Fellow longhairs?

pandaponies · Mar 31, 2015

TL;DR: show off pictures of your long hair here. Or your short hair! Or just generally discuss! Wooo hair!

Long version/backstory:

So I've always had a thing for long, curly hair. It always reminded me of princess/fairytale hair and I envied the rare girl I saw with my dream hair. My hair was always wavy (but leaning more towards straight than curly) and I argued constantly with my mom, a professional hairdresser, over cutting it because "it just looks unkempt" when it starts getting "too long."

Well, I've had "long" (by most people's standards) hair my entire adult life, but I eventually decided I wanted it long enough to curl and still have it look long (since curling hair shortens it by quite a bit). I stopped my usual trims and started being extra careful with it.

One year later, MY MOTHER ATE HER WORDS THIS MORNING, AWWW YEAH. "Oh my goodness, it's beautiful!" she says. Yesssss. (She doesn't live nearby and hasn't seen a picture in ages, esp. not post-rods lol).

I'm so pleased. I finally have it right where I want it.

Anyone else have long hair? What's your routine/what works for you? Or just generally show off and talk about your hair!

Ladyxkaa · Mar 31, 2015

I envy you, panda. I would LOVE to have my hair that long, but it's only ever grown(over the course of four years, mind you) to between my shoulder-blades. I do look a tad strange with long hair though. the length I want right now would have to be just brushing the tops of my shoulders.

pandaponies · Mar 31, 2015

Aww >__< *hug* I'm sorry the growing out didn't go well - did you try biotin and vitamin E? Both of my horses have naturally pitiful tails (genetics, sigh) and biotin helped a lot!!

That said, some people can rock short hair (I can't lol, it just doesn't look good with my face shape - but I once had a huge crush on this girl with the most adorable pixie cut and omg) and I'm sure short hair looks fantastic on you

growingupblessings · Mar 31, 2015

Your hair is beautiful. I wrote a character with hair like that. Long and curly.

Mine was much longer but I got it chopped recently. I couldn't stand dealing with it anymore.

Ladyxkaa · Mar 31, 2015

this is an old pic, but I really look the same xD

resized_me_and_horse_statue_by_marinka_ko_shikara-d89cwbk.jpg

ajaye · Mar 31, 2015

Your hair looks gorgeous panda

I've had long straightish hair ALL my life. Thin hair, always looks pretty messy - not the cool messy look, just the messy unkempt look

Anyway I got it cut super short recently and love it. So easy to look after - who knew? - and it looks tidy - even though I went for the short shaggy look. I use Product now

And people say I look years younger. Bonus!

pandaponies · Mar 31, 2015

*hugs her two complimenters* Thank you guys! <3

Ladyxkaa, it looks super cute!! I honestly bet either way would suit you.

ajaye - Haha! That's awesome. I bet it is less work lolol, it must dry pretty fast too, right? I can't wash the length of my hair too often (damages+dries it out), so most days I end up leaning under a faucet to wash only the stuff from my neck up. THAT is a pain, as is dealing with it when it's damp, but it stays in a bun 99.999% of the time (or a braid sometimes when I'm sleeping) so at least it stays out of the way, dammit

, and relatively tangle-free. I feel like it's not that bad but I'm biased. XD

I'm too broke for "product" (in the way most people mean it, loool) - I get asked all the time how I keep my hair so ~shiny and healthy~ and honestly I just a) don't rinse out most of my conditioner and b) hydrate with spray oil found cheap in the "ethnic" hair care section of any given store (because identical $6 oil is suddenly $30 when you put a white person on the bottle

). budget hair care ftw XD

my mom gets the salon brands cheap though (obviously - yay hairdressers in the fam) so I do get expensive shampoo/conditioner for Christmas every year! wooo!

Ladyxkaa · Mar 31, 2015

tresemme is pretty cheap and high quality, actually. it's got a lot of different formula, so you can find it for anything you need. and thanks =D

atombaby · Mar 31, 2015

Beautiful!

I used to have straight hair down to my tush pretty much forever. Almost 20 years, with one shoulder-length cut in right in the middle of these past two decades.

But would you believe I went from 2 1/2 foot long hair to a pixie cut last summer? It was traumatizing. I don't recommend it, unless change doesn't bother you. I tried my best to like it but besides the fact of feeling so cold, because really, our long hair is our scarf, I just couldn't get used to it. I really couldn't. I'm not fond of going to salons to get haircuts, but I have gone through a few pixie cuts since then. Different hairstyles are fun, but maintaining it is a pain.

Currently it's an angled wedge cut. I'm in dire need of a trim! Absolutely love your hair though. My hair never stayed curly/wavy for longer than an hour. How many inches does the curling take off?

pandaponies · Mar 31, 2015

edit: this was responding to ladyxkaa! typed before atombaby posted lol, will respond to that in a sec!

Fortunately when I say I get expensive shampoo and conditioner for Christmas... I get A LOT haha, so I normally use Matrix (love <3) and Paul Mitchell. BUT, after much experimenting over the past several years, I've determined that it hardly matters which shampoo you use (or which shampoo I use anyway; I do have friends with very fine hair who claim that certain brands do terrible things to their hair). Conditioner is important for my hair though. The cheaper (generic/white people) conditioners just plain don't do enough to it; they leave it as dry as if I hadn't used any at all (and again I don't even rinse it out!), so if I run out of the salon stuff I get deep conditioner also out of the ethnic section

. Thick thick dry hair needs that hardcore hydration lolol

The only brand I've ever found that I've absolutely downright hated and will never buy again is Garnier. It left my hair grimy and would not rinse out. o__O Blech.

Ladyxkaa · Mar 31, 2015

ouch. yeah I don't touch things with garnier's reputation. tresemme is much better.

pandaponies · Mar 31, 2015

atombaby said:
But would you believe I went from 2 1/2 foot long hair to a pixie cut last summer? It was traumatizing. I don't recommend it, unless change doesn't bother you.

Oh my goodness, that WOULD be traumatic for me too. You poor thing! I'm very much a creature of habit lol, I cut my hair up to my shoulders ONCE and all of my friends liked to've died of a heart attack. It was so weird not being able to reach around and feel it. Too much change for me.

atombaby said:
I tried my best to like it but besides the fact of feeling so cold, because really, our long hair is our scarf, I just couldn't get used to it.

(Agreed, long hair is totally an excellent winter scarf. XD)

atombaby said:
Currently it's an angled wedge cut. I'm in dire need of a trim!

I'm sure it looks lovely (but also, ya know, pics or it didn't happen ;D).

atombaby said:
Absolutely love your hair though.

Thank you. <3

atombaby said:
My hair never stayed curly/wavy for longer than an hour.

Mine is pretty stubborn about holding a curl because it pulls itself straight (/vaguely wavy

) again just being so heavy! So the best thing I've found to do is to curl it REALLY tightly around SMALL rods so you get tight tight curls... and then they fall out over an hour or two to what you see in the picture I posted, and for me they'll stay like THAT for at least most of the day. If I leave my hair in the rods for a really good length of time, sometimes they'll even stay for 2 days. Either way IME rods are WAY better for curling than anything else because they're heat-free and the fact that they use TIME to form the curls (instead of frying the hair into submission lol) gives rods' curls way more staying power. If I curl my hair with a curling iron it falls out within an hour. (edit: all of that not factoring in hairspray as a possibility^ because I don't use it for a variety of reasons)

atombaby said:
How many inches does the curling take off?

You know, I actually haven't seen my hair totally straight in months, but I'm going to guess it's about 5 inches longer than what you see in that picture (edit: mmm, just stretched a lock out and... maybe 6). When I first take it out of the rods, the length is seriously more than halved. (But again the curls do fall out. When I first take it out of the rods the curls are so tight and short they look ridiculous hahaha, like a poodle

sometimes I have to comb through them with my hands and dampen them a bit to get them closer to how I like them [factoring in the knowledge that they will fall out to a degree], but yeah)

StarryEyes · Apr 1, 2015

Oh my gosh, it's so beautiful!

