Long hair--easier to manage?

[Darkhorse1]

Hey gals/guys!

Do you always hear people say that long hair is harder to take care of than short hair?

Do you agree with this? I don't. For me, long hair is a simple style--wash and go.

Are there any people here who have gone from short to long and can add to this comment?


Oooh..new emotion-icons :eye::bigtongue::bow:

Sorry, I'm a child with those icons ;)

[socks]

It's much easier to manage in my experience. There are no trips to the salon, there are no trims, and it only needs to be washed every 3-5 days. For some reason, the longer it gets, the less it tangles. In the mornings, I only spend about 20 seconds throwing it up into a bun- no brushing required- and my hair is ready to go.

[Shanarana]

I find long hair much easier to deal with than when my hair was short.

[jojo]

Long hair a lot more easier, when my hair was short I had to style it every morning now its just a quick comb and up, takes 5 minutes compared to the hour it used to take.

[xrosiex]

I think long hair is easier for me. Like JOJO said comb put up and go.:)

[NurseMama]

It does take longer if you follow the traditional styling advice (blowfry, straighten, or curl), but who here does that anymore :p.

[Anje]

Probably easier, if you keep your hair in a protective 'do most of the time.

One of the two other longhairs on my floor apparently cut hers from hip to shoulder over the weekend, and when I commented on it (pleasantly -- it really does look good) she said it was too difficult to take care of the length, and that it was starting to get thin. But then, she normally wore a low ponytail and generally wears a wrist brace, so it might have tangled often and gotten difficult to manage.

[RavennaNight]

I find its much easier to manage long hair, especially since I joined LHC. When it was short, there was always blowing and ironing and product. As it grew, I kept doing that stuff until I got here, and it took forever. I was also under the impression that my hair was straight and needed to be beaten into submission. (poor hair!) I think once you embrace air drying and the hair grows a bit more, it becomes much easier! A little aloe gel and coconut oil and I'm out the door! For work, the hairstick has become my best friend, and using it takes only 30 seconds, although I'm now trying out some new styles that take a little longer. The less you do to force the hair any particular way, the better, and easier!

[Katahdin]

I think they both require the same amount of care really, if you're going by LHC's standard quality. Short hair must be trimmed regularly and styled well or it looks like crap. Long hair must be put up most of the time, and a lot of people give it special treatments outside regular washing. (these being LHC's standards.)

However, I think long hair is a lot more fun. You get to enjoy growing it out and celebrating new length, and you get to try cool new styles, which you really can't do with anything shorter than shoulder length.

With short hair you cut it and... that's it. Long hair is journey, it's always getting better and progressing.

[CaityBear]

I think it's easier. This is my second time of having long hair, in between I had chin length hair. Yes, I think short hair was easy to care for because it flipped out on it's own, it took less time to wash my hair, and I only ever had to brush and go and less time to dry. :P

But at the same time it's easier to put my long hair up because I don't have to sit for 5 minutes trying to get my short hair out of my face when it barely could go into a ponytail. And it doesn't get all messy at night. With short hair I'd wake up with it all over the place, long hair, you can barely tell I just slept. Though washing isn't any easier because my scalp gets oily really fast and it doesn't seem to adjust much. It's easier to keep it from getting tangled as well. If it's windy, put in a bun or ponytail whereas my short hair just flies around my face. :P lol

And I just love long hair. :P

[insideitall]

I never really trimmed or used any products when it was shorter, and if I were to blowdry it wouldn't take much longer than before, either, as my hair is pretty fine. It does stay behind my shoulders and out of my face better, though, and isn't quite as poofy as several years ago due to the added weight, I suppose. Good things, in my opinion.

I can't remember anyone recently mentioning that they got their hair cut because it was getting too hard to care for. I make sure to tell them all the time how much easier long hair is to care for, actually :-P

I figure the styling that short hairs go through is probably even more time than the crazy treatments we do - I mean, oil, a bun, a shower cap, and sleep.. that's my hot oil treatment :-P

Rather off topic, but I was thinking today how much I like the term "fairy tale endings" :p and just wanted to mention it, lol.

[blondecat]

My 'wavy' hair is definately easier long.

I spent my childhood with a short 'boys' cut as my mother didn't know how to deal with my hair.

Oy, the tangles, even with my short hair were terrible.

Now, I just comb, bun, wash once a week [oil + condition] and that's it.

Marrrvvvvelous :)

[Darkhorse1]

blondcat--we must be related. That was the whole reason I grew mine out (well, outside of loving long hair). My hair was very thick and wavy and snarled easily when it was shorter. As it grew, it was MUCH easier to care for.

