BGD's 4 Year LHC Anniversary!

[blackgothicdoll]

Right?! I joined LHC back in 2018 according to my profile. Who would've thunk it. Now in 4 years having started from SL, I should be butt length by now... or something. But my journey involved growing out hair dye and very, very heat damaged hair, then getting my hair to a shape in which I could actually enjoy my natural hair. I used to straighten (blowdry AND flat iron) every two weeks, then dye (lift AND deposit) every over month to maintain jet black hair.

2018
Here is what my hair looked like straightened:



And here is what heat damage on textured hair looks like:



(large photo): https://forums.longhaircommunity.com...0&d=1584593103

2019

I'd committed to reduce heat to only once every three months or less, as well as grow out dye. Here's what the grow out looked like on stretched hair and then on wet hair - look at those stringy ends!










2020

I got very, very close to my long term goal of BSL, and then....



I whacked the heat damage! The end hair style, I was not a fan of, and I spent the rest of 2020 growing and cutting to get rid of the drastic layers.






To be continued.....

[blackgothicdoll]

2021

I learned to enjoy my hair. I can't remember the exact range, but at some point I went around 500 days with no heat. I was still not super comfortable with my braid outs, but slowly entered society with natural hairstyles and realized that they might even suit me better!







Growing back....




2022

At some point ( don't remember when ) I gave up on growing as I was constantly cutting knots out of my ends and just not making any progress. During that time, I straightened my hair a few times, using absolute caution and as a result, not getting any heat damage. I had fun with my hair down, being the longest and healthiest it had ever been (I figure most people don't like heat styled hair so I'll spare ya'll the pics.)

Two weeks ago I snipped a few inches off of my longest back layers, and now I finally have a hair shape that I think I can live with. I know the knots and splits are just what my hair does, but I'm back to seeing if I can at least get it to BSL, then to Waist, and I'd be over the moon if I can get to my original goal of hip - but perfectly fine if I can't!

Today, I'm 127 days since my last heat styling. I'm not as against heat styling as I was before, but I still only plan to do it once or twice a year on special occasions, and possibly not even then if I can master my styling technique. So here I am today!




Sorry for the long post! To make this thread interesting, here's some conversation topics:

What percentage of shrinkage do you think I have?

What would you call my natural hair color?

Is a hotdog a sandwich?

[illicitlizard]

Oh wow congratulations on 4 years, that's one hell of a journey! Your hair looks so unbelievably healthy now, and wonderfully springy! I like the idea of heat styling in moderation, I do mine like twice a year and I find the damage minimal, means I don't have to swear off all heat forever
Based on that last pic it looks like your length is about double what it looks curled - but it's so hard to tell!

[rosenester]

So much progress!! Your natural texture is so beautiful, congrats on keeping away from heat styling for so long, it’s paying off!

[tuanyiji]

That's such an amazing process. I'm so glad to see natural textured hair representation here. Wish you enjoy even more long luxurious locks in the future.

[Lesley8]

Congratulations! What fantastic progress, your hair looks beautiful.

[Ada-banana]

Beautiful hair!!!

It was a true journey, with ups and downs, inspiring!

[ExpectoPatronum]

Your hair texture is gorgeous. You have such pretty curls.

You're not alone with the shrinkage, it can be frustrating to grow when your hair only really shows length gains when pulled straight.

You're making some great length gains even with the couple trims you did - sometimes those ends really just need to go.

[lapis_lazuli]

Happy 4th Anniversary! You've come a long way in that time! Your hemline shape looks great and your curls shiny and vibrant

What percentage of shrinkage do you think I have? Really guessing here, but maybe 50%? You seem to about double your length when stretched!

What would you call my natural hair color? Somewhere between a cool dark brown, as it looks in the first picture, and black. Whatever it is, the colour variation is very pretty!

Is a hotdog a sandwich? NO! Only if it's between two pieces of bread!

[Ylva]

Happy hairiversary, BGD! It's always nice to see you around here. I'm a big fan of your hair, it's one of my personal favourites here!