a fortune.

I did a few more days of research & found that I could do this at home, while purchasing almost nothing.

How to Make Dreadlocks on a Budget

There are few things that you will need to get.

a low residue shampoo. (I used a bar of castile soap) = $4.00

a good comb with the teeth close together. 

I used a plastic comb, but a metal one might be nice. = $2.50 (plastic)

sea salt = $4.00 ( I had this at home, so this is an estimated price.)

a squirt bottle = $1.00

I used the technique described in this youtube video.

Some helpful websites :: www.dreadheadhq.com

 :: www.Knottyboy.com 

 

I filled the water bottle up with hot water, then added 2 TBSP sea salt. This is what I used as a lock accelerator. 

You can spray this onto your dreadlocks to help dry them out & lock up. 

Now this is only my first day with my dreads, so I don't know for sure how well these babies are going to hold up, but I have the time to maintain them without using products.  If you are concerned with your dreads looking perfect right off the bat, you might want to go the wax route. If you look there are homemade recipes for wax too.

So far I'm pretty happy with them. I'll let you know if things change.

Update: Ok so I ended up buying products. You definitely want to buy a metal dreading comb. I got mine from dreadheadhq. I also bought some lock accelerating products from dreadheadhq. Not using any products was a little crazy. I had to re-comb my dreads every time I washed them. It is VERY time consuming.

a bit of a break

I'm going to be taking a break from this space for a little while. We are beginning our first year of homeschooling & I am trying out some different routines to see what will work best for our family. I feel like I need to focus all my attention on this right now as we grow into this new season of our lives. Hope you are all enjoying these last few weeks of summer. The kids around these parts are heading off to school. I am looking forward to both the routine that comes with the fall & the freedom that homeschooling gives us.

Couchsurfing & Celebrations

We did some couchsurfing last week to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. We had an amazing 4 days of relaxation, sunshine, water fun & a great conversation. We made new friends & enjoyed a break from our everyday responsibilities of being parents. We couldn't have asked for a better way to celebrate.  Now we are home relaxed & with renewed inspiration for our everyday lives.  Thank you Jeff & Tonya for this perfect gift!

19 & in love

Today my husband & I are celebrating our 10 yr. anniversary. I can't believe how much we have accomplished, & how much our lives have changed in 10 years. I can't wait to see what the next 10 yrs has in store for us! I don't want to spend my life in any other way.

My journey to Tibet.

I have written about a poverty alleviation project that I am working on before. I want to share with you a little bit about how I came to be involved with this project.

I started to knit about 6 years ago. My grandma Eckhart taught me. We had this great knit shop where I live that I spent a lot time at while pregnant. I learned a lot about fibers & knitting. About this same time I started reading a lot about Mt. Everest & the Tibetan culture and I fell in love.
I had heard about another woman starting an exotic yarn line to benefit some rural woman in another country in asia. I thought it was fascinating & became determined to do the same with my precious Tibetans.  My heart is to bring economic stability to the families we work with, but more importantly to bring hope to families who have none. My prayer is that the women who spin & knit for us will come together & share their hearts with each other, building a connection of friendship & support. I have grown so deeply & felt renewed by time spent knitting with other women. I hope this connection will do the same for these women as well.

I have never actually been to China or seen the Tibetan culture. I have been trying for several years to save up the money needed for me to go, but it seems that something always comes up to keep me from going. 
I became in contact with a man living & working in China who is reaching out to the Tibetans. He is doing this through the start up of a yak yarn line. We met through a mutual contact & talked via email.  We  found that our hearts were the same.
Bret has been in China for over 7 years working on the background work that is required for starting a business in China. He needed help from someone who knows more about the yarn market & knitting. So we work well together. 
We got our business license in January of this year. Currently Bret is learning how to dye our yarn with native plants in the area. So next year we will be able to introduce colored yarn to our line. Right now we have natural brown.

There is a carpet company who also works in our target area. They have the same vision with their company that we have with ours. Bret is working on building a partnership with this company. They have been working with us for a year now doing what they can to help us get on our feet. 

Right now we are in phase one of developing our business. We are working to perfect our yarn line, add colored yarn & obtain consistency with the spinning of our wool.  Phase two will be working with some women to learn several knitting patterns. We would like to add some handknit items to our product line. This is the phase that I am most excited about. I am working on some knitting patterns for this phase. 

