For people that started growing with short hair

[xsampa]

Comparing the short hair you started out with, is long hair more or less time consuming ?

[Sarahlabyrinth]

My long hair is probably more time consuming, but only because I enjoy learning new updos. When my hair was short I would just wash, condition and go. Now, I could still do the same with my long hair, but I enjoy it so much these days I like looking at it waaay too much. But am enjoying it so much more.

[Nesoi]

It's more time consuming than shaved/buzzed, because that just needed the clippers every few weeks and that was it ;)

But in comparison to a pixie/Bieber growout, the upkeep on longer hair is WAY less. I don't have to go to the hairdresser (ugh) for a start, and throwing it up into a bun takes way less time than fiddling about with heat tools and styling products. I find long hair to be much less time consuming, in general.

[HairFaerie]

I started with super short pixie and now I am just below shoulder.
I would say at this stage right now it is more time consuming because if I wash it in the morning, before work, I have to blow dry it. Also, I spend more time doing obsessive things like brushing with BBB, oiling, etc. I didn't do any of that with pixie. It was pretty much wash & wear and when it was cold outside and I had to blow dry it, it dried in a flash!
I don't mind though because I know as it gets longer, I will have more styling options than just a pixie.

[lapushka]

Comparing the short hair you started out with, is long hair more or less time consuming ?

Long hair is definitely easier to care for. Short hair (esp. wavy) needs constant styling. So, when I was a teen and had shorter hair, I used to spend half an hour a day, at the least in the morning to get it styled. Nowadays my hair just goes up in a bun in about a minute. Done.

[butterflybutton]

I think it depends on your hair type. I find long hair incredibly easier to do, anything shorter then can get in a ponytail takes me 1/2 to an hour to look passable to styled.

My mum on the other hand spends less then a minute to do her pixie, and as it gets longer she spends more time on her fine 1b? Ish hair.

[molljo]

I started with a pixie and am almost collarbone now, so not long by means. Pixie was incredibly easy, except for the regular trimmings. I hugely agree with Nesoi, the shaggy stage between pixie and bob was the worst in terms of making it look presentable. It was too long to just ignore and way too short to do anything with. Once I hit shoulder, everything was much easier. The time I spend on my hair now is for enjoyment rather than wrestling with it to look nice.

[LongCurlyTress]

Definitely, long hair bsl and beyond is easiest to care for. Just throw it up in a bun and go! I have very thick, curly, unruly 3b (4.5 ponytail circumference) hair and I needed to spend a hot, sweaty good hour to blow it dry, and then straighten it to have it look decent without putting it up. And then, after an hour or so, it would frizz up like crazy anyways. Couldn't let it just go curly since it sprang up and made me look like Shirley Temple! GAAHHHHHHHH!! :afro:

[jasper]

Long is less time consuming for me. With short, I spent time on hair cuts!

Also with short, I had to wash more often. I don't know, but it seems like with long hair, I can go longer between washings. Maybe with more length over which to distribute scalp oil, it doesn't start looking greasy so soon.

[browneyedsusan]

What do you mean?

I spend less time maintaining: haircuts and colors. (And WAY less money. I think I've spent 60$ on henna in the last year--it will last me at least 3 years--, no haircuts, no box or salon colors.)

More time fooling with my hair for fun. I like learning braids, buns, and complicated hairstyles.

If you don't like messing with your hair, it can be as low-maintenance as you want. Wash it, let it air dry, or damp bun. I can put mine in a bun with a stick in less than 30 seconds, and it looks decent enough for church or work!

I'm enjoying it more now. I don't have to wait to visit the hairdresser for a new cut or color: I can twist it up into something interesting all by myself! (Victory rolls with the back down for church today, simple bun for everyday, down for a party... I can choose from hundreds of hairstyles!)

(FWIW: I wore my pixie a lot of years. 2012 siggy is a growing-out pixie. The back and sides are "long", and I felt like I needed a haircut!)

