Can fine hair grow really long? Not sure what thickness

[Ireland]

Hello everyone! I keep looking at everyone's BEAUTIFUL long hair! but my hair is fine and im not sure how to determine the thickness accurately! does having fine hair result in a shorter terminal length? I REALLY want Tailbone length or Classic length!
Thank you for your advice!!

[neko_kawaii]

Fine hair can grow rather long!

[nikki_s]

Mine is fine! I have had Mine past Classic length, and easily could have gone longer. I have seen plenty of girls with similar length hair that have finer hair than mine, similarly fine, and less fine. I think it depends upon what you want for a style, how you want it to look, and genetics maybe? Go for it!!!
Heather :D

[Alissalocks]

Look up our member AspenSong profile for some inspirational thin hair at incredible lengths (but there are many more here too, not to exclude others). :love:

Mine is very thin and is just past waist, but that's not very long yet by LHC standards! ;) Hoping to get to tailbone, but maybe as far as fingertip? We will see what my hair wants to do, blessings on your journey!

Edited to add, one thing that made a world of difference for me was learning not to put pressure or lean on my hair, ever. I often did before, and had a false terminal length around the bra strap without considering the damage I was doing myself. For thin hair folks,we can't afford the breakage more than ever. Being so careful is really key (along with other good hair care habits).

[Sarahlabyrinth]

My hair is fine textured and thick (as in I have a lot of hair) and I'm currently 3" above knee length and still growing.

[Kaorin]

I'm mostly fine haired (from my nape does more medium hair grow) and my hair just hit classic length :) As long as your genetics allow it, I think you can grow relly long with fine hair if you are careful with it. I also feel that my fine hairs are much more prone to damage than my thicker ones. When I wear a braid I get alot more damage because I rub it against things while a bun keeps my hair much safer.

[Siveda]

I have very thin hair, but I managed to get to waist once before and it still looked pretty good. I'm currently back at APL (boohoo), but I'm hoping to continue to grow it to hip if it still looks good. I don't want see-through hair over half my back, so it depends on how it goes. Just try it, and do your best to protect it as much as you can.

[Simsy]

Aside from actual terminal, which is genetic; there is no reason you can't try to grow to classic or even further. You will possibly have issues with see-through ends if that bothers you but there is really no hard and fast rules regarding fine/thin hair and length. Grow as far as you want to, bearing in mind the usual "protect the length, baby the ends, take care of the scalp" that makes growing faster and easier.

To work out the thickness, make a pony and measure around the hair (not the pony holder, go either directly above or below it). I'm not sure on the cutoffs for thin and medium, but thick is anything over 4 inches in circumference (round the outside to avoid confusion).

[terebinth]

Another fine hair question because my hair is really thin too, but will growing your hair longer (and taking care of it properly by LHC standards) actually make your hair thicker? I was looking at so many cute braid styles last night and I couldn't pull off ANY of them because my hair is soooo thin in combination with being fine. I know there's no ~miracle~ way to make your hair thicker, but will length bring thickness?

[Simsy]

Another fine hair question because my hair is really thin too, but will growing your hair longer (and taking care of it properly by LHC standards) actually make your hair thicker? I was looking at so many cute braid styles last night and I couldn't pull off ANY of them because my hair is soooo thin in combination with being fine. I know there's no ~miracle~ way to make your hair thicker, but will length bring thickness?

Maybe...and totally reliant on genetics. You can't make hair thicker than it is genetically capable of, but you can improve the condition of your hair and possibly reduce the damage to a point where more strands stay for longer periods of times; thus thickening the length.

[*Wednesday*]

I have fine hair as well. I have a lot of hair, but it's fine. I guess I'm about hip. I believe you are misunderstanding "terminal" length. Hair does not reach a certain length and just stop growing. Terminal length isn't determined by the type of hair you have (fine, thick, coarse). Each individual hair follicle (you have lots of them and certain hair colors vary), has a growing phase from 2-7 years. Some others as long as 10 yrs. growth. Even if you get to TBL, you have hair follicles which actually stop growing at CL, APL, BSL.

