I suppose this goes to the people that have made dreads or know about making dreads.

I made myself some dreads but haven't installed them yet. I keep them in a box along with other things. Today, I opened the box to try to install them, but realized they've become more fuzzy than before. They look nice from a distance, but close up I think they feel and look pretty fuzzy. I mean they keep getting stuck together just by touching...sort of like velcro (or whatever it's called). I've read that when you seal with a hairdryer (which I used) they're supposed to feel like velcro and that loops are a natural byproduct of backcombing, but I fear that they're going to rip each other apart if I leave them like this. :p
(And I suppose they'll get even fuzzier if I use them.)

Does anyone know of a way to fix that? Will trying to reseal them with my hairdryer help? Or is there some other way to make them smoother? Maybe ironing them, or boiling them? Or maybe threatening them? :p

Unless of course it's normal, in which case I'll just reseal the parts that have unraveled.

It would help if we could see what they look like. I've only done one set of dreads and they were more natural looking. I like the more organic look, but know a lot of people are looking for sleek & smooth when it comes to fake dreads.

You might want to try resealing them using steam. You can heat water in a tea kettle with a slightly loose fitting lid. When the water is boiling, you take the dread and run it along the escaping steam to seal it. I've also boiled dreads by basically dipping them into boiling water and then somewhat smoothing with my hands. It makes less dense dreads than other methods. I usually do "touch up" sealing with a hairdryer. If you've got flyaways on the dreads, these can be snipped off, too.

Hope this helps. There are a bunch of English language tutorials all over the web and especially at places like Doctored Locks (a synth hair supply online).

The loopies are probably causing them to stick together. It won't make too much of a difference if the look doesn't bother you, but they might not hold up as long as normal.

Unfortunately I don't have a kettle, or something that can be used like it.

I'm not worried about the look that much (although I prefer if they aren't overly loop-ey :p), I don't like too smooth and too sleek dreads either, I prefer them looking more natural (however natural purple/pink/sky blue dreads can look). I'm mainly worried about whether they'll fall apart after a little use, or will be full of stray hairs and loops after all the pulling and me accidentally getting my fingers in those loops.

I think I'm going to try going over them again with a hairdryer. I've found that my boyfriend's hairdryer which has a narrower concentrator nozzle makes them more stable, so I'll see if that makes a difference.

I'll try to take a picture so that you can see how they look.

I forgot to ask what you're using to create the dreads. Are you using kanekalon fiber? If you're using PP or another synthetic fiber that isn't KK, it might not be reacting well to heat.

I have found the hairdryer method works well to stick the little stray hairs back into the dread, so an extra blast might do the trick.

Another thing you can do is just dip them into boiling water (wearing gloves of course). All the while you need to hold/twist the dread. Using clothespins or some other type of clip usually helps. I've heard making single ended dreads is easier, but double ended dreads are easier to install.

I've only ever made double ended dreads myself. I am going to work on a set this weekend, since I got some burgundy KK a few weeks ago from a hair supply store in town.

I'm using Kanekalon fiber and I'm sealing them with a hairdryer. Some are sealed pretty tight, but some, as I said, have started to have more strays.

I'm making double ended dreads too, they're not that hard to make (not that I've tried single ended ones) and I think I like the look better since one half doesn't show any of your hair. I've made mine pretty long since I used the whole length of the fiber for each dread. They wouldn't look nice otherwise since I already have long hair. O_o

Burgandy dreads sound nice. Are you making them to match your hair? Would love to see some pics once you make them.

My hair's currently blonde, but I might put some burgundy streaks in it. I'm waiting for some dreads to arrive that I bought from a woman on another forum. I want to see the colors before I do anything to change my hair, in case it would look "off" with the dreads. They're black/white, grey, silver - a whole kit. I think I'm making falls with them and thought burgundy and burgundy/black candycanes would be nice as an accent in the falls.

I'll definitely post pics once I get them done. Burgundy was the only "unnatural" color the local hair shop had in KK. The rest were darker colors...browns, black, etc.