[DreamSheep]

Hard to say!
I never really styled me hair - and at shorter lengths I often couldn't be bothered to blowdry, so really the only thing that changes was wash frequency - I wash less frequently now and spend a lot longer doing it, so over all probably the same. However, I like the flexibility from being able to stretch out washes (with short hair when you need to wash, you need to wash), and also to be able to put my hair off and keep it off my neck.

Either way, although weirdly enough I consider myself somehow, a shorthaired person, I definitely pick long hair right now. :)

[Chromis]

Far less time consuming! I was never a "styling" sort of person with short hair, but I have amazing cowlicks that I really had to fight with and a centre parting that comes through even when my hair is less than an inch long. I had to at least attempt to do *something* with it because I looked like I lost in a fight with a blender and a windtunnel. With long hair, I don't have to fight with it, just comb and put it up! No horrible gel or whatnot and no waking up with half of my hair sticking straight up and the other half straight out.

I know some people can have short hair that they can just run their hands through and be done with, but that was not my reality at all!

[burny]

think it totally just depends on how you want to style it. for myself, long hair takes about 1hour/week, vs short hair was about 5mins/week. but I know I'm well below the average, for how much time I spend taking care of/styling my hair(ie. I don't ever style it, I just wash it).
so if you always felt you needed to style short hair: but will go with simple down/buns/braids as long hair: then long hair should be easier
but if you just get 'a cut' for short hair, then wash+go, but would want to do complex styles with long hair. then long hair would be much more work

[RapunzelKat]

Long is definitely easier and less time consuming. With long hair, I get to pick how much time I spend on it. I can do a fast bun, or a braid that will last 24 hours without needing to be messed with. Less washing, no need to heat style. Or, I can fuss around for hours if I feel like it - do a deep treatment or learn a new braid. :)

When my hair was short, it needed to be heat-styled to look cute. (Don't get me wrong, it was super cute when done right.) But I grew to dislike the roots, the salon trips every 6 weeks, etc. And if I left it un-styled, it was a shaggy mess. :p

To be completely honest, if I was after the easiest length to care for, APL would probably win. But I hate my hair at APL - it's unbearably boring. So super long it is! :disco:

[Madora]

Comparing the short hair you started out with, is long hair more or less time consuming ?

Most definitely, xsampa!

What takes the most time is proper detangling. Detangling correctly is half the battle if you want healthy, beautiful long hair.
The shampooing and rinsing and conditioning takes time too. You shouldn't rush too much.
Airdrying is a cinch (I have my own method of fast air drying)

Styling: depends on how plain..or fancy..you want to be. If you want to learn different styles, then you have to learn and understand the basics before starting out.

With short hair: hardly takes any time to comb/brush or wash, etc. Hairstyles: limited, unless you like to dye or torture your hair with hot curlers and other unfriendly methods. If you have a short style..you're at the mercy of that style and might end up spending $$$ to keep it looking pristine.

For me, short hair was B O R I N G!!! Long hair is so versatile and I love it! It's more than worth the effort to keep it looking healthy.

[rowie]

Hmmm I've had a buzz military cut for a good part of my life. I think it was very convenient for me at those times I had it, especially when I was an undergrad when I was 110 percent focused on my studies. Now that my hair is getting longer I kind of regret not starting early because having long hair forced me to save an hour of my time everyday to detangle and make my usual updo, which I find gives me a therapeutic and also a kind of relaxing meditation act of caring for something growing on my head. I don't necessarily find having long hair easier, but it sure helps me exercise patience and discipline to take care of my health a lot better than I used to when I was more focused on something in life.

[Majorane]

Well, it seems I am in the minority here. I found my shorter hair, bobs and such, super easy! My hair is a very firm believer in gravity, so it was easy and straight and sleek without any help from the styling tools. And when it was sort of past bob, the underlayers, the long ones, went to curl upwards mostly by themselves so those didn't need any curlers to look okay. It was just comb, make a part, spray it a bit, and out the door. Crappy shampoo? Didn't matter. Hairdresser? Oh, whenever I had time. Sometimes did it myself, untrue to populair belief it's not that hard to cut your own hair when it's short. Especially when the choppy layered look was in.