"You are born with about 100,000 scalp hair follicles to start with, but it varies with natural hair color. Blondes have an average of 150,000 hairs, the average redhead has 90,000. Those with black or brown hair average 110,000 to 100,000 hairs."
https://baumanmedical.com/qa/many-hairs-human-head/

Also consider hair is genetic in traits. Some peoples growing phase (anagen phase) may only last 2-3 years before they enter the resting phase (telogen phase). Depending how much hair growth you have during those years, some people may start to stall at BSL or WL. There are people which have a long growing phase 4-10 yrs can achieve great lengths. However, most people never know their terminal length because they never tried, keep cutting their hair or a bad diet. There are a few different methods people have used to calculate terminal length (density at the ends of hair) but you really need to allow the hair to grow and not promoting damage to the hair to see where yours is at. They key is length retention.

[lapushka]

Hello everyone! I keep looking at everyone's BEAUTIFUL long hair! but my hair is fine and im not sure how to determine the thickness accurately! does having fine hair result in a shorter terminal length? I REALLY want Tailbone length or Classic length!
Thank you for your advice!!

I have F hair, but lots of it. I grew to classic last year. This past November I cut it back to hip from a year of maintaining classic length.

It can be done, and at all thicknesses.

If in doubt, take a look at the fine and thin thread!

[Lady Katherine]

I have a friend that has very fine, blonde hair that is thigh length! It's very pretty, but she wears it in braids or buns most of the time, because she can't be bothered with wearing it down. That helped her grow long, so I'm sure you can do the same with the right routine for you! :)

[Mrstran]

My teenage niece has very fine hair and it's down to her butt. So I doubt it hinders growth.

[Fia]

Lady Godiva (though I think she's not active on the boards any longer) has fine hair down to ankles/floor. It can certainly be done. It's just a matter of patience while it grows and being careful as fine hair is more easily damaged than medium/coarse hair.

[Aredhel]

Absolutely possible! Generally I see people with iii fine hair grow to super long lengths but if you care for your hair well, I don't see why thin hair can't be grown extremely long as well. You can definitely get your hair to TBL & classic though, unless your terminal length is shorter than that, which isn't something I see often.


Another fine hair question because my hair is really thin too, but will growing your hair longer (and taking care of it properly by LHC standards) actually make your hair thicker? I was looking at so many cute braid styles last night and I couldn't pull off ANY of them because my hair is soooo thin in combination with being fine. I know there's no ~miracle~ way to make your hair thicker, but will length bring thickness?


Maybe...and totally reliant on genetics. You can't make hair thicker than it is genetically capable of, but you can improve the condition of your hair and possibly reduce the damage to a point where more strands stay for longer periods of times; thus thickening the length.
Yup, what Simsy said. Unfortunately you can't increase the number of hair follicles on your head, but you can definitely take better care of your hair to prevent mechanical and environmental damage and retain whatever thickness it is that you're genetically predisposed to having.

[terebinth]

Absolutely possible! Generally I see people with iii fine hair grow to super long lengths but if you care for your hair well, I don't see why thin hair can't be grown extremely long as well. You can definitely get your hair to TBL & classic though, unless your terminal length is shorter than that, which isn't something I see often.




Yup, what Simsy said. Unfortunately you can't increase the number of hair follicles on your head, but you can definitely take better care of your hair to prevent mechanical and environmental damage and retain whatever thickness it is that you're genetically predisposed to having.

