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View Full Version : Kind of a stupid question on where/how to measure hair length~



gustavonut
October 4th, 2015, 11:58 AM
Hey guys, I know for sure that this had been discussed before but haven't been able to find it anywhere currently so an answer would be extremely helpful.
I've always measured hair from the top of the back of my head/where my bald spot is, and the length is 16.5 when I do it that way. But when I hold it at my hairline and measure, it's 20 inches. So I was wondering, which way is the correct way to measure? :couch:

parkmikii
October 4th, 2015, 12:15 PM
I am measuring it at the beginning of the hairline :)

Nique1202
October 4th, 2015, 12:22 PM
Mostly around here we measure from the middle of the front hairline and over the back, because it's very easy to get the exact same spot every time. It's not necessarily wrong to measure from somewhere else, but it's much easier to get consistent results (and to see your real progress, inch by inch) when you can be sure that you're starting in the exact same spot with the tape measure every time, you know?

Deborah
October 4th, 2015, 12:29 PM
Yep, from the front hairline, over the top of your head, and down to the bottom of your hair in back. Easy and accurate.

luxurioushair
October 4th, 2015, 12:40 PM
I measure from the scalp, the exact length of my hair strands. Measuring front to back makes no sense for me, because my hair is not leveled out with an even hemline or whatever. The hair at the front is not level with the hair at the back, to get that I would need to trim and maintain for a while which I will not be doing anytime soon!

Nique1202
October 4th, 2015, 02:03 PM
I measure from the scalp, the exact length of my hair strands. Measuring front to back makes no sense for me, because my hair is not leveled out with an even hemline or whatever. The hair at the front is not level with the hair at the back, to get that I would need to trim and maintain for a while which I will not be doing anytime soon!

Measuring from the scalp to the end of the hair doesn't necessarily make sense either, because the hairs on different sections will usually be different lengths unless you're growing out from a very short shave, and you'd have to measure the exact same hair every time to be consistent.

For most of us, we don't want to track layers or shorter hairs, we just want to see growth in the very longest sections to see how far we are from milestones/being able to do certain hair styles/etc. If you're growing out a shave or a pixie, then it can go one of two ways. If you just want to track overall growth and you're mulleting it out, it still makes sense to go over the head and see how far the longest section has grown. If you want to trim up the back until you've got a bob and THEN track your growth in the back, then you may be better off measuring from the front hairline to the ends of your front hairs until you start growing in earnest, if you want to track inches of growth from start to finish.

lapushka
October 4th, 2015, 03:38 PM
Yes, the standard at the LHC is to measure at the hairline, over your head & back - you'll get the best consistency that way.

luxurioushair
October 4th, 2015, 03:45 PM
Measuring from the scalp to the end of the hair doesn't necessarily make sense either, because the hairs on different sections will usually be different lengths unless you're growing out from a very short shave, and you'd have to measure the exact same hair every time to be consistent.


I am growing from a very short length and I trimmed my hair even shorter 2 months in, so the strands were similar lengths from the beginning. That's why I said for me it doesn't make sense to measure from the front... I don't trim my hair by using scissors straight across the back, I trim it by putting it in many layered plaits first, and then trimming each individual plait... Also I never straighten my hair, so just trimming across the back makes no sense for me.

Also measuring the exact same hair everytime is easy because I part my hair the same way to plait it all the time.

gustavonut
October 4th, 2015, 04:10 PM
Ah okay okay, I think I understand now. :D so that means my hair is actually longer than I thought it was, sort of. Wooooo~! :happydance:

Hairkay
October 4th, 2015, 04:11 PM
I've given up measuring because I can measure from the hairline to the hair ends 3 or more times times and still get a different results. That's tight curls for you. I'm only really noticing the difference in grow by monitoring the difference in the length of shed hairs over the months.

gustavonut
October 4th, 2015, 04:12 PM
Thanks everyone :toast:

Arctic
October 4th, 2015, 04:16 PM
I am growing from a very short length and I trimmed my hair even shorter 2 months in, so the strands were similar lengths from the beginning. That's why I said for me it doesn't make sense to measure from the front... I don't trim my hair by using scissors straight across the back, I trim it by putting it in many layered plaits first, and then trimming each individual plait... Also I never straighten my hair, so just trimming across the back makes no sense for me.

Also measuring the exact same hair everytime is easy because I part my hair the same way to plait it all the time.

I think even for straighter hair, the LHC style method isn't very good until hair is bob length.