We work hard to keep our curls looking great – oiling, feeding and hydrating our thirsty hair. If we’re not careful the daily regimen can take over our lives, so although we may look awesome – who are we kidding, we always look awesome, we have no time to share the awesomeness around.
Sometimes, however, no matter how much effort we put in, our hair looks tangled and frizzy, brittle, and broken, and when this happens, there’s only one thing that will help – curlfriends, you need to get yourself a trim!
How does hair grow?
Hair grows in three stages – Anagen, Catagen and Telogen.
The Anagen stage is the growth phase.
Your scalp is covered by tiny pockets called follicles, and it’s from these that our hair grows.
At the bottom of the follicle, the hair starts growing when protein cells come together to form the hair root. Feed by blood vessels, as more cells develop, the hair increases its growth. Slowly, the hair emerges through the skin level, and as it does so, it passes a gland that releases oil along the hair shaft, moisturizing it.
Hair grows from this root for between 5 – 7 years, achieving a length of up to 30 inches, then the follicles go into a stage of dormancy.
During the second stage – Catagen, the hair loses its blood supply and rests. This lasts for a few weeks before the third stage begins. This final phase is where a new hair starts growing in the follicle, beneath the resting hair, which after around 3 months falls out, allowing the new hair to grow through.
This continuous process of growth and fall out occurs all over our heads, with each hair at a different stage in the cycle.
How often should you trim your hair?
As you can see from this process, the ends of each hair can be as old as 7 years, so no wonder they can look a little tired sometimes. By trimming them off every six to eight weeks, your hair will look neater, and be more likely to grow without suffering from breakage along the shaft.
Here are some awesome hair trimming hacks for you:
