Formal Dos for Shortish Dreads

[bijounk]

Hello all, noober here! Ok, so I have a formal shindig next weekend and I have to wear a super nice dress and I feel like my dreads aren't happenin' with it. So here's a picture of what I'm working with here:


Ok, so it's kind of a shotty picture, but I've got dreads that are just above my shoulders, pulled into two... pigtails I suppose. I've only had them for about two months and they've locked up quite nicely, but I haven't really had the time or energy to experiment with different hair styles so I was hoping someone could give me some suggestions They are natural dreads and I did them myself (can you tell? )

I've tried scouring the internet but no one has short dreads that aren't just flying everywhere.

Thanks in advance!

[..::AtomicLox::..]

Short dreads are so much harder to work with. I love the curls on yours!!

I did an updo for a girl going to prom that had dreads about that length. Sadly I don't have any pictures, but the idea involved wrapping thin satin ribbon around the lengths and using some of the extra at the end to help it hold when pinned in place. It was a very may-pole fairy sort of look, but it was very pretty. Sorry I can't be of more help! I do tons of updos but my installs are always super long.

[bijounk]

That is a FANTASTIC idea! Oooo... I think that would be lovely! And it would be perfect because the dress is a solid color with colored ribbon around the waist and trim on the bottom... Almost like I did it on purpose If anyone else has pictures and/or a good way of achieving this or any other style, I'm still open! Thank you muchos!

And thanks for the compliment, I HATED curly hair until I had dreads :-p

[..::AtomicLox::..]

That curl right by your ear in this picture is seriously adorable!

The best way to get a great hold with ribbon is to poke a crochet hook through the base of your dread and pull your ribbon through so that the center lands at your scalp and you have two tails on either side of your dreads that are at least 6-8 inches longer than it is. You'll have to experiment, as you lose more length with a tighter wrap. Then you can either get a criss-cross affect by braiding the ribbon around your hair, or you can grab both tails and do a spiral swirl. Hold in place with a tiny elastic, and remember not to keep the ribbons in more than a couple days for the health of your hair, of course as it will temporarily cut off the knotty flow!

[bijounk]

You are seriously my hero! I was thinking about how to do that and I would have definitely made a mess of myself :-p Thank you, you are seriously the best! I'll have to post pictures of our masterpiece next weekend

[..::AtomicLox::..]

Awww glad to help! I'd love to see what you end up doing!

[Desiree]

How about a snood??