Thank you, Aredhel and Simsy!! My hair used to be so thick when I was young, and I razored it years and years ago for that feathery style and I'm fairly sure that my thickness never returned. :steam Hopefully taking better care of it will make it thicker and fuller than it has been, and I'll be able to pull off some of those cute braids! :heartbeat

[Aredhel]

Thank you, Aredhel and Simsy!! My hair used to be so thick when I was young, and I razored it years and years ago for that feathery style and I'm fairly sure that my thickness never returned. Hopefully taking better care of it will make it thicker and fuller than it has been, and I'll be able to pull off some of those cute braids!
Well in that case, I can definitely see your hair being restored to its former glory after a few years of TLC. It's work, but it's worth it! Plus if you haven't already, I'd recommend checking out our braid expert Wispe's hairdos in The braid picture thread (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=45350&page=955)... you can absolutely pull off beautiful braids with hair on the thinner side.:)

[terebinth]

Well in that case, I can definitely see your hair being restored to its former glory after a few years of TLC. It's work, but it's worth it! Plus if you haven't already, I'd recommend checking out our braid expert Wispe's hairdos in The braid picture thread (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=45350&page=955)... you can absolutely pull off beautiful braids with hair on the thinner side.:)

I'm wondering if maybe smaller, more elaborate Dutch braids would be cute on me... I have a lot of ideas!! Thank you for the link to this thread, gonna go see what cute hairstyles I can find!! :heartbeat :heartbeat

[Kikyou]

My hair is fine and thin (barely 2 inch pony circumference. I'm at tailbone now and still have ends dense enough that I should reach classic at some point. Terminal is all about genetics, the only thing you can do to see you terminal lenght is to prevent the strands from shedding pre-mature (take care of your health - nutrition, hormonal balance, scalp health) and beaking (avoid mechanical, chemical and heat damage) because these can influence fine and thin hair more than they would thick and coarse. I was dumb enough to bleach my hair some time ago so reaching terminal will be delayed by the ends breaking off.

[dollhair]

For me fine hair hasn't resulted in a shorter terminal length, I'm between tailbone and classic length at the moment:) My ends are thinner but that is mainly due to awful layers growing out lol. You should be able to grow your hair to the length you desire as long as you take care of it and don't hurt it too much. Good luck!

[harpgal]

I have very fine hair and am at calf length. It can be done, but with great care. Also, I do not have much of a taper above classic. Below classic, it tapers out a bit more.
'

[Angelica]

Never been able to grow my hair very long. :( I will say it is too thin for it anyway, even though others won't agree. I have tried and tried and never could get it very long. It seems to be growing at a snail's pace now even though I haven't cut it for 11 months., It is poker straight, very silky (very delicate - so obviously I have to be very careful with it). Worn up all the time! I guess I haven't got the genetics for it. :( It is a true F i type hair.

[Stub]

Also consider hair is genetic in traits. Some peoples growing phase (anagen phase) may only last 2-3 years before they enter the resting phase (telogen phase). Depending how much hair growth you have during those years, some people may start to stall at BSL or WL. There are people which have a long growing phase 4-10 yrs can achieve great lengths. However, most people never know their terminal length because they never tried, keep cutting their hair or a bad diet. There are a few different methods people have used to calculate terminal length (density at the ends of hair) but you really need to allow the hair to grow and not promoting damage to the hair to see where yours is at. They key is length retention.

Does this mean that if one is able to maintain one's length through the stall that it will start to grow again? I'm at waist and have been since about November. I thought I was in a pre-menopausal hormone growth ending period; but if it's just a resting phase and my hair will start to grow again, even if it takes a couple years, I can deal with that. But meanwhile, I still naturally lose hairs every day. It's already 'not thick', will I lose a lot of thickness during the resting phase? I knew nothing about all these things! I thought hair just grew until it reached its terminal length!

[Fia]

Does this mean that if one is able to maintain one's length through the stall that it will start to grow again? I'm at waist and have been since about November. I thought I was in a pre-menopausal hormone growth ending period; but if it's just a resting phase and my hair will start to grow again, even if it takes a couple years, I can deal with that. But meanwhile, I still naturally lose hairs every day. It's already 'not thick', will I lose a lot of thickness during the resting phase? I knew nothing about all these things! I thought hair just grew until it reached its terminal length!

