Black Cockatoo Dreadlocks

Bespoke Dread Maker And Creative Hair

183 Brunker Road Adamstown, NSW, 2289 Australia

0404 699 542

Black Cockatoo Est in 20 13 brings crochet hook and hand built Dreadlocks to Newcastle in NSW Australia. Journey within to expose your creativity to be bold and be brave with your hair.

Our main studio is in the Heart of Newcastle, a place dedicated to the art of Dreadlocks and Hair Creativity. Its where all the magic begins , where clients come to have Dreadlocks installed and cared for but also people come to learn the art of loc’in Hair.

Here we offer all things Dreadlocks, washing, installing, maintenance, Human Hair, Wool and Synth Locs, extensions, permanent or temporary. Our speciality is in repairing if you have a problem with your locs we are confident that we can fix almost anything.

We pride myself on making dreadlocks with love, care and professionalism. Your Journey here with us is nourishing and full of simple advice. We are happy to hold your hand whilst your Locs develop and mature. ….

Our method is to get the best out of every hair type, quality and style. Using only a crochet hook, comb and hands. No Chemicals or waxes are used in this process, just a perfect method which I am proud to call a BCDreads Crochet Stitching Method.

Come experience BCDreads a trusted studio and a hand held along the Dreadlock Journey ……Gin x

Questions ?

In no particular order i will try and answer the more common question that i get...

How to make an appointment ?

For Maintenance head over to the Appointments page and find an appointment that suits your needs. Or if unsure what to book for dont hesitate to give me a call 0431 747094.

For New Creations please send us a message to our email address blackcockatoodreadlocks@gmail.com including a few head shots that way we can see your hair, it’s quality and offer choices with a quote on time and expenditure. Include some inspo pictures for colour and length ideas. Once received we will send you a detailed quote and set up an Free Consultaion appointment time for you. We will start a conversation here to work through everything you need for or your dread journey. Give you instructions and care info, organise appointments and offer support for your ongoing DreadLock experience.

The Free in studio Consultation - Sometimes it’s lovely to meet before you go ahead we know it not possible for everyone but its great to get a feel for our studio and methods we use. Ask all the questions that concern you and best of all to get that connection going! Always a must for extensions and colour matching.

Just want a Quote? send me an email and i can send you a quote its that easy, just ask for what you’d like and we can make it happen. All we need to know is your hair length and thickness and desired style. If you like the quote hit accept and we can set up everything else. We offer payment plans too spread out over time to help ease with costs.

When can i wash my hair, what with and how?   I ask all our new clients to leave their hair wash for as long as possible after an install, two weeks minimum but upto 6 weeks for some hair types but upto 8 weeks for very silky straight hair. You can however spray it with water with additional soothing oils to help with the itchies. When you wash the hair for the first time but very gentle! use a patting scrunching motion rather than a foaming up motion like you did with normal hair. I recommend any dish wash liquid or a simple Tree Tea Shampoo or one of your choice but please no regular style shampoos.

Take your time washing dreads is a process and takes upto 20 minutes… long gone are the days of a quick hair wash! Wet them thoroughly do a first wash I call it the SCALP WASH use tips of fingers or our amazing scruby brush and work between and around the Dreads really massaging the scalp to help remove and skin build up and getting those suds up.

Then rinse.

Second wash the LENGTH WASH please take your time grab sections of dreads say upto 6 locs and scrunch the suds through the locs all the way up and all the way down the loc. This will take some time. Then rinse and rinse really well.

Your done yes it takes time but the cleaner your Dreads the better. I think of them as a sponge and they absorb life like crazy so get that out!

The product shampoo debate! Ah yes i’m a no product person, nothing. Just good dish wash Liquid! yep and thats it. We have found over many many years this is where its at! if however you have a scalp problem, hair growth issue or other factor please go ahead with any nutrient rich clean shampoo, but please from time to time use dish wash liquid as those locs are magnets to dirt and lifes dust and sometimes residue will remain from other shampoos.

When will I need Maintenance? Theres no one size fits all answer here. We say generally for mature Dreads and wanting neat tube Dreads every 8 weeks but for more natural looking locs whenever you want say twice a year. BUT…..On new Creations defo every 8 weeks for at least 3 appointments and if your hair is naughty or super straight and silky or you have extensions it best to come every 6 weeks for the first 3 appointments.

Do I really need to palm roll? No you dont have to but it is needed if you want neat Locs. Palm roll only when wet when the hair is at its most elastic, salt spray first then vigorously start at the root and work your way down. Do each Loc three times. In time you will be able to feel the knots reshuffling inside the Dread. We do this whilst wet as when the hair dries it firms up and set the knots in place as the hair dries the hair returns to its more rigid nature.

