What was No trimming like for you?

[Longlegs]

Hi, I'm new here and thinking of doing no trimming for 2019. For everyone who has gone a year without trimming what was it like for you.? Did your hair grow as much as you hoped, ?was it hard - did you want to chicken out ,? what shape was your hair in when the year was up and did you get a big trim afterwards?

Alot of questions I know. You don't have to answer them all..........

[AutobotsAttack]

I haven’t trimmed my hair in 3 whole years.

Trimming is one of the easiest things to forgot for me personally.

[squirrrel]

Personally I haven’t got involved in no trimming challenge, but it is something that works for some better than for others. Some members trim between challenges — via a ‘grace’ period set into the challenge. Some get involved for a year, others go with the six month challenge (first and second half of the year, with a grace period in the middle). Others join the no trimming thread, and set their own rules — or go the other way and challenge themselves to microtrim regularly. It all depends what they feel fits into their lifestyle.

[Doreen]

I did no-trim for 2-3ish years which brought me from classic to mid-calf, mostly due to negligence more than giving myself a challenge. But by the end of it my hair was very thin at the end. During that time, I also had a death in the family and was very stressed, which likely didn't help with the thinning. I enjoyed being at mid-calf, but have since trimmed back to classic (over a couple stages) and am maintaining here until my hem becomes fuller.

I think a year is a good amount of time to do a no-trim challenge, and then reevaluate at the end. In my experience, the more you "baby" your hair, the longer you can go without trimming. I trimmed 8 months ago and have been taking really good care of my hair, so I don't see myself needing another trim anytime soon. I could see myself making it to 16 or 18 months of no trimming if I am able to keep up with my current routine. It really depends how you treat your hair.

[Estrid]

I've always been quite meh about trimming my hair, working on getting better with that since I now have some damage to trim away. Back when I had no damage (or maybe I had, I just never thought about it) I never trimmed my hair, I only cut it to different styles once I was bored with what I had. Usually years in between the cuts.

It's not hard at all, but if you're used to having silky smooth, thick ends with 0 splits maybe it would be harder, haha. The shape of my hair doesn't change that much without trims, the only thing that's noticeable is that some hairs grow faster than others, and the very ends get less and less bulky the longer they grow without trimming, all until they're rather wispy.

[FaerieKitty]

I’m doing the no trim this year. I have previously gone unknown amounts of time without trimming due to laziness. I was at BSL and I’m at waist now. I haven’t seen any splits yet either. I have no urge to trim, I’m very happy with it. I have learned a lot about care this year as it’s gotten longer (I need more moisture as it gets longer for example). I am planning a micro trim on NYE and another year of no trim next year. I have done protective styling, learned a lot new styles.

[Simsy]

It really depends on you and what shape your hair is in at the beginning. If you are a compulsive trimmer or trying to break old habits, a no-trim challenge can be good as a way to hold yourself accountable and have a support group to get you through. It’s also a good excuse to learn and use more protective styles as you stretch the trims. If you are shooting for a particular milestone, the challenge can be a really good way to get intentionally a bit more length towards a goal.

If you prefer your ends to be silky smooth and split-free; or you aren’t a fan of fairytale ends, you may find the challenge a bit harder. The ends will begin to fairytale after a while (how fast depends on your own growth and hemline), and the hemline itself may become a bit uneven as some strands race ahead. Layers can become unruly and short styles like pixies can lose their shape as they grow out. None of these are insurmountable problems if you’re willing to commit to the challenge.

For me, the challenge is an excuse to not trim at all; it sounds better when I tell the family I’m not trimming for a reason instead of being too lazy to bother. My ends will usually last 18 months to 2 years before they start getting manky. Keeping them tucked away will help with maintaining them through the challenge. I will be trimming soon because the ends are really becoming a problem; but it’s been almost 2 years since my last trim so I’m not terribly upset over it.

[lapushka]

I last trimmed November 2016 - it's just fine.

I'd say if your hair is all virgin (no previous heat or chemical damage), then you can go a long time without trimming and it should be less of an issue. If you have damage, I'd be weary of joining if you can't S&D the damage out. I would steer you towards the microtrimming / maintaining threads in that case.

[MotherofPhoenix]

As stated above, my ends have been color and heat treated so I trim. I occassionally use heat as well. Depends on your hair and lifestyle.

