Trim plan: Pixie->APL and beyond!

[tbonita]

So if anyone here has grown out a pixie, I wanted to ask some advice. I have a pixie now that's growing quickly (for me) due to many little tricks (monistat, scalp massages w various EOs, henna, moisture, etc). My goal is APL and beyond. I say APL now so it's not such a daunting goal, but my dream is BSL and beyond hair with lovely fairy tale ends ;). I've never had that. It's thickening up nicely and can't wait to get some length.

In the meantime: trims. I hate the mullet-y 'tail' look that's starting to happen. Should I be trimming the bottom til the front catches up, and what about all the layers!!? How will that pan out? I'm not sure I should be messing with the top/front. Any suggestions? Maybe the pixie growing out with the layers will help achieve the fairy tale ending I'm dreaming of?

[sumidha]

I had a friend in high school that shaved her head, and then grew her hair out without trims, if I recall correctly it took almost two years for her layers to grow out enough to not be a mullet. Unless you're really into that look I'd suggest micro trimming the bottom layers until the shortest ones catch up. :)

[LauraLongLocks]

I have grown out a pixie several times. I prefer cutting the back every 2 months or so until the front catches up and you have a bob. In the meantime, wearing my hair with a barrette or headband holding the sides and bangs out of the way helped to combat the mullet look. I don't have any pictures of my pixie cut in 2008, but here's one about a year later, in the summer of 2009.

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/Bestbirth/Hair%20Gallery/LauraPrego016.jpg (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/Bestbirth/media/Hair%20Gallery/LauraPrego016.jpg.html)

When you get to where your layers are only the bottom 3" or so, and have about neck length hair, you can flip the hair up at the ends and have a look like I did in November of 2009:

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/Bestbirth/Hair%20Gallery/16443_1272620059131_5634775_n-1-1.jpg (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/Bestbirth/media/Hair%20Gallery/16443_1272620059131_5634775_n-1-1.jpg.html)

By February 2010, this is what my hair looked like, but this, admittedly, was not a perfectly styled day for my hair:

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/Bestbirth/Hair%20Gallery/045.jpg (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/Bestbirth/media/Hair%20Gallery/045.jpg.html)

This is what it looked like, styled, and curled and I think very pretty, in the summer of 2010:

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/Bestbirth/Hair%20Gallery/008-1.jpg (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/Bestbirth/media/Hair%20Gallery/008-1.jpg.html)

And here it is a year later, summer of 2011:

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/Bestbirth/Hair%20Gallery/053.jpg (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/Bestbirth/media/Hair%20Gallery/053.jpg.html)

And then I was getting quite impatient and feeling blah about my hair, so I had bangs cut, and some layers cut into my hair:

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/Bestbirth/Hair%20Gallery/002-4.jpg (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/Bestbirth/media/Hair%20Gallery/002-4.jpg.html)

Here you can really see the face-framing layers I had in the early fall of 2012. I have come to hate the layers (braid shredders) and I'm still growing them out, but I love the bangs:

http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b270/Bestbirth/Hair%20Gallery/IMG_20120923_190715.jpg (http://s21.photobucket.com/user/Bestbirth/media/Hair%20Gallery/IMG_20120923_190715.jpg.html)

My signature pic shows where I am today with my hair. I still have the bangs, and I absolutely love them right now. My hair is the longest I've ever had it, though I've been to BSL between the years of 2000-2008. In high school, I wore my hair in a pixie, and as a child, I had it between a pixie and APL, but after getting married (1994) and starting a family, I grew my hair out, until I hacked it in May 2008. I still have face-framing layers and some shorter layers in the bottom 2-3" of my hair.

Sorry for the picture-heavy post, but I thought it might be helpful to actually see the progress. I didn't have a camera in 2008 or I would have had pictures of the pixie, too.

ETA: Yes, I'm pregnant in the top and bottom pictures. I have borne 11 children.

[RegretsHerCut]

I'm growing out my pixie right now and had only to trim the mullet twice.. Not because it was ugly but I want to have all-one-length hair, my pixie made me hate layers.. It's been 11 months and I'm at neck length now. My short term goal is APL too but I'll keep growing it later. Once you can put your hair in a ponytail stop trimming the back..

[tbonita]

Thanks ladies ;) LauraLongLocks that was very helpful and you have beautiful hair! Good ideas everyone ;)

[two_wheels]

I was super-short-pixie in May 2012, and stopped trimming the mullet when the top layer got to the bottom of my ear which was about 9 months later. By then you can do reasonable approximations of half-ups or pin the top layer and it's just generally easier to live with. I just wanted it to grow at that point, and without wishing to state the obvious, it really is amazing how much more quickly it grows when you don't cut it... so trimming until you can bear the layers may work for you.

LauraLongLocks thanks for the growth timeline, very inspiring!