Hair in the resting phase will not start growing again. It just rests at its maximum length until it's shed and replaced by a new hair growing from the follicle.

[*Wednesday*]

Does this mean that if one is able to maintain one's length through the stall that it will start to grow again? I'm at waist and have been since about November. I thought I was in a pre-menopausal hormone growth ending period; but if it's just a resting phase and my hair will start to grow again, even if it takes a couple years, I can deal with that. But meanwhile, I still naturally lose hairs every day. It's already 'not thick', will I lose a lot of thickness during the resting phase? I knew nothing about all these things! I thought hair just grew until it reached its terminal length!

Fia brought up a point I should have fully detailed. Hair has 3 phases of growth. Anagen (growing) Catagen (resting), Telogen (shedding). People use things like Rogaine to delay the Catagen phase. A healthy scalp, about 80% of ones hair is in the growing phase or actively growing. The other 20% is in a resting phase. Once hair reaches its maturity it rests for 3-4 months and then is shed, released from the follicle. You will notice this (in a healthy scalp) losing 50-100 hairs daily. A new bulb forms and that follicle begins a new cycle of hair growth. Can things affect the anagen/growing phase? Yes. Illness, medications, exercise, diets or lack of.

When I say "stall" I mean the maximum full length your hair will have grown before you start to see a heavy major tapering. It is different for everyone. Tapering is caused by hair in varying stages of the hair cycle. Hair does not grow together or in unison. This makes for pretty; fairy ends, mermaid ends, wild ends. Tapering in the case for terminal, can also be caused by a high percentage of hair follicles not having a generous growing phase, the 2-3 years growing phase I mentioned. I used "waist" just as an example. Terminal for some is seen at "calf" length. If your hair appears to have halted at waist, do you have hair breakage on the ends? If you are not sure, comb your hair gently over the sink or a dark towel (your hair is blonde) and see if hair is breaking off. Hair breakage on the ends can be counter-productive. For example, every 1/4 you grow, if 1/4 is breaking off on the ends, it appears hair is not growing. If hair is breaking over many months, can rob you of length. Once your hair gets pretty lengthy to waist, hair is weathered and more vulnerable to breakage and needs extra conditioning to retain its length.

[Stub]

It's not completely halted, just growing extremely slowly. I've gained maybe half an inch in the past 6 months, when my normal growth rate is closer to half an inch per month (or average). I remembered right after I posted the question that hair growth over my entire body has become almost non-existent, not just my head. So I'm back to the hormone conclusion. But I appreciate your explanations! My hair ends are healthy, no splits and no breakage. I lose maybe 25-50 hairs per day, less the week or so after senna/cassia applications. I'm pretty healthy but my diet could use a tweak for the better, I'm going to try that and see if my hair starts growing again. I am pretty sure this is not actually terminal length for me, because the ends are thick, although I fear how thin my hair will become if new hairs are not growing (very fast) while old ones fall out over the next years or however long it takes me to regain balanced hormones. Thank you!

[Shigure]

Look up our member AspenSong profile for some inspirational thin hair at incredible lengths (but there are many more here too, not to exclude others). :love:

Mine is very thin and is just past waist, but that's not very long yet by LHC standards! ;) Hoping to get to tailbone, but maybe as far as fingertip? We will see what my hair wants to do, blessings on your journey!

Edited to add, one thing that made a world of difference for me was learning not to put pressure or lean on my hair, ever. I often did before, and had a false terminal length around the bra strap without considering the damage I was doing myself. For thin hair folks,we can't afford the breakage more than ever. Being so careful is really key (along with other good hair care habits).

I can add something to that. I have very fine hair and I love braids BUT!!! I always wear my braid in front laying over my shoulder and I', giving myself "microtrims" few times daily, ripping and breaking a lot of hair with zipper. I changed my hairstyle and recently started wearing buns. I don't won to lessen amount of my hair by my stupidity.

