Dreadlocks have a rich history, spanning thousands of years and diverse cultures worldwide. Wearing dreads can be a powerful way to celebrate multicultural identity and express individuality. Dreadlock styles come in many variations, offering endless possibilities to showcase unique textures and colors. Whether you're looking for a practical everyday style or an elegant look for a special occasion, there's a dreadlock tie-up style to suit every taste and moment.
Here are several stylish and simple hairstyles you can create with your locs, often without needing accessories or hair ties. These easy looks are perfect for any occasion.
This style is sleek, elegant, and gives you a neat yet chic look. Start by braiding a section of locs on each side of your head and then joining them in the back.
For a more relaxed, boho vibe, try this side braid technique. The side braid is created by overlapping sections of locs from each side of your head. For a casual side-swept look, throw your dreads to one side and let them fall naturally. To achieve the side-swept look, braid your hair on one side before installing your dreads. You can also use pins to keep your dreads pushed over.
If you’re after a bold look, this high ponytail is an excellent choice. Gather all your locs at the front, cross two long locs in the back, and keep crossing them underneath each other until you run out of hair. Pull your hair back into a regular ponytail and use elastic bands or your own locs to tie or wrap different sections of your ponytail until you reach the bottom of your hair. If you want to create even more volume in your ponytail, pull apart your locs within each section. A tousled ponytail is a practical yet fun way to play with your dreads. To achieve this look, flip your head over and bring your hair slightly toward the top of your head. Tie your hair up using an elastic band, then pull out some of the shorter pieces of hair to create a bang and a more messy look. When you’ve made the effort to grow out long dreads, the low ponytail is a great dread style that can keep your hair tied back while showing off your length. Use a hair tie to hold your low ponytail in place.
Read also: Types of Dreadlock Rubber Bands
For those who want a look that’s both practical and stylish, the double knot braid works wonders. This style involves taking a couple of locs from the top or side of your head, making double knots, and working your way down.
This look involves three sections of your hair, each tied in a knot, then gathered into a ponytail at the base of your neck.
For a playful and fun look, the pigtail style never goes out of fashion. Simply part your hair down the middle, cross two locs from the base of your neck, and repeat the process to form two pigtails. This style can be worn in many different ways, like a ponytail, space buns, or a topknot. Depending on the occasion, this look can be dressed up for a more formal look, or you can dress it down for a messy, chic look.
When you need a hairstyle that’s both easy and elegant, a simple top bun is always a go-to. Gather your locs at the top of your head, twist them, and tuck them under to form a secure bun. Gathering your dreads and wrapping them into a large bun on top of your head will give you a beautiful and royal looking hairstyle - beehive updo.
For this style, we’re going with a classic knot. Split your hair down the middle and tie the two sections together in the back.
Read also: Caring for Dreadlocks
For this style, we take the classic knot one step further by adding a couple of braids. After tying your hair into a simple knot, use the remaining locs on the sides to braid them, then tuck the braid into a high bun.
With long dreads, you can get creative with ways to style your hair. Instead of wearing it down all the time, try using hair ties or pins to create a half-up, half-down style. You can also add beads or cuffs to the front tendrils of your hair and let them hang near your face.
Beyond the simple tie-up styles, there are numerous other ways to style dreadlocks, allowing for even more self-expression.
Accessorizing your dreads can be a great way to add a personal touch to your look. Incorporate metal cuffs or clips in your dreads hairstyle by finding jewels slightly smaller than your dreads and sliding them onto a handful of strands. The texture of your dreads will keep the accessories in place. A headscarf is one of the best accessories to wear with lots of dread styles. You can wear a headscarf in many ways to keep your dreads back and upgrade your look. Tie the headscarf in a knot and wear it as a headband or gather your dreads and wrap them up in the headscarf.
With dreads in your hair, you can create many updo hairstyles like braids or twists. The fishtail braid is an interesting dread style that can keep long dreads protected as they grow. This braid involves wrapping the hair using a technique that resembles a fish skeleton. For this rolled updo, you’ll start with small dreads. Then, you’ll twist the hair near the scalp and roll the dreads around one another to create barrel rolls. When you want a change from the classic braid, you can gather your dreads in two sections and twist them together down your back. Use cornrows to braid your hair before transitioning your braids into dreads. This gives you a tighter style on your scalp while also showing off your dreads. Braided dreads are small dreads braided together to create a unique texture and feel. These dreads resemble microbraids and may require an experienced stylist to install. Braided dreads are great since they usually stay intact through regular washing.
Read also: Achieving Ideal Dreadlock Size
Adding highlights to your dreads hairstyle can give your hair dimension and a subtle pop of color. Adding bold color to your dreads allows you to customize your look and incorporate your personality. Is red your favorite color? Try dying the tips of your dreads red while leaving the rest of your hair natural. If you prefer a few colors, you can highlight your dreads in various hues for something different. Colored thread is a great way to add a pop of color to your dreads without chemically dying your hair. For a stripe effect, change thread colors in the middle of your dreads. Blonde extensions are an easy way to spice up your look without actually committing to a new hair color. You can go completely blonde or use different shades of blonde or brown to add dimension.
Thanks to faux dreads, you have a lot of freedom to decide what you want your dreads to look like. You can install faux dreads with curly ends if you want a unique look for your dreads. Yarn dreads are faux dreads that don’t require long hair to install. Goddess dreads are a faux dread style that have a boho feel to them. These dreads include loose, wavy curls that make the hair voluminous and silky.
A fade is a style where the sides of your hair are cut while the top of your hair stays at the length of your choice. Dreadlocks with a fade will give the traditional locs look with an added edge, but it’s absolutely essential to find a stylist to help you achieve this specific look. One benefit of a half-shave, besides the edgy look, is that the locs are easier to maintain. If you don’t want to shave your hair but still want to pull off this look, try pinning half of your hair back to achieve the same side-swept effect. Different types of dreads add a different flavor to this hairstyle. For example, Sisterlocks are a little pricey, but they’re versatile enough to create a trendy shaved look. When you have dreads in your hair, you can style them in the shape of a mohawk by using a hair tie and pulling them forward. A faux hawk is easier to create if you already have an undercut or short hair on the sides of your head.
Freeform dreads are the original type of dreads before we had the tools and products to form and style the many styles we see today. They have become much more popular recently and can be seen on today’s most notable music artists, like Jay Z, J. Cole, and The Weeknd.
The length of your dreads will depend on how fast your hair grows and how well you maintain your dreads. You can continue to loc your hair as it grows if you want to achieve long dreads that fall down your back. Long dreads are beautiful, but take time and effort to achieve. Try faux dreads to see how you like the length of long dreads.
tags: #dreadlock #tie #up #styles