[MotherofPhoenix]

Sorry I meant to say no trimming for me wasn't the best due to above comment. Lol. I like to go every 4-6 months and only get half to an inch off. Not much but it makes a huge difference.

[Zesty]

At shorter lengths it was a breeze. I went a year and a half or two years without trimming without thinking about it much, and my hemline stayed roughly the same, just getting a bit softer looking. Around BCL I started fretting about my ends being thin, especially since I do like to wear it down sometimes, and it was more of an actual challenge. I think it's largely in my head, and I'm trying to power through it until I get to classic and can start trimming to maintain around there (or a little longer).

[spidermom]

My experience was plus/minus. I've only ever gone a year with no trimming. On the plus side, my hair grew 7 inches. On the minus side, the ends were split all to hell and stuck together like Velcro. However, I was also compulsively pulling at my ends to do S&D every time I found myself idle, and I think this did more harm than good. Right now I am doing an experiment of no trimming and no S&D until I get to my goal length of waist. Of course if my ends get too trashed, I'll go back to regular trimming.

[cjk]

I went from a fresh haircut every 3 days, to no trim 2017 and no trim 2018.

I'm the type who micromanaged every strand, which means that it forced me to break that habit. And retrained my brain a bit.

Habits are hard to break. There was a period where detox would be the best description. It passed. Then it was smooth sailing.

Since I take care of my hair, baby it, it's in great condition. And I have no intentions of doing a big trim, as you mentioned, when this year is up.

[Joules]

My hair tapers like there's no tomorrow. I don't think I'll ever do no-trim challenges for longer than 6 months.

I did have an experience of not trimming for an entire year (November 2013 - November 2014). I cut my hair from waist to above BSL trying to get rid of a self-cutting mistake in November 2013 and decided to not trim for a year to get the length back. I started out with super thick, fresh and healthy hemline, by the end of the year I did gain the length back, but it looked like an animal had been chewing on it. I had virgin super healthy hair, I never heat styled it, I protected it as much as I could and took great care of it. So yeah, no-trimming challenges aren't for everyone.

[Arciela]

Before I had to do a big chop (due to bleaching) my virgin hair was not trimmed for 5 years and had no issues. You can see how it looked in my siggy :) I never did S&D or trims really.

[lapushka]

At shorter lengths it was a breeze. I went a year and a half or two years without trimming without thinking about it much, and my hemline stayed roughly the same, just getting a bit softer looking. Around BCL I started fretting about my ends being thin, especially since I do like to wear it down sometimes, and it was more of an actual challenge. I think it's largely in my head, and I'm trying to power through it until I get to classic and can start trimming to maintain around there (or a little longer).

The last picture I've seen of your hemline it looked just fine to me, and I don't just say that, Zesty. You can do it; go for classic, you're almost there anyway. :D :thumbsup:

[Zesty]

The last picture I've seen of your hemline it looked just fine to me, and I don't just say that, Zesty. You can do it; go for classic, you're almost there anyway. :D :thumbsup:

Thanks for your eternal encouragement (and realism haha). I'm definitely not trimming until classic! I should be there so soon!

[lapushka]

Thanks for your eternal encouragement (and realism haha). I'm definitely not trimming until classic! I should be there so soon!

You are totally welcome! :) It is less than a month away, wanna bet? ;)

[wo]

I went 2 years 10 months without trimming. It got me from ear to waist. I searched and destroyed any damage I found, so it was in fine condition. It was shapeless though, and a conservative trim and layers at the salon helped it hang better with more volume. Overall it was great for growing out the fastest possible for me.

[sophia_]

I've discovered that one of the reasons my ends get so thin is because part of my hair grows faster than others, the right side of my hair seems to be denser and coarser, and it grows faster than the other side, thus I have to trim so I don't have a lopsided hemline, if you've noticed in the pictures I've posted how lopsided it is, lol. I've pretty much grown it all out though.

[Longlegs]

At shorter lengths it was a breeze. I went a year and a half or two years without trimming without thinking about it much, and my hemline stayed roughly the same, just getting a bit softer looking. Around BCL I started fretting about my ends being thin, especially since I do like to wear it down sometimes, and it was more of an actual challenge. I think it's largely in my head, and I'm trying to power through it until I get to classic and can start trimming to maintain around there (or a little longer).
Your hair is beautiful!

