Cut to 1 1/2 inch..... starting over

[Kirin]

No, I don't have pictures, hopefully though I'll get some in the next week.

When planning that you'll grow out long,
and waist length tresses see,
Hold off on that henna pack,
or you might end up like me.
Healthy though it seems at first,
a non damage type of dye,
remember its there forever,
No matter what you try.

Bleach and peroxide took some out,
to near yellow at the crown,
but the rest was burnt out orange
remniscent of a clown.
You can color and deposit stuff,
to even out the hue,
but it never will seem like its yours,
and keep its grip on you.

So damaged dry and breaking off,
frustration well in hand,
I decided to go to the salon,
and do the best I can.
Watching the orange fall away,
I was surprised I was not sad,
Seeing the silvery blondish roots
Oh dear lord I'm glad.

It will take a long time to get it back,
but I'm sure that in no time it will grow,
and I'll embrace the color that came with me,
and for now I surely know.
A foot and 4 inches of hair cut off,
and fallen to the floor,
I'm happy to be a newborn renegray,
as that crappy orange is no more!

So take a moment and hear my tale,
and know before you dye,
be careful to hear "it will not damage",
it won't.... but to remove it your hair will fry.

*bows*

[Speckla]

*clap*
very nice!

[paper]

Beautiful! :D Congrats on having the nerve to cut off the damage. I envy you.

[Shermie Girl]

No, I don't have pictures, hopefully though I'll get some in the next week.

When planning that you'll grow out long,
and waist length tresses see,
Hold off on that henna pack,
or you might end up like me.
Healthy though it seems at first,
a non damage type of dye,
remember its there forever,
No matter what you try.

Bleach and peroxide took some out,
to near yellow at the crown,
but the rest was burnt out orange
remniscent of a clown.
You can color and deposit stuff,
to even out the hue,
but it never will seem like its yours,
and keep its grip on you.

So damaged dry and breaking off,
frustration well in hand,
I decided to go to the salon,
and do the best I can.
Watching the orange fall away,
I was surprised I was not sad,
Seeing the silvery blondish roots
Oh dear lord I'm glad.

It will take a long time to get it back,
but I'm sure that in no time it will grow,
and I'll embrace the color that came with me,
and for now I surely know.
A foot and 4 inches of hair cut off,
and fallen to the floor,
I'm happy to be a newborn renegray,
as that crappy orange is no more!

So take a moment and hear my tale,
and know before you dye,
be careful to hear "it will not damage",
it won't.... but to remove it your hair will fry.

*bows*



From one former henna head to another may I just say...

Bravo! :applause: :applause: :applause:

(I wish I had the stones to cut my hair back to above the stickygummynasty line. Sadly, at present, I don't. I just have to hang on to my little bit of length and my remaining orange mess. :o)

[Unofficial_Rose]

Oh Kirin, you are brave.

Thinking I will have to go this route. One and a half inches is about all the virgin hair I have got, too. Cannot face highlights until I can be certain they won't turn green. So fed up with the henndigo. I just keep peering at it in despair.

Gold star for the poem, too! :applause:D

[Bianca]

Nice poem :thumbsup:

As soon as my natural hair gets longer i'm cutting too. I hennaed once, bleached it twice, and today my hair is really damaged at the ends. I wish I looked good with short hair, but I really dont... Must be so great to get rid of it :)

[Ryanne]

Good for you! And what a neat, amusing poem!

[Carolyn]

That's a great poem! I'm so sorry you had to cut. I think the poem shows you still have your sense of humor even with such a cut.

[Evie]

:bow:Take a bow Kirin, great poem!:applause:applause

I did something similar, although my hair was not quite so long.

I'm sorry henna was such a nightmare for you, and I hope that as your hair grows out, you enjoy the colour. I'm sure the cut looks cute, and I look forward to some pics.

[spidermom]

Bravo; I love the way you told your story. I'd make one little change - henna can be damaging for some. It made my hair brittle; I don't think anything was wrong with it pre-henna except perhaps sun damage. It was like the henna sucked all the moisture right out of my hair and left it like dull threads of rust-colored straw. I could crush it in my hand, and the crush didn't fall right out - the ends would stay wadded-looking.

So anyway, I hope you enjoy all the stages of growing out your hair. You have an endless number of style possibilities to look forward to.

[concrescence]

Great poem! Best wishes for happy, healthy, fast growing. :)

[going gray]

What a great poem, you are quite talented.

Sorry about your hair, but just think how healthy it will be now.

[Caldonia Sun]

Wonderful poem with a good warning.

[wintersun99]

................

[ipickee]

I'm sorry about the cut, but thank you for the warning. I've really been thinking about henna, and this has pretty much cured me of any desire to try it.

[Delila]

"renegray"

Love that word!!

[Gigi1962]

Brilliant poem - and fantastic sense of humour. I feel your pain, though, at having to lose that much hair... Wishing you happy, healthy (and fast growing) hair.

