Why Long Hair?

One of the challenges I have to deal with is hard water. I live in the San Diego area, and our water is very hard.

Hard water has a lot of stuff in it, and it’s certainly not gentle to your hair. Chlorine may be in your water, and you probably know from swimming how hard that can be on your hair.

One option is to add a filter to your shower head, so that some of the chemicals are removed before they get to your hair. This can add up pricewise, of course. You have to buy the initial equipment and regularly replace the filters. (There is more where this came from … )

One of the problems with long hair is how hard it is for your hair’s natural oils to get all the way down to the ends. You can help your hair feel great with a good conditioner, but oil can be really helpful.

My personal preference is to use jojoba oil. I buy it at my local natural foods store. I like to scent it with a bit of lavender oil too, since I love that scent.

It takes very, very little oil to do the job. My hair copes pretty well with being long, so I find I do best by only oiling the last few inches. If I do much more, my hair shortly looks oily, and that’s not the look I’m after. (There is more where this came from … )

There are a few things you need when you’re styling your hair. Obviously you need a good hairbrush, but some other tools can make things easier too.

A rat tailed comb is very useful if you like hairstyles that involve separating small sections of hair. This can be useful when making some kinds of braids, for example.

Elastics are very important for holding your hair style in place. I strongly recommend you not use actual rubber bands or any elastic with metal. These tend to tear and otherwise damage your hair and just aren’t much fun to take out of your hair. Instead, make sure to get elastics that do not pull your hair. You’ll find them quite easily.

Alternatively, use a scrunchie. Some people consider these to be very much out of fashion, but I use ones that don’t have all that much fabric, a kind of thin scrunchie. These are very gentle on your hair.

Hairpins are also quite useful for keeping your hair under control. You can get some that come close to blending in with your hair or use them for decoration.

Curling your hair isn’t the kindest thing you can do to it, but there are times when you just really want that look. Heat is just not good for your hair, so while it looks great you are doing damage to your hair. Also don’t blow dry your hair unless it’s an absolute must. Get good quality when you choose a curling iron or hair dryer.

Claws can look nice, but they often have rough edges that are really not gentle to your hair. Feel the edges when choosing claws to find ones that are not too rough.

Metal barrettes can also be hard on your hair. They can tear your hair when you take them out.

Hair sticks, if properly made, can be quite kind to your hair. Watch for rough edges, and also see if the decorations are likely to catch and tear your hair.

Split ends are a major problem when you grow out your hair. The longer your hair gets, the older the ends are, so the more likely it is to split.

Split ends are a result of damage to the cuticle of the hair. Damage can be a result of chemicals used in the hair, such as hair dyes, hair spray, gels and other chemicals. Rough brushing can also cause damage, as can cheap hairbrushes.

Never brush your hair when it is wet. That makes it easier to damage, resulting in more split ends.

Fortunately, there are steps you can take to limit the damage you do to your hair. (There is more where this came from … )

When you want to grow your hair out long you need to treat it right. That doesn’t just mean washing it with the right shampoo and using the right hairbrush. It also means treating yourself right.

If your body doesn’t get everything it needs to be healthy, your hair cannot grow long, strong and healthy. Leafy green vegetables, for example, provide you with some great vitamins for your hair. Keeping yourself hydrated helps with blood flow. Each of these helps to keep your scalp healthy, so your hair can be healthy.

No doubt you don’t enjoy being stressed, and it’s bad for your hair too. Stress can actually increase the rate of hair loss. (There is more where this came from … )

Long hair needs to be very well cared for. How you wash your hair and what you use on it matters quite a bit.

There’s no one right answer for which shampoo you ought to use, however. I’ve always had the best results from switching my shampoos regularly. This keeps the buildup to a minimum.

Overall, I use Pantene the most. It just really seems to work well with my hair. I’ve never liked the 2 in 1 varieties with any brand - they just don’t seem to condition all that well, and you really need a good conditioner when you have long hair.

I’ve also heard great things about Mane ‘n Tail. I’ll have to give it a try one of these days soon. (There is more where this came from … )

When you read about caring for long hair, you’ll generally hear that a boar bristle hairbrush is the best choice. This is certainly true. Boar bristle hairbrushes are far more gentle to your hair. However, they can also be much harder to use because they are so very gentle.

Boar bristle brushes have a great reputation for polishing and caring for hair. They do a great job of distributing the natural oils in your hair. When I use a boar bristle brush I can really feel the difference. However, if I have a lot of knots for some reason, boar bristle just isn’t that great at getting out the difficult knots.

At the moment I’m trying out a combination boar bristle and ball tip brush. I tried the plain boar bristle and simply found it too frustrating. I just switched to the new brush and I love it! It gives much of the feel of the plain boar bristle brush while fighting knots like my old brush. I found mine at Target, but there’s no sign of it on their website.

I’m not giving up on plain boar bristle. I know the one I bought was a cheap one. A more expensive one simply is not in the budget at the moment. A high quality one can cost more than $40, and I’m not quite at the point where I feel free to spend that kind of money on my hair.