[Dark40]

Mine is also fine but thick. Especially, with me doing chemical relaxing to it to make it straight. But yes, fine hair can grow extremely long! I had a girlfriend from high school that had either Hip Length or BCL hair, and her hair was considered fine/thick. I would say, "Go for it!"

[checkuponit]

My hair used to be very thick my whole life, but now it's much finer; I'm assuming hormone shifts must have something to do with this? It definitely seems to grow a lot more slowly now as well. *Wednesday* thank you for the scientific info! I've been wondering if I could get mine to grow long despite the thinning, but it does seem as though the terminal length is decreasing every day.

[Beeboo123]

My hair is a mix of baby fine strands and some medium strands. I’ve noticed that while my fine strands break more easily, they don’t get splits (but the mediums do). My hair is currently TBL (which isn’t that long for LHC standards), but I am very sure I’ll be able to reach classic or longer, and by that I mean the whole head, not just the medium strands. I really don’t think having fine hair will stop one from growing it long, you just have to be more gentle

[akurah]

My hair is a mix of baby fine strands and some medium strands. I’ve noticed that while my fine strands break more easily, they don’t get splits (but the mediums do). My hair is currently TBL (which isn’t long for LHC standards), but I am very sure I’ll be able to reach classic or longer, and by that I mean the whole head, not just the medium strands. I really don’t think having fine hair will stop one from growing it long, you just have to be more gentle

TBL is considered long by LHC standards. Of all the lengths here, that one is the most common according to the most recent poll I saw for 2017.

[Beeboo123]

TBL is considered long by LHC standards. Of all the lengths here, that one is the most common according to the most recent poll I saw for 2017.

Ah I meant to say that it isn’t THAT long. So many lovely ladies here with hair that is classic length or longer!

[akurah]

Ah I meant to say that it isn’t THAT long. So many lovely ladies here with hair that is classic length or longer!

It's only like a year's growth difference for most people though, maybe a year and a month.

I feel like if people measured hair in "average length of time to get there", we might have more perspective.

[Beeboo123]

It's only like a year's growth difference for most people though, maybe a year and a month.

I feel like if people measured hair in "average length of time to get there", we might have more perspective.

That’s quite true, but I feel like haircare gets much more complicated past classic, then even more so past FTL. It just gets in the way more, is more restrictive, and one has to get creative when combing it, if the length exceeds one’s arms. I also read that many members found that they got a lot more split ends past classic.

Oops sorry for derailing the thread!

[Rebeccalaurenxx]

I mean, I know I am not that long. But I do believe that fine hair can grow very long. It just takes time and patience. My grandmother had super fine, like baby fine hair, so fine for most my life she kept it short, and I believed that she could NOT grow hair. Then one day, when I was younger, going through the house I found a photo of my grandmother at TBL-classic length. It was to her thigh but she is sitting/leaning in the photo. But never did I ever see her hair that long before in my life.
I do in part believe it is genetic, look at your parents, or grandparents even. Did they have long hair? If not, is it probably because of the damage they do? FOR SURE! My moms hair has never gone past BSL, so I always knew I could hit that, but she gets highlights and rips the brush through her hair and she does NOT care for it at all so I always figured terminal for me was longer than BSL and I passed it... Then my sisters hair hit waist once before she ruined it with bleach as well, I figure if she can hit waist I can too and with LESS taper. And I think so far I have succeeded... I keep hovering above waist but by december I figure I will hit it.

And then, who knows? All I know is I will reach terminal eventually... I will keep going until it wont grow, anymore, and then ill go some more after that! Never stopping.
I think the hair care process is a life time commitment, even if you dont grow as long as some others, you never really stop doing your routine. You sound healthy, and like you get minimal if not average shedding. So just hold on, take care of your hair and hang out for a year. Worry about terminal when you need to.
Fine hair CAN grow, it just takes a bit more.