Now I have to make sure my blunt cut is even (or, more likely, try and try and try and end up uneven), and the drying takes looooong and I have to choose at least 10 minutes every day what stick to use and another 5 minutes to 3 hours trying to recreate that cool updo from Youtube, while always laking out the door with a LWB.... and the treatments, brushing, fumblimg, pampering, and petting of the hair! So time consuming.

But I loves it, so yay :)

[Marika]

Shorter hair was quicker but there's not a huge difference. I didn't style my short hair either, washing (=rinsing) and detangling was a bit quicker than with long hair. I've never trimmed regularly. And yes, the products! Everything seemed to work with short hair but now I can definitely tell if a product is drying etc.

[Johannah]

I started with APL hair (if you consider this short), and long hair is easier. It takes more time to wash and air dry, but in the morning it's super easy. Detangle with a wide tooth comb and wear it up, BAM! done. With APL hair I needed to style it and that lasted AT LEAST 20 minutes. A bun takes 3 minutes :lol:

[butter52]

Absolutely the pixie/bob is WAY easier than the long hair (all measures from APL to WL). The pixie bob I just wake up, wash and go, havent used a comb in years, and its allways healthy looking. Also the trick was to get a cut that doesnt need styling.
Long hair....omg I spended SO MUCH time only detangling it... I fear the fact that now I want it long again..

Sure with sort hair I needed a trim every 6 weeks but with long hair I needed 30min of detangling every. Single. Time.

[YvetteVarie]

Well, I am in a minority here :). My longer hair is more time consuming because I am growing out my relaxer. I am trying to be careful with how I handle my hair, especially when detangling since its more likely to break off because I have two very different hair textures (straight and extremely curly). But as I get used to the different textures, its becoming less time consuming. All I do is add a bit more moisture (to make styling easier), some oil on top and put it into a bun.

[pixldust]

I have to say less. When my hair was in a pixie, I would generally wake up each morning to a sticky-out mess that would need either washing or at least wetting down well. Rarely could I just run my fingers through it and go. Once my hair is in a shape, it is generally quite resistant to changing that shape unless it is drenched. So after wetting I would have to blow dry it how I wanted it or else there was a chance that I would look in the mirror 10 mins later to see it stuck out in exactly the same way that it was before. I would have to then straighten parts of it too. Also, I hated it when it rained because all that time spent styling it and making pouffy would go to waste as it ended plastered to my head.
Now, it's washed twice a week, I leave it to air dry while I go do stuff, then detangle it and put it up. Sometimes it'll be a git and take a few attempts to go in an updo but once it's up, it stays there all day. No having to check it periodically and mess around with it again to muss it up.

[hanne jensen]

My hair takes much less time now that I'm almost BSL than it did when it was short. I don' t have to wash every day, blow fry, straighten or curl and generally use eternity in front of the mirror. I don't have to worry if it's windy and what it will do to my hairdo. I just smack it up in the morning and forget about it. I don't even use a mirror for my go to updo. I just gentlyn de-tangle after taking out my night braid, smack it up and I'm done. 5 minutes flat.

[YGDW]

My shortest hair was layered shoulder length, which was definitely not as time consuming as my MBL hair now. I could wear it down all the time, it dried in two hours and washing was a lot easier. Braiding was faster too, obviously. :)

But then, shoulder length is easier than a pixie, I think. I used to trim it twice a year, the same as I do now.

[aloha]

Less even with adding all the new things like oils

[lazuliblue]

For me it's more time-consuming having longer hair, but that is because I am choosing to spend more time on it than I would have had I not come across LHC!

When I had a pixie I just washed, blow-dried it and got it cut every few months or so and that was it. Having long and newly-found wavy hair I do the modified Curly Girl method, I have to work out if I have enough time to air-dry it or if it needs to go up straight away, I bun it using hair-sticks and flexi-8s (which involves re-doing it during the day), braid it at night, S&D etc.

However, I am very glad to be growing my hair. The pixie was fun...but I am enjoying having long(er) hair!

[apynip]

Far easier for me. I prefer to just braid it in the morning or toss it up into a bun. I'll keep it half up half down on special occasions but I find that time consuming because I get tangles easily because it tends to be windy here so I comb it out a lot. Over all though I spend much less time on my hair.

[Hootenanny]

I had a very short pixie (shaved in the back), and I wore it straight (my hair is naturally 3b). Oh my goodness, that was a monster-truckload of work! After washing, it had to be blowdried, then gone over multiple times with a flat-iron, then styled. And lord forbid that it should be humid outside (or rain!! *shudder*) or else my 45 min+ of work was all for naught. I had to coat it with products to keep it lying down and to try to protect it from all the heat damage, so it looked greasy after a few days, and the process had to be done all over again. Plus, I had to get a haircut every 5 weeks to maintain the shape.

The only thing that is time-consuming now is wash day, but that only happens about once a week. I have to condition before and after washing, to get my hair to a state where it can easily be detangled. Then I add leave-in (yep, MOAR conditioner), and then my styling product of choice, usually something along the lines of kinky-curly custard (which is mostly aloe gel, as far as I can tell). Then plop for 20 or so minutes, then air dry. The air-drying does take hours, but after that's over, I'm done for the week! And no more trips to the salon, which saves both time and $$$.

[wool]

For me it is probably equal! Im pretty sure my last official haircut was at chin length but it was a shoulder when I really decided I wanted to let it grow as long as it could. But even with short hair I never styled it just detangled and washed when it was long enough it went into ponytails and now its pretty much the same except when I discovered Hairsticks and learned some pretty braids I do those now but nothing complicated enough to be very time consuming! Since my hair is so fine and thin it doesn't take long to dry or detangle because there just isn't all that much hair. Also since my routine has never been very many steps...full head oilings haven't really worked for me, if I'm not careful oil on the ends makes it look very lank and oily, and for years i haven't even used conditioner in the shower.....etc. I find that my hair isn't very time consuming for me at all. Though maybe as i see more ideas on here that will change! ;)

[xsampa]

So, the consensus is that long hair is actually less time-consuming than short hair? Even as a shorthaired male, I find this actually makes sense because the amount of time spent gelling/haircutting etc. is actually more for short hair.

[xsampa]

So, the consensus is that long hair is actually less time-consuming than short hair? Even as a shorthaired male, I find this actually makes sense because the amount of time spent gelling/haircutting etc. is actually more time-consuming for short hair. Why is everyone told that short hair is less time-consuming?

[gillybeanxo3921]

I feel like longer hair is easier to deal with. Although it can get more tangled, my hair typically looks good even when it's messy. All I have to do is comb it out (sometimes not even) and it usually looks very nice and feminine. If it doesn't, I put it in a braid or bun, which of course look best on long haired ladies.

I don't mess around with it at all

[Vrindi]

If I want to do something fancy with it, then it can be about equally as time consuming as my APL hair was. But as for every day, I think it's much less. I generally put it in a bun or a braid (under 5 minutes to style) and it looks good all day. I don't have to fuss with it to make it look good. Even on a bad hair day, it still looks impressive because it's long (just shy of classic.)

[kayeburth]

Comparing the short hair you started out with, is long hair more or less time consuming ?

long hair is more time-consuming only because it takes a while to air dry and when your long hair doesn't look right you have to put it up, so there go 5 to 10 mins. and then you have the time for detangling. but I've never really dedicated much time to my hair so can't say it's such a huge difference.

[Maplecat]

I started with a super-shirt pixie and am now at elbow length. The pixie required daily washing and some sort of product to get it to clump-up. When my hair got a bit longer, my waves came out and I spent a lot of time taming wings that would flip out. Until my hair weighs down around shoulder, my ends flip out asymmetrically and I need daily styling. As my hair got longer, I could go longer without washes. At my current length, twice a week is plenty. I detangle in the morning, put up in a bun, and then take it down and braid for bed. My hair has never been easier to care for or as consistently "well-behaved."

You couldn't pay me enough money to cut to above the shoulders. It was so much harder to manage as a wavy.

[Loviatar]

Why is everyone told that short hair is less time-consuming?

Becayse if you have short hair, you're generally paying money into a salon, and the hair product business. :)

When I had a 1" pixie: super easy to take care of. Wash, blot with towel, go.
Hair past shoulder length: wash, wrap in turbie towel for 5-10 min, comb, damp bun, go.