[lithostoic]

As a kid/young teen I would go a year without a haircut. I'd love to get back into that once my bleach damage is trimmed out. I haven't trimmed since June and I'm waiting til after Christmas to trim it again.

I might attempt the no trimming first half of 2019 challenge and make it a full year between trims ... I want to reach hip really badly lmao. Then trim back to hip after the challenge (I'm only 2 inches away right now) and maintain.

[Zesty]

You are totally welcome! :) It is less than a month away, wanna bet? ;)

A girl can hope!


Your hair is beautiful!

Thanks so much. :flower:

[illicitlizard]

I think it's useful if you have a specific goal in mind and tend to self sabotage length gains by going to get trims regularly because of habit rather than damage. Also having a community to be there to work through the challenge is enjoyable :) I used to go without trimming for 1-2 years at a time as a kid so ideally I'd like to get back to that, instead of visiting a hairdresser every 3 months.

[Hairkay]

I found the no trim challenge quite easy since I was used to doing that already. I don't have a perm or bleached or colour treated hair. I just do s & d. I also like tapered ends, they plait/braid down neater. I also wear updos most times so my hair ends don't get so worn down.

[postpixie88]

I'd like to stop trimming so I can see more growth, but I feel like it's not possible with my bleach damage atm :(

[MemeAimee]

Personally, I seriously prefer to NOT trim, or cut my hair. Haha. I went a year and a half in high school without cutting or trimming, and my hair went from APL to almost hip length. I seemed to just forget about my hair growth and it happened so quickly. When I am trimming it feels my hair is NEVER going to grow. :P

[lapushka]

Personally, I seriously prefer to NOT trim, or cut my hair. Haha. I went a year and a half in high school without cutting or trimming, and my hair went from APL to almost hip length. I seemed to just forget about my hair growth and it happened so quickly. When I am trimming it feels my hair is NEVER going to grow. :P

Yep; you get 6 inches on average a year if you leave it alone, that's a milestone right there, or a couple depending on what length you are. And S&D can do a lot, if you are a little patient you can get the damage out that way (if there's not too much of it).

[chantecler]

For me, not trimming for a year really depends on wether or not my hair has been previously damaged. When I was younger and washed it every single day, had coloured it a couple of times, and started growing it out, even with S and D my ends were a complete mess and I'd have to cut an inch or two just to get rid of damage once the year was up.

Then when I did the same thing for almost two years on virgin hair starting at mid neck lenght, the only reason I ended up having to cut my hair was because I decided to bleach it.
I'm expecting something similar to my first experience this time, I have some bleach damage on the last few inches of my hair, and some demi permanent dye all over to grow out. By the end of 2019 I'll have gone two years without a trim, and I fully expect to need to cut back a couple of inches, even if I baby my ends and treat them like old lace.

The gist of it is, YMMV!

[*Wednesday*]

In 2017 I did the 1st and 2nd half. For 2018 no cutting the entire year. The only way for me to accomplish was to stop with heating tools. It's a habit I completely kicked and never do again.

I won't be doing the entire year again and go back to the first or second half challenges so I can micro trim my hair in between to keep my hemline up.

[ArabellaRose]

Due to various hairdresser related disasters I tend to avoid going as much as possible, even though I've found a lovely lady who does a really good job. She knows I'm growing it and didn't try the whole "you need to come back every 6 weeks" spiel, she gave me advice on how to better care for my hair to extend my time between visits and introduced me to using oils.

Even so, I haven't been to see her in over a year (I cant actually remember how long it has been) and I don't know when I will again. I had previously fallen into a cycle of going ages without a cut and then getting her to chop off all the resulting damage. I persevered this time and I'm finally at a length where I can begin microtrimming to slowly achieve healthier ends and (hopefully) a thicker hemline. I've gone from above BSL to hovering between waist and hip bone length and I'm currently microtrimming on the first day of every month. Once I'm happy with my ends I'm going to no trim until I'm at TBL where I'll maintain again.

TBL is my final goal but just you wait, I'll probably want to grow longer!

