Trim or keep growing? I need opinions, please.

[shutterpillar]

I need some fresh eyes to take a look at my hair, if you don't mind. :flower:

My dilemma is that I have these scragglies going on in the last couple inches of my hair. I have the feeling they are probably leftover layers, but they could just be natural fairytale-ing as well. I'm not completely certain. I am trying to decide if they look bad enough for a trim (maybe an inch and a half or one inch?) or if they look well enough to be left alone. They are not obviously damaged - no white dots or split ends at all that I can see, which is why I am having trouble deciding. They ARE, however, damaged from heat and dye, which I have been remedying with oils and deep treatments. If I did trim them, it would be purely for aesthetic purposes.
I'm also hesitant to call waist length since my scragglies are the only hairs reaching waist. lol. (waist is where my thumb is sitting)

What do you think? If you saw me walking down the street would you think my hair looked bad? Do you think I should trim an inch or so?

http://i951.photobucket.com/albums/ad351/ashmey86/Hair/IMG_9436.jpg (http://s951.photobucket.com/user/ashmey86/media/Hair/IMG_9436.jpg.html)

[Madora]

I'd say trim two inches.

[florenonite]

I like the ends. They don't look scraggly, just like nice FTE.

[KittyBird]

I think your ends look lovely. I love fairytale ends :)

[Macaroni]

I would trim an inch.

[AspenSong]

I personally don't think they look bad and think your hair looks lovely. I don't think they look scraggly, more like fairytale ends. Depends on which you want more in the end. Thicker hem or FTE. :)

[NuclearApple]

I personali love fte,so why trim 'em?:)

[earthybee]

I love your hair too :) I wouldn't trim.

[martyna_22]

If your ends don't feel too dry, I say do not trim. They look very nice :)

[Iolanthe13]

Do you have splits/breakage? If not, I'd say keep growing. As far as I can tell it's best to get to your goal length and then maintain, if you really want a thick hemline. And anyway, FTE like you have are pretty too (I'm aiming for them myself :) ).

[r00ski]

I'd say trim an inch or two, couldn't hurt and would thicken up the hemline. (also great if those ends feel dry!)

[alexis917]

I'd trim an inch, but they're not straggly/bad really. You could get away with not trimming.

[Jennielee88]

I like your ends. You have a bit of a natural wave so they don't look bad. I'm having a similar dilemma, I've just hit waist length but have straggly ends and a few splits. But I don't want to undo all my hard work by cutting anything off it...

[JessicaAnn]

I like your ends. Right now my ends are very thick because my hair has recently been cut and I can't wait for them to grow out to a more "natural" look. If they aren't damaged I think I would keep them.

[pogo0685]

I have these same ends. I would leave them, I have decided my hair just like to have fairy tale ends and no matter how much trimming I do they always come back. I am at hip but don't want to call it because it's just my fairy tale ends touching. So my vote is as long as you like them I would leave them, but if you really want a blunt hemline then you will have better luck with trimming them off.

[KellieMai]

If they don't feel damaged and you wear your hair up a lot I would leave them. But if you like a thicker hemline I'd start with an inch and see how It looks. I personally prefer a thicker hemline because I think it makes my hair look thicker, but either way your hair looks great :)

[vanillabones]

I personally would trim 1" and keep growing.

[shutterpillar]

Thank you for your opinions, everyone! They really do help immensely. :) Since i've gotten replies anywhere from "don't cut" to "cut two inches" I think I'll compromise on a happy medium and cut about 1 inch before my next wash. I think that way I will have a slightly cleaner hemline, but still be able to rock some fairytale ends as well (which I really do love! I was just worried mine were getting out of control.) Hopefully after this cut I will be able to call waist around New Years.

Thank you again for all the help!

[LauraLongLocks]

I must be a hemline snob. I would trim two inches.

[shutterpillar]

It'll get trimmed off eventually, Laura. I've been consistently trimming 1/2 inch every 3 months for well over a year now. I'm hoping I'll ultimately have all my layers gone and get a blunt hemline out of it, but if I do not then I am content with fairytale ends. :) They are just as beautiful.

[AmyBeth]

If your goal, like mine, is to have the longest hair you can, I would microtrim regularly and let the hemline take care of itself, as far as the shape.I happen to like a U-shape/fairy tale hybrid hemline. If it is very damaged and you have a hard time protecting the damage from moving up the hairshaft or just breaking off, trim the damage off.

[Pamala513]

I think it's very pretty, I love the look of the ends, they look healthy, so I say, no.

[allycat]

Please post a pic after your trim!

[LauraLongLocks]

It'll get trimmed off eventually, Laura. I've been consistently trimming 1/2 inch every 3 months for well over a year now. I'm hoping I'll ultimately have all my layers gone and get a blunt hemline out of it, but if I do not then I am content with fairytale ends. :) They are just as beautiful.

What matters is that you are happy. When I reach waist, I'm pausing to grow out the rest of my layers, even though my hemline looks fairly thick already. I still think I'll keep a soft U hemline. I like it that way, but the bottom 3 inches of my hair is all layers, and I've been trimming, trimming, trimming every three months. I will just maintain at waist until I am happy with the ends. It's what I want and what I like. You should do what you want, and what you like. If the ends are not splitting and causing more damage up the line, then I see no reason, other than personal preference, to cut them off. I should have been more clear so it wouldn't sound like I was disapproving. Do what you like and be happy! :)

[shutterpillar]

I will definitely do that, allycat!

[shutterpillar]

Lauralonglocks - I didn't think you were disapproving! Your hair is beautiful and I think you have a great plan for it. I hope to have a blunt hemline eventually, but the layers in my hair make me uncertain if the fairytale ends are the result of the layers or what my hair just does naturally. Either way, I am prepared. Both hemlines are gorgeous! Good luck with your growing!

I'm just tired of hanging out at BSL/MBL for over a year! LOL. That's really the only thing that makes me want to keep it how it is. I just have to keep in mind all the trimming of the layers and dye will pay out in the future.

[Jenny31557]

My hair is kind of similar to yours. I want a thicker hemline, so I'm going to be microtrimming half my growth every month for 1 year (2014) and see how that goes. I would suggest you microtrim as well if you want rid of the FTEs and still want to grow. Your hair is lovely btw! :)

[Lyv]

I think it's really pretty as is but if it were me I'd trim them maybe half an inch. I really like the way fairytale ends look though, they're so soft and pretty! If you don't really want them then I'd just do an inch though so you don't lose too much length but you get closer to a blunt hemline.

[Flor]

If you're after a blunt hemline, then yes, trim.

[Crumpet]

Lauralonglocks - I didn't think you were disapproving! Your hair is beautiful and I think you have a great plan for it. I hope to have a blunt hemline eventually, but the layers in my hair make me uncertain if the fairytale ends are the result of the layers or what my hair just does naturally. Either way, I am prepared. Both hemlines are gorgeous! Good luck with your growing!

I'm just tired of hanging out at BSL/MBL for over a year! LOL. That's really the only thing that makes me want to keep it how it is. I just have to keep in mind all the trimming of the layers and dye will pay out in the future.

I have a similar problem -- although I'm sure that my FTE are the result of the crazy layers that were put in. I grew to waist and hit waist about a month ago. I'm growing a bit more and then will trim half an inch in January and then a quarter inch each month after that. I like FTEs but mine is much more out of control with layers than yours is and therefore more necessary. Just another idea to ponder!

[leslissocool]

It'll get trimmed off eventually, Laura. I've been consistently trimming 1/2 inch every 3 months for well over a year now. I'm hoping I'll ultimately have all my layers gone and get a blunt hemline out of it, but if I do not then I am content with fairytale ends. :) They are just as beautiful.


If I saw you down the street I would think those were layers. I don't think they look bad.


To me, it seems you are more tired of MBL than you want a blunt hemline so I wouldn't trim until your scragglies were past waist. Just keep hair up and protected even if there is some damage.


I waited to tailbone before I had the courage to chop the remaining damage on my hair. There was a point when length mattered more I was very frustrated. Now I'm at a point where health matters more, went back to hip and now I'm at tailbone with healthy hair and it feels much better.


So my vote is keep it oiled and up, don't cut until 2 inches past waist ( I count the fairy tales length, so scragglies).

[bunzfan]

Your really close to waist i say maintain when you get there ;)

[Coolcombination]

I'd advise you to wait till waist then trim an inch, then wait another two months and trim another inch if you still feel you should. That way you'll still be at waist just with a thicker hemline :p

[farmlass]

Looks good to me, I agree with everyone else, lovely FTE. If length is an issue for you, trim a little at a time, say half an inch a month, so that you gradually thicken up without losing length. That's if you decide to go for a blunter hemline.

[shutterpillar]

Ok, after reading the new responses and sleeping on the idea, I have decided to wait until a week before christmas and then give a good 1 inch trim so I feel nice and freshened up for the holiday parties.

Now the hard part will be to keep it up and forget about it! Five and a half weeks to go... :)

Thank you for all the help, everyone!

[Angelicblaze]

I agree with the majority. I don't know if you'll like this term but I think it looks really cute the way that it is. I really like it, I would only trim for true damage. Did you want a blunt hemline? Or would you follow the shape you have now? I like the shape that it is now.

[shutterpillar]

Angelicblaze - I would keep it in the shape I have now. I've been using Feye's U-Shaped trimming method to cut my hair. Every now and then I'll throw in a straight across trim so the layers on the sides can catch up a bit more, but I do like to maintain a U shape.

[CurlyMopTop]

That's exactly how my ends looked before I trimmed them. I wasn't ready for FTEs yet. I felt that they didn't look good at the length I was at. I say it's a personal choice. The only opinion that really matters is your own. Do you like them?

[shutterpillar]

CurlyMopTop - yes, I like them, but I was worried they were looking too unkempt. I'd rather my hair look more fairytale than scraggly and unhealthy... like it desperately needs a trim. Do you know what I mean? I've seen hair like that while out in public - just not healthy looking at all. I wanted people's opinions on that because if my hair looked bad, I was prepared to cut it and thicken the hemline and make it look healthier. I'd prefer quality over quantity (even though I'm tired of hovering at MBL)

I think it's as healthy as it can be now, so a cut would be just for aesthetic purposes. I'm glad to know the majority do not think it looks horrible. :)

[höpönasu]

I like strong hemline, but everyone has their taste. I would trim them.

[CurlyMopTop]

No it does not look horrible in my opinion. ;) I'm glad you like them! I just didn't like them on me. I always felt they would look good at about bcl or tbl though. :D I'm holding out for thicker ends till past waist, then letting it go to do it's own thing.

[Mainesongbird]

I don't think your hair looks bad, definitely not, but I would say trim and inch and a half. =D

[bunzfan]

I know everyone is saying trim 1-2 inches but i dont think its needed at all as you pointed out most of that is from old layers if you must trim take 1/2 inch now and then maintain after the new year :D some hair just does that naturally mine does it i think wavy hair does and it suits the waves depends how blunt you want it? i plan on maintaining probably when i reach TB for the same reason.

[alimc]

I think your hair looks lovely! And I'd say you were at waist! But it depends whether you are happy with the ends? From an aesthetic point of view and from my opinion I'd say leave it, it's very pretty.. :heartbeat