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View Full Version : What inspired you to grow long hair?



Ophidian
February 2nd, 2017, 10:31 AM
For those of you who are actively growing/maintaining long hair, of course. I get that that's not everyone's thing:cool:. I know a version of this thread pops up every once in a while, but it's always fun to see the answers!

For me, I'd say because all the books I read growing up seemed to feature a lot of long hair on both women and men, and so I associated it with the kind of wild magic and spirit of adventure that drew me into those stories in the first place. Tolkien (of course), LeGuin, and Monica Furlong's Juniper come immediately to mind. I also read a lot of ElfQuest.

vampyyri
February 2nd, 2017, 10:41 AM
My sister, who has has long hair for as long as I can remember! Initially I was growing my hair out for my wedding back in 2015, but then I just kept going and decided to not trim it back in the end because I was curious to see if I could reach the same length as my sister (BCL), which I have!

Serimel
February 2nd, 2017, 11:01 AM
Catherine Zeta-Jones in Zorro :D

Groovy Granny
February 2nd, 2017, 11:02 AM
Hating my unruly ....wispy....curly, fine, white/silver hair ...and not wanting to look like my Grandmother with her perm :rollin:
(She looked fine....I just hated the look on ME)

Hubby was hesitant when I first mentioned it...I was 61 after all.

But I wanted my long (19)60's hair back again ONE. LAST . TIME
(I had it long one other time when I was in my early 40's)

If I didn't like it, I could cut it. :shrug:

It isn't the norm here , where everyone 'curls up and dyes' their short silver....but too bad if they don't approve :silly: I LOVE IT!!:crush:

It became a hobby growing from chin to hip in 2013; LHC opened up a whole new world of hair care, accessories, and styles to try every day, and in each stage of growth :cheer:

I will always be grateful to each of you for your inspiration and support; it gave me the courage to try....and the inspiration to express myself through my own style :grouphug:

hayheadsbird
February 2nd, 2017, 11:20 AM
Here!

I only joined last May after lurking for a few weeks because I found the site research more about henna.
After reading and learning I decided I wanted to grow more. I was growing my hair out already after going really short a few years before, but not in a particularly focused way, more absent benign neglect. After seeing some of the amazing photos I really wanted to learn how to put my hair up like that.
The longest my hair had ever been before would have been mid back heading to waist in my late teens/ early 20s.

abribun
February 2nd, 2017, 11:26 AM
My favourite Japanese fashion blogger - Fairy Emily!

Hay_jules
February 2nd, 2017, 12:16 PM
The people here inspired me. I've never had a lot of love for very long hair in the past. I always admired the fantasy hair (Arwen) but never considered it for myself. I think mostly cuz I thought my skinny hair wouldn't look good long. Seeing members here with i hair (I'm the small end of ii) made me believe that mine could grow and look just as beautiful. I think even more importantly, the community here has inspired me to embrace my hair the way it wants to be naturally, i no longer feel the need to have straight hair to feel pretty.

lapis_lazuli
February 2nd, 2017, 12:36 PM
I don't know... I just always loved long hair! :) I became obsessed trying to bring it back from damage, and kept growing through the years. I couldn't imagine myself without it now :o

(Of course, finding LHC a few years ago helped encourage me!)

lapushka
February 2nd, 2017, 12:38 PM
I just wanted my classic length back that I had as a child/young teen. :)

I remember though, back then, when I started to be able to sit on it... it was getting too long for me to handle. Same some odd 30+ years later. :lol:

Sarahlabyrinth
February 2nd, 2017, 01:14 PM
I have always thought of long hair as wonderfully feminine, and since I have always been quite the tomboy, I wanted something feminine about myself. Plus it's so much more interesting than short hair (my own opinion here).

dvep
February 2nd, 2017, 02:01 PM
I always had short hair as a kid, but in middle school my sister started growing her hair a bit and I followed along. Now she has short hair but ever since then I've loved having long hair and won't look back!