[lapushka]

Due to various hairdresser related disasters I tend to avoid going as much as possible, even though I've found a lovely lady who does a really good job. She knows I'm growing it and didn't try the whole "you need to come back every 6 weeks" spiel, she gave me advice on how to better care for my hair to extend my time between visits and introduced me to using oils.

Even so, I haven't been to see her in over a year (I cant actually remember how long it has been) and I don't know when I will again. I had previously fallen into a cycle of going ages without a cut and then getting her to chop off all the resulting damage. I persevered this time and I'm finally at a length where I can begin microtrimming to slowly achieve healthier ends and (hopefully) a thicker hemline. I've gone from above BSL to hovering between waist and hip bone length and I'm currently microtrimming on the first day of every month. Once I'm happy with my ends I'm going to no trim until I'm at TBL where I'll maintain again.

TBL is my final goal but just you wait, I'll probably want to grow longer!

Sounds like a plan to me. And IMO microtrimming it yourself beats having a hairdresser chop off most if not all of your growth every time. You don't have to go every 6 weeks for them to do major damage to any growth. They just label it "dead ends" and say it has to come off. Says who? If it's not split or has no white dots, it's not damaged. Period. And even that can come out with S&D.

[AngelAlly]

I just went from September 2017 to September 2018 without a trim or search and destroy. I think now I will trim at least every six months. When I was in high school I think I went 1-2 years without a trim a few times. That was way before I found LHC and I didn't really take good care of my hair (washed everyday, used flat iron, didn't condition).

[SwanFeathers]

No trimming for me was terrible, I lost ultimately lost much more length to split ends than if I had done my regular quarterly trims. The ends were like velcro and hard and scratchy. Yuck

[Reservechic]

I haven't trimmed my hair in over 4+ years. I find that if I don't see where there is a definite need for it, then I don't bother myself with trimming my hair. I currently use a moisturizing cream to style my hair with, so I find that as long as I keep my hair well moisturized, especially my ends, then both my hair and it's ends are happiest. It's only when I was doing too much to my hair, or when I have used products that totally dried my hair out to the point of it looking and feeling like straw, and during the Summertime, sometimes, when I would get these impulse urges to start cutting away at my hair due to the intense heat, would I ever put a scissors to my hair and start snipping away at it.

Oh, and when I used to go to the salon, way back, they would trim my hair every time I went, even if sometimes I went on a weekly basis, they would still trim my hair. I wasn't educated on proper hair care as I am now, so I realize that there was no need for my hair to be trimmed do frequently by the hair stylists that I had gone to. They would never ask me beforehand if I wanted my hair trimmed or even tell me how much they were trimming off, they'd just get the scissors and start doing their own thing. Which is one of the reasons I actually stopped going to the salon, and started taking control of doing my own hair.

[LongCurlyTress]

I haven't trimmed my hair in over 4+ years. I find that if I don't see where there is a definite need for it, then I don't bother myself with trimming my hair. I currently use a moisturizing cream to style my hair with, so I find that as long as I keep my hair well moisturized, especially my ends, then both my hair and it's ends are happiest. It's only when I was doing too much to my hair, or when I have used products that totally dried my hair out to the point of it looking and feeling like straw, and during the Summertime, sometimes, when I would get these impulse urges to start cutting away at my hair due to the intense heat, would I ever put a scissors to my hair and start snipping away at it.

Oh, and when I used to go to the salon, way back, they would trim my hair every time I went, even if sometimes I went on a weekly basis, they would still trim my hair. I wasn't educated on proper hair care as I am now, so I realize that there was no need for my hair to be trimmed do frequently by the hair stylists that I had gone to. They would never ask me beforehand if I wanted my hair trimmed or even tell me how much they were trimming off, they'd just get the scissors and start doing their own thing. Which is one of the reasons I actually stopped going to the salon, and started taking control of doing my own hair.

Please share which magic moisturizing hair cream that allows you to not need to trim!! Thank you!!! :thud: Even just a dusting seems to work for me but I would much rather not trim at all, but I seem to need to due to breakage during detangling at longer lengths...even with clarifying.. Thanks!

[Dark40]

I last trimmed in 2013, and it's been great! I hardly ever have any problems with rough, dry, split ends. I never have that issue. That's because I take good care of my hair by keeping it well-conditioned and well-moisturized.