[LauraLongLocks]

Thanks ladies ;) LauraLongLocks that was very helpful and you have beautiful hair! Good ideas everyone ;)





LauraLongLocks thanks for the growth timeline, very inspiring!

Thank you to both of you! In looking back at the pics of 2011 and 2012, I can see that I lost a lot more length on that last layering/framing cut than I thought. I remember sitting in the chair, and the gal just saw my layers and started trimming them back again, before I had a chance to say anything. I felt like I had to let her finish, or it would look silly. At that point, I wasn't quite sure how much I hated them, but after that last cut, I really, really hated my layers. Since that last layer touch-up, I have been VERY clear to stylists that I want to grow my layers out, and to please only do a DUSTING on the ends. So far, the results have been very nice.

Anyway, you can do it, too! And BSL is where you really seem to "graduate" into all the fun updos that everyone does here at LHC. I have had the most fun learning new buns and different styles. Just be patient until you make it there, and have fun making it look nice at whatever length you are. For my straight, fine hair, I found that a blunt cut was the prettiest on me past APL, even if the layers were nice when it was shorter. At longer lengths, I didn't have the thickness or texture (waves/curls) to make the layers look pulled together and styled every day. It just looked shaggy on me.

[CurlyCap]

After I decided to grow out my pixie, I spent the first year getting trims that were a compromise between gaining length and giving me a hairstyle I enjoy.

I will not tolerate hair I don't like just for the sake of length!

In retrospect, I'm glad I did it that way. I don't remember my short lengths as a burden, but rather as a time when I had a lot of freedom to experiment.

When my hair passed shoulder, I started to cut at home. Since I could control the length lost, I started gaining visible length must more quickly.

Hope that helps.

[tbonita]

Thanks LauraLongLocks & CurlyCap!! One thing is for sure... I never have trusted stylists and especially won't for this
Endeavor.. No offense to any stylists please I've just had some unfortunate experiences! So I'm ny own stylist for now! One of the reasons I have this pixie is bleach damage from over-zealous stylists (and a bout w indigo that I'm allergic to, and not being able to match my roots, and many other things Id like to put behind me haha.. Thanks for the help and encouragement! ;)

[Joyvs]

Hi tbonita, you're definitely not alone! I'm currently growing out a super-short pixie which I had cut in June of this year. Lots of layers and a bit of an uphill battle with the mullet! Since that big cut, I've done 3 (I think) micro-trims, just of the mullet 'tail' near the nape of my neck. That's seemed to do the trick so far and I've just let the shortest top layers grow without any trims. I stop myself from thinking too much about the really awkward parts by twisting and pinning back the sides. I also have to use a little bit of wax over each ear as some of the hair there is still really short compared to the other layers and tends to look like crazy sideburns if I don't slick them back behind my ears. Just hang in there - I think the first 8 months or so are the toughest. There is a thread called 'Any super-shorties out there?', I highly recommend spending some time on that thread for tips and tricks and also for encouragement when you might feel like the growing is taking forever! HTH :flower:

[LauraLongLocks]

After I decided to grow out my pixie, I spent the first year getting trims that were a compromise between gaining length and giving me a hairstyle I enjoy.

I will not tolerate hair I don't like just for the sake of length!

In retrospect, I'm glad I did it that way. I don't remember my short lengths as a burden, but rather as a time when I had a lot of freedom to experiment.

When my hair passed shoulder, I started to cut at home. Since I could control the length lost, I started gaining visible length must more quickly.

Hope that helps.

I agree with CurlyCap, at every length, make it a style that you can enjoy and feel happy with. I sacrificed some length so I could have an enjoyable hairstyle for the first 2-2.5 years. From APL to BSL, I needed to find fun and interesting things to do with my hair because I found that length boring. I resorted to layers and bangs. The bangs were good; the layers were bad. If I had it to do over, I would have done some demi, or semi-permanent hair coloring, or maybe some hair chalk, just to do something fun and different. I am keeping that as an option if I later get to a boring spot, and I'm thinking that since bangs are so short, a streak through my bangs is a likely idea. Maybe something a little more constructive, like cassia or henna. Anyway, keep it fun and the time will pass quicker than if you are merely waiting to be happy with it someday. Be happy with it now! :)

[alabaster]

I have grown out a pixie to shoulder length 2 times now and i found the best way is just to keep trimming along the back of my hairline until the front catches up. I can be quite painful at times, but my advice to you is to push through the awkward stages even when you are tempted to cut...

[swearnsue]

I trimmed the back like the other posters suggested. In addition I trimmed the sides because you know how the piece in front of the ear, the sideburn area is long and then over the ears are short. So as the sides grew I trimmed them in a slant, shorter in front and then longer towards the back.

This transitioned into a V hemline using the Faye self trimming method. The V will turn into your fairy tail ends you want.

[Addy]

I've been trimming my neck line since June to rid myself of the mullet. I have pics in the pixie thread if you want to check them out.