[Mirabele]

I have fine hair and i will soon be at waist. This is long hair for me! I think fine hair can be long but in my experience it may require much more work and care. My hair is very fragile and i have constantly think how to protect it. It gets damaged and breaks and gets dry very easilly. Depends probably also on your thickness.
i dont think you can make your hair thicker than it genetically is, BUT with good care you can manage not to loose your thickness with increasing length and i find that this makes a huge difference how my hair looks and feels.

[yahirwaO.o]

You can definitely grow Tailbone Lenght having fine hair!!! Like others have mentioned it is harder but it can be done. I have grown my hair classic lenght but at the tame I was bad at taking care of it so it was extremely thin at the bottom.

I think the safest but also the longest option is to go for frequent micro trimmings so you dont loose thickness at the hemline and it looks nice thought out the process.

All the LHC care certainly can guide you to there!!! :cool:

[Sarahlabyrinth]

My hair is fine in texture and I have just reached knee. Gentleness, always, and patience are the key!

[lapushka]

I have F hair, but a lot of it (iii) and that helps hugely. My mom has i hair and F and it is much more "fragile" and needs a lot more TLC than mine does.

[UP Lisa]

Bringing back an old thread. Yes. You can indeed grow fine hair long. Mine is baby-fine and has been to BCL twice now. As far as I know, it was still getting longer at that point. That is a genetic thing. It just takes a lot of time and patience and gentleness, most of all.

[LongHair81]

I have baby fine, thin hair. The kind of hair that's very, very fragile. I grew my hair to mid back length once. I could have achieved even longer lengths, I believe, but I wanted to enjoy shorter hair for a while and cut it short. Now I'm growing it long again. Yes, you can grow fine, even thin hair long if you take good care of it and have a lot of patience. Like somebody said, it's about genetics. I couldn't wear my hair down, though. My hair is just so fragile. It was always in some sort of an updo.

[sophia_]

I have spiderweb-like hair that doesn't make a sound when it breaks, and my hair is a little past classic. Being really careful with it is the key.

[UP Lisa]

Mine is also VERY fragile. I have to contain it to keep it from tangling, and I can't use a comb on it at all except in the shower with conditioner on it. It has been worth it, though.

[harpgal]

Yes, it is possible to grow to very long lengths with fine hair. Genetics play a big part but I think gentle care is important, also.

[lapushka]

I have baby fine, thin hair. The kind of hair that's very, very fragile. I grew my hair to mid back length once. I could have achieved even longer lengths, I believe, but I wanted to enjoy shorter hair for a while and cut it short. Now I'm growing it long again. Yes, you can grow fine, even thin hair long if you take good care of it and have a lot of patience. Like somebody said, it's about genetics. I couldn't wear my hair down, though. My hair is just so fragile. It was always in some sort of an updo.

I have my mom's fine hair. She has i hair and in her 40s (she's 73 now) she had fiery red BSL hair with thick bangs, and she always wore it up in a bee-butt bun on the top of her head. It looked amazing on her!

I agree ^^ you can grow fine hair long. Even though my mom went to about BSL (sometimes beyond, sometimes shorter depending on how much she cut off), I'm sure you can go longer with ease. Hair is hair, and it wants to grow whether it is fine or i, or ii, or iii. If you take good care of it, it will grow!

[UP Lisa]

Yes, it is possible to grow to very long lengths with fine hair. Genetics play a big part but I think gentle care is important, also.

And yours has always been so gorgeous!

[Natalia_A00]

My hair is fine and fragile but it's growing just fine! I think that with proper care and patience you can have super long hair too. Maybe you need to be extra careful and trim the damaged ends once in a while but it's possible. Just look at those vintage (or medieval) ladies with their silky, fine and long hair!
And you can have fine AND thick hair. They're not mutually exclusive

[Margarita]

This is a concern to me. My hair is thin to medium, and i've currently reached the longest hair length i've ever had. The concern is about my curls which loose and loose more as my hair grows longer. Not only the curls, but also how it seems. My hair tend to be "see-through" :/
I've tried castor oil for many months, it helped growing my hair fast but not into thickening my hair at all.
However, i dont stop trying for the best results! :)