Tell me about your S&D routine.

[Carissamarie08]

How often do you do it? How much success are you getting with S&D in regards to noticing more growth? I have been doing this a lot lately, and I have not trimmed my hair since January, 2011. Seems like its working great for me but I want to know how it is for you.

[auburntressed]

I do it anywhere from 2-5 times a month, depending on how many splits I'm finding. I do it during the weeks that the moon waxes, and so far it is working out all right. Some months I find hardly any splits and others the splits are endless, which is incredibly frustrating. I typically do it in the same spot, under the same conditions. Also, I have not varied my routine from month to month in a while. So I don't know why I get such a difference in how it goes each time.

[Madora]

I try and S and D every other day..about 10 minutes..and concentrate on the last 4 inches. Sometimes I find a split but most of the time no splits are found.

I still think it's a good thing to keep up...the more damage you catch, the better for your hair.

[Mononoke]

I do S&D about once a week/biweekly, and most of the time I find very few splits, however some of them are REALLY bad (high up the shaft, split in several spots :lol: ).

[Charybdis]

I S&D whenever I happen to spot a split in the hair around my face while I'm at home. This usually happens when I'm sitting in an area with strong indirect natural light. However, I pretty much only get splits in the hairs around my face anyway -- they get more mechanical damage and are often lighter and finer than the hair further back on my head. Now that my highlights are mostly grown out and my hair is long enough to put away the heat styling tools, I'm not seeing many splits at all anymore. Maybe 2 or 3 a week. Definitely the dye and the heat were the primary culprits for me.

[Ligeia_13]

I don't really have a schedule :/ I forget about S&Ding most of the time, so it ends up happening maybe once every three weeks?

[MissAlida]

I S&D every month. It takes me 3-4 hours to do it, so I really hate doing it. I take small sections, twist them counter clockwise and looking in a mirror, cut everything that sticks out. Then I twist it clockwise and repeat. It is very time consuming, but it leaves my hair easier to detangle and makes it healthier.:)

[white.chocolate]

I S&D at least once a month. I'd do it more often if I had the time and, let me be honest, the patience. I don't really like the job! But I have to say that it's very convenient when avoiding a trim. It's been a year since I had a trim, and my ends are in pretty good shape right now. I'm hoping they'll stay that way. Do I observe more growth? No. I don't see how.

[camillacamilla]

I tend to do it when I get bored...in front of the computer lol. With my dark hair, it's easy to see splits if I hold my hair in front of my face...especially if whatever is on my computer screen at the time has a light colored background lol

[florenonite]

Wow, everyone here does it much more than I do. I only do it once every few months; pretty much when I notice a split.

[Indigostreams]

I S&D every month. It takes me 3-4 hours to do it, so I really hate doing it. I take small sections, twist them counter clockwise and looking in a mirror, cut everything that sticks out. Then I twist it clockwise and repeat. It is very time consuming, but it leaves my hair easier to detangle and makes it healthier.:)
Just because when you twist those sections of hair and there are hairs that stick out, does that necessarily mean that those hairs are damaged? Can't you just leave them be, and they will continue to grow until they no longer stick out? I mean if those hairs aren't split ends, but are just shorter length hairs...:confused:

[Madora]

Just because when you twist those sections of hair and there are hairs that stick out, does that necessarily mean that those hairs are damaged? Can't you just leave them be, and they will continue to grow until they no longer stick out? I mean if those hairs aren't split ends, but are just shorter length hairs...:confused:

No, it does not mean the hairs that stick out of the twisted section are damaged.

The damaged hairs usually show split ends..there are several different types of splits...or white dots. You just snip them off with sharp shears.

The hairs that are not split can be left to grow longer.

[shutterpillar]

I just do it when I get a minute or notice a split end. No set routine or anything for me. :)

[Indigostreams]

Thank you for making that clear for me!

[spidermom]

1) Twin braids.
2) Look at braids periodically, snip any splits that are sticking out.

I don't know how much good this does, as it seems there are always moreMoreMOreMOReMORE! There's no end to it!

I also do regular small trims.

[KittyBird]

I S&D a few times a week. I do it the same way as MissAlida, taking small sections, twisting them and snipping off the split ends that stick out.

[Lize]

I do it every now and then when I have good light and some time off to do it. I find it relaxing and I am happy to spend an hour doing it. I don't have a set schedule or anything, but usually do it if my hair starts to feel unusually tangly. I search my hair without any specific method and just snip off the splits or white dots that I find. I find that it helps a lot to keep the hair split free and tangle free.

[naturally yours]

I s&d every 3-4 months, but any time I see a split or fairy knot I cut it. I takes very small pieces of hair and run my hand down the hair shaft. I let my fingers be my eyes and if I feel a strand thats kinda jagged I snip it off.

[spookyghost]

Can someone start S&D at any hair stage? I just started taking really good care of my hair about 3 months ago. I dont think my head is filled with splits but I bet I have alot more than most of you. I just dont know how good I'll be at doing it. I guess I'm afraid I will mill alot of splits if I dont go to the hairdresser. What do you all think?

[lapushka]

Back when I had damaged hair (lots of white dots, few splits), S&D meant something, a way to get rid of damage. Now my hair is virgin, past waist and there's no S&D involved - at all.

[Scarlett brooke]

I try to s and d but it's really boring then get carried away and cut of too much! Im trying not to use heat and I have about 3 inch of the most disgusting mousy coloured roots! I am going to colour it blonde I did want it virgin healthy hair but the colour is yuck. I did use heated rollers and straighteners at the weekend too. Not doin very well really!