I mean, hair is hair. I can understand people cutting it if they physically are compramised/becomes a challenge, but for my needs, it's perfect. Fingers run through, baseball hat, terry tie and go. I just find it funny how, when people see long hair, they say to me 'oh, it must take you SO long to get ready in the morning'. I smile and go 'yup, two seconds'. :D

Of course, it helps I work at a barn, so hair isn't a big deal if it's not perfectly manicured, but I like my hair looking 'neat' at all times.

[Aqua Gal]

Well, I wonder what my shorthair experience would have been if I'd been more accepting of my natural wave and texture. Maybe a short wash and go do is the same as long. I really don't know, because I did horrible things to my hair when it was short. Not just horrible, but TIME consuming too!!

[EdG]

I vaguely remember when I had short hair (many years ago), I would wake up and my hair would be a mess - unruly due to being slept on, or standing straight up... shudder:

Those things can't happen with long hair. Gravity always prevails. :D

Now, I wake up and my hair just falls into place. :cheese:
Ed

[Calanthe]

For me, much easier to manage. I mean, as a short hair I washed everyday (sometimes even twice a day, when it looked "funny" in the morning), blow-fry, tons of products, a different colour every three weeks...Just think of all that time and money ;). And of a bathroom full of stuff.

Now, the bathroom is virtually empty: a poo bar, bottle of vinegar, small bottle of oil, a comb and a brush. End of stuff used.

An easy hairstyle such as a cinnabun takes me about 30 secs and even a complicated thing doesn't take more than 10 minutes. Just great!

[Alaskanheart]

I dont know.Its sort of a toss up for me at this point.

Short hair, blowdry,more shampooing, salon visits

Long hair, gentle care, deep conditioning treatments, up dos, s&ds

Im not good at up dos, so My basic hairstyle is a pony tail outside or a crappy bun in the house.Leaving it down of course causes damage so I dont do it often.

Im not saying I dont like having long hair, I just dont feel it is any easier than short hair when comparing how much more polished I looked with short hair.I dont have to visit the salon or heat style 30 minutes everyday, but it also looks like I spend less time on it.Im hoping that once it gets longer, I will be capable of styling it to look more polished.

[sahiba]

Like most of them said long hair is definitely more easy to manage than short ones. Bun them or braid them and in hot days you wont even know they are there and during formal nights a pretty barret holding half of your hair on top is a crowd puller.;)

[ladyshannonanne]

Long hair is much easier. I never have to style it unless I want to. With short hair, it was a constant battle trying to keep it in place--not to mention 20 minutes of blow drying every day,every morning, to be exact, and I am NOT a morning person. With my hair growing out (I'm about 2 inches to APL), I shower at night and it's dry in the morning. I put it in a ponytail and that's it. It couldn't be simpler!

I think long hair would only be more difficult for someone who shampooed their hair everyday and wanted it perfectly blown out or flat ironed.

[rubyredslippers]

I think that ultra-short hair would be super easy. But I also think that would look horrible on me--I simply do not have the jawline to pull it off. And I love the feeling of long hair . . .

But rather short hair on me (ie ear-length to shoulder-length) would be much more work than long hair, because I get wurly cowlicks that no amount of brlowfrying, straightening, or gel can tame for more than an hour. Not to mention the flyaway curly bits! Long hair at least weighs these down and makes my hair behave better.

[Honey39]

My new routine is certainly easier - I CO in the morning, put in a turbie, just before I go to work I comb it out, put some oil on the ends, some AVG on the crown and then bun. About mid morning I let it down and let it air dry. That's it, and it looks GREAT!

I went to the hairdresser and the amount of work that it took - shampoo, condition, serums, blow dry, and then for the next day I had to comb it throughout the day. Yikes. Give me the natural way any day, it saves so much time!

[Leisha]

I've never had a short haircut so I can't really compare ;) but I find my hair very easy to take care of. I wash it every 2 weeks approx. and in between washes I don't do much with it at all. :shrug:

Ok the washing takes quite some time, rinsing it completely for example, getting all the shampoo or conditioner out takes longer than a short haircut probably would, but I don't have to blowdry it or worry about it sticking up weird in the mornings and stuff :p

It probably depends on the style, and your hair type etc. if short hair can be easy to manage or if you'll need more time every day to make it look reasonable ;) but overall I don't think long hair is more difficult to manage anyway!

[Duchess of Erat]

I've never had really short hair, but since I'm past waist it's definitely more work than it was before.

Part of that is probably that I never bothered much with styling (even the chinlength bob just got to dry the way it wanted: one side curling in, the other out), and combing (esp if that needs to be done carefully) just takes longer if there's more hair (and I've been getting the problem that my arms are too short, so I've had to change my routine there as well, which also takes time). And I'll need to experiment to find a good way to put my hair up for sports, as the high braided ponytail doesn't feel comfortable anymore.

