If you have or had long hair...

[Lirazel]

What do you think of cutting it very short?  I know it's a personal thing, but I just want some opinions and thoughts.  I have always had long hair - right now it's a little over halfway down my back. I like the pretty things that can be done with it, but my hair is so thick that it takes a lot of work.  Most days it's just in a braid or bun.  Sometimes it feels like too much effort just to brush it.  And when I do have the time and energy to do something interesting with it most of my ideas don't even work.  It's so thick that I feel I need even more length to get it to go where I want it to and create the shapes I want. 

I don't really want layers because I don't want ends sticking out in funny places when I braid it.  I like super simple hair care.  I sometimes think of cutting it very short - like a pixie cut.  Has anyone here made that change?  Most of the times I think about it realize I really do want my long hair, but lately I've been feeling frustrated with it.

[bec28]

I just cut off probably about 14 or 15 inches, so it's to my shoulders now, and I love it :) Before, I was always keeping it in a bun, and it would get so tangled and snarly, I didn't want to comb it. Now, it takes so little time to wash it, comb it, dry it...it's nice :) I don't think that I could ever cut it as short as your talking about though, but that's just personal preference. I say go for it! If you don't like it you can always grow it out again :)

[coyotemist]

I randomly cut my hair and grow it.  It's just hair!!!  If you don't like it, wait a bit and it'll grow.

[IsaFrench]

I did that a few years ago, hair reaching my rear end & the hairdresser simply refused to cut it that drastically

so I went home (was about 3 minutes away from the hairdresser), tied it up at the very top of my head, braided it, cut off the braid (which I kept)

then went back to the haidressers, took the elastic band off in the middle of the hairdressers and told them "now I've made a mess of cutting it, you tidy up for me !"

but I knew what I wanted since I had had a very short haircut years back as a teenager

I was definite about what I wanted and knew that I was ready at that time to have it that short

grew it a few times since

anyway, it's only temporary it will grow back !

[stardogs]

I'm like coyotemist - my hair is long, then short, then long, then short.... LOL

The most extreme cut I got was taking 11 inches off (donated it btw) and going from middle of my back to chin length.  I love the short cut - so bouncy, easy to deal with, etc. so now I'll only let it grow just a few inches before cutting it short again. :) 

I do recommend finding a good stylist so they can give you some shape based on your specific hair and face structure.  When I got my hair cut short the first time I basically went in and said "I kind of like these hairstyles (showed pics), can you do something like that that would be flattering for my face/hair and easy to maintain?"  I got a great style, but it could've gone badly if I had just gone to one of the walk in places - heck they couldn't even manage a trim the way I wanted the last time I went in...

[Ann-Marita]

I've been considering cutting my hair really short, similar to Jamie Lee Curtis. 

I talked with my neighbor, who used to have her hair long and in a pony most of the time, but then cut it severely (very short).  She said that her hair was MUCH easier to keep neat when it was long!  Now she has to mess with it more.  Hm...

Also,if I were to cut my hair very short, to grow it back to where it is now would take Seven Years!  So, the "oh, it will grow back" is true, but the time it would take is daunting.  Seven years of being careful not to damage it, yikes!

I think I'll keep my long hair - it's easy care and versatile.

[lyterae]

My hair was nearly down to my hips and I cut 10+ inches off... I didn't think I'd miss it as much as I have, I am STILL sad about cutting my hair and it's been over 6 months. I don't presently plan on making any significant cuts, I generally wear my hair up using a ficcare or in crown braids. 

[journeywooz]

i shaved my head at one point....and loved it.  see what you like.  hair grows back.  mine's long again, even though it took me a good 4 years :)

[plantnerd]

I've gone from butt length to pixie and back several times.  Long hair seems like a nice idea, but it's impossible to style.  I've been loving a chin length bob, it's long enough to pin out of my face, but short enough for lots of cute styles, hair clips, etc.  You won't beleive how many less headaches you get without a giant wad of hair hanging off of your head.  Go for it girl!

[QueenOfTheMeadow]

I just went from long hair to short hair last week! I donated 12 inches to locks of love, so that made the cut easier. Now it's an angled pixie, longer in the front than the back. I like it. It takes about 5 minutes to blow dry and go. But I do miss my longer hair sometimes. But I figure, hair is one of those things that grows back, so why not play with it a bit!

[odinsmama]

I went from super long (I was sitting on it occasionally, ouch) to super short.  

In my experience, the super short was more work because with my hair type it needed styling (and styling products or a few drops of oil) or it was looking fluffy and feathery which I don't like.

My favorite of all was a chin length bob that is shorter in the back and longer in the front, but at the longest is chin length.  that was super easy, not fuzzy, no products and only an occasionally brushing.  

Definitely get someone good to do it tho, no Supercuts!  :)

[Lucy Alden]

I too tend to go long then short and then long again.  My best piece of advice is to donate it to Locks of Love or Wigs for Kids or something like that.  It's hard to have regret when you know someone who doesn't have their own hair is getting yours.  In my area there are a couple of good salons that will do a free haircut if you donate to one of those organizations.  I find longer hair easier because I can pull it back in a bun or pony but a stylized short cut (think inverted bob with long layers) makes me look much more put together and way less frumpy.

[Lirazel]

For those of you who go back and forth between long and short - how much time does it take for you to grow it long again?  I agree that "it's just hair - it'll grow back" but it seems like such a daunting wait for it to grow out again!  It seems like it must take years and years!

I'm pretty sure I'm going to keep it long for now.  I know my husband loves it long, so that's a big point for that side.  And I think my hairline along my face probably isn't ideal for the kind of super short cut I'm thinking about.  The long hair hides the flaws.

Oh, and if I cut it I would definitely donate it.  I've done it before when I went from very long to kinda long.

[earthmama369]

I chopped my hair and I loved it. My hair was down below my hips and had been for years when I turned 30. To celebrate the occasion, I shaved my head. It was very liberating. I've kept it at some version of a pixie cut for the last three years and have really enjoyed it. I liked playing with hairstyles when my hair was long, but I never realized how many different styles and cuts I could play with on short hair. I'm growing it back out now for a change, but I wouldn't hesitate at all to cut it short again now that I know what it looks like on me and what I can do with it.

[Alyantavid]

I grow mine out and then chop it off every few years.  I've had it from an inch long down to my elbows.  My hair grows very fast though.  I do make sure before I cut it that it's long enough to donate and that always helps me not miss my long hair so much.

I'm trying to decide right now if I should cut it or leave it long.

[cmoma]

I tend go from long (1/2 way down my back) to short (a bob) every few years..Usually I grow it while pregnant then cut it after the babe is born.  My hair is long now, the longest its been in a quite a few years, I have no desire to cut...maybe a few inches at the most in a little while.  I wear it up ALWAYS! and I have come to peace with that :)  I tend to cut it short so I can wear it down...but then it bugs me. I end up putting a million clips in it and having to style it every day because it's not wash and go when its short, it's a pain. No fuss hair for me is being able to pull it up back and out of my face.  I can't even do bangs...they bug me too :) I have weird hair issues I know :)

[Kyamo]

Originally Posted by Lirazel 

For those of you who go back and forth between long and short - how much time does it take for you to grow it long again?  I agree that "it's just hair - it'll grow back" but it seems like such a daunting wait for it to grow out again!  It seems like it must take years and years!

I'm pretty sure I'm going to keep it long for now.  I know my husband loves it long, so that's a big point for that side.  And I think my hairline along my face probably isn't ideal for the kind of super short cut I'm thinking about.  The long hair hides the flaws.

Oh, and if I cut it I would definitely donate it.  I've done it before when I went from very long to kinda long.

For me, about 5 years took me from shaved bald to past waist length, and there were some trims in between.  I think my hair grows slower than average though.  

I liked all the cool different buns, braids, etc that I could do when it was long, but the problem was that I pretty much couldn't wear it down at all, it just got too tangled too easily.  Right now it is between shoulder and armpit, it's nice because I can put it up if I need to, but I can wear it down regularly without much trouble with tangles.  I don't like short cuts where my hair falls into my face, so I pretty much only like my hair to be pixie short or else shoulder length or longer.   

[savannah smiles]

My hair grows super fast so I don't hesitate to chop it off when it gets too long.  Last time it was super long was in highschool (down to my waist) and I just couldn't take it anymore!!  Since then, it's mostly been in various bobs. I love a layered bob, where it's long in the front and short in the back. I'd do a pixie but I have a round, fat face and it just wouldn't look good.

Speaking of cuts, I'm getting a cut and color next week as a Christmas gift to myself!  I'm going to a real salon and getting a nice cut - woohoo!

[Lucy Alden]

Originally Posted by Lirazel 

For those of you who go back and forth between long and short - how much time does it take for you to grow it long again?  I agree that "it's just hair - it'll grow back" but it seems like such a daunting wait for it to grow out again!  It seems like it must take years and years!

It seems to take a year or two.  Of course, long to me is mid back and short is just above my shoulders. YMMV

[stardogs]

I've found that my hair seems to grow about 1/2" per month, so to go from chin length to mid back (11 inches) takes about 2 years.