-Huldra-
February 2nd, 2017, 02:47 PM
When I first met my boyfriend, way before we started dating, he had below waist-length hair (can't remember exactly how long) and I was so jelous :rolleyes: (I only had BSL). Some years later, I cut my hair to a stupid pixie, that I ended up hating, because it was the favourite style of the guy I was dating at the time. When I started growing out my hair again and eventually got together with my current boyfriend, I thought hey, why not try to get those long locks I always envied :p

mellsss91
February 2nd, 2017, 03:00 PM
When I was 15/16 years old, i always have beautiful long hair (hip length). But i had cut it off unfortunaly.. Now i'm 25 years old, still have long hair (to my bra stripe). But want it at the same length then i had before.. Just love long hair. I think it looks feminin. Secretly men think long hair is the most attractive. And i feel confidienced with long hair

alimc
February 2nd, 2017, 03:17 PM
At heart i'm a total hippy. I want to be the older lady with the awesome long hair.......
THATS my dream, whether i get there or not i'll forever dream of being a long haired hippy lady.
My heart tells me to..... :heartbeat

wispe
February 2nd, 2017, 03:22 PM
I've always thought long hair was beautiful but I didn't think it was achievable for myself. After years of maxing out between shoulder and ~apl/bsl I ended up getting a pixie cut, but following that got a hairdresser that refused to cut my hair (she was uncomfortable cutting hair that short on a girl). I walked out of the salon and decided to just grow it back out instead. 6ish years of meandering and irregular trims later, here I am.

Groovy Granny
February 2nd, 2017, 03:55 PM
At heart i'm a total hippy. I want to be the older lady with the awesome long hair.......
THATS my dream, whether i get there or not i'll forever dream of being a long haired hippy lady.
My heart tells me to..... :heartbeat

Yay....another prospective 'Groovy Granny' to take my place when I have passed :wink:
Keep dreaming and growing :cheer:

Tosca
February 2nd, 2017, 04:42 PM
I read a book called Zoe's Zodiac, about a girl with a plait long enough to sit on. I tend to be competitive, so I decided to grow my hair out that long too.

colin
February 4th, 2017, 07:48 AM
I was into a lot of chinese and japanese culture for a while as a kid and men with long hair stuck with me from that. Also into a lot of fantasy/LOTR with kind of the same result. As far as people go I had a friend who grew his hair out in elementary school that I envied.

Saldana
February 4th, 2017, 07:53 AM
I grow my hair for spiritual (native american) reasons, as well as simply finding long hair easier to maintain than short hair.

Mrstran
February 4th, 2017, 08:26 AM
Me. I use to have it and missed having it so much. My first cut to short hair was at age 13.

The girls on here inspired me to go longer, but then I changed my mind yet again. So now I'm sticking with my original old TBL.
Longer is just WAY too much work for me.

Tassledown
February 4th, 2017, 01:05 PM
I finally - after about ten years of trying - got someone to buzz my hair, kept it that way for nine months, and then realized I really didn't like it as much as I liked my hair long. Also after those ten years of trying I concluded I was never going back to a hair salon, so long hair - and terminal length - is the goal until/unless I get frustrated enough with it to figure out how to cut it myself or have a friend I trust do it.

Ultimately long hair really is easier for me to care for than short, and now I know this for certain. My hair is currently the longest it's been in my life now since I had never figured out how to care for it well enough to go longer than BSL before.

mayfaring
February 4th, 2017, 01:54 PM
I've had bsl/mbl hair for a long time, but was frustrated with the condition of my ends and constant splitting. I always admired healthy looking long hair. I resolved to take better care of it so I could grow it out and finally start teaching myself some braids and other protective styles.

Dark40
February 4th, 2017, 07:08 PM
I've always wanted long hair. The people here inspire me, and my aunt and cousin on my dad's side of the family has inspired me to grow extremely long hair!!! My aunt used to have hair a little passed classic length, and my cousin as well! I also have another cousin on my dad's side of the family that grew hair all the way down to her hips. That also inspired me as well!!! And, it was gorgeous too!!!

marvel-lover
February 4th, 2017, 07:38 PM
I've always wanted long hair, and I loved my hair growing up, but was never allowed to keep it long. It was the only thing that got me positive attention in my German/Celtic family, as I was the only one with blonde hair. I had a 6 year long eating disorder, and when I was in recovery, my therapist gave me one piece of advice that helped (she wasn't very good. It was my boyfriend that really saved my life.) pick a characteristic that is not weight related to love and care for, that way you shift your attention to a more positive thing and it gives you something to get out of bed for in the morning. I chose my hair, though I know a number of girls who chose makeup or their nails. At first, I was just going to take pristine care of my hair and maintain at shoulder (which I did for a few years after chopping 9" of pure dead off my hair) but then I decided to grow it out to give myself something to do. Also, the fact that my thick hair will cover my back fat is a bonus :lol: and it gives me something to be proud of physically as I choose not to wear makeup and I continue to struggle with liking my new "healthy" body. I guess you could say it's therapeutic :knit:

Ophidian
February 4th, 2017, 08:02 PM
I've always wanted long hair, and I loved my hair growing up, but was never allowed to keep it long. It was the only thing that got me positive attention in my German/Celtic family, as I was the only one with blonde hair. I had a 6 year long eating disorder, and when I was in recovery, my therapist gave me one piece of advice that helped (she wasn't very good. It was my boyfriend that really saved my life.) pick a characteristic that is not weight related to love and care for, that way you shift your attention to a more positive thing and it gives you something to get out of bed for in the morning. I chose my hair, though I know a number of girls who chose makeup or their nails. At first, I was just going to take pristine care of my hair and maintain at shoulder (which I did for a few years after chopping 9" of pure dead off my hair) but then I decided to grow it out to give myself something to do. Also, the fact that my thick hair will cover my back fat is a bonus :lol: and it gives me something to be proud of physically as I choose not to wear makeup and I continue to struggle with liking my new "healthy" body. I guess you could say it's therapeutic :knit:

All aesthetic considerations aside, this is a really powerful thing! I find that for me, too, there has been a strong link between caring for/growing out my hair and moving towards being in a better place with myself (it's a work in progress:wink:).

I love all these stories, because they are all so personal and varied, but at the end of the day we're all here together nerding out about hair. Thanks everyone for sharing :love:

Rebeccalaurenxx
February 4th, 2017, 10:59 PM
I just wanna feel pretty

LadyCelestina
February 5th, 2017, 03:01 AM
My favourite Japanese fashion blogger - Fairy Emily!

Thanks! I've seen pictures of this person online and always wondered if it's hair or wig! I just checked out her blog, thanks!

astrid92
February 6th, 2017, 01:31 PM
As a child I saw many female Disney characters, as well as a number of bond girls with very long hair. Once Lord of the Rings came out I was entranced by the long hair worn by several characters. I am also very interested in ancient and medieval history which may have influenced my desire for long hair. I also believe that long hair is more flattering on me. More over I do not want to look like the rest of the women in my family, all of whom have either pixie cuts or bobs.
I personally fined that long hair is more feminine, easier to handle, and gives me lots of hairstyling options. Also the weight of my hair prevents my hair from looking like a lion's mane on the rare occasion that I do blow-dry my hair.

lithostoic
February 6th, 2017, 02:01 PM
I just find that my hair looks better longer. It gets a lot of color dimension from sun exposure, and it's easier to style.

pili
February 6th, 2017, 02:15 PM
It's always been a fantasy of mine to have amazing long hair. I grew up on a lot of fantasy fiction and loving medieval history. I was always told I couldn't/shouldn't have long hair. Even now I hear that. Now I just want what I want. And LHC is making this attempt better than all the past failed attempts.

Rhodugune
February 6th, 2017, 02:33 PM
I feel as you that, it's keeps being an awesome read to get to hear what different things as well as the same ones that has been the inspiration for growing our hair long.

For me long hair is something I always wanted since I was too little to remember why as I was about 5 years old when I started to ask my mother to stop cutting my hair off so I could grow it long.
But later on I also found my inspiration from the books of Tolkien and LeGuin and also for an example reading illustrated stories of Norse mythology that was full of amazing and long haired women and men.
For me having long hair is not about feeling feminine as I feel that long hair suits anyone no matter what gender they are, it's more a way for me to express myself and the happy I find in the world of fantasy and history.

mellsss91
February 6th, 2017, 02:44 PM
It seems like a Nice goal to go for in the years. Try out how long it gets, and it is what a woman Shoud look like. Long, beautiful hair. Who doesn't want that? I think you can do a lot of hairstyles and short hair is just nothing for me..

neko_kawaii
February 6th, 2017, 02:53 PM
I've shaved and done every short style, don't know how long it will get unless I try! Long is easy for a lazy not-good-enough-female (forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=126447) like me.

LadyCelestina
February 6th, 2017, 03:34 PM
^ ROK is ...well...ROK :D Half the posts are just insane and should be taken with at least a tablespoon of salt :D but it's an interesting place if you want to train your critical thinking, and aren't overly sensitive :D

HairPlease
February 6th, 2017, 03:41 PM
I'm growing it out because I've never done it before and always kept my hair short. I'm actually learning that putting it up/back is more "out of my way" than having it short and tickling my face.

bparnell75
February 6th, 2017, 03:47 PM
A promise I made to DH before we got married that I would grow old with long hair, thanks to LHC now it has become a hobby and enjoyable.

Hairkay
February 6th, 2017, 04:53 PM
Curiosity.

trolleypup
February 6th, 2017, 06:33 PM
Teenage rebellion. I figured out that it bothered my mom, so I grew it longer. Once it was long, I figured out I liked long hair...and I never looked back.

pili
February 6th, 2017, 06:35 PM
I've shaved and done every short style, don't know how long it will get unless I try! Long is easy for a lazy not-good-enough-female (forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=126447) like me.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry at that thread.

