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hime_daruma_88
February 6th, 2013, 05:00 AM
My hair is waist length, fine 2B with quite a lot of taper in the ends. They don't look so bad, I don't bother if they look fairytalish but they are brittle, and full of white dots even if I try to S&D and microtrim every once in a while. And the ends stick to each others like mad, even if huge knots are rare. I love to keep my hair down and do it maybe too often, but it doesn't look that nice because they stick to each other, are stiff and won't flow free, it looks like an untidy mat or something! There's some years old bleach in the ends.. I'm super cautious when I brush them with TT, but think the brushing might break the ends more.. :/ I regularly use mineral oil and do deep oil treatments, and the unbleached part is shiny and healthy-looking.
Should I just trim or would something else help? Has anyone else been dealing with same issues? I really wouldn't want to lose much length cause my growth rate is so slow. Last time my hair was this long I ended up chopping it to pixie due to knotting!

Nini
February 6th, 2013, 05:16 AM
I think you'd do well with a trim, combined with some deep treatment.

hime_daruma_88
February 6th, 2013, 05:16 AM
http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s362/Sanna_Jasmiina/tammitukka_zps81108afb.jpg couldn't find a better picture showing the condition of the ends..

lunalocks
February 6th, 2013, 05:47 AM
Your hair sure looks beautiful in the picture. Luscious color!

I had some raggety ends a few years back and was faced with similar issues. I bit the bullet and cut off 4 to 5 inches for a fresh start . quit the abuse and made positive changes in my hair care. I CWCed, used baby oil, trimed 1/4 to 1/2 inch off every 3 months, S and Ded regularly, and wore my hair up most of the time. I began to wear it up in a bun every night.

STILL, once I reached hip, my ends became more and more fragile. Some of it is ponytail damage still reaching the ends. Most of it is general wear and tear. For me, this is the critical length where normal good hair care just is not enough. Now I S and D every 2 weeks and CWCC and have had my hair up every day. At some point I will stop growing length and focus on thickening ends and will be able to wear it down more often as my trims will be an inch or so every 3 months.

So maybe a trim of several inches, extra TLC and wearing up more could make a big difference.

Lyv
February 6th, 2013, 06:08 AM
I am in love with your color :agape:

spidermom
February 6th, 2013, 06:50 AM
Wow, your hair is really gorgeous! I have a low tolerance for fighting with Velcro ends, so I'd get the trim, probably at least 2 inches worth.

Falcore
February 6th, 2013, 06:51 AM
Whoa, your colour is stunning! Wow...

I'd just trim an inch off every few months until all the bleached ends are out. I'm in the same boat as well.

MORE
February 6th, 2013, 07:27 AM
I don't think your ends look thin at all! Really, I was so surprised to see the picture because I thought you had ends looking like mine lol.

I think it looks great, your hair is lovely. I have a looot more taper than you so mine doesn't look as good as yours, but I had the velcro problem until I started doing herbal rinses lately. I use a strong infusion of rosemary and rooibos as a rinse after I'm done washing it (I don't rinse it out). On my hair it works wonder! The velcro is gone and my ends feel like hair again. I never tried anything that was as successful as the herb rinses, and I tried so many things.

I really recommend it! :)

morrigan*
February 6th, 2013, 07:28 AM
Wow, your colour is beautiful!

If your ends are full of white dots i will trim it a little first, because hair breaks at white dots.
Also in future catnip might help you with keeping spit ends and white dots at bay!

Lilli
February 6th, 2013, 07:36 AM
When I get ends like that, clarifying and deep conditioning fixes it right up. Sure beats cutting if you don't want to lose length! If it doesn't work, then you could trim a bit.

erialc
February 6th, 2013, 07:37 AM
Wow you're hair is stunninggggg, can't get over how gorgeous it is!!

Oh well, I have the exact same issue with my ends (especially the top layer... those underneath are fine), and I don't know what to do about it... I think protein might make it a bit worse... Honestly I don't think there's a solution other than to just wait it out until it's all cut off.

SerinaDaith
February 6th, 2013, 08:52 AM
I just had to say oh my gosh beautiful hair! Trimming yes, but oh no no no to the pixy chop! I would love to have hair that long and thick!

Naiadryade
February 6th, 2013, 08:58 AM
Your hair is stunning!! Your ends really don't look all that tapered, but I totally understand about damaged ends being tangly... I've got a similar issue. Personally I'm going to do a good long S&D mission soon, but if you've already tried that maybe a trim is warranted. That and moisture! Putting olive oil on my ends makes them feel softer and not tangle nearly as easily.

melusine963
February 6th, 2013, 11:47 AM
Your hair looks beautiful in the photo, but if the ends are damaged then it's best to cut them before the damage spreads upwards.

jacqueline101
February 6th, 2013, 11:51 AM
I say a trim is in order and lovely hair.

