Past The Point of No Return, No Backwards Glances.... (with pics!)

[Kiraela]

Well. I just did something. Something major. And I mean, MAJOR.
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The color of my ends has been bothering me for some time. It's brassy and unnatural.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=1209&pictureid=53948 - before
　
The ends looked like they had been chewwed on by rats, and it was only getting worse.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=1209&pictureid=53949 - ends
　
So this is what I did about it!
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=1209&pictureid=53950 - After!
　
The ends aren't really that off-center, I was twisting the camera!　
I am pleased as punch, let me tell you!! Maybe I'm still in shock, I don't know. This happened within the last hour. But there's so much less roughness, so fewer tangles already, and that horrible brassy color is mostly gone. It looks good if it's someone's natural color. With my hair, it was a visible example of a horrible mistake. Now, it's mostly gone! I estimate that I'm now roughly 80% bleach free.

*As for the title, sorry, I've been playing that song from the Phantom of the Opera on repeat for about a half hour, now. it fits my mood, haha!

[EvaSimone]

It looks great!!! It now definitely looks like your natural color.

[SHELIAANN1969]

Yay for happier ends! I did the same thing last night, I was sick of the tangled mess and the unevenness and got it trimmed up and it feels sooooooo much better!

Congrats on the trim and hey, whatever makes *you* happy is what counts! :flower:

[Rentlle]

your happiness is the most important!! :D
It looks realy good :)

[janeytilllie]

Your hair looks lovely! Congrats :flower:

[rach]

wow that's quite a difference!!!!! :blossom:
looks much silkier too

[Amara]

It looks lovely! I like it much better, and I bet you'll be happier as you grow it out. What's left looks like natural lightening of the ends as hair gets longer. :)

[Kiraela]

Thank you all, so much! It's very nice to know it really does look better, and that it's not just my imagination. It definately feels much silkier.

I'm about to go wash it. I may have to re-hairtype myself afterwards, since the damaged ends were what was keeping the natural sproing and wave reduced, I think. When I'd hold individual hairs in the middle, at the colorbreak, the natural color was spirally curls, and the bleached ends were nearly stick straight.

[Topaz]

It looks great! Sometimes a good trim is just what the doctor ordered! I trimmed my own just a few days ago and it is much happier too. :D

[Isa-belle]

Your ends are amazingly thick! I don't think I could stand being two-toned either - although it was not so dramatic in your case. (I couldn't agree with the chewed-by-rats comment, though... Your ends looked quite healthy in the before pic, at least judging from the picture).

It is still super long and you probably have hardly any taper left now. Totally thudworthy and enviable!

[Kiraela]

I cut in a V shape to give myself something of a taper, because I've tried flat, blunt ends and it was impossible to get into updos!

I lived with being two toned for about three and a half years, and hated it. Now that my natural color is nearing waist length, I decided it was time to make myself happy. Before now, I'd been clinging to the length like a life preserver. Then, about a month ago I caught a glance of myself in a mirror, in a grocery store when I had my hair down, and thought, 'EWWWW. Is that really how my hair looks to the outside world?' Then, about a week ago, I was braiding and some of the bronzey ends were twisted next to some of the underlayer from the back, which wasn't bleach damaged hardly at all. The damage was so obvious that it literally made me cry, and I resolved to do something about it. :)

It's been a long time since my hair, down, could be called thudworthy. Thank you, Isa-belle!

[melrose1985]

Looks great! i'm glad your happy.

[halo_tightens]

I'm so glad to hear that you're happy with your hair again!! :)

You're right, the lighter color is almost completely gone-- and as Amara said, any remaining lightness will just look like the natural lightening most hair gets toward the ends.

I bet your ends feel awesome now, too!

[Nightshade]

Wow, very very nice.

I think you made a wise decision :)

[Kiraela]

They do! They've still got a bit of that pokey, just-cut stiff feeling, but already it's so much smoother. About 3/4 of the splits were cut off, and the remaining ones seem to be behaving (perhaps for fear I'll snip them off too, hahaha). I am going to be S&Ding the remaining damage out. I think this was my last, much needed, big cut.

[lindaton]

It is so healthy and I too disagree with the rat comment! Beautiful!

[pradabacon]

Fantastic, Kiraela! Congrats! :flowers:

[Coriander]

That looks great! You did a fantastic job!

[pinkbunny]

I hate my ends, too - but I'm not brave enough for a drastic cut! I'm sure your hair will love you for it. :thumbsup:

[Kiraela]

Thanks, everyone!