(and thank you for the warning about Henna - it has probably saved me from a similar fate....:rolleyes: )

[rags]

Sorry to hear you had to cut, but it's wonderful that you kept a sense of humour about it. Welcome to a new Renegray!

[Kirin]

Its all for the best..... I have no pain about it. I would have been in more pain, watching that orange "band" grow out and my gray looking like mold growing on top of my head. The breakage, hair falling out, all of it made for a stall from hades...... which made growing it out all a longer and more painful process.

Its reaaaally short, think Mia Farrow, and will take some serious getting used to. However, I can "wash my hair" with a damp washcloth LOL. Towel drying? Not even necessary!

In the end, it was the right thing to do, at least for me. I gave it well more than the two week rule, a month actually, today was the day as a handful of broken ends came out in the shower. There was just no saving it.

Henna did dry out my hair and made it brittle, its why I stopped using it in the first place. I really really did not realize just HOW permanent this stuff was. If I save one person trying to grow long hair from the same mistake, then its all worth it.

I was a hair color junkie, but hair color and LONG hair just don't mix, I tried to deny that fact....... I really did, but its the truth. Henna or chemical color, in the end, its the same. Keeping up with roots, damaging the ends...... horrible!

Thank you all for your support, its like starting from square one, but I'm good with it!

[ReddishRocks]

Brava! And congratulations on your big chop. It takes courage to go after happiness - and you sound happy to be dye free! :flower:

[Nightshade]

Fantastic poem! Would you mind terribly if I put that in a few "OMG I WANT TO HENNA!11!!" threads :lol:

Henna's great stuff for some, but you really have to proceed with extreme caution.

[redcelticcurls]

Wow, what a great attitude! You did what you felt you needed to do, and you were able to share it here and write a great poem about it to boot.

[cakedcake]

Agh! Sorry this happened to you.

This adds to my indecisiveness. I still can't decide whether I want to keep up henndigo as I grow out my hair. It doesn't make it brittle or anything for me. On the other hand, I would like to spare myself the regrowth time if I get frustrated with it later so maybe I should just stop at the few inches I have already dyed.

Agh!

[Feli]

Kirin: I admire your stance too. I hope your hair grows fast and looks wonderful! I've always been a bit old-fashioned about anything to do with my hair, including coloring it (never colored, never hennaed), but I didn't realize that Henna can be so damaging. Good on you for sharing!

[Myeka]

I have to say I am so proud of you Kirin, and I know you will be too when you get to look at your long locks of healthy, virgin hair once it's all grown out!

[FaeryTails]

Brilliant poem. Best wishes for happy, healthy and fast growing!

[LutraLutra]

Wow, that's an incredible thing to do, and it sounds like you feel you did the right thing. :cheer::hifive::flower::bottomsup: and expressed it brilliantly. Yay for you. :)

[Quahatundightu]

What a poem!! :D Good luck with continuing to grow, you are very brave :)

[Addy]

Kirin,

Sorry you had that bad experience with henna. I have never henna'd but I have bleached my hair and melted it off in the past and had to cut it all off. :o It's a terrible realization but the most effective at looking our best cuz we both know crunchy, mushy, stretchy ends and bozo the clown orange is never a good color for any skin tone. :D

You will get through it. It takes time but all will be fine. I bet you look super cute! Enjoy your short hair while you have it! :cool:

[SimplyLonghair]

Congrats on your courageous decision and a wonderful poem! I know that it is tough to make those kind of choices but once we do it is liberating, isn't it? :thumbsup:

[Silver Strands]

LOVE your poem.
How very true.

I also felt no remorse when I cut from near APL to 3-4" all over just to be rid of
the henna.
The hairdresser was more nervous than I was. By the time I went there I had tried
almost everything except bleach. ( I knew I couldn't use that on my scalp)
I was done.

And even though it was a little frustrating having the shorter hair, I loved having my
natural color and feel back.
No more coated, stiff, dry feeling.

It has been 2 years since I cut mine off and i'm now back at APL again after spending
the first year or so trimming layers off.

It was definitely worth it and I will never put anything on my hair ever again either.

Good for you! Happy Growing and Enjoy the Journey!

[brok3nwings]

oh kirin you made the most beautiful poem!
i think you are very lucky to have such a positiv spirit and im sure that now that you passed all the "hell" you will find the beauty

[Lamb]

Great poem! And I'm glad you are looking on the bright side. :) No use crying over spilt milk or chopped hair. ;)

[Poetic]

Beautiful poem!:) I feel your frustration. I am thinking of removing 2 or 3 inches from my hair, hoping it will improve my disposition as my hair grows back. Enjoy the journey . . . goodness knows I am trying.:rolleyes:;)

[LaFlor]

It must feel so liberating to have that all over with. It's hard to start over from the beginning, but I imagine it is 100x better than having clown hair. I will be having to chop off my damage eventually too... but I am not brave enough to do it at such a short length.