Charybdis
February 6th, 2013, 11:58 AM
I agree with everyone who says that your hair looks very nice, no thin ends at all, and I second the suggestion of clarifying (specifically, with a chelating shampoo) and following with a deep moisture treatment. If you have hard water buildup on your hair, that can make it tangle like mad; I struggle with this issue in my current location. My hair is happier if I rinse with filtered water with a small squeeze of lemon in it to remove mineral buildup, but I haven't been lately due to the cold weather, and so my ends are more tangly.

If you still have crazy tangles after chelating/clarifying and deep moisture treatment, I'd definitely trim a couple of inches at that point. A fresh trim can really make it feel like a new head of hair when the damaged ends come off, and it'll help silence the voice in your head that keeps telling you how great a pixie cut would be. :p

Angelica
February 6th, 2013, 12:08 PM
Beautiful hair, incredible colour. Personally I think your hair looks gorgeous, so long and thick and shiny. I can't see any damage. Try a little trim if you feel it necessary, and condition or oil the ends and you'll find it much better :)

leslissocool
February 6th, 2013, 12:15 PM
I ecco, clarify and deep conditioning first to remove build up. If that doesn't work take 2 inches off, I recently cut a lot back (all the damage I had) and went back to hip and it made my hair doesn't tangle AT ALL now nor it feels like velcro.

Your hair is GORGEOUS!!!

Vrindi
February 6th, 2013, 12:27 PM
Your hair is beautiful. I would say go for a trim of an inch or two, or do regular micro trims. Also, have you tried other kinds of oils? I like coconut oil, and I think it does something to keep protein in your hair. I don't think mineral oil does, but different hair likes different stuff.

I'm trying to grow out bleach damage, so I'm micro-trimming. I find cutting just a little bit off very regularly keeps the ends from behaving like velcro and still allows me to grow it out while slowly thickening the hemline. I've also started to notice white dots appearing a couple of inches up from the ends, and it finally occurred to me that it's right about where I tie off my braids— elastic damage! So I made two parandis and have started to wear them to avoid elastics all-together. It's a good way to wear hair down-ish and still keep it protected. Best to start with the healthiest hair possible though, so if you only trim a bit, make sure you S&D as much as you can find also!

LakeofGlass
February 6th, 2013, 12:59 PM
Something I've found tried and true is that tapered ends actually end up being damage on hair. Those who enjoy fairytale ends, good for them. I'm never going to hate on them. But tapers develop after some wear and tear on the ends. Just like virgin hairs taper off from never being cut, previously cut hair will taper off after never having work done. Eventually they do get so fine at the ends that they can split, and regardless of conditioning, those ends will be damaged. The more you grow without trimming, the more they will taper UP the hair. You may notice a loss in static, too. Damaged ends promote static. I've seen so many say "trim trim trim!" and I've understood why from experience. It is always irritating to lose length, but think of it as pruning. Trees and shrubs benefit from cutting back to promote growth; hair can be the same way.

longforthis
February 6th, 2013, 01:04 PM
My ends were velcro-y, but I found out it was from too much protein and lack of moisture.

I gave a break on protein treatments, moisturized the body of my hair with coconut oil, but on the ends I focused on apricot oil, since I discovered that coconut oil can give a protein effect to your hair.

I would try all of that before I gave my hair a trim.

hime_daruma_88
February 6th, 2013, 01:45 PM
Thank you all for replies and advice! Your nice comments made my day :blossom:
I have been trimming regularly, every 2 months or so and will maybe do small trims more often now and focus on protective updos. I actually deep oiled with olive oil yesterday and then washed with chelating shampoo and the ends felt a lot happier today. :) And for everyone who likes my color, that picture was taken quite close with flashlight so maybe it's not that bright orange in reality :) At least in winter, indoors it looks darker like reddish-brown... Actually I don't even know how my color turns out in sunlight (yay for living up north in freezy hell)
I really don't want to end up with pixie, that is not an option anymore :D

jojo
February 7th, 2013, 08:50 AM
I think your hair is beautiful but if your seeing damage white dots, splits etc those bits need to come off or else they will just snap off causing worse taper and hair that appears not to be growing.
Personally id take 1-2" off , start oiling those ends and keeping it up a lot more than you are.

teal
February 7th, 2013, 09:37 AM
Oh good heavens, that's not much taper. You should see my hair for what taper looks like! :)

I love your hair colour and it looks very healthy! Seconding the good advice above to clarify and moisturizer and trim a little bit if necessary. You may want to consider wearing your hair up more often, too... the taper does get accentuated by damage, and wearing it down all the time could definitely be contributing to that. Fr me, I know I have a bunch of old heat damage and it's breaking off at the very ends, but I enjoy fairytale ends and they make it easier for me to do the updos I keep my hair in most of the time, so I don't bother to trim.

Sarahlabyrinth
February 7th, 2013, 12:28 PM
Oh my your hair is magnificent! Maybe you could try microtrimming for a year or so?