That said... I love my long hair and don't mind about the (small) extra effort it takes. I love all the updos I can do now (and they only take a minute or so once I've figured them out).

[Curlsgirl]

Mine is easier for sure but I would say the time it takes to detangle and wash/condition/DT/oil is taking longer all the time. However, I used to ALWAYS wash my hair every day and then blow it dry and then it would look terrible in about an hour because I had done like some many others, tried to beat it into submission! Now, I let it be but it IS very thick and takes some extra TLC to keep it looking healthy. I think it may depend on the hairtype somewhat in how much time it takes when longer. Still, by FAR better now!

[Tap Dancer]

For me, medium hair is easier to manage than long hair, although I love both. I don't know how to do updos. I can't do anything more complicated than a ponytail or a simple braid. If I keep the length a little shorter, I have less tangles to deal with.

Short hair is more work. When my hair was short, I didn't have to style it and the wash/air dry time was pretty minimal. BUT most short hairstyles look best with bangs and my bangs needed to be washed daily to keep them from being greasy. At my current length (just below the shoulders with layers -that are old bangs- starting at my chin), I wash, let it air dry, and then put a headband on. I love it. :)

[Saranne772]

Well, I personally think it depends on what you are doing that day. Sometimes when Im tired at night my hair is a pain- I can be bothered to braid but if I dont I get tangles in the morning!

Then also mine is getting to a stage where it is constantly in the way down.

Also- when up in the car I cant lean my head on the headrest.

Sometimes these disadvantages make me want to cut back to hip- but I know I wont do that.

I feel feminine with long hair, Im growing it to bring glory to God. I also like to be "different" haha!! I love my hair and I just remind myself of that when I feel frustrated

In fact a hair nightmare of mine is to be involved in an accident- and have to be taken to hospital where they chop my hair off and I wake up to find it gone! *shudder* :couch::run:shudder:

[Anne~]

Grew mine long because it was so uncontrolably curly. It is much, much easier to take care of now!

[Anje]

I don't have time for hard-to-deal-with hair. But I think short hair can be easy, too. You just have to go short enough..... Up to about an inch long is probably WAY easier than what I'm doing now. Just wouldn't be the best look for me.

[Phalaenopsis]

For me, long hair is harder (but luckily I like long hair :D)
Shoulder length was the easiest. You can put it in a pony tail if you want it out of your way and the centered weight of the ponytail doesn't hurt. It dries quickly, isn't in your way often etc.
Right now, I'm gradually experiencing more difficulties with my longer hair. People say, you can put your hair in an updo, but for me with thick,slippery, fine hair that isn't so easy. An updo can always come lose and there you have it...
When my hair was almost hip, it was always in the way, (but I was 14, I even wasn't able to do a braid...) And I'm going through it all over again. Hair in my mouth when there's some wind, hair in the way of my coat, hair between my backpack...

When I have to wash it, it's hard to get some poo on the skin of my head, my fingers get tangled in my hair.
jadack, jadack... I could tell a lot more, but this is getting too negative :p Even with these downsides, I still love my long hair and I want it longer than I've ever had before.

[rhysiana]

I had long hair all my life, and then cut it to chin length for a change at the end of college, and I have to say I found the short hair much more work. My hair got oily faster, which required more washing, esp. because there wasn't a good way to disguise it (ponytail, etc.) And then, to make sure the ends would curl under properly, I had to either blow-dry, which I had never bothered to do before, or keep brushing it at regular intervals during the air drying process and be sure not to rest my head on anything before it was completely dry. I started growing it again right away, because the idea of having to go to the hairdresser every month or so to maintain the style really was not high on my list of priorities. A trim every 6 months or so? Yes, I'll do that instead!

[trixiebelle]

I've found it a lot easier to deal with long hair than short. My curls were harder to deal with when I had short hair. I was styling it every day, using products and generally spending a lot of time trying to make it look just right. Drying it was also a pain. I'd either end up blow drying it to make sure I could control the curl, or to striaghten it. I actually read a comment about long hair in response to an article where the poster claimed when she had long hair it had taken her hours to look after but short hair takes only half an hour. She then went on to say "because some of us have lives and don't have hours to spend on our hair". I have no idea what she was doing but it takes me about 2 mins to finger comb or clip to the side, and all I do to dry is stick it in a bun.

