Noticing other people's splits

[julliams]

I've never made a point of looking closely at another person's hair but since I've been here on LHC I'm more aware of what healthy and damaged hair is. Now if I'm standing behind someone in a queue I can't help noticing other people's spilt or damaged hair. I really don't mean to but....I can't help it. I just want to tell them about S & D but of course I would never do that.

[enfys]

I notice them often. Splits pick the light up differently to unsplit hair.

I find it funny because the problems of splits are well known compared to say the damage heat styling can cause. All magazines will explain what happens. I'd never tell them of course! It's not my place to.

[Carolyn]

Yeah :D I think a lot of us do that. As we learn about healthy hair and good hair care, we often start noticing other people's hair and analyzing it. That's OK. It's not OK to offer any unsolicited advice. I often do "mental makeovers" on people I see in public :p What would I have to do if that was my hair? That kind of thing. As people who are in to long healthy, well cared for hair, we sometimes have to realize that others aren't into it as we are.

[forgetmenotak]

I do that too, in fact I did that before I came to LHC. Noticing splits was just something that I did. I wouldn't ever offer advice though, unless it was family.

[elina333]

Just like Carolyn, I give people a mental makeover :D But I guess its what happens when you're completely obsessed with something (like I am with hair ;))

[Sammich]

Haha! I do that too! :D I notice tons of schoolgirls hair in front of me in dinner ques.... I want to squeal at them that their splits need to be cut or they need to stop dying their hair so much they have so many splits from it or... yeahhh. ;)

[katha]

After I met BFs sister, who has about apl length, bleached hair, I said to BF "She's really nice. Can I put oil into her hair?"

He laughed at me. :(


;)

[serious]

Just like Carolyn, I give people a mental makeover :D

Ha,ha,ha, me too!:D

[ravenreed]

I have always noticed splits. They often take on a life of their own and sort of hover above the rest of the hair. It is one reason why I trim my hair so often.

[camirra555]

Haha, I also do the mental makeovers on people. Some people have splits that are soo bad! I'd never give unsolicited advice though. I keep my opinions to myself

[Honey39]

I do it on public transport, I must be honest. If someone with long-ish hair sits in front of me, I tend to analyse their hair; it's not judgemental, it's more from being on this site! What type is her hair, does she have damage or not etc. And I LOVE funky wild styles, to I am not being precious about hair. But I have noticed on a lot of women the white dot which comes from over-straightening - it's not a split, exactly, but it's definitely noticeable.

Oh dear. I am a bit obsessed, huh??? I usually admire people's hair.

[redwoman]

LOL! Mental makeover is my middle name, I'll think to myself, "you should cut it just there, and a little oil there..." Good thing I can keep my trap shut or there would be riots of angry people yelling at me. LOL

[Clarisse]

I do that a lot :P And I love to give people mental makeovers too!

[jojo]

This is my daily routine on the way to work on the train. I type them and I also look for how many split ends they got. Not in a judge mental way more in a analysing way, though i do feel better when I see a candyfloss bleached job sat in front of me it passes my journey quicker! I am evil I know!

[tralalalara]

I did this before LHC, but it went beyond just hair. It came from watching too much "Extreme Makeover" so I would go so far as to mentally decide which plastic surgeries would be best on them to accentuate and draw more attention to features that are already wonderful.

[ericthegreat]

I'm training as a hairstylist, so I do this both in my head and also in real life. A client will come in with 3 different colours in their hair and completely damaged ends, and I'll even take them back to one solid even colour and cut off all their damaged ends and give them long layers.

And when I ride the train, and also as I'm waiting on line for food at a McDonald's or when I'm out shopping, I'll notice all kinds of women with platinum blonde fried hair and I'm mentally thinking, these poor women need to soak their hair in coconut oil for 2 days, do an S&D, and maybe instead think of doing henna instead.

[nowxisxforever]

I notice it a lot more, too. but generally it's easy to see who is open to the advice and who isn't. Generally my closest friends and family I will suggest things to, but they know it's a hobby of mine.

[myrrhmaiden]

heheh. I just saw a woman heading into a hairdresser's wholesale store. (No! I was not there myself, but at an adjoining store.) I passed her in horror in the parking lot. In my head I was grabbing her by the arms and shouting, "no!!! don't go in there! Your hair is screaming for its life!" Her hair was so bleached and distressed...I felt almost an empathic mourning for her. hahahahh. I just smiled politely as we passed. If only I could have helped.

[pinchbeck]

I saw a cashier at Walmart with sparse waist length hair. Her hair was badly damaged on the last twelve inches (or more) from straightening. I couldn't keep my eyes off of it because it looked horrible and I was thinking to myself, "What a waist". Ha ha....no pun intended!