[tbonita]

Thanks so much for the tips, joyvs! I am dreading that awkward stage. Are you planning to trim to all one length? I felt like maybe if I didn't, it would look cool and layered with those wispy ends? (Or thin and scraggly, I guess I'll have to wait and see!). Meanwhile I'm doing everything and I mean everything to get some growth! Haha!

[tbonita]

Thanks Addy - I will check them out! Thanks swearnsue & abaster!! Hope I'm not missing anyone those are all great tips! Resist the urge resist the urge! I do have the long sideburn thing too.

[browneyedsusan]

I never made a horrible mullet. May 2012 siggy is about 8 weeks of growth, and Hairdresser trimmed the back up to my hairline. After that, I grew with no trims until the following February. (snoop through my growth album) For me, pinning up the bangs and front made it look presentable. It wasn't fabulous, but it was socially acceptable. I didn't wear it down until about Christmas time.

That said; I've never been one to style my hair. (hard to tell, I know. I only nursed that pixie 15 years...) I like lots of options, and to look nice when I want to, but daily styling for 20 minutes just to look like everyone else? :puke: My growth goal was getting enough length to put it up, and put it up differently every day. Trimming would only slow me down.

Some people like lots of different styles along the way, get lots of neat haircuts, but have slower growth progress (celebrities usually go this route). I wanted it long quickly, so took the cheap and dirty road.

[cranberrymoonz]

I grew a pixie out once. I cut it into a cheeckbone length bob first, and as it grew into a chin length bob, I grew out the layers and my bangs. That worked fine for me. I'm post BSL now:)

[tbonita]

I never made a horrible mullet. May 2012 siggy is about 8 weeks of growth, and Hairdresser trimmed the back up to my hairline. After that, I grew with no trims until the following February. (snoop through my growth album) For me, pinning up the bangs and front made it look presentable. It wasn't fabulous, but it was socially acceptable. I didn't wear it down until about Christmas time.

That said; I've never been one to style my hair. (hard to tell, I know. I only nursed that pixie 15 years...) I like lots of options, and to look nice when I want to, but daily styling for 20 minutes just to look like everyone else? :puke: My growth goal was getting enough length to put it up, and put it up differently every day. Trimming would only slow me down.

Some people like lots of different styles along the way, get lots of neat haircuts, but have slower growth progress (celebrities usually go this route). I wanted it long quickly, so took the cheap and dirty road.

Cheap & dirty.. Haha that'll be me then cause I'm longing for length something fierce!

[tbonita]

Thanks cranberrymoonz... Stories like yours are encouraging :)

[Ashflower89]

My blog in my siggy shows monthly pictures of me growing out 3 different pixies from 2009 to now. I didn't trim anything at all on the first two, so they're pretty good reference of what leaving the weird layers alone would look like as time progressed. During this current third pixie, I decided not to go through that shaggy mess, so I've been doing mullet trims every 2 months. As far as comparing no trims to mullet trims.... getting rid of the mullet helped me SO much. Every day of those first two pixies felt like a bad hair day to me, I got pretty down in the dumps about the entire appearance of my hair until it reached shoulder. Theres no point desperately growing length if you cant stand the shape of your hairs bottom layer. From what I've learned about growing pixies out, the back grows much faster than the front, so your weird layers in the back will grow out fast. If you keep trimming the mullet up to your nape until the sides are the same length, most of the layers will be gone.

[tbonita]

My blog in my siggy shows monthly pictures of me growing out 3 different pixies from 2009 to now. I didn't trim anything at all on the first two, so they're pretty good reference of what leaving the weird layers alone would look like as time progressed. During this current third pixie, I decided not to go through that shaggy mess, so I've been doing mullet trims every 2 months. As far as comparing no trims to mullet trims.... getting rid of the mullet helped me SO much. Every day of those first two pixies felt like a bad hair day to me, I got pretty down in the dumps about the entire appearance of my hair until it reached shoulder. Theres no point desperately growing length if you cant stand the shape of your hairs bottom layer. From what I've learned about growing pixies out, the back grows much faster than the front, so your weird layers in the back will grow out fast. If you keep trimming the mullet up to your nape until the sides are the same length, most of the layers will be gone.

Thank u so much fellow LOTR fan ;) You make a very good point... Gotta enjoy the ride right?

You know what is weird... Speaking of back growing more quickly... I had to do a henna job last night because the crown/back area only had developed a root...in my case it literally does grow more quickly! I had barely a root up front!

[Kwongdzu]

This is my 3rd time growing out a pixie. First time I let it grow with no trims, second time I kept the back trimmed. It's just hard either way! If you like to wear your hair down, it's definitely better keeping the back trimmed until everything catches up. Me, I like to wear my hair up all the time, so having the mullet's ok --well, for now :)

[ebba]

@LauraLongLocks Your hair looks great!

also 11 children?? :O omg