[spidermom]

No - absolutely not. Sometimes I feel like my hair is trying to take over my life. Not counting the time I spend here - which started because of my hair - there are days that I have documented spending over 2 hours on my hair doing various conditioning treatments or trying to get a braid or up-do just right. When my hair was shorter, I might have had to spend some time styling, but once I was done with it, I was finished. Now I can't count on an up-do holding for more than an hour. Sometimes they do; I manage to get the right tension balanced in the right spot. Other days I'm re-doing it all day long. (I almost talked myself into cutting it with this post!)

[morgwn]

I find long hair MUCH easier than short, although I have to say that the hardest-to-deal-with length was between chin and APL. It was still pretty much too short to put up and had to be fussed with every day to look decent down. It was tough during that time to not just chop it all back to pixie length! But now I'm so glad that I didn't... washing twice a week takes much less time than every day and twisting into a bun or doing a quick braid is much easier than fussing with products.

[Arctic]

My hair is now longest it has ever been at APL, I have had hair that travelled from pixie to bob to shoulders to pixie all my life. I have also always been low maintainance on hair departement, I never blowdried or anything. To me short, or bob length hair is not difficult. Bob especially is the easiest style there is! I must say I spend more time and energy on my hair now that I've found TLHC. It's not necessarily bad thing, because I enjoy myself and my hair. I'm sure when I have had long hair for a longer time all will become more quick and effortless.

I should also note that last time I had pixie and bob I had straight hair, now I have waves.

[AnneAdeline]

I am spending more time on my hair now that it is getting longer. That isn't saying much, because before I would just shampoo and then brush. Though it takes more time, I still enjoy having longer hair.

[Samikha]

The shortest I ever had was a bob. I never blowdried or anything like that, I just couldn't be bothered. I would hairspray it into submission and then leave it. I spend more time on my hair now, but it's because I want to and because I enjoy it! Grooming is so very relaxing and suitably braindead evening activity. And it looks so much better, whether I spend time on it or not.

[Miss Murphy]

Much much much easier. I have rather thick hair, and a lot - so with my ear-length bob I had to blow-dry every time (to avoid looking like a toilet brush). And blow-drying would take me from 30 to 45 minutes.
Now I wash and go - way better!

[Chromis]

I vaguely remember when I had short hair (many years ago), I would wake up and my hair would be a mess - unruly due to being slept on, or standing straight up... shudder:

Those things can't happen with long hair. Gravity always prevails. :D

Now, I wake up and my hair just falls into place. :cheese:
Ed

This!

In my case I have cowlicks and a very stubborn and firmly determined part. Even when less than an inch long I have a centre part. Hoo boy did it look goofy growing it back out! I'd run a comb don it and all those standing up hairs on the side would just sproing! back to attention

As it has gotten longer, it's gotten easier and easier. It stays behind my elbows now if it's down and it's much easier to put up!

[wjewerica]

I agree that longer is easier to handle...My hair is still short, and i have a really hard time to style it every day...hopefully, it will change

[share801]

Not in the least!! I didn't have to spend so much time detangling and it didn't try to get eaten by seat belt, caught on door knobs, and I also did not have to cut hair out of the vacuum all the time. Guess it depends partially on hair type and how much time you spent on the styling when your hair was short.

[thunderlilies]

I dunno... I think shorter hair was easier for me... when I had majorly short hair I didn't do all the blow-frying thing or styling thing, so it was just up and go. It was SOO simple to wash and I could shake my head like a dog after to get rid of excess water (I loved doing that!).
Long hair takes me time to brush and style when I want it to look nice - not that I find that disagreeable! I (usually) enjoy it, but I do think shorter hair was simpler in many ways. It all depends on how you do it, I suppose.

[LHScotsman]

Yep - totally agree - wash and go. My hair's waist length and is far easier to manage than when it was short

[nicolezoie]

I guess it really depends on what was done with one's hair when it was shorter. In my case, I rarely did more than push it out of my face with a scarf or put it in a ponytail. I was never one to try and style it (with the notable exception of 7th grade in the late 80s with sprayed solid bangs) and never EVER got the hang of using a blow dryer or any other styling tool. I don't think that would change now - I'm a real creature of habit. I might be more inclined to start swimming again, but even still - with what time? and do I want to do THAT to my hair, again?

Why do I keep it this long? I don't think I'd know what to do with it if it were shorter. Shorter meaning above waist length, which it has been past for half my life now. I would probably wear it down alot more often, but even still, I might not. With the amount of wave I have, it would only end up looking rumpled and not very nice. At this length, on the rare occasion I wear it loose, those rumples actually form a decent wave pattern, and I allow myself the luxury of letting it get piecy at this length because it actually looks nicer. Piecy at shorter lengths just made my hair look stringy.

