considering cutting - advice from people who have done this, please?

[Freija]

Well... my hair is in good condition, all soft and shiny (bar a couple of inches' worth of ends which are a little dry from old peroxide), and after growing it for the last two years, is now APL. But it has several bands of colour down the length from henna experiments/peroxide/'that one awful henndigo mistake' and I've been considering cropping it short and growing it back out with henna over natural colour and nothing else. I'm just asking for thoughts from people who have done this, really; was the resulting colour and health worth it? Or should I just carry on growing and trimming?

[Speckla]

I have 2" of highlights left on the sides on my head and the last 4" of my hair is red from a dye job. I considered cutting it off and start growing from there but decided it's easier to just keep trimming and let it get longer. I've worked hard and put a lot of effort into growing my hair long and healthy and cutting it off would be too traumatic for me.

Wait a while longer before you cut. Really think about it. I found out that the color difference isn't really noticeable when I add gel or mouse to my hair. It only shows up really when I air dry and add no leave-in. I'm just in this for the long haul (pun intended). It'll make my long hair that much more worth it to have patience.

I have grown my hair out in the past and had leftover color that I decided to get all cut off and start fresh....well, I never grew it out because the growing out is so difficult that I kept it short to avoid the awkward stages.

I say just hang in there and let it grow and trim as you go along.
________
VAPIR NO2

[Shandra]

It all really depends on what your shorter term goal is... Length or Health. (of course the LONG term goal is both... )

Knowing myself and my goals, personally, I'd do the grow and trim, or the maintain until it catches up... I know if I cut it too short, I'd never get past the awkward stages again.

[lora410]

I would do the grow and trim. It takes too long to grow hair now as it is.

[Katze]

I've been growing and trimming since coming here. Now I only have a couple of colored (dyed/bleached/highlighted) inches left and they look OK except when I put my hair up.

The other major issue I am dealing with is heavy layers and severe tapering, so cutting all the thin or colored bits off would not solve much. I prefer to have slow growth and thicken up my hair as well as improve its condition rather than lose length or keep bad old ends.

What DIDN'T work for me was corrective dye to try to get all one color - it washed out within a couple of months, leaving the demarcation line higher than it would have otherwise been.

good luck! and check out the two toned heads social group too.

[Dreams_in_Pink]

I decided to get rid of henna on my head (cause that part was damaged due to lemon juice :/ ) and now i have a very short graduated bob.

Although i sometimes feel sad about all the hair that was lost, when i run my fingers through my hair now, i feel very happy cause it's all one natural color and hair is extremely shiny and healthy

You can use the "two weeks rule". If you still hate those coloured parts, get rid of them. If it's not that bad, keep them. Hair takes a very long time to grow, you know

[jera]

I've also been growing and trimming since joining LHC. Now, eleven months later, I'm beginning to achieve some positive results. I'd say hang in there if you can. It's hard at times, but you're not alone.

[maskedrose]

I was always the type of person to whack of damaged hair without a second thought before joining LHC - every time I went into the hairdressers I would tell her to cut anywhere from 2-4 inches off. Now, I can't bear to do more than 1" trims every 6-8 months, especially now that I'm so close to my goal! I do plan on maintaining at waist for a very long time to get rid of damage. If you've gotten the long hair bug and can't bear to let the length go, maybe pick a mini-goal (such as BSL) that is past the awkward stages and maintain there for awhile. If you're still fine with letting length go, then by all means, get rid of the damage and two-toned colors while you still can