Thanks for steering me away from henna... The same would probably happen to me.

[Jack's Sparrow]

I was a hair color junkie, but hair color and LONG hair just don't mix, I tried to deny that fact....... I really did, but its the truth. Henna or chemical color, in the end, its the same. Keeping up with roots, damaging the ends...... horrible!

I wholeheartedly agree Kirin! Congratulations on being brave, you will have the most beautiful, soft, shiney and natural hair from now on! :D

[WhitsEnd]

Claps for you!! You are braver than I am. I do not think that I could bear to cut off all of my damaged ends. The last time I got a 'real' hair cut (2 inches), I cried right there in the beauty salon chair.

[Fiferstone]

Hi Kirin, what a lovely poem and cautionary tale. I'm a henna-head, and I've resigned myself to becoming a "badger-head" once I start having really noticeable silvers growing in. Clown-orange will likewise be my fate if I try to cover them with henna, and I also have a noticeable "waterline" from years of L'Oreal Preference/Excellence in Light Auburn. Boo. My hope is that someday my color is like silvermoon's, but once it's to the point where I don't want to bother with color, I'll grow it out, and possibly buzz it all off and start over again. I hope I have the courage to do what you have done when it's my turn to make that choice.

[MermaidGirl]

Kirin, standing ovation! :cheese:

Lovely poem and a good bit of advice to those that might want to try henna. It works beautifully for some, not at all for others. I am sorry you had to chop, but I know exactly the feeling you had that made you do it - while we want our length, sometimes its just more frustrating dealing with unhealthy, breaking hair than it is to just cut if off. It can be liberating to just let it go.

You've now got a head full of healthy, virgin hair that is your natural color and texture, and there's a lot to be said for that. I know you will take great care of it, and it will be growing in no time at all.

Good luck to you, and thank you for sharing your story and your wonderful poem! :)

[Idun]

Great poem! And - wow you´re brave!

I sometimes feel the urge to cut, but I always chicken out. My dyed hair is not so far from the original colour so it´s not all bad, but I have a lot of flyaways (I think you call it), and I suspect they will never be long.

Congratulations on having a head full of healthy natural hair!

[JamieRose]

:applause:applause:applause Very nice!!!

[Ottoline]

Such a positive attitude - good for you and hope it grow back fast!

[Kirin]

Fantastic poem! Would you mind terribly if I put that in a few "OMG I WANT TO HENNA!11!!" threads :lol:

Henna's great stuff for some, but you really have to proceed with extreme caution.

hehe Feel free!

[Kirin]

Thank you all so much for your support! I thought I would wake up today, and be sad or "miss" my hair..... but nope. Happy, really happy, for a few reasons.

First, my youngest daughter keeps petting my head LOL. "Its so soft!" she'll tell me over and over, pet pet pet...... and the fact she tells me its so pretty? Doesn't suck I tell you.

The color. I have gray that appears to be "ice blonde" its like Brigitte Neilsen blonde/white, the rest, is GOLD...... an amazing shade. I'm shocked, because actually I havent seen my natural color since I was maybe 14.

My shower took oh, five minutes LOL...... about 15 seconds to "style" it lol.

And doing the math, I reached just about BSL in two years from a pixie, and that was WITH 7 trims of at least an inch each to cut off damage. So without the trims except to even up layers, I'm thinking year and a half maybe?

Lets see how fast this sucker grows!

[AprilElf]

Wonderful poem! And it sounds like you made the best decision. I hope you enjoy your new hair growth journey. :)

[WritingPrincess]

:applause Nice poem! I'm sorry you had to start over, but I'm glad you're at peace with it. I wish you speedy growing!

[JamieLeigh]

Nice poem!! It's good to remind people that "A Henna Is Forever", before they decide to embark on that journey. :cool: Glad to hear that you're embracing your natural color now - good luck on your new journey! :flower:

[merseaone]

I did that a few years back after years of coloring, I was tired of dealing with the racing strip. Now I have my natural colors: dark blonde, a little red, some brown, some white, and some silver. I always said I was eclectic! LOL

[Tangles]

Aww, Kirin, I'm sorry but you seem happy with your choice. Please make sure to document every step of your journey back!

And your new hair color sounds really cool. Didn't know you were a blonde.

[spidermom]

So are there pictures posted anywhere?

[Kirin]

Aww, Kirin, I'm sorry but you seem happy with your choice. Please make sure to document every step of your journey back!

And your new hair color sounds really cool. Didn't know you were a blonde.

LOL neither did I....... when I was a kid my hair was a mousy charcoal black color..... but again haven't seen my hair in ages since fourteen or so LOL. its all new to me.

I'll try TRY to get pictures tomorrow, this week's been nuts.