Long beautiful hair might perhaps be the best free accessory any woman can have! And it doesn’t even have to be as long as Rapunzel’s! It’s just that there’s something about how long hair flows around your face down through your shoulders that’s so feminine and romantic!
Yet, there’s this misconception that that only some are blessed with long voluptuous locks! In reality growing your hair long is pretty easy and anyone can do it with just a bit of knowledge and… a bit of patience!
After having been asked by more than a few people whether it was difficult for me to grow my hair as long as they are now (and me responding that no, it’s pretty much doable!), I decided to actually put the words on the paper (hmm… the digital paper that is!) and break this process into 6 easy to follow steps! 
6 Steps to Growing Your Hair Long!
1. The Trimming Rule
If you’ve decided to grow your hair long you have to ensure that it’s in a “good shape”! The first thing to take care of are the split ends. If your hair got split ends – you MUST trim them! Yes, it sounds counteractive! But trimming your hair actually stimulates it to grow faster!
Yet, more importantly, having your split ends cut off will prevent you from pulling your hair out when you’re comb it! By the way, the longer your hair gets – the more difficult the combing may become!
UNLESS the split ends are cut off! Then your comb will just be gliding through, no matter how long your hair is! On top of everything split ends don’t look very good. And the whole point of growing your hair long is for it to look good, right? 🙂 Trim your hair every 3 months or so to ensure that it grows well and looks great!
2. The Air-Dry Rule
What makes you hair dry and brittle causing its ends to split? It gets like this when it’s dried out! Dry heat seriously dries your hair out! While you can get away with dry hair if it’s short, longer hair will give you a very hard time combing it as it will tangle and break!
I usually make sure to wash my hair a few hours before I need to head out or before bedtime to give it enough time to dry without me using a fan!
3. The Big Comb Rule
Once again – the detangling problem! …Which can be easily resolved by investing in a thick-tooth comb! While it doesn’t have to be expensive the main thing I look for in my combs is that it slides through my hair nicely! With that in mind you don’t want to get a wooden comb or, God forbid, a metal comb! Get the comb that’s smooth touch with the nicely rounded think “teeth” that won’t scrape your scalp!
4. The Heat-Protection Rule
I know that I’ve already mentioned that air-drying your hair is the best way to go! Yet, sometimes we just need to look our best for that Very Important Date and we Need to curl it (or straighten it)! If you must use a heating tool, make sure that you use some sort of a heat-protector! They usually also add shine and help your hair keep the hold of your chosen hairstyle!
Finally if you are going to use a curling or flat-iron a lot, invest in the one that has a temperature control feature! The lower the temperature – the less damage it causes to your hair!
5. The TLC for the Died Hair Rule
While it’s always a good idea to nurture your hair as much as you can, the previously treated hair really needs more care than anyone else’s! Also, while it’s awesome if you can schedule a visit to a salon for their keratin masks and treatments, not everyone has this in their budget (Hmm… I… don’t!). But there are ways to give your hair some care at home, too! The overnight masks and oils make a big difference at how your hair looks and grows. Finally there’re also some diy masks that you can make! (I am not a big diy enthusiast – it’s a bit too messy for me, but if you’re up for it, you can read more on diy hair treatments here).
6. The Keep It Tied Up Rule
Letting your long hair down could be a very rewarding experience, yet, if you keep your hair down all the time, you will have to comb it more often. And no matter how careful you are, when you comb it, you will still be pulling and breaking it, even just a tiny bit! Especially if it’s really tangled up after you were walking with your hair down during a windy day!
While letting your hair down is actually a good idea when you’re indoors and aren’t working out or moving around too much, to prevent it from tangling, I always put it in a tight bun when I head outside or before a workout! Also when your hair gets long it’s so much fun experimenting with all those different hair-styles that you couldn’t do before!
I love braiding my hair the most: it looks pretty and doesn’t feel too tight (as a pony or a bun does)! And as a added bonus – if you braid your hair while it’s wet, when you unbraid it, you’ll get your beautiful curls naturally, without having to use any heating tools or products! 🙂
…When I was fifteen my hair was just down to my shoulders! I WANTED to have long hair, but I thought that I didn’t have the “right” hair that’ll grow long! (Like one of the school’s most popular girl’s hair 🙂 – hers was down to… where my hair is now! 🙂 ). But it did! And it wasn’t really that difficult to grow or maintain!
I hope you too are now equipped and inspired to grow your hair long because having long hair is So Much Fun! 🙂
But please let me know if you have any other questions about this process in the comments below! 🙂
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Your long hair is so beautiful, though I don’t know I have the patience for the long beautiful locks you have. I especially love that shot of your braided hair too, so pretty! Thank you for sharing your tips and tricks!
Thank you, dear Debra! 🙂