Before I started hairdressing I used to think that the advice given by hairdressers to get regular trim when you are growing your hair was a load of rubbish!
It didn’t make sense, how does cutting your hair make it longer? It sounded like a sales pitch for the hair stylist to get me to come in more often.
Little did I know that while your hair grows between 1-2cm a month, if the ends of your hair are damaged then depending on the extent of the damage, more breaks off than actually grows out of your head!
This is what a split end looks like under a microscope. It looks like a broken branch right or a frayed end right? Well what happens to frayed things if they aren’t trimmed up? They fray some more….everyone knows this.
You hair is the same. If the frayed ends of your hair aren’t trimmed up then they will continue to split, higher and higher up the hair follicle. This is why you get the annoying hairdressers trying to convince you to cut off a bigger chunk of your hair than you’d like when you haven’t visited the salon in 6 months.
Normally we recommend 6-8 weeks for people who aren’t growing their hair too much longer or want to keep the shape they have. 4-6 weeks is the best time for shorter cuts such as pixi and bob’s. 8-10 weeks is a good time for longer hair types that want to grow it longer.
Think about it. In 10 weeks your hair will have grown 2.5 – 5cm. If you come in for a trim around then, we will only need to cut off half a cm or so, if you use good products and keep your hair in good condition. It also helps keep your hair in shape while you grow it out so you don’t have to put up with those annoying in-between times. This is especially important when growing out the likes of a pixie cut. You will need it re-shaped every 6-8 weeks to avoid it becoming a helmet. Believe me, I’ve been through this process! The easiest way is to trim the sides and back and leave the top grow down.
You will get those times where you think that your hair just isn’t growing! This is usually because you just need to shape it up a bit. Even by just adding a bit more texture to the hair with a few more subtle layers, it can make your hair appear longer. It allows the bottom layer (the longest bit) to show more and elongates the look of the hair. I tried this when I got to the shoulder bob stage when my hair felt like it had just STOPPED! My stylist brought up the top layer and the longest part of my hair just popped out the bottom. It looked a good bit longer because it turned out that the top layer of my hair was hiding the length.
We recommend NOT growing your hair and keeping it all the same length. This just makes it harder for yourself as you start to get that triangle shape going on and not ever having a good hair day without a lot of styling. Even just a slight layer in the ends can take away your triangle roof shaped hair, leaving it looking a lot more ‘kept’.
The most important thing of course it to look after your hair AFTER you’ve left the salon. Use a good salon product that suits your hair type. Davines have a great one for long hair called ‘Melu’ Shampoo & Conditioner. It contains spinach extract (we’ve nicknamed it Pop-Eye Shampoo) for strengthening, to keep those split ends at bay. Also, try not to use hot tools (curling tongs, straightening irons or roller etc) too often. This is the fastest way to split ends….especially if you aren’t using a good heat protection.
Another way to stop you becoming bored with your hair, is learn a few quick up styles. A wee braid or hair accessory can make your hair look completely different and stop you from getting the urge to chop it all off.
Also try colouring your hair with a semi permanent colour at the salon. Semi permanents wash completely or almost completely out of your hair (depending on which colour you use).
Lastly, here a few styles to try at home, courtesy of Kelley Osborne & Carey Mulligan, while growing out your hair from a pixie cut. It will take a bit of practice…use some backcombing and hairspray, you know, the old fashioned way…and while practicing you may even come up with a few by yourself!