A "Terminal Braid": Determining Terminal Length Without Growing There

[MeganE]

I've had a burning curiosity to know how long my hair can grow, and I would love to reach terminal. But my hair is pretty thick and it's already heavy right now and I'm not even close to my goal length. So I'm pretty sure I won't actually be growing my hair out to terminal, I think I'll probably stop around classic at the longest (assuming my hair grows that long), but I still really would like to know what my terminal length is.

So I was watching Star Wars a few days ago, and it occurred to me that you could probably establish TL with a small amount of hair, like one of those Jedi style braids. I thought about starting a small braid that doesn't get regular trims with the rest of my hair, just S&D. And then... just let it grow. It probably wouldn't go into buns, but it could be either left to dangle, or wrapped around my head like a headband. I think it would be best to select it from hair that is towards the base of the head, and also probably towards the front. There's a section almost directly below my ear, that seems the easiest to get out of the way.

And also, I wondered if you have to grow all of your hair out to beat the current record. I mean, someone could potentially grow a small braid out longer than Xie Qiuping's hair was when they measured it last. (This is hypothetical, I don't even want to think about how many years it would take to grow your hair out to 18 feet, even just a small braid!!) But I would think a small braid would count, if only because her hair at the very ends looked pretty thin. They probably gave her the record for the measurement of the single longest strand, or small group of strands.

So... what do you think? Super crazy idea? Great idea? Would work, wouldn't work? And what would you call it? I've been thinking of it as a terminal braid, but that doesn't seem to really explain the idea.

[Honestwitness]

Some parts of my hair grow faster than other parts and some parts grow very slowly. Using your concept, all I would be able to discover is what is terminal length for that one spot on my scalp. I would not know what would be terminal length for the rest of my scalp. But, it's an interesting idea. I'm kind of doing that anyway, only the part I'm growing to terminal length is a very large area of my scalp. I keep my bangs/fringe and face-framing layers short, so I don't look so severe. Also, I trim my nape hairs very short, so they don't look like a wooly mammoth peeking out from under my collar. Everything else is growing freely.

[MeganE]

I thought about that, looking at Xie Qiuping's hair... since so little of the total volume of her hair made it to the longest length as the rest of it, it probably wouldn't be able to tell you anything about the rest of your hair. Hmmm...

Your hair is totally gorgeous by the way, the color is amazing. My mom's hair is that color, though she dyes it, and I really hope I get the same. I'll keep it long and lovely like yours. :D

[tiny_teesha]

i was going to leave a rat tail when i did the chop, but i decided against it, might that's a pretty good idea! :) Or...a terminal dred!

[haibane]

I thought about that, looking at Xie Qiuping's hair... since so little of the total volume of her hair made it to the longest length as the rest of it, it probably wouldn't be able to tell you anything about the rest of your hair. Hmmm...
Yeah, growing the very long lengths seems to be a numbers game, aside from the genetics. There are way more people on here with iii hair than those with i hair that have hair to knee or beyond, there's just more hair that have the opportunity to survive the wear and tear to get that long.
If you did grow a terminal braid, you'd probably have to baby it like crazy to make sure as much of it as possible "makes it".

[Pierre]

If you keep it braided all the time, even when you wash, eventually it'll be longer than terminal because shed hairs will stay stuck in it. So you'll have to undo it, comb the sheds out of it, and redo it. I last washed my hair the morning of Gagarin Day, put it up without rebraiding, and rebraided that evening while watching the movie.

[MeganE]

i was going to leave a rat tail when i did the chop, but i decided against it, might that's a pretty good idea! :) Or...a terminal dred!

:laugh: A terminal dred!! Gosh that would be funny. I've never seen hair that had only one or two dreds in it... I wonder if it would be really hard to keep them separate. :D


Yeah, growing the very long lengths seems to be a numbers game, aside from the genetics. There are way more people on here with iii hair than those with i hair that have hair to knee or beyond, there's just more hair that have the opportunity to survive the wear and tear to get that long.
If you did grow a terminal braid, you'd probably have to baby it like crazy to make sure as much of it as possible "makes it".

I think you're right about that. I did think that a small braid might be even easier to baby than the rest of the hair. I mean, S&D would be a lot easier, you could oil it more frequently, etc. It might be easier to take really good care of it, than it is for the whole hair. But then again, being braided all the time might not be very good for it. Not sure. :shrug:


If you keep it braided all the time, even when you wash, eventually it'll be longer than terminal because shed hairs will stay stuck in it. So you'll have to undo it, comb the sheds out of it, and redo it. I last washed my hair the morning of Gagarin Day, put it up without rebraiding, and rebraided that evening while watching the movie.

Yep, I would plan to take it out regularly, for S&D and changing the braid style, too. Can you explain a little more about what you said you did with your hair? I didn't really understand what you meant. :D Do you wear your hair in braids a lot?

[DoubleCrowned]

I love the idea of the braid you describe. I have thought of doing something like that myself, although hadn't considered what a nifty way that would be to discover terminal without going there. Think how handy it would be to be able to make a headband or a finishing touch for a bun with your own hair. How cool would it be to take the braid up over your head, then braid the braid in somewhere to hold everything in place? The only down side I can think of is what to do with the braid if you didn't want it to show-- say, when you want to wear APL hair down and the braid is to your waist. A necklace? Well, by the time the braid is that long you will have invented lots of nifty styles, I'm sure.

I hope you do it and post pictures!

[long&blonde]

Love this idea!

[MeganE]

I love the idea of the braid you describe. I have thought of doing something like that myself, although hadn't considered what a nifty way that would be to discover terminal without going there. Think how handy it would be to be able to make a headband or a finishing touch for a bun with your own hair. How cool would it be to take the braid up over your head, then braid the braid in somewhere to hold everything in place? The only down side I can think of is what to do with the braid if you didn't want it to show-- say, when you want to wear APL hair down and the braid is to your waist. A necklace? Well, by the time the braid is that long you will have invented lots of nifty styles, I'm sure.

I hope you do it and post pictures!

I liked the idea of having a longer braid for a headband, too. :) I hadn't thought about how to wear it all down. You could always roll it along the thin edge, to make a little braid flower. I saw that in a video once and it was really pretty. I thought about a necklace too! I think you could definitely do that. It would be different. :D I'm not sure when I'm going to start it, I think there's not much point doing it now while I'm growing since I'm trimming so little, the braid probably wouldn't be able to grow out much more than the rest of my hair. I won't be at my goal length for over a year, but it's nice to have plans for future hair experiments... :D And if I do decide to do a major trim, you can bet I'll leave a braid out. I thought today about doing two braids for symmetry... Not sure how annoying they would get when it comes to brushing/combing though... Oh well, it's a fun idea anyway!

[fluffybunny]

It's an interesting idea. If you do it I hope to see a picture.

For me terminal isn't about the length, it's about seeing the whole pattern of what my hair will become when it's all un-cut. I expect to find short parts and long parts. Just growing one piece wouldn't be the same at all.

I kind of envy your problem of 'too much hair'. Mine is almost waist and not the slightest bit heavy feeling.

[MeganE]

It's an interesting idea. If you do it I hope to see a picture.

I'm sort of dreading even starting it, just because of how annoying it would be to have one braid that you'd have to be extra aware of. I think I'm going to wait and see if I reach a point where I feel bored with my hair, and then maybe mess around with this. If/when I do, I'll definitely post pictures in this thread.


For me terminal isn't about the length, it's about seeing the whole pattern of what my hair will become when it's all un-cut. I expect to find short parts and long parts. Just growing one piece wouldn't be the same at all.

That's interesting, I hadn't thought about the idea of the hair as a whole at terminal length. It is intriguing to consider what your hair might be like if you'd never had to cut it. Maybe knowing where my terminal length is would encourage me to try to grow there... :shrug: I'm sure I'd love it, it's just the practicality getting in my way.


I kind of envy your problem of 'too much hair'. Mine is almost waist and not the slightest bit heavy feeling.

Mine's about the same length, so I'm sure I don't have that much more hair than you do. I think the heavy feeling probably depends on how sensitive your scalp is. I've always had a very sensitive scalp, and now I have a hard time with buns and updos, and it's not because I have that much hair. If there's too much pressure on any one group of strands, I have to redo the bun, and that makes updos a lot harder than simply making them secure and nice looking. The band of my sleep cap drives me crazy at night, and I can't wear headbands at all, most of them are too tight and I get headaches. I envy you your lack of the heavy feeling!!

[truepeacenik]

:laugh: A terminal dred!! Gosh that would be funny. I've never seen hair that had only one or two dreds in it... I wonder if it would be really hard to keep them separate. :D
The answer is yes. Dreads are hungry and attractive to hair you wish to keep parallel.
I had a cluster of seven for a couple years (plus two hair wraps). They tried to fatten themselves at every opportunity.

I also have a friend, in his late 50s or more by now, who has but one dread, which is perhaps 15-20 years old now.
He's shaved the rest of his head, and wrapped the dread in cloth.
He coils it like a bullwhip at his back when he works (sound and security). It is indeed a bullwhip, as he has some beads in the ends still.
It drags the ground behind him by four or five feet. Truly astonishing.

[MeganE]

The answer is yes. Dreads are hungry and attractive to hair you wish to keep parallel.
I had a cluster of seven for a couple years (plus two hair wraps). They tried to fatten themselves at every opportunity.

I also have a friend, in his late 50s or more by now, who has but one dread, which is perhaps 15-20 years old now.
He's shaved the rest of his head, and wrapped the dread in cloth.
He coils it like a bullwhip at his back when he works (sound and security). It is indeed a bullwhip, as he has some beads in the ends still.
It drags the ground behind him by four or five feet. Truly astonishing.

WOW!! I'd like to see a picture of that! :D How thick is it??

[Aleria]

I'd always wanted to do this (being a fan of Star Wars, with the padawan braids helped). I'm leaving my hair long over the summer but thinking of trimming when I get back, I might leave one or two pieces out. The Padawan braid was always around the ear area, if I do it that's where mine will be ^^
eta: by long I mean "long enough to ponytail"

[MeganE]

I found this article about estimating terminal length, for anybody else who wants to know their terminal length without necessarily being able to grow there. I'll be happy when my layers are gone so I can do a proper estimate. :)

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=75

Still planning to try this little braid idea, just waiting to get to a length I want to maintain before I start leaving it out of trims. Assuming that ever happens!

[owlathena]

The closest I've come to doing something like this was when I had a hair wrap in for 4 months and during that time I cut a couple inches off the rest of my hair. When I took out the wrap I had an extra long piece for a while before I cut it. I really like this idea. I might try it! But I wouldnt start the braid until the next time I get a trim/cut, which wont be for at least a few months. I really like the idea of having a extra long piece for a headband/accent.

[UltraBella]

I kind of envy your problem of 'too much hair'. Mine is almost waist and not the slightest bit heavy feeling.

Don't worry, mine isn't heavy feeling either ! I often feel like I have too much hair, but it's just with the time it takes to wash, condition, dry, etc.........and how it gets in the way and feels hot in the summer. I have never had a headache from my hair like many people do and it's never felt "heavy" to me at all.
Your hair is beautiful !!!!