new thread
I am goin in for my first trim tomorrow after 8.5 months of growth. I made an appointment at a salon that I’ve heard good things about. I’m not trimming because of pressure from anyone, actually, most everyone has been pretty supportive. Even a lady friend of mine who prefers men with short hair told me that my hair was nice, and she has always been very open and honest with her opinions. I feel pretty lucky to have friends and family who support anything I choose to do. Anyways, the reason I’m trimming is just to clean up the back and even out the top (hair on the left side of my head grows faster than on the right.. weird!)
I know that many of you are against trimming altogether, but some of you that I’ve seen get occasional trims. For those of you who do trim, do you have any advice to ensure that I will get a good cut, and won’t screw up my plans for future growth? Thanks in advance!
Also – I can post up before and after pictures if anyone is interested.
- bums
Hello
an advise ? dont do it !
your hair will even itself, believe me.
when i cut my hair for the last time , i had a "gradient" cut , fonr hair very short , and back hair longer , and even if there is still a difference , it begin to look more even.
please wait and let your hair grow, dont fall in the trim spiral and cut your hair more and more...
Cya
My hair Journal
I think everyone on this board expects people to want their hair down to their arse.
If you want a trim then have one, it depends on what style you want to end up with!
I had the front sides of mine trimmed, because i want long hair all over apart from at the front sides.
As Angel said not everyone wants butt length hair. They want a maintained cleaner style. This is where trims are important. Butt length hair is a great thing to have but can be impractical and never seems to look very neat -- it always seems unbrushed, unruly and split-end-ridden even if it's not -- just the way it gets blown around all day in the wind, etc.
I think people on here are definetly acting a little extreme IMO. Trims are not some evil thing. They're something many (even MOST) people do when growing their hair.
How many people in the real world grow their hair for years without a single trim? few. very few. If you grow your hair out you will be reminded by people around you: GET TRIMS every so often. There's no way around it. If you LIKE the scraggly ended look, that's fine, but don't scream at people about not trimming like it's some horrible thing.
Oils and conditioning helps but you truly can only be assured 100% freedom from split ends by trimming. Come on people. Isn't losing 1/2" every 6 months or so worth having healthier hair?
And plus -- trims or no trims, hair still grows. It's not like losing 1/2" every 6 months or so is going to kill the growth. It reduces it by 1" a year. I'm sorry but...it's not a frickin big deal. That inch will catch up 2 months later. And your hair will be healthier to boot.
Just IMO.
If you're only going for shoulder length or a little bit past, trims every 6 months wouldn't be a bad idea....but for people with longer hair goals, an inch per year really does add up..especially if you plan on growing your hair for many, many years.
For me, today marks 21 months of growing, and I haven't had a single trim (with the exception of 'search and destroy' on about 4 or 5 individual hairs) I guess I've been lucky to avoid split problems so far. Anyway, if my hair was full of splits, then I would definitely get a trim, but that would be the only reason for me to do so. I never bought into the 'neaten things up' reason for getting trims. If I would have, I probably wouldn't be able to fit all of my hair in a tail right now, and this hot Louisiana weather would have my hair looking anything but neat. I go by the 'trim if it's split, avoid scissors like the plague if it's not' philosophy. :-)
If you really want to, get a trim like Jason, clean up the back.. but the left-right-prob really doesnt matter.
I did pretty much that, and you were right, the left-right problem didn't matter. Thanks!
-Bums
Depending on your length goal simply DO NOT.
Wait until it gets to your shoulders and then perhaps trim the back to even that up. Scissors do not help hair growth!
Hey Mr. Bums,
I'm one of those people who DO understand the feeling of needing or wanting trims along the way, as it can sometimes add some very positive aspects while on your road-trip in your long hair journey. As long as you know about the potential pitfalls to avoid, just going in for a trim does NOT have to turn out to be a longhair's worst nightmare or a hair-styling disaster! And it sounds like you've already thought this decision through very carefully & thoroughly, so I ain't gonna try to talk you out of it!!!