Kellwise Gamgee
February 6th, 2017, 06:57 PM
I'm in my late 30's and have never had hair past APL! Everything from that to a pixie and every color imaginable. I'm going grey now and I like it! I want to be the long grey haired hippie lady...

That and Eowyn from LOTR... I have the wave, but not the color!

Faraniel
February 7th, 2017, 04:02 AM
As a kid my parents never let me grow my hair. My older sister could and I couldn't which seemed unfair. So, from the age of 10 or 11 I let my hair grow and I love long hair and I don't plan to cut them, unless it's for the split ends.

Arctic
February 7th, 2017, 04:57 AM
Fullmetal Alchemist's Edward? Can't remember anymore, ha ha, too many years inbetween!

Lilac Blossoms
February 7th, 2017, 05:05 AM
The longest I've ever had was waist length, and that seemed to be the terminal length for me. Now that I'm going out of my way to take better care of my hair, I want to see if I can get it to grow past waist, and how long it will get. Also, while I have had pixie cuts and bobs before, my hair is very thick, and having it long actually makes it easier for me. I simply don't have the time to maintain a pixie with regular salon trips, and the minute it begins to grow out, I get cowlicks everywhere. Bobs look ridiculous on me because of my hair thickness- my hair doesn't lovingly form around my face, it puffs out 4" from my head. It doesn't start to behave itself until just past shoulder length.

Also, as many have mentioned, I feel more feminine with long hair. Every time I cut it, I end up envious of every woman I see with long hair.

emptyque
February 7th, 2017, 06:59 AM
I think it is pretty weird that humans grow these really long hairs from our heads, and then are practically naked everywhere else. Humans are pretty weird animals. I think of long hair on a human kind of like a peacocks tail--decorative, useless and unique to our species. I want to be a human peacock.

Alissalocks
February 7th, 2017, 07:09 AM
I read a book called Zoe's Zodiac, about a girl with a plait long enough to sit on. I tend to be competitive, so I decided to grow my hair out that long too.

(I remember reading that book! I cried so hard when the Guinea pig died. What a great memory!)

My hair was nearly hip length in my early 30s when a rabid hairdresser chopped 12" without asking my permission. For 10+ years I tried to grow it back, but damage & breakage kept me at a false terminal length of BSL. Strangely, it wasn't until after I chopped it all off in 2013 that I decided maybe I'd grow it long again. Knowing I had to find a way past the breakage plateau I had experienced, I started researching and landed here :D

samanthaa
February 7th, 2017, 01:34 PM
I think it is pretty weird that humans grow these really long hairs from our heads, and then are practically naked everywhere else. Humans are pretty weird animals. I think of long hair on a human kind of like a peacocks tail--decorative, useless and unique to our species. I want to be a human peacock.

This is a beautiful statement and oh so true.

Faraniel
February 7th, 2017, 04:42 PM
I think it is pretty weird that humans grow these really long hairs from our heads, and then are practically naked everywhere else. Humans are pretty weird animals. I think of long hair on a human kind of like a peacocks tail--decorative, useless and unique to our species. I want to be a human peacock.

What do you mean "useless"? You can use it as a scarf xD

Ophidian
February 8th, 2017, 06:50 PM
What do you mean "useless"? You can use it as a scarf xD

:rollin::rollin:

Kirby-oh
February 9th, 2017, 12:54 AM
I didn't get a haircut for about 6 months because I was tired of my terrible SuperCuts haircut, but couldn't find a short style I wanted. I had a moment of inspiration when I remembered being maybe 7, so my sister was 5. She wanted her hair cut to CL, and I was concerned because that's a big decision and I like the idea of long hair. Oh. I've always wanted long hair, I just didn't realize I could DO that. So I did. Right around the same time, I realized my dad has a great beard, I'm probably old enough to have all the beard I'm going to have, maybe I can do that too. And so it began.

Greenfire
February 9th, 2017, 01:45 PM
Honestly, I just have always wanted to be able to sit naked but still cover all my bits.

:bounce: :bounce: :bounce:

browneyedsusan
February 9th, 2017, 02:10 PM
Because I can.

Not many women were pixied when I was. My girlfriends all had SL "soccer mom" hair, and they still do. I eventually got tired of having to get it cut all the time, and having limited style options. (I also discovered henna about the same time, and loved that it didn't wash out like "permanent" hair dyes.) I'm just growing it out for fun, and because not many women here have hair down to their butt. Especially at 50. :)