Is it easier to deal with now at mid-calf compared to other lengths along the way? No. It defintely is not. I have to keep strict track of where my hair is even when it is up because more often than not I whack my bun on something or end up with a stiff neck from it being too heavy after sitting in one position for too long. Sleeping has been a pain lately because of the lumps and the stiff necks and other body parts from staying in one position too long. And it's actually a nuissance at times because I have a dog, and inevitably dog hairs end up slipping into my own hair, and while detangling, those hairs and lint end up being at the core of the pin-knots.

But will I cut it shorter? Heck no. ;) I am a longhair to the core, always have been, always will be. ;)

[Darkhorse1]

Good points brought up here about long hair and having to wash daily--but way back when, I washed my hair daily (and stupidly, before a horse show), and never found it more work than now, where I can go a few days without washing. (age has it's benefits=less oil on scalp)

For me, I think long hair works best because my hair grows very fast. My mom is the same, but she opted for a shorter style due to hair loss as result of Lupus--she's getting new growth back, but prefers it short--but she's at the hair dressers much more often now as a result.

I'm lucky my hair looks pretty good if I just pull my fingers through it and go. But, I occasionally have the stubborn cow lick in my fringe, which has it's ...well, amusing moments.

[vampodrama]

it really depends on the length of "short" hair.

hands down the easiest hair ever - a buzzcut XD you literally don't have to do anything with it. I washed my head with whatever soap or showergel I had, it dried in seconds and that's it.

the absolute nightmare hair is a pixie cut or the weird emo-cut I used to have... it takes so much styling and still looks off most days. XD

now with my APL hair I'm already seeing the benefits of long hair and the low maintenance of it. wash and go, as most before me have said.

[Rapunzelwannabe]

Long hair looks better with less effort, and for me that means it's easier to manage. Yeah, I get tangleys at the nape of my neck that wouldn't be a problem with short hair, but my hair cut short puffs out like a cartoon cat after a bath.

[Lamb]

It must be my hair type, but I don't find short hair hard to deal with. Rinse, shake, go. I guess curly/wurly hair just needs less styling than straight hair? :shrug: The in-between stage is a whole other story for sure.

[Robbi Dehlinger]

I guess the drying thing can be a problem, but I LOVE the feel of long hair against my body:)

I think you can certainly do more things with long hair and, it certinly does NOT have to be washed as much as short hair does.

plus I LOVE it, and did not love my hair when it was short:)

[FrannyG]

With stick-straight hair, you can imagine what it takes to make short hair look good. With short hair I need mousses or gels, a blowdryer, a curling iron, and usually hair spray.

Nothing could be easier for me than having long hair. I haven't had to use any of the about for a very long time now.

Additionally, I can't remember the last time I had a "bad hair day". Sometimes my hair is somewhat limper than others, due to how I wash it, but I can always find a style that works perfectly.

I admit though that I do have friends with wash and go short hair. They have very different hairtypes than I, though.

I will never have short hair a again.

[intothemist1999]

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAy easier!

When I went from shoulder length to very short to cut out colour damage, people kept saying to me, "oh, it must be SO much easier to care for!" Uh. NO!

No way could I get away without styling everyday because the shortness didn't have enough weight to stop it from getting all bent outa shape over night. Sometimes I curling iron couldn't cut it, and I'd have to wash it to get all the bend hairs and start over.

My long straight hair is a blessing as far as being a time saver!! :D

[Robbi Dehlinger]

what is so hard about washing and combing out long hair? Plus, as it gets longer you have to wash it less, unless you are like me and just enjoy washing it???

BTW, my blow dryer has a cool seeting, so I blow dry, not blow fry:)

[Suldrun]

For me it depends on how short. I had a pixie and I did nothing to it except run my fingers through it and scrunch ( with out w/o product) and it dried cute, easy. As it grew out I used a headband and did the same thing, easy. When my hair get to shoulder it gets flat looking unless I blowdry it ( which I rarly did ) so honestly it always looked blah, not easy!!.
Now it is a tad past BSL ( when I pull it straight) and yes it is more work. First of all I have hair that turns stringly looking moments after I comb it:( unless I curl it. It is thin and flat so when i pull it back I feel bald so I have to do somthing xtra to fluff up the front. Also my hair is fragile so I have to slowly gently detangle. It also takes longer to dry so I have to think ahead and plan washing and drying.
I now take the time to oil, finger comb and air airdry. I also night braid.

Now having said that!!! The " work" of longer hair I find more pleasurable and enjoy doing. I hate blowdrying and very, very rarely did it anyway but gently fingercombing in front of the TV at night and then oiling with my horn comb I love. Even though it is frustrating I love learning new updos.