Last week I received some great news!  The carpet company that we are partnering with has agreed to pay for me to come to China! They will pay for airfare, my room & board, as well as paying me for my time there! I won't be going until we are ready to start with Phase two of our project, but it could be as soon as fall of 2010.  I am very excited to hear this news, but even more, I feel blessed by the God I serve. I am amazed at how big He is, yet how well He KNOWS me. How He know every desire of my heart. I would have been happy to travel to China & visit Tibet as a tourist, but my God, knowing my heart, has crafted this master plan with me in mind. 

My God is good to me.

this is who i am

when i became a mom (5 years ago), i was told quite often to make sure i was making time for myself. i did that. i made time to read, time to knit (lots of time to knit), took relaxing baths, but i stopped painting & drawing. i found that i just didn't have the time to get my supplies out & really get into it. so i let it go for another time. over the years, i've felt my self becoming more & more frustrated. i've often felt like i wasn't myself. like i was waiting for one day to come when i could start my life again. like everything had been put on hold until my children  were older. i know this has also brought resentment to my heart. 

i started making an art journal last week, promising myself i'd make time to work on it everyday.  i thought i would share about the difference it has been making inside me.

to start with, every time i enter my studio & start working, it's like taking a deep breath of peace. it calms me, helps me focus, & inspires me. i find i have renewed patience for my children, more motivation for homekeeping, & energy to play.  i find myself feeling more confident in being who i am and allowing others to see me as me. i've even pulled out my old favorite boots from storage.

i love these boots! my dad bought these for me (after much pleading & promising to pay him back) when i was a sophomore in high school.  i wore these boots everyday for many, many years. i even considered wearing them on my wedding day, but opted for bare feet since we were on the beach. if i've ever had an attachment to an article of clothing it would be these boots. 

Check out this website to see more information on the Creative Every Day Challenge.

A Sneak Peek

{i think i have used this photo before. What can i say, i like it}

i have a new project in the works. Right now it is still in the planning phase. i will tell you this though. It involves, art & corn.  It should be very interesting.

A Pitty Party of Sorts.

Normally I wouldn't use this place for complaints, but this past hour has been so bad. Maybe if I share it here I will be able to look back & laugh at it tomorrow.

4:00 I stop working on my art journal to figure out what's for supper.

4:15  I clean out the fridge to hopefully find inspiration for dinner.

4:30 Found 6 left over hamburgers. Get buns out of freezer & thaw them out in the microwave.

4:35 Cut up veggies for a salad.

4:45 Collect all the toppings I can find in the fridge & set the table for dinner.

4:50 Put the hamburgers in the microwave to heat them up.

4:52  Walk to the door to call the kids home for dinner.

4:53  Hear a loud crash coming from the kitchen as I shout "ooohhh, nnnoooo"!

4:54 My husbands runs out of the back room to see what happened. I yell at him not to enter the Kitchen.  He is barefoot & there is shattered glass everywhere.

THE MICROWAVE FELL FROM THE SHELF I HAD RECENTLY JUST MOVED IT TO.

4:55 Wanting to cry I begin to clean up all the shards of glass.

4:56 My daughters tries to come into go potty. I yell at her to use the other door.

4:57 Still cleaning up glass & hamburgers. No I have little cuts all over my hands & wrist.

5:15 Get a skillet out to heat up hamburgers the old fashioned way.

5:17 Realize I now only have 2 hamburgers to feed my family of 4.  I will need to start all over again.

5:18 Decide it's not worth it.  My kids are happily playing next door. My husband is falling asleep (he works nights) & I feel like crap for breaking our semi-new but very nice microwave.

Tonight we can eat cereal.

Art Journals

I ran into some great finds at my library today. They always have a display of old books that the library has withdrawn and are selling.  I stopped to take a look & just see what I found.

Underneath their dust jackets, these books had amazing covers! I was so excited. I bought 7 of them for just a quarter a piece. I can't wait to make these into beautiful art journals.  I think I'm going to use the one on the far right for a Christmas journal. The others will be art journals. It will take me years to fill all these pages, but they are worth saving in my eyes.

These two are my favorites.