Anything in between: wash, comb, apply gel or mousse to keep the flicky ends in check, re comb to distribute mousse/gel, blow dry so ends stay under, brush, apply hairspray to bangs, clip long bangs back, etc etc... Total faff.

Give me super short or all one length past shoulders ANY TIME! :)

[lapushka]

Short hair: washed in a jiffy, daily care: 30 minutes a day if not more.
Long hair: washed in 15 min, daily care: 1 minute to put up.

I'd rather have an elaborated wash routine once a week, rather than having to style my hair 30 min. or more *every* *single* day!

[xsampa]

Short hair: washed in a jiffy, daily care: 30 minutes a day if not more.
Long hair: washed in 15 min, daily care: 1 minute to put up.

I'd rather have an elaborated wash routine once a week, rather than having to style my hair 30 min. or more *every* *single* day!

Where did you obtain the information on the amt. of time it takes to take care of hair?

[CurlyCap]

It's just a matter of how you spend your time.

Short hair: more frequent cuts, short washes, little product, damage gets cut off, constantly avoiding when it gets too long and shaggy
Long hair: never pay for cuts, washing takes forever, very specific products, damage must be avoided, let it grow cause it's just gonna be put up

[KwaveT]

For me I spend more time on my hair. When I had short hair I tended to be comb and go and abused my hair more in general. I do wash/condition twice a week rather than three times when I had short hair. I have to detangle my hair and then set my hair where it won't fall in my eyes. I put those hairs behind my ears. It probably takes me twenty minutes do my hair in morning compared to twenty seconds when I had short hair. I don't see the major difference with dry times. Length is the first thing to dry. Scalp hair is what takes all the time to dry. When my hair was shorter I still had the scalp hair.

[spidermom]

Long hair is more time consuming. With short hair, it was wash, run some gel through it, and go.

The most time consuming was mid-length hair because it tended to fluff out rather than lay attractively. I had to blow-dry and use a curling iron or flat iron.

[xsampa]

@Spidermom:But doesn't the overall amount of time spent on hair decrease as it becomes longer, making it less greasy ?

[FrozenBritannia]

For me, my long hair is less consuming than the short hair. Sure, I could wash my head under the kitchen tap and be done in two minutes, but I spent hours battling the tendency my hair had to stand straight up, and then trying to make it look nice or even just different to go out for dinner would reduce me to tears. My hair takes longer to dry now, but I can throw it into a braid and it looks cute and polished instantly. Plus, it doesn't need salon visits every six weeks to keep it's shape.

[lapushka]

Where did you obtain the information on the amt. of time it takes to take care of hair?

I've had short hair in my teens. I have long hair now. That's how I know. ;)

[mariazelie]

I started with short hair about ten years ago. I had it short for about twenty years. I was on a schedule for trims, highlighting, and always blew it dry and curled. I let it grow in and never looked back. I get it trimmed once a year or sometimes not even that. It's been long now for eight years. I love it. It's always easy to sweep it up and pin it, I never was wash it more that twice a week, I never blow it dry. Easy, easy, easy. Even if it needs washing, a bit of hairspray and pins makes an elegant look in a jiffy and I'm ready to go. It's braided when I sleep, it's going gray naturally and I wouldn't go back to the short hair routine for anything! My hair is fine and never wanted to hold curl, so effort was wasted. Hot weather was a battle every Summer and I didn't like the flat short hair look. Now I can do many styles and sometimes in the Fall I get bangs for Winter. By Spring I start sweeping them back and during the hot Summer, they disappear. If I get my it trimmed in the Fall to shoulder length, I like wearing it down some with the bangs. Mostly it is APL and it suits me fine, just doing all kinds of updos.

[gthlvrmx]

I just started with bald but i think it is way less time consuming than long hair. Long hair takes a while longer by a smidge.

[meteor]

Long hair is a lot easier for me to care for. I can put it in a bun, braid it, or let it just hang there doing nothing at all - and it somehow works effortlessly! With shorter hair, there was always this constant need to style it, using multiple products, to make it presentable. I really think the longer the hair gets the less you need to do to make it look good: just detangle and go! :D

Washing, drying and post-wash detangling does take longer... but you can go longer between washes, so it probably balances out...