For me it is more time and work but i enjoy it so it does not seem like work:bluesmile

[Honey39]

My mum asked me this earlier today - and the answer was absolutely no. My hair is much easier at this length (just above bsl now), than shoulder length. The weight kind of pulls it down a bit, and all I have to do is co-wash it, comb it out, add oil, and that's it. And I'm getting consistently good hair days. When it's shorter, I had to fuss over it more, use more product, and generally it was more hassle.

I always had very long hair as a child and teenager, and I had forgotten the ease of long hair - it usually looks okay, especially as I tend to wear it loose.

[Rosepatrice]

When my hair was short, it was very thick and had to be styled and curled everyday....It took much too long to look nice. I like my long hair. All I do is wash and condishion it then finger comb and that's it!! Easy.

[patissegrietje]

I had this horrible nightmare; i cut my hair short and found out it took me a lot of time to style it. It just wouldn't go in the right direction and i had to use all sorts of yuckie stuff in my hair, like gel and hairspray.
Woke up very unhappy, and i think it's also the truth... With long hair i'm ready to go in a minute in the morning, it takes a long time to wash and condition but i only do this at nights and make it a special moment between me and my hair :D

[rockkcor]

For me long is easier...
Probably beacuse im my case - if short I wake up with horns on the top of my head, I have hard time to put it in place and all that...

[Isblå]

I don't think I actually use less time now I guess, but I was mostly to lazy to do a lot of work when I had short hair, but then, most of the time the hair wasn't all that great looking either. I find that the curls and swirls didn't really cooperate at that length. An other thing that bugged me when the hair was short was that my colour got all dull. I have never coloured my hair, the colour is dark blond and I get natural hightlights in the sun, but when I cut the hair short most of the hightlights disappeared as well.

[gdimoonbeam]

My hair is very easy for me. I may only blow dry 3 times a year to give it extra body for a special occasion. The rest of the time it is wash and go.

[Teakafrog]

One of the main reasons I love it long--no scheduling (and paying for!) constant trips to the salon, being annoyed with roots growing out from the color, spending an hour every morning blow-frying, curling, straightening, and using gobs of product. Now it's just usually CO, comb out in the shower, and go. Air dry, then take 10 seconds to twist it up and out of the way. I save hours a week and tons of $$ from when it was short. :cheese:

[Angelica]

It depends what people are doing with their short hair and whether or not they regard visiting the hairdressers as a chore, some actually enjoy it.

I haven't seen much short hair looking nice really, but that is because they always seem to be dyeing it and tonging it or whatever.

However left alone and if it has enough body I am sure short hair is easier to manage.

I can not wash and go. My hair is too fine for that. I need to put it up to make it look any good. I had short hair once and it looked good but for only as long as the perm lasted, once that was gone I looked almost bald it was so flat. So I had to curl it etc just to give it the bounce it needed.

But I wouldn't say it was easier to manage long hair. S & D is too time consuming and putting it up takes time, even if the style takes a minute or less - depending on how my hair is behaving itself - the texture makes it too silky sometimes.

Whereas other people in work only have to brush their hair in the morning and that is it.

It is odd but those with the best hair types seem to be cutting their hair short and those with the finer hair textures (like mine) are keeping it longish.

[Leabhar]

I used to have to wear ear-length hair for school, and it took so much time to style. I washed at night and woke up with ducktailed ends and I had to wet, straighten as I dried, and then head off to school. (The cut was supposed to keep me focused on studying and not with messing with my hair, tempting boys, etc.. It failed on the messing with hair bit!)

Now, I just bun it and go. I also don't have to wash my hair every day, or go to the hair salon every four weeks to get a trim, or get talked into coloring and cuts that are high maintenance.

[ole gray mare]

It depends. I used to wash and blow it dry every day. That was a pain. Now I wash it only once a week, and I spend approximately 30 seconds styling it for work. However, I used to only run a brush through it before bed. Now to get it ready for bed, I finger comb, scalp massage, comb, brush, braid and put oyin whipped pudding on the tassle. I spend much more time getting my hair ready for bed than I do getting it ready for the day! :)

[Zindell]

Long hair is definately easier to manage for me.
I wake up, brush it and out I go.
(Heck sometimes I even forget to brush and it still looks ok)

When I had short hair it pointed in all directions when I woke up. I had to wet it and style it before even thinking about leaving the house. :rolleyes:

[Katze]

I find I have to fuss with my hair more in some ways to make it look good. When it was short(er) it had one style, which I could blowdry and curl it into (sometimes with extra curling iron use to straighten or curl the ends). That made it easier, as I didn't have to think and plan ahead.