I've been growing my hair out for 2.5 years. My goal is to reach hip length. Currently it's about 2-3 cm longer than this (pic was taken last Christmas):

Yes, that's wet hair, not super greasy hair

One of the things I love about long hair is how many hairstyles I can do. I'm a massive fan of historical hairstyles (Victorian, Regency, Ancient Greek and Roman… love them) and I love that my hair is long enough to do most of them! Now all I need is a professional hairdresser to help me with the complicated ones...

GailD · Apr 1, 2015

I thought this thread was about cats.

You're all shedding all over the place.

spottedgeckgo · Apr 1, 2015

Working on it, but I haven't had hair in a long time, and also a guy.

I started keeping my hair high and tight when I entered the professional working world, plus being a land surveyor with long hair would have left a rat's nest atop my head at all times. Trying to grow it back out but it's at that awkward stage about halfway down my cheeks. I figure I need to flaunt it while I still got it.

~~Geckgo

oceansoul · Apr 1, 2015

I used to have really long hair. In a way, I kind of miss it. I used to pretend to be a mermaid in the bathrub (and this is in my early twenties ... I know.) But at the same time, when I got it cut off it felt like my head lost 10lbs.

kuwisdelu · Apr 1, 2015

One of my resolutions this year is to take better care of my hair, and actually get it trimmed and styled regularly instead of lopped off twice a year, so I can wear it down more often instead of in a pony tail like I usually do once it gets past my shoulders. I usually like to keep it around shoulder length.

Longer:

Shorter:

Maryn · Apr 1, 2015

Hm, I'm on the laptop, which is not where I store pictures. I'm not sure I have any good ones that show my hair. It's about waist-length, salt-and-pepper, and at the moment, pretty dirty and held up with a clip.

What conditioner super-hydrates? Mine would be a foot longer if I didn't have to keep chopping off the damaged ends rather than just a wee trim. I'm currently using John Freida, the one you leave in for five minutes (recently discontinued, eek!), once a week and using argan oil after the other shampoos, but split ends are still my nemesis.

Maryn, who will seek a picture next time she's at the desktop

pandaponies · Apr 1, 2015

I'm running out the door to work and will respond to everyone else later (YOU GUYS! you're all amazing and so is your hair

) but Maryn, the kind you leave in once a week is deep conditioner. If your hair is still dry, you can absolutely use it more often than that. I'd also recommend leaving your regular conditioner in on your ends - if it's wavy/curly, you might need to leave more conditioner in on the whole length. The bottles say "rinse well" but a lot of people really shouldn't on their length/ends - IMO they put that on there to keep you buying more conditioner

. Also be sure to oil the ends really well (I SOAK my ends in oil on a regular basis) and beyond that, preventing damage is about protection (keep it up/in a bun, don't sleep on it [braid it, for more fragile hair consider sleeping with a headscarf or silk pillowcases instead of cotton] - when it's down it gets blown around and tangled, you lean on it in the car, etc. - use a wide-toothed comb to detangle, don't EVER brush it wet, don't scrub it with a towel or wring it out getting out of the shower, etc. Just everyday wear and tear does a ton of damage).

Myrealana · Apr 1, 2015

I've had longish hair most of my life. I've cut it short a couple of times, and always hated it. Why do I keep trying, you may ask? I'm going to go with recurring temporary insanity.

I had let it grow to about waist length, but it got so dry and damaged I decided I needed to do something drastic. I cut about 6" off. It's still pretty long, but it's healthy now.

I'll try to take a pic this evening at home. I tried in the locker room at work, but the lighting is so bad, you can't see where my hair stops and my shirt begins.

I haven't found the perfect shampoo and conditioner yet. The thing that made the biggest difference in my hair was not washing it very often. I only use shampoo twice a week, and even then, only on the roots.

asroc · Apr 1, 2015

Maryn said:
What conditioner super-hydrates? Mine would be a foot longer if I didn't have to keep chopping off the damaged ends rather than just a wee trim.

I use coconut oil, about once a week. It's a little involved because it's solid at room temperature, but it works really well for me. It also smells great, although not for very long (which is why the husband tolerates me leaving it in overnight, I think.)

My hair used to be about waist length, but now I keep it just below my shoulder blades because it's easier to keep it out of the way for work.

chompers · Apr 1, 2015

I've had all different lengths of hair, from pixie cut to waist length. It's currently a short bob.

I also hate Garnier. And expensive shampoos don't do anything different. My mother always buys expensive brands and every time I use them my hair feels terrible.

I don't get split ends, even when my hair is super long. I don't know how come.

pandaponies · Apr 2, 2015

Woooo sorry guys, got busy with injured horse stuff yesterday and ended up not really being on the computer.

StarryEyes, AWESOME!

And yesssss, I'm terrible at "hairstyles" - I just do a generic boring bun lol - but one of these days I'll have to figure out how to do some crazy princess braids and whatnot.

kuwisdelu, I love your hair, it looks super tough and healthy :O

Myrealana, we definitely need pics XD

asroc/re: oil - I've used argan, coconut, olive, macademia... all kinds. For MY hair it doesn't seem to really make a difference, so I just use argan most of the time (cheap spray-in kind

but I do have a bottle of more concentrated oil for my ends).

chompers - Genetics, probably. Hair texture is genetic and some types are just plain tougher than others. Ex. a lot of Asian/Latin@ hair is "coarse" (the hairs themselves are thick/tough which is what keeps that hair so sleek and perfect dlkjslkdjf). Mine is medium, a lot of white people have hair that's "fine" + breaks easily.

Straight hair also tends to stay hydrated a lot easier than wavy/curly hair (because the oil can travel easier down the shaft) which can help it be less fragile if it's not naturally fine.

zanzjan · Apr 2, 2015

Hope your horse is okay, pandaponies!

Most of my life I haad hair down to the small of my back, but I spent some time doing bronze casting in a foundry, and after the first time I lit my hair on fire (just singed a bit, nothing too awful, but very alarming) I got a crewcut. Very, very weird to go from that long to that short in one go. Had managed to grow it out almost as far when I went in for shoulder surgery in 2012 and knew I might not be able to brush it for weeks or months, so cut it really short again. Now back to mid-chest, and hoping I'm done with drastic haircuts.

backslashbaby · Apr 2, 2015

Maryn said:
Hm, I'm on the laptop, which is not where I store pictures. I'm not sure I have any good ones that show my hair. It's about waist-length, salt-and-pepper, and at the moment, pretty dirty and held up with a clip.

What conditioner super-hydrates? Mine would be a foot longer if I didn't have to keep chopping off the damaged ends rather than just a wee trim. I'm currently using John Freida, the one you leave in for five minutes (recently discontinued, eek!), once a week and using argan oil after the other shampoos, but split ends are still my nemesis.

Maryn, who will seek a picture next time she's at the desktop

The Pantene conditioners for relaxed hair are really conditioning and what I use for that step. I usually use 'ethnic' products, so I don't know any stylist brands any more. The hairdressers I use now always choose ones that totally don't do enough, because they have no clue what my hair really looks like

Pandaponies, you look exactly like my sister from behind! That's her hair, lol

My hair right now goes to the bottom of my bra strap. Any longer and it'll start annoying me and tangling so that I can't wear it down much (I've had it to my waist).

It's spiral-curly great naturally at this length (kind of poodle-like and wide when short), but then my curls fall out as I wear it without washing it again for a couple of days, lol. My biggest problem is frizz. If I use enough oil on it for that my curls fall out fast. That's OK, too, really, but I would like the long curls every day if I wanted (without hairspray or similar, I mean).

Fellow longhairs?

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

Consigliere to Don Fluffles

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

Drinking lots of coffee

Consigliere to Don Fluffles

partial to a gum tree

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

Consigliere to Don Fluffles

nice & cynical

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

Consigliere to Don Fluffles

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

Still chasing plot bunnies.

Da Gecko

Revolutionize the World

Baaa!

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

I aim to misbehave

Alex

in ur boardz, correctin ur grammar

killin' all teh werds

~~~~*~~~~

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