Obviously, if I continued with highlights, layers, regular salon visits, it would be hellishly time-consuming, complicated and expensive with my thick hair, but since I stopped all of that, hair is ridiculously easy to care for. I suspect that if you henna or regularly dye hair or do lots of long deep treatments, then it may not necessarily be quick and easy if your hair is very long.

[dezibela]

I used to spend 20-45 minutes styling my hair each day. Now I hardly spend any time on it, but I feel like my BSL hair is a hassle because I have to plan in advance when to wash it & whether I will damp-bun it or let it dry down. If I damp-bun, it will look good up but not down. If I let it dry down, I can't move much till it's dry (hours). Otherwise, my wave pattern disintegrates.

I'm hoping that as it gets longer, I'll have more options (like decent braids).

[aloha]

Less everything time, product,hassle

[Lyv]

I think long hair takes more time than short hair personally. Drying time is way less, I don't have to style it at all, no oiling, and I spent just as much time with upkeep (S&D, checking for splits, washing, etc) as I do now, plus what I spend on a trim I save by needing to use less product. I do prefer the way my hair looks when it's long so it's not staying short, I just wish it took the same amount of effort as short hair lol.

[Stray_mind]

I started from a little over SL and i must say that it's allmost the same to me. I allways washed only my scalp with the shampoo and let the rest just flow trough my lenght together with water. Well, i added conditioning, wich takes 5 minutes more of my time in the shower and it dries longer and scalp masagges take some of my time. I guess it'll dry even longer when it gets longer, but i don't mind. I have time. :)

[lilin]

Comparing the short hair you started out with, is long hair more or less time consuming ?

Starting from bob-ish length, I'd say a bit less maybe.

Hair washing time was about the same. I air dry, so although long hair takes longer, I don't actually have to DO anything, so it's not necessarily time I'm spending on it. I don't do any real "styling" with my hair, so nothing I do with it on a daily basis takes more than a few seconds. The same was true when I had short hair.

But I'd say once the hair on the back of my head got more than 2 or 3 long, I started having snarl problems. Even though it was just one area, I'd say it took as much time to un-snarl that one spot as detangling all of my hair now.

In addition, it had to be cut every couple months. I am trimming my hair every couple months now, but that takes a minute or two to do. Cutting short hair properly took me a good half hour. That's the primary source of the extra time, for me.

I'd also say long hair is generally more predictable. Who knows what kind of 'do I was gonna wake up with when it was short! As others have noted, being wavy, I could wake up with some especially unflattering looks. I just didn't care enough to spend much time trying to fix it, except maybe spray it with water and clip it back. And then there's the hair in your eyes thing. Both of those are gone with more hair weight and length.

I liked the lightness of my short hair, and I kept it short for a good two or three years. But being someone who likes to expend as little time in front of a mirror as possible, but likes looking presentable as much as anyone, I'd say I like long hair better. It looks good with less effort. Even on the rare occasion my hair decides to be insane for the day, all I have to do is throw it up in a pretty hair toy, which takes all of 10 seconds, and suddenly it looks like I'm just bein' classy, rather than having a bad hair day. ;) That's tough to do with short hair.

[Zesty]

Short hair is easier for me. I started with a pixie and I've been somewhere between that and tailbone for eight years now. I guess I've always been too low maintenance (read: lazy) to think that my hair looked bad without flat ironing, etc., so at shorter lengths it's always been wash and go. With longer hair I had to put it up, plan washes around how long it would take to dry, spend more time detangling, fuss with braiding it for bed (before I broke and got a sleep cap)... and on and on. There's a reason I cut it from TBL -- it was a lot more of a hassle. But not even a year later I miss long hair. It might be time consuming, but the rituals associated with long hair can be really soothing/nice, and it was beautiful. So for me, the "long hair is easier because you can just put it up" bit is a myth. Might be true for other people, but I'm growing my hair long again in spite of the time and effort it takes.