Now that I am getting used to hair that I lean on, roll on in my sleep, or which can get tangled in zippers, buttons, etc. I find I have to find protective things for it, and watch out for it more.

This makes me want to be able to master some of the beautiful styles I see here, but honestly, I can't seem to get them to work well at the moment. Clean hair is too frizzy but usually too nice to waste on an updo; "dirty" hair clings to my scalp in weird ways, causing scalp cleavage that means I can't master an updo no matter what. If I spend a lot of time trying new hairdos, I usually get really frustrated and go back to the old standard - wash my hair to get rid of the grease, let it air dry, put aloe and leave-in in it, and wear it down, except when it's clipped up for a bike ride.

I know I am treating BSL hair like shoulder length hair and that's not good, but anything else just seems like too much work at the moment...!

[Alun]

I vaguely remember when I had short hair (many years ago), I would wake up and my hair would be a mess - unruly due to being slept on, or standing straight up... shudder:

Those things can't happen with long hair. Gravity always prevails. :D

Now, I wake up and my hair just falls into place. :cheese:
Ed

Same here. I can't imagine ever having short hair again. It was such a pain. In my case we are talking maybe 35 years ago! If only I'd avoided trims for the first decade or so, because I still had the same problems when it was mid length.

[willowcandra]

It's easier to manage if it's put up.
If I tried to wear my hair loose it would be 10x the trouble of short hair.

I agree that there's less styling etc longer but there is more effort in being gentle and working out which products are good or bad.

I actually think long hair needs more dedication and attention to detail than short hair.

Once you weigh it all out it's probably farely even.
But of course I don't find caring for my hair particularly difficult. It's easier to get it to do what I want it to at this length.

[NeilTheFuzz]

I think for hair "easier" is down to personal preference. I find it easier because I always hated having my hair trimmed every couple of weeks when I had my buzz cut. I do not mind sorting my long hair out for 20 minutes a day, which I didn't have to do with a buzz cut, although other people would probably say that makes it harder to manage.

Short answer: I find my long hair easier to manage :)

[Miss Hidley]

For me the long hair is definitely easier to manage because there is no "style" which needs to be taken care of. The shortest I ever had it was a sort of layered chin length do, where she thinned out most the weight and so it was really really fine. It absolutely had to be straightened otherwise it fuzzed up like a topiary bush, and of course it was so thin that the slightest sweat or humidity would send it back to being kinky. The first thing I did was grow that out!!! I love long hair because you don't have to wash it so often, you don't need to bother with straightening/blowfryering or negotiating with a hairdresser about your 'do, and even if its in average condition it still looks really sexy :cheese:

[chantiny]

Hate to be the one to say it, but at least for me, short hair was much easier. I love long hair though, and it feels like a labour of love. Never in my life have I regularly blowdried or styled. Now, it takes me 2-3 minutes to brush out my hair, as opposed to 20-30 seconds. However, when I am in the mood to style, long hair has so many more options! But then again, once I actually start going out of my way to help my hair not make tangles (it has started since I got past BSL, was fine before), then maybe I won't have to brush it so thoroughly.

[Tabitha]

Hey gals/guys!

Do you always hear people say that long hair is harder to take care of than short hair?

Do you agree with this?

Long hair is absolutely more hassle for me. I used to have a "pixie"/boy-short hair and it was so easy to shampoo and airdry. No need for conditioner or hairdryers, it was dry in well under an hour.

Now I do love my long hair, but I detest the faff of washing it and I especially hate the hours of wet hair while it dries. I use a lot more shampoo and conditioner and washing takes a lot longer. Washing is never a spontaneous thing any more.

If it's windy or raining outside, I have to take extra care to protect my hair from the elements and in general, to make sure it doesn't tangle in coat buttons, zips, handbag strap etc. I have to make sure my updo stays secure and the things fixing it aren't about to fall out.

The only thing that's easier is that I don't have to get it cut as often - but actually that's not strictly true because I still have to have my fringe trimmed so it doesn't get in my eyes, and I made a very bad job when I tried it myself.

[HairyCarrie]

When my hair was super-short it was very easy, even blow-drying and styling. Now that it's growing out, but still short, it is now a pain. This length *for me* demands attention and I spend a lot of time dealing with it.

I'm anticipating less hassle when it gets long enough to pull my hair back without bits sticking out. I just hope I can break the habit of washing it every day. It's an ingrained thing with me... but now with LHC I know it will be AOK :)

[Monsterkitti]

Longer is easier I think although when I had chin length hair it wasnt too bad as I just left it to go super curly and it looked quite cute. The problem came when I wanted to grow out the chin length cut, that was a nightmare, my straighteners became my best friend till it got to shoulder length at least.