In addition to the above I notice when somebody has done a power-grow. The ends tend to look straggly, thin and unattractive. Again, I think those heads of hair should have been maintained along the way. Yes...they've gained length and it is hard on the eyes!.

[xoxophelia]

:o .. I don't look for splits and don't really know how to see them on people. I hope everybody isn't judging my hair harshly ... *ties it up and never lets it down*

[Tonks]

I've noticed that I've started doing this as well! I can actually recognize what a split looks like now, and it's as if I see them everywhere. I wouldn't offer any advice though, unless asked. But I die a little death inside all the same :P

[Eniratak]

I don't usually look at others hair unless it's really long.
I know my hair isn't in the best shape and I find it better not to judge.

[SunshineHair]

There is a girl I know of who works close by! I see her and always comment on how much I love her hair! It is super thick, blong with a light brown strip going through. She tells me she hates it because she has to blow dry it every day to keep it straight otherwise it is a frizz curly mess.

I took a look at her ends and I have NEVER seen split ends that big and white before :0 I told her how to get rid of them the right way... I was just shocked! But I still love her hair!!

[PorcelainHorror]

I do that too! There's a girl I know who's hair is down to her waist but she doesn't take care of it. It's full of splits and I always examine it like some kind of creeper.

[Damiana]

:D I'm glad I'm not the only one who does this! It's hard not to want to offer first-aid to peoples hair but I "keep it in the family" (well, and friends too!) I could easily be mistaken for a weirdo otherwise :o although I have complimented a few people on their hair when it was obvious they really took pride in it.

[spidermom]

This makes me feel kind of sad because I take as good of care of my hair as I can without making myself crazy, but it still splits and breaks off. Now I'm imagining people looking at my hair, seeing splits, and judging me.

[catysue]

Just remember, there's no way to repair existing damage on the length of your hair aside from cutting it off, so splits do not necessarily indicate someone who is not informed about how to take care of their hair. Growing beautiful, healthy, strong hair is a journey that takes time, and I don't think there is a single head of hair on this planet that has absolutely no splits. Many of us LHC members have quite a bit of splits... that person you are mental makeover-ing could be a member here at LHC!

[SunshineHair]

Hey Spidermom..I will remember you said this and think differently when I see splits! Because now I see some people get them so easily who really take care of their hair!!!

I do think your hair is nice :)

[Sissy]

I don't usually look at others hair unless it's really long.
I know my hair isn't in the best shape and I find it better not to judge.

Ditto! I couldn't agree more :) All that matters is if someone feels good about their own hair. Perhaps they've had a thinning issue, a sickness, horrible stress in their life which is affecting their hair, etc. It is really NONE of my business.

[Sissy]

Just remember, there's no way to repair existing damage on the length of your hair aside from cutting it off, so splits do not necessarily indicate someone who is not informed about how to take care of their hair. Growing beautiful, healthy, strong hair is a journey that takes time, and I don't think there is a single head of hair on this planet that has absolutely no splits. Many of us LHC members have quite a bit of splits... that person you are mental makeover-ing could be a member here at LHC!

yeah, I was starting to feel very self-conscious reading this thread... because I myself have many, many splits though I do take good care of my hair and S&D like crazy. I also have trouble keeping a blunt hemline as I try to gain length. :o

[Eniratak]

This makes me feel kind of sad because I take as good of care of my hair as I can without making myself crazy, but it still splits and breaks off. Now I'm imagining people looking at my hair, seeing splits, and judging me.

That's how I felt when I started reading this thread.
I usually enjoy wearing my hair down, but if people actually really do this, I don't really want to wear it loose anymore.

[Sissy]

That's how I felt when I started reading this thread.
I usually enjoy wearing my hair down, but if people actually really do this, I don't really want to wear it loose anymore.

Same here! Thought I noticed it's quite a few new members making these comments. I certainly hope LHC isn't going the way of judgemental... it's nice to come on here and show our hair, even if it isn't perfect! Historically and presently, I have known of members going through sheds, recovering from medical illnesses, etc. How will they feel to read this?

[Eniratak]

Same here! Thought I noticed it's quite a few new members making these comments. I certainly hope LHC isn't going the way of judgemental... it's nice to come on here and show our hair, even if it isn't perfect! Historically and presently, I have known of members going through sheds, recovering from medical illnesses, etc. How will they feel to read this?

I agree.

I mean. I don't want to feel innocent. I do notice things, but I usually get so down because my hair isn't in the best condition.

[Wicked Princess]

I cut my hair from classic length to tail-bone length in order to get rid of some of my damaged ends, and the last of my layers - I never wore it down in public because I was afraid people would be looking and see splits! Maybe I was right to hide them away, hehe! :o

Now, I am not so self-conscious of my ends because they considerably thicker after my cut and any splits (there are practically none! :D) are well hidden/go unnoticed.

Mostly, I'm hyper aware of people's hairstyles, or hair cuts, not so much the condition.

[SunshineHair]

We all notice them because we notice them on ourselves! I spend a lot of time now looking for my own, so of course I cnat help but look at others!

I was in taco bell an hour ago and there I went stareing at people splits! I do not however look bad at the person with them. I just figure they do not know how bad it is.

One split end I saw tonight was weird, it wasnt really split but it was about half an inch of thick white, different than the rest of the girls hair. Never seen one like that before??

Dont worry, your split ends do NOT define you!!!

[ArienEllariel]

Funny, I did this the other day. My aunt was driving me and I noticed how her BSL hair had quite a few noticable splits. I wanted to mention S & D but she'd probably think I was nuts.

Hijack-
This is the same aunt who flat irons her hair regularly, dyes, and still plans on growing her hair long. She's got thick hair but the strands are fine like mine so I think it's going to be hard for her to reach CL without stopping the flat ironing. Too much breakage and all. I wanted to tell her about LHC but I don't think she'd be interested. We ended up talking about hair for a while together the other day which was fun, but I can tell she's not the type to be bother using natural products, coconut oil, etc. on her hair especially as she's been indoctrinated into mainstream haircare (former beautician). Actually I wanted to laugh because she was telling me how I shouldn't use conditioner on my scalp at all (remember I CO 9 times out of 10). I just had to smile and nod and ignore her well-meant advice on hair. Don't you just love relatives who think they know everything? Anyways, sorry I got off topic but I felt like sharing. :P -end of Hijack

[jojo]

This makes me feel kind of sad because I take as good of care of my hair as I can without making myself crazy, but it still splits and breaks off. Now I'm imagining people looking at my hair, seeing splits, and judging me.I think its human nature to looks and be inquisitive and trust me if you was sat in front of me on the train to work, it would be your length id be looking at and drooling! long hair gets splits it comes with territory. people look at mine probably and think "my god splits" its when people dont look after their hair and dye and fry it to high heaven what makes me stare; they made the choice to do that to their hair, same as we made the choice to look after ours!

[jojo]

That's how I felt when I started reading this thread.
I usually enjoy wearing my hair down, but if people actually really do this, I don't really want to wear it loose anymore.
so your telling me you dont notice when somebody has ruined their hair? I am sorry but I find this quite unbelievable. We all have choices in what we do with our hair, if others want to damage their hair im really not that bothered, but dont judge me for looking when the back of their head is in my face, its not as if im going ' oi your hair is a bloody disgrase by the way' .

Its the bad hair I notice and the long ones I sit back and admire!

[Eniratak]

so your telling me you dont notice when somebody has ruined their hair? I am sorry but I find this quite unbelievable. We all have choices in what we do with our hair, if others want to damage their hair im really not that bothered, but dont judge me for looking when the back of their head is in my face, its not as if im going ' oi your hair is a bloody disgrase by the way' .

Its the bad hair I notice and the long ones I sit back and admire!

Not to be rude, but I think you need to go back and read what else I posted.

[Ven]

I do the mental makeover thing myself. I sure wish I could do it to myself though! I cannot analyze myself or people close to me in that manner.

As for splits, I have my own to worry about so I don't look at the condition of other peoples hair too critically unless it is really really bad.

~Ven

[Hairtada]

My hair is not ruined but you would think it was if you saw it in person. My hair can split at 1" long. Brand new hairs splitting. It is my hairs crazy texture that makes it do that...I've been doing S&Ds since the 1960's...my sisters and I used to drive our parents crazy all of us sitting on the sofa with our hair in front of our eyes cutting off splits!!LOL!! You cannot judge a persons hair care by the number of splits they have. At least in my case no one would notice them they would be too busy thinking I did not take care of my hair due to the fuzzinesss of it. My hair is a fuzz ball due to the humidity of the PNW and the unique texture I was born with. I got teased mercilessly in school for it and even after.I do not care. I prefer it long, it looks even worse short.
I am used to my hair and know its faults nothing anyone could think about it would be anything new but any assumptions about my hair care would be all wrong.

Spidermom your hair is so beautiful...especially for living in Washingtons moist climate!! I wish mine would do what yours does. So pretty. :)