First off, sounds like you've already picked out a salon with a good reputation, --- half the battle, in my opinion! If you have not already been recommended a specific stylist to go to at this salon, then my suggestion is to call the owner and/or manager of this place up, and specifically either ask for him/her to cut your hair, OR ask the question, "Is there any stylist at your salon that specializes in long hair styles?" Another way to approach this is to request one of the more experienced stylists; but, in any case, be willing to pay a little more $$ for this. Somebody just fresh out of hair-cutting school is NOT a good idea in this case!
Next I would suggest that once you make the phone call to make the appointment, that you include a comment that you'd like to have some time allowed beforehand for a consultation, first, --- and that you're willing to pay a little extra for this (if not part of their usual procedure there).
Once the appointment has been made, I'd suggest showing up a little bit early on the day of the trim. Once you're with your stylist, talk very clearly about the fact that your goal is to grow your hair out LONGER, --- and that you've come in today for only a TRIM, --- and then take the time you feel it needs to clearly discuss the details of where and how to best make this trim happen with a minimum of hair-length cut off....
A really good stylist that works at one of the "higher-end" salons will never rush you through this consultation time to talk out your goals. If they do, and you have any concern whatsoever that they may not be listening to you, THEN THANK THEM, AND THEN LEAVE!!!!
Chances are, though, that as long as everything feels good during taking all of the above steps, that you will probably feel very relaxed and at-ease with him/her enough to trust them to do exactly what you've asked them to do... Although, if you've never been to this person before, it still wouldn't hurt to chatter some longhair chatter a little, while the trim is going on (meaning that, once you're all relaxed and they have your hair in their hands, stylists often chatter with their clients, --- so I feel it's a good opportunity to chatter about how I'm looking forward to growing my hair out LONGER - lol - which does the added benefit of reminding them to trim as little off as possible)...
For myself, I haven't been in to see a professional stylist for over 3 years; but that's because my hair is now long enough to chase after the split ends myself (which, at this current length I have, is all the trimming I feel I need or want to have to do). But, when I was in the process of growing my hair out, it seemed to give me both comfort and encouragement to go in for occasional prefessional trims (and in some cases, some amount of "re-styling").
It's true that the folks here that encourage NO trims (that the hair will "even itself out" once it gets long) are essentially saying, "your hair will get long FASTER without trims!" But, for those of us that want to enjoy as much as possible the best-looking "medium-length" styles along the way, then occasional trims can indeed be a pleasant part of the longhair journey experience!
Best of luck to you!!
- Ken in San Francisco
Thanks for taking the time to write me such thorough and helpful advice. I just got back from the trim, and it turned out FANTASTIC. She dusted the top and sides so lightly, I couldn’t even tell that she took off any once she was done, and she somehow made it look much neater. She took a lot more off the back like I asked her too, but she did it in such a way that it still looks natural and still has a fair amount of length. I got lucky with this lady… after she finished she said that I shouldn’t come in again for another 4 months, and just to even out the back, she was pro-me having long hair lol. The trim cost me $28 +$10 tip, I think that was quite a deal for the results I got. Thanks again Urban Cowboy!
-Bums
Hey, that is so cool to read about, --- that's the way a trim SHOULD turn out; but we've certainly read plenty of stories on this board where it has been the exact opposite! It's the cheap chain-store haircutters that you especially should steer far, far away from; but it sounds like you picked a winner stylist as well as salon instead!
I don't know where you ive; but here in San Francisco, dependoing on what part of town a salon is located, I've payed as high as $65 a pop (not including tip). And I applaud you for tipping her so generously, --- I do the same, because it's worth it to me to "get it right" (and considering I used to go in for a trim only once a year, or twice max., it never hurt me financially anyway - lol)
Anyway, a big CONGRATS to you, --- and you're very welcome! And if you have the spare time, send in some pics, as I bet your avatar pic shows your hair a lot shorter than it probably is now ( even after this trim - lol)....
- Ken