When I was little, maybe 5 years old, my mum took me to the hair dressers and told them to give me what can only be described as a boy haircut. I’ve been scarred ever since. So I’ve been trying to grow my hair long for years now, I usually wuss out and end up getting a big chunk chopped off (never to the extent of the boy haircut that was surreptitiously thrust upon me!). This time I’m determined to have shiny mermaid length hair!!
Over the past 6 or so months I think I’ve added about 5-6inches of hair, and that’s with a few trims in between. For me that’s a good growth rate, I reckon it was about 3inches every 6 months before! I’ve definitely noticed it growing fast since I’ve started following a few hair growing tips, so I thought I’d share them here :) (pssst. I’ve highlighted the main points)
Use a good shampoo/conditioner to keep your hair in tip-top condition. I started using Tigi’s urban antidotes, they’re specifically formulated to help your hair gain strength without coating it with gunk. They’re quite reasonably priced, too, but if you can afford better (kerastase, for example) then definitely go for them! I buy the tigi bottles in large pump-bottle sizes from ebay, that way Adam can use them too and we don’t have (too) much clutter in the bathroom. I really think that a good shampoo makes so much difference!
How you wash your hair is also important. Don’t wash your hair in hot water, the colder the better (it’s all to do with how your hair cuticle sits after using hot water, cold water makes it ‘seal’ better)! I really wish I could follow this tip all the time, but I’m so guilty of rinsing in hot water most of the time :/
Use shampoo on the roots only and give yourself a root massage as you apply it to stimulate hair follicles, washing it out through the rest of your hair will clean that part without drying the ends. Apply conditioner to the lower parts of your hair only, avoiding the roots. These two things stop your hair getting greasy as fast, which means you don’t have to wash it as often. Once a month you can also do an oil treatment on your tips to control any dryness.
Try and use less hair products so that you don’t need to wash your hair as often. If you do use products keep them away from the roots of your hair. Extending the time between washes is great for your hair, it helps keep it from drying out, stops it breaking during it’s most fragile state when wet, and gives your scalp chance to rebalance. I’ve been trying to wash my hair every 3/4 days rather than my previous every other day, it gets tricky when you’re going to the gym and stuff, but up-dos and dry shampoo are your friend!
Using a wide-tooth comb when your hair is wet or damp is essential, your hair is ridiculously brittle when it’s wet! Using a wide-tooth comb to tease out knots rather than a brush will help any breakages. Alongside this, try not to brush your hair so much at all, it’s one of the worst things you can do to your hair… just look at the hair left behind on your brush, eek! I’ve been thinking of upgrading to a boar bristle brush but for now I’m pretty happy with my denman brush.
Don’t rub your hair with a towel, again this can break your weakened hair. Gently squeeze the water out with the towel rather than flipping your hair over and knotting it up while you’re rubbing it. I’ve been using a really good microfibre hair towel that I picked up at TK Maxx, I wrap it around my head and my hair is pretty dry after 10 minutes!
Lay off the heat styling. I know, it’s hard, I’m guilty of it too. If you can, though, stop blow drying your hair and let it dry naturally. It goes without saying that you hair will benefit SO much without the heat damage. If you need to use your hair irons then do so very sparingly, and make sure you’re using a decent pair (ceramic coated with no drag) and some heat protective spray.
Get regular trims to conquer split ends and stop them extending up the rest of the hair, this in turn helps control frizziness and also keeps your hair strong. If you have damaged hair then you need to chop it off, it’s worth it in the end!
Don’t get peroxide treatments, perms, or harsh dye jobs. If you’re going to dye your hair use a friendly, moisturising brand that’ll avoid much damage to the hair.
Be careful when using braided hair styles, these can pull your hair and break it! The same goes for hair bands, try and get hold of some ‘no snags’ style hair bands if you plan on putting your hair up.
It’s all pretty much common sense, treat your hair well and it’ll grow better! Keep a good diet, too, plenty fruit and vegetables go towards making your hair nice and shiny. Apparently we do all have a ‘terminal hair length’ though, which is when your hair follicle decides it’s knackered so lets go of the strand. Following the steps above should at least get you to that length!