The pictures did not do the hideousness of the ends justice - every single strand had at least one white dot and/or split, more often than not, a single strand would have two or more dots and a multifork split. I am very glad that it looks better! :)

[pinchbeck]

I hate my ends, too - but I'm not brave enough for a drastic cut! I'm sure your hair will love you for it. :thumbsup:

Do you hate your ends due to hair dye? If so, try using a semi-permanent hair colour on them that matches your natural hair colour providing your ends are blunt and healthy. With this there is no need to take off length (unless there are splits).:cheese:

[pinchbeck]

Well. I just did something. Something major. And I mean, MAJOR.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.(no cheating with scrollovers!)
.
.
.
The color of my ends has been bothering me for some time. It's brassy and unnatural.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=1209&pictureid=53948 - before
　
The ends looked like they had been chewwed on by rats, and it was only getting worse.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=1209&pictureid=53949 - ends
　
So this is what I did about it!
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=1209&pictureid=53950 - After!
　
The ends aren't really that off-center, I was twisting the camera!　
I am pleased as punch, let me tell you!! Maybe I'm still in shock, I don't know. This happened within the last hour. But there's so much less roughness, so fewer tangles already, and that horrible brassy color is mostly gone. It looks good if it's someone's natural color. With my hair, it was a visible example of a horrible mistake. Now, it's mostly gone! I estimate that I'm now roughly 80% bleach free.

*As for the title, sorry, I've been playing that song from the Phantom of the Opera on repeat for about a half hour, now. it fits my mood, haha!

Your hair is really long, thick and gorgeous and looks even better now that the ends are blunt and damage-free. But if I may be frank, you may want to have your hemline tidied up by a trustworthy hairdresser so it looks more even and symmetrical. :D
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[little_acorn]

Looks great :flower: I glad you're happier :D

[Kiraela]

Your hair is really long, thick and gorgeous and looks even better now that the ends are blunt and damage-free. But if I may be frank, you may want to have your hemline tidied up by a trustworthy hairdresser so it looks more even and symmetrical. :D
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Yeah, I just washed it and am letting it airdry, to see how it falls once it's been cleaned, etc. If the ends look uneven, I may get DBF or a good friend to tidy it up. I don't know any hairdressers I would trust within two feet of me with scissors, unfortunately. Not to mention, they all seem to want money, for some reason, hahaha.

[spidermom]

Pictures sometimes just can't capture hair problems. I thought your ends looked terrific before, but I definitely understand getting rid of damage. I hope you enjoy happy hair days from now on!

[Kiraela]

Thanks Spidermom!

[Yozhik]

Nice drastic change! It looks great, and welcome back to wurls :)

[MsBubbles]

"No scrollovers" Ha ha! I feel so busted :lol:

Your ends do look very nice...but I must say, what you may have considered chewed on by rats beforehand, some of us would love the chance at such thickness!

Oh and I agree, a trustworthy friend, not necessarily hairdresser...bottom line is that you can trust them! I think your hemline looks gorgeous as is. I'm just stunned by how much hair you have.

[Anje]

Can you lend me some of your end-chewing rats? If that's what they do to your hair, I'd like them to attack my ends! All I've got is a cat that gets my braid tassel in her mouth and pulls...

Seriously, the color looks much better, but I would love to have ends that looked like yours, even in a weird color.

[Xandergrammy]

I think your new cut looks great! However, your "before" ends did NOT look like they were chewed on by rats!!

[Sissy]

glad it turned out well for you. It does look softer now

[hela]

I liked your previous hair as well, you got some gentle rats there ;) , however it was a wise step to take. Your hair is beautiful and really THICK, it will look so great when you reach again the length you wish :)

[drquartz1970]

My hair is a natural light -medium brown colour. However the going downwards the ends of my hair gradually get to a lighter blonde and it isn't due to any hair dye. The hair just becomes gradually lighter at the ends from I suppose sunlight. Does anyone else have hair that does this?

[Periwinkle]

It looks gorgeous :D

[MemSahib]

I would say that is one splendid trim! It looks great and you're obviously happy with it! Excellent news all around.

[longhairedfairy]

Very nice! Nice ends always feel good!:)
*humming PTO music because now I'll have it stuck in my head*

[friskybiznus]

Yes, it does look very pretty! You did a great job!

[Kiraela]

Thank you, everybody! I have gotten several trusted people to give me their opinions, and they all say that it looked fairly funky before, and so incredibly much better now. Once I washed it and it dried, I evened up the ends that needed evening. It's another 1/2" shorter.

I wish I had a better camera, and you could see all the splits and damage. My nape circumference is about 4", the circumference where the ends are now, is 3.75", and about an inch below that was is 2" in circumference.

[Jessikinz]

Looks really good! :)

[Kiraela]

Thanks, Jessikins!

[camara]

It looks very neat.

I´m glad you like it. :)

[Kiraela]

Thanks Camara!