I have fine hair, will having dreadlocks make my hair look thicker?   Yes i believe in time it will. Changing your hairstyle is a big move and it will look abit sparse at the beginning as the dreads will be nice and tight. As time goes on and the locs mature and look of fullness will start to happen as they plump up. I have very fine hair, so trust in me that your dreads will be amazing and a welcome relief for thin hair issues. Being mindfull of the length and great sectioning will make things better too. Adding extensions would be not so clever but if a must lightweight thinner wool ones could work. I have to say though some people including myself have such fine hair that dreadlocks as are not possible. its very sad but very true.

The ichies are driving me crazy! what can I do?   Sometimes a head will be quite upset with the trauma of having dreads installed and sometimes you get very itchy. A chop stick is best for having a really good itch, but i have heard that making a cup a green tea and pouring it over your head and allowing it to dry naturally works wonders! Also by making up a spray bottle of water with essential oils can help too.

Ginnie, can i dye my hair once it has been dreaded?   Sure but try to get it to the colour that you really want before you become a dreadhead, that way the hair colour will hold better, you'll only need to deal with the roots for topups and not only that it will help to dry the hair out ready for the dreadlocking process. But if you can stay natural do as locs are always affected by dye and bleaching.

I have chronic dandruff  buildup and /or used wax in the past  what can be done??    Firstly wash and wash well like really well with dishwash liquid. if you haven’t done this before you should see a great result straight away. If a chronic more bacterial or fungal problem we suggest using a full treatment from the chemist like Nizoral.

or for those whom like a more natural detox we have fondly named this little treatment as 'THE VOLCANO'. We all know that using ACV and bicarb is great for hair and dreads as a rinse. But for an extra deep cleanse I recommend that you pour neat ACV directly onto your dreads until they are wet and dripping, mind your eyes! then sprinkle on generous amounts of bicarb, now the fun starts! lets it fizz away, hence the name, and work it into your scalp and dreads, it WILL sting! and it will strip your hair of some of the natural oils. But i reckon thats better than having any of the above. Good luck and have fun, it rally works wonders.

Removal of wax takes time if loads used one can try using kitchen paper and hair straightener to heat up the wax and soaking it out. Also wash with really hot water with Dish Wash Liquid.

How long should my hair be to have extensions? look this is a good question, 10 - 12 cms is my guide and i have had even great results on shorter hair, yet it is soooooo fiddly! if you can grow it please do but if desperate i have a few of tricks too, but longer is always recommended for quality and 100% success rate.

Whats the shortest length to get Dreadies? 7 - 10 cms is a good length but can go in shorter but we always say a fingers length is a good guide.

How can I stop the fuzzies? My first response is why are you getting the fuzzies, over washing? hair drying? wearing headband or tubes too much? still using normal shampoo cos you ran out of the preferred dread safe one? there are lots of reasons and simple answers just have a look into what you are doing. Yet it is part of the process and will settle down in newer dreads once they mature. I have to say here that the fluffies are apart of dread life accept it.

Wool Locs? These really are fabulous and are getting very popular. They can be worn as temporary braid ins or used for extensions. They are lightweight and dry so quickly. We can make them to any colour or length giving amazing results and last and last.

How do I Remove Dreadlocks ? Before you make the insane choice to remove your locs it’s always good to come in for a chat. We might be able to save them! Sometimes a good maintenance can help the most unruly of locs! If there’s no saving them the shave is an old story as all locs can be brushed out! Ask a few pals over and simply comb them out, take your time and consider opening along the loc rather than hacking at them from the end. Start to wash the hair and heavily condition regularly before the brush out. This will help soften them. I brush out dry. Please call if you’d like further advice on this.

Children and Dreadlocks As a parent myself I find it very hard to inflict pain apon them. Dreadlocks when made dont hurt so much but when we do maintenance the pain can to too much for most children particularly under 10 years. And we both end up crying so why do it? I know some children are stronger ect… but i find it isnt really the case when doing maintenance very few month the head is very sensitive and can feel just like getting a tattoo! So lets just wait till they are older xx

When not to have Dreadlocks As many people know i dont wear locs and many should not when they have the fine hair curse! it really stresses the hair follicles out when you dont have much hair the weight can be too much. We need to preserve all the hair we have and consider how much hair will be left in out older years and the style we see ourselves with. So yes sometimes Dreads are not for everyone, even me.

 

more added as i get them - or as i remember to add them ;-)