Beauty Blog

How To Style a Textured Dreadlock Updo

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The world of fashion and styling is constantly evolving. Jeannette Chavez of Tricoci University knew this and wanted to make her own look stand out from the rest of the fashion crowd. Enter the textured, dreadlock updo. This updo was recently featured on Modern Salon for its unbeatable silhouette. Though the hairstyle itself is time-consuming and requires several steps, it leaves clients with a look that marries elegance with eye-catching textures.

Stylists be warned: This look is not easy to pull off. Just to get the hair in place, you’ll need to crimp, tease, pin and use hairspray to the fullest extent. If you want to make a name for yourself on the market, though, you can perfect the skills you need to pull this look off and add it to your styling repertoire.

Products Necessary

To style a textured dreadlock updo, Jeanette Chavez used:

  • Redken Iron Shape Heat Protectant
  • Redken Fashion Work Hairspray
  • Redken Shine Flash Finishing Spray
  • Bobby pins

How to Build the Updo

This hairstyle uses faux dreadlocks to create thick, braid-like bands around the top of the head, marrying a visible sense of texture with an out-of-the-way, elegant updo. To build this look, a hairstylist needs to take the following steps:

  1. Do not wash and dry the client’s hair.
  2. Separate the client’s hair into one-inch strands, pinning up excess hair throughout the process.
  3. Using a straightener or a similar product, crimp each strand of hair every few millimeters. This will be a lengthy process, but will help establish the body that the hair needs to remain in its faux locks.
  4. Tease the hair at the front of the client’s head, effectively creating a pompadour. Pin this look back with bobby pins.
  5. Using the whole of your palm, secure a strand of hair on one side of the client’s head.
  6. Gently twist that strand of hair until it is an inch in diameter.
  7. Securely drape the twisted faux lock across the upper back of the client’s head, securing the end and middle section with additional bobby pins. Make sure that this first lock covers the bobby pins, securing the pompadour in place.
  8. Repeat this process until all of the client’s hair has been secured.
  9. Use hairspray and additional bobby pins to ensure this look stays in place.

Note that African-American hair, which can be twisted into semi-permanent dreadlocks, will take to this hairstyle differently than Caucasian hair. If you’re interested in this kind of look and have a hair type that allows you to safely and cleanly form dreadlocks, you can work with a professional stylist to first establish your dreads and then braid them into an updo. Anyone, however, can request that their stylist perm and curl the faux dreadlocks used in the standard textured dreadlocked style, ensuring that the look can be altered later down the line.

This look is the ideal showstopper to break out at your wedding or prom night. While this intricate updo takes time and patience, the end result is more than worth it and will have you turning heads all evening long. Talk to a professional from Tricoci University to ensure the look is just right.

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