Hairstyle World Article for Women

100 tips of Catherine

June 14th, 2006

by Catherine
Here are 100 long hair tips! Some of them you have no doubt seen before on this web site or elsewhere and others are my own personal advice.

I hope you find them helpful and that they will make you enjoy your long hair (or that of your favorite lady) all the more.

I know you will all agree with my first tip:
1 Visit The Long Hair Site every week for inspiration and ideas.

The next group of tips is about washing and drying:
2 Try detangling dry hair before washing rather than after it’s wet.
3 Wash your hair in the shower. Leave it hanging down. Work the lather down the length (like milking a cow.) Never pile it up on your head while washing.
4 Concentrate conditioner on the ends.
5 Do a final rinse in cold water - refreshing in summer, worth the discomfort in winter.
6 Air dry whenever possible.
7 Get a special absorbent hair drying towel.
8 If you have to blow dry, do it for just a little while, air dry it some, and then blow dry a little more. Repeat till hair is dry.
9 If you have to blow dry, keep the diffuser on so your hair won’t get sucked into the dryer.
10 If you have to blow dry, wrap it in a towel for awhile before you begin.
11 Never, ever, brush your hair when it is wet.
12 de-tangle ends first. Then work your way up. Never try to rip through tangles from top to bottom.
13 Sit near a large electric fan (far enough away so your hair won’t get caught in it!) to speed up drying.
14 Buy trial sizes of new shampoos and conditioners - you may discover a new favorite.
15 Try rotating your shampoos/conditioners - your hair may respond well to a change in brands.
16 You may need different products for summer and winter. For example, my hair gets more dry and has more static in winter, so 2-in-1 shampoo conditioners only work well for me in summer.
17 Every scalp and its head of hair is different - so someone else’s best shampoo and conditioners may not be yours.

Here are some styling hints:
18 Braid wet hair to set waves.
19 A top knot is another good “style that sets” - you will have lots of volume when you take it down.
20 Buy a long haired Barbie doll to practice hair braiding, etc.
21 For an easy and different braid, divide hair in 3 sections as usual, make a braid out of each section and braid the 3 braided sections.
22 If your hair is straight and you want just a little curl, set it curlier than you want and comb it out before bed - it will relax during the night.
23 Learn to french braid - practice makes perfect.
24 Learn to Topsy Tail.
25 Look for non-alcohol hair sprays - less drying.
26 Use a leave-in conditioner before any heat styling (which you should avoid if possible.)
27 Use only wide-toothed combs or picks.

You’ve heard of tear-free shampoos? Here is advice on tear-free trimming.
28 Trim your own hair if you don’t have a hairdresser you can trust.
29 If you trim your own hair, put a leave-in conditioner or gel on ends before trimming to keep them in place.
30 Trim the ends of individual hairs that are split - and just a tiny bit at the bottom.
31 Frequent tiny trims are less traumatic than infrequent large trims.
32 If you can’t trim your own hair, maybe your boyfriend or husband can do it for you.
33 If you can’t trim your own hair, try asking another long haired lady to do it for you.
34 Never let someone who dislikes your hair trim it.
35 Don’t get more than a trim unless you are absolutely, totally sure you want it. If you have any doubt at all, then that proves you really want to keep your hair long.

There are a lot of good tools for styling out there.
36 Don’t wear “automatic” barrettes with sharp metal edges. You can paint the sharp parts with clear nail polish to make them dull. (Paint several coats - let each one dry before painting the next.)
37 Braid scarves or ribbons into your hair for interesting looks.
38 Chignon foundations are useful - you can make your own by rolling up nylon stockings into a donut shape.
39 Clean combs, picks and plastic brushes often with some dish shop and a soft toothbrush.
40 French twist combs work great - try them.
41 Get some chignon pins and hair sticks for top knots.
42 Perm for a Day curlers are great if you want a permed look - the package says it all - “Your Hair’s Too Pretty to Ruin”.
43 Use coated or snag free elastics only
44 Use sponge rollers; they are the gentlest.
45 Visit Claire’s Accessories shops or similar stores - they have loads of great hