Cool. Just make sure your dreads are fully dry before you walk around with hats and wraps on all day because if the dreads are still a bit damp - then mold and bacteria will start to grow. I started dreading my hair when it was about 4 - 6 inches long. It is locking up ok. it has come undone at my nape (the hair there is super short still) but once it grows, i will re-backcomb it all. Wearing hats and wraps will teach them to lay down and you will be surprised at how much they will shrink in width and in length.

I was advised to wear those hair rubberbands at the root and at the ends to help prevent my short brand new dreads from untangling. Didn't really need to though. But you may want to consider it if you are really worried. I washed them every 2-3 days because the itch would just drive me crazy. You may experience itch because hair is not used to being sectioned permanently. The nylon is a really good idea for washing but once again - i didnt worry about. Also, you may think sleeping at night will help those babies knot up but it actually does the opposite. Try sleeping with a satin wrap or any wrap for that kind (i just like satin and find it smoothes down loose hairs). Some people use a t-shirt - but i think that is for longer dreads.

We took our time backcombing my hair and it did knot up pretty well. That knottyboy video - they ran through his hair so quickly. We just did nice slow strokes and only let like 1-2 hairs slide down with each stroke. Result was more compact knots and i think this was the most beneficial thing I could have done to dread shorter hair. Mind you - it took 2 weeks but it was worth it. Also, we used a lice comb but it had 2 rows of teeth instead of just one. It worked great!!!

Hope this helps.

If you're worried about looking as neat as possible for your job, you might consider cleaning up your neckline...the hairs will dread, but as a way to have dreadies and still look a bit more professional, it's a consideration.