Now the curl is easier to handle, requires a few minutes to do in the mornings with just daily oiling rather than having to try hundreds of products to try and tame the curl.

[Arctic_Mama]

With my hair type the longer it is the easier it is! I have tons of fine, poofy, wavy hair and it looks ridiculous short because of the sheer unruliness and volume. The ONLY problems I run into with it long is a) the weight is killer, even down and b) it tangles like crazy.

The first is something that can be managed and the second is easily solved through bunning and braiding.

The gentle handling can be a hassle when all I want to do is rip a brush through it and go, but it's a small tradeoff for beautiful, otherwise low-maintenance hair. Certainly less time than blowfrying, straightening, and washing every day or two just to keep it looking decent.

[Speckla]

Longer hair is easier to care for. My hair lays down as it gets longer and heavier. I have to tie fishing-lure weights on my ends when it's short. :)
________
ULTRAM REHAB DICUSSION (http://www.rehab-forum.com/ultram-rehab/)

[Alun]

Longer hair is easier to care for. My hair lays down as it gets longer and heavier. I have to tie fishing-lure weights on my ends when it's short. :)

ROTFLMAO! Never tried that!

[PeaceWithTrees]

I never really though if short hair would be eaisier. I have just always enjoyed taking care of my hair, and long hair has always suited me better. I think long hair is easier, You cant really tie short hair back, and my hair type isnt the most managable hair type, its was hard taking care of my hair when it was short, and very annoying because it always found its way in my face, with it long, i just tuck it behind my ears, and forget about it all day. Also, a short hair style would be lots of mantenience for my hair type.

[Long_hair_guy]

Hair bush then ponytail. That a minute. The only thing I think that takes longer is washing your hair due to the amount.

When I had short hair I had to gel it to keep it flat and by the end of the day I had to wash it out anyway.

Its only went I'm going out I take a lot of time on my hair (I enjoy it anyway)

[Aditi]

I think both involves equal caring. And moreover you have to watch out that your hairs are not rubbed off with hard surfaces and such.

[boukje]

I cut my hair short 2 times in my life, the first time I did it (I was 9) because I thought long hair was difficult to maintain and tangled a lot (I know now that it was actually my mom who was always saying this and not really me thinking this) I had a bit past waist length and cut the entire ponytail off, but let it grow immediately.

The seoncd time I cut my hair was a bit past BSL (at 12 or 13 or so) because every girl was having 'short' hair and it was 'the thing to do' . I cut it off (again the entire ponytail), and I liked it the first day (when it was cut), the second day when I woke it up was everywhere and I couldn't style it. especially because I never really learned how to style short hair. After a week I HATED it, and grow it out without cutting for several years.

After this I have only once cut it back from waist to BSL. Now I am 2 inches away from classic (not really liking it a lot), but I never cut short again. I just cannot make short hair look nice on me.

Now I braid at night, in the morning I take the braid out and bun it with a ficcare (takes me less than one minute). I wash it 2 times a week and about 1 to 2 times a week I give it a SMT or something else apart from the washing.

[rhubarbarin]

The longest I ever had my hair was probably hip length, and the shortest a 1/2" buzz.

For me, with my curly/wavy/extremely full-bodied hair, it truly is easier the longer it is. I love being able to pull it all back, put it up and forget about it. When my hair is shorter than shoulder length it requires a ton of maintainence in order not to look crazy. It sticks up all over the place and expands and floats in humidity, so the more it's weighed down the better it behaves.

Also - it looks 100x better after sleeping on it! With shorter hair I got terrible bedhead.

Of course now that it's getting fairly long it does get it the way when it's down. But - all I have to do it put it up, which takes about 10 seconds.

[Tartlette]

Much easier for me. When my hair was short or had layers, I had to spent a lot of time and hair spray getting my natural curls to behave. Then I'd go out and the humidity and end up with sticky frizz anyway. I have told many a friend who asks if it's a bother that my hair is much "shorter" then theirs when it's bunned.. why would I cut it off?

[karenpetal]

I get this all the time being long haired guy - I think I spend less time going to salons - just comb it once a day braid it and done for teh rest of the day :)

[dor3girl]

I find that the easiest length to deal with is some where between APL & waist. Would that be BSL? Hair drys pretty fast, looks healthy & requires minimal maintenance. When hair gets closer to waist & longer, it seems like it requires more delicate treatment. I noticed that when I had short hair, I had to curl it for it to look nice. Also, it got oily & was not flattering unless styled.

[mjm4]

you are spot on, dor3girl.

waist is a bit too long, and APL and shorter requires constant attention otherwise it (in my case) just dies out... BSL is a nice middle number :)