I was worried that I would wake this morning and realize, 'OH NO!! It's too short!', but I woke still exstatic about it.

DBF told me last night, once he finally noticed, (haha) that when I've been talking about trimming/cutting, he had hoped I would decide to do so because of how bad the ends were, while at the same time tellling me to wait, because he thought I would panic as soon as the first snip was done and he didn't want to see me upset. He was very pleased to hear that I was simply overwhealmingly relieved that the bleach and bronze was nearly gone.

[AmyJorgensen]

Nice job on the trim. I like the natural color.

[Yayasmurf]

You are a brave one... I can't do it... I just can't do it :p The dye will just have to stay for now... until I get more brave.

[bigmama8]

Your hair looks awesome now! It is so thick and shiny. :)

[Ryanne]

Our games of make-believe are at an end...

I'm glad you're happy with it. Looks lovely.

[JamieLeigh]

It looks really nice! If you're happy with the results, then you definitely did the right thing. :flower:

[Kiraela]

You are a brave one... I can't do it... I just can't do it :p The dye will just have to stay for now... until I get more brave.


I don't know if it was bravery, really, but thanks, :). It took me three years to get to where I was ready to do this, and I still couldn't cut all the way to true virgin hair. I would have been between BSL and waist, and... I can't do it. Not yet. Luckily, I can now do small trims and cut out the dye, while growing back out.

[Friesiangirl]

Yes, your ends did look fairly healthy in the before picture. But peopel tell me that all the time, and my ends snarl and are very annoying. I haven't hte guts to cut them off though.

Hayley

[jojo]

Looks 100% better and your hemline is super thick and healthy looking.

[Kiraela]

It really does feel 100% better, too! I hadn't realized how much I had started to hate my hair until I did this, and fell in love with it again!

Thanks for the compliments on my hem, I think I might need another tiny trim to even it up some, but that can wait, for now. I am afraid that I might start to get scissorhappy and end up way shorter than I'd intended.

[Angela_Rose]

The we played 'til now are at an end... Great, Kiraela. Now I've got that song stuck in my head. Thanks!

Anyway, the new ends look wonderful and it's so nice to see the color evened out! Well-done!

[Kiraela]

Thanks, Angela_rose!

If it makes you feel any better, someone at the halloween party I went to, dressed up as the Phantom. Now I've got that one, and the theme stuck in my head!!

[Redheaded Raven]

I think that it looks great! I am glad that you are happy with your hair now! That is all that matters! :happydance:

[Gothic Lolita]

It looks great! Sometimes, you just have to go for it, go for the cut and in the end, you're happier than you thought you'd be.

[Teakafrog]

Looks wonderful. I'm about to do the same thing in a few months, cut off all the old dyed ends. I can't wait! Just need a *little* more length first, then off it goes.

[DarkChocolate]

Your hair looks really nice now:) Although I did like your ends before:) I sometimes debate whether or not to cut my ends too. The reduction in tangles is such a great payoff:)

[Angela_Rose]

The we played 'til now are at an end... Great, Kiraela. Now I've got that song stuck in my head. Thanks!

Anyway, the new ends look wonderful and it's so nice to see the color evened out! Well-done!

Grr... stupid work computer... that was supposed to have been "the gámes we played 'til now are at an end."

You're welcome, Kireala! I wish my ends were thick like yours. I'll get them there but for now I'm going for length over thickness and will even things out as I maintain the length when I get to knee. Looks great!

[missjessiecakes]

It looks lovely! :D

Also Thanks for the no suspense I dont like waiting in suspense for pictures it gives me grey hair.

[Kiraela]

Grr... stupid work computer... that was supposed to have been "the gámes we played 'til now are at an end."

You're welcome, Kireala! I wish my ends were thick like yours. I'll get them there but for now I'm going for length over thickness and will even things out as I maintain the length when I get to knee. Looks great!


That was pretty much what I did for the last three years, went for length instead of great ends, until it was long enough that I could cut most of the damage off and still not have gone past my beginning point. - To be fair, it wasn't exactly planned that way, it just ended up happening, haha.

And it's funny, I have always admired your hair for how gorgeous, long and wavy it is, AngelaRose...

[Angela_Rose]

Thanks, Angela_rose!

If it makes you feel any better, someone at the halloween party I went to, dressed up as the Phantom. Now I've got that one, and the theme stuck in my head!!

::grins:: I learned to sing by listening to Sara Brightman sing Christine Daae, so I've pretty much always got something from PotO running on my internal soundtrack. That woman is the reason I am a powerhouse soprano! :face:

[Kiraela]

It looks lovely! :D

Also Thanks for the no suspense I dont like waiting in suspense for pictures it gives me grey hair.

Thanks!
I never was much of one for holding out on the pictures. I'm to impatient, my own self, haha! I was planning for a day or so, to do a before post, and an after post, but then woke up friday morning, head pounding with a migraine, and decided, 'enough is enough!'.

I have, however, proven to those who kept suggesting it, that my hair is NOT the reason for my headaches. So there!

[Kiraela]

::grins:: I learned to sing by listening to Sara Brightman sing Christine Daae, so I've pretty much always got something from PotO running on my internal soundtrack. That woman is the reason I am a powerhouse soprano! :face:

The Phantom was the original thing that got me singing, way back years ago, and the reason I have such a range as I do! I basically taught myself to sing, like you did, listening to Sarah Brightman. I'm not quite a powerhouse, yet, but partially that is because for the last year or so, I haven't been singing much.

Actually, the PoTO is the reason I bonded so well with my last horse. The day I got her, I was trying to catch her in the pasture to bring her home, and singing the 'angel of music' song. At first she ran from me, then she heard me singing and came over to see what it was that I was making this noise for. She seemed to really like it, so I ended up changing her barn name to Angel, because she would always come when I sang to her.

[jessie58]

Your hair is still long and now it's just healthy and shiny looking as well. Great job.

[Angela_Rose]

The Phantom was the original thing that got me singing, way back years ago, and the reason I have such a range as I do! I basically taught myself to sing, like you did, listening to Sarah Brightman. I'm not quite a powerhouse, yet, but partially that is because for the last year or so, I haven't been singing much.

Actually, the PoTO is the reason I bonded so well with my last horse. The day I got her, I was trying to catch her in the pasture to bring her home, and singing the 'angel of music' song. At first she ran from me, then she heard me singing and came over to see what it was that I was making this noise for. She seemed to really like it, so I ended up changing her barn name to Angel, because she would always come when I sang to her.

What a neat story! Thunder comes a'runnin' if I make a noise like a carrot. ::grins:: Actually he comes to the gate to a long, low whistle. I have been known to sing while on his back, though, and it usually gets him to work long'n'low a bit better, which is nice- he's such a goofy baby so anything that helps, right?

[Kiraela]

Yep, anything that helps! I had a gelding at one point whose favorite treat was dogfood... He'd do anything I asked as long as there was dog kibble in my hand.

I never did figure out how to explain to him that there's probably horse-meat in it. Dang cannibal horses, haha.

[Angela_Rose]

That was pretty much what I did for the last three years, went for length instead of great ends, until it was long enough that I could cut most of the damage off and still not have gone past my beginning point. - To be fair, it wasn't exactly planned that way, it just ended up happening, haha.

And it's funny, I have always admired your hair for how gorgeous, long and wavy it is, AngelaRose...

I think I have about two years to go until I get down to Knee, so I can keep going on that plan. I do a half-an-inch trim twice a year, with S&D in between, which is helping, but as you so aptly strated sometimes it takes a good chop to clean the damage up.

Thank you! I got good genes for hair, I guess!

[Angela_Rose]

Yep, anything that helps! I had a gelding at one point whose favorite treat was dogfood... He'd do anything I asked as long as there was dog kibble in my hand.

I never did figure out how to explain to him that there's probably horse-meat in it. Dang cannibal horses, haha.

I used to work with another Perch gelding (old as dirt!) whose favourite treat was watermelon rinds. He would run you right over to get to those things and it was so funny to watch him slobber all over them.

Cannibal Horses! That sounds like a spinoff from the My Little Apocalypse Pony from Robot Chicken!:D

[Kiraela]

OMG, I love robot chicken, but haven't seen it in forever. And I never caught an episode with my little Apocalypse pony. I've GOT to go find that now.


ETA: BWAhahahaha. Found it.

[Angela_Rose]

OMG, I love robot chicken, but haven't seen it in forever. And I never caught an episode with my little Apocalypse pony. I've GOT to go find that now.


ETA: BWAhahahaha. Found it.

Isn't that fantastic? Seth Greene is a genius.

[Redheaded Raven]

What a neat story! Thunder comes a'runnin' if I make a noise like a carrot. ::grins:: Actually he comes to the gate to a long, low whistle. I have been known to sing while on his back, though, and it usually gets him to work long'n'low a bit better, which is nice- he's such a goofy baby so anything that helps, right?
I just have one question, what kind of noise does a carrot make???:confused:

This I have to know! :D

[Angela_Rose]

I just have one question, what kind of noise does a carrot make???:confused:

This I have to know! :D

Depends. He likes nice fresh carrots, so those go SNAP! CRUNCH, CRUNCH, CRUNCH. :cheese:

[Laululintu]

It looks lovely :D

[Kiraela]

Aww, thank you Laululintu!