[nobeltonya]

I haven't done it in a while.. it's probably about time again.. it does help keep me from obsessively trimming my ends and losing new growth. I usually keep a pair of scissors in my bag, and when I'm sitting and notice a split, I clip it. Then, once I notice one, I'm on the search for another one. :p

[Amazinggrace]

1) Twin braids.
2) Look at braids periodically, snip any splits that are sticking out.

I don't know how much good this does, as it seems there are always moreMoreMOreMOReMORE! There's no end to it!

I also do regular small trims.

I haven't had luck with S&D, this seems like a method I could use. Thank you. :)

[Amber_Maiden]

I try to s&d every time I brush my hair, but have been finding less lately so now skip s&ding for a week or two before checking again.

[Iolanthe13]

I hate S&Ding (still growing out serious dye damage, so it's kind of discouraging) but feel compelled to do it whenever my hair gets significantly tangly - in other words, about twice a week.

I'm hoping catnip will reduce the number of splits. I did my first rinse tonight, so fingers crossed...

[spookyghost]

Back when I had damaged hair (lots of white dots, few splits), S&D meant something, a way to get rid of damage. Now my hair is virgin, past waist and there's no S&D involved - at all.

Wow. You should be proud!:) I'm impressed-I think you are my hair goal:p

[SacantRoese]

As far as growth goes, I'm not sure if it's helped any, but it doesn't really matter because my hair grows pretty fast. But I'm sure it's good for my ends. I hardly have any splits in the last 4 inches of my hair now.

Also, I have really bad OCD, so instead of trimming here and there when I have "time" I spend about half an hour every day looking for split ends. I carry a small pair of hair scissors where ever I go, because if I have to wait at the doctors' office or in line at the store I'll just start looking for splits. Which probably sounds like it's un-courteous. But it's not like I'm leaving big chunks of hair wherever I go. Most people do look at me weird, though. There are old women that come in the dollar store and look at me like, "There's that guy with the scissors..."

[nerdymomma]

Ooh...now I have a new thing to do in the evenings. DH simply has to watch a program before bed, and I like to join him and sometimes I crochet. Now I will S&D! I'm growing out highlights and damage from being to rough. So I'm sure this will be fun...

[DreadfulWoman]

I just do it whenever the mood strikes me, and when it is sunny out or else I can't see to do it. Sometimes I go really nuts with it when my splits are numerous enough to annoy me, and then I run out of splits to cut and forget about s&d for a while. And then the splits start to sneak up on me again and I get back to s&ding again, like I am now. :p My hair doesn't care how nice I treat it, it still splits like crazy. I guess it's a good thing I enjoy the odd s&d session.

[Tisiloves]

A couple of mins, once or twice a week, I've got a lot of perm and mechanical damage in my last couple of inches so it's fairly essential.

[skaempfer]

I have scissors all over the house and an infinite supply of splits. I'm not sure why this is, because it's been 20 years since I used a dryer or wased my hair more than twice a week or so, and I used the best condish I could afford. I do it whenever I think about it and there's light. I sit near the window with the wastebasket between my feet and snip until I need to go do something else or can't stand it any more. I just feel for a frizzy patch and hold it up in the light.

Just try to vary where you start. I was doing it sort of absentmindedly for years and realized at some point that my left side was shorter than my right.

Anyway, this is my second year in the 'no trims' thread, so next year I'll move over to microtrim for a bit.

[luxepiggy]

I rarely get splits, but I S&D every other week for bent or otherwise deformed ends.

[brave]

I rarely get splits, but I S&D every other week for bent or otherwise deformed ends.

This is where I get somewhat confused. I look through my hair and I see some ends that taper to nothing, some ends that are bent, and some ends that sort of look like a taper but when I look up close I can see that it's the core of the hair poking out or something.

So far I haven't found any traditional looking y-branching splits. What do I cut?

[luxepiggy]

This is where I get somewhat confused. I look through my hair and I see some ends that taper to nothing, some ends that are bent, and some ends that sort of look like a taper but when I look up close I can see that it's the core of the hair poking out or something.

So far I haven't found any traditional looking y-branching splits. What do I cut?

It really depends on what the norm is for your hair, and your reasons for S&Ding. If you're concerned about minimizing ongoing damage, I would cut off the bent ends at least, as those can often cause tangles.

For me it's mostly a cosmetic thing. Since I'm a 1a, I cut off everything that's not perfectly straight, to minimize the occurrence of sticky-outy bits (^(oo)^)v

[lapushka]

Wow. You should be proud!:) I'm impressed-I think you are my hair goal:p

Thanks so much. :blushing: :)

[Carissamarie08]

I wish I wouldn't get splits so much! You all are lucky if you don't get them often!

[palaeoqueen]

I've only recently started doing this but so far I take a small section of hair and examine it very carefully under a bright light. I've found a surprising number of splits and weird bent/frazzled ends so far. I struggle to reach the back as it's still so short and layered so I get my husband to look for me. He gets bored very quickly but usually finds one or two so I figure that's still a couple less splits each time!

[jacqueline101]

I only did it once when my hair started shedding tiny break off hairs. It worked alright. I'm not really prone to a lot of breakage. I trim a half inch twice a year and I'm good until the following year.

[PixxieStix]

I S&D... once in a while. I might do it a few days in a row for 20-30 minutes, I might not do it for a couple months at a time. I'll be doing some S&D tonight with the full moon (no full trim since I'm on the no trims in 2012 challenge) and am not expecting to have a lot of split ends, but I might. Mostly babying my hair has kept the ends in good condition, even my hair stylist said that if I keep up with how well I'm taking care of my hair she doesn't see any need for me to have a trim until the end of the year, and at that point it won't be to get rid of damage or anything but rather to start fixing the layers, I still have ones made for when my hair was an angled bob. Should I happen to see a bad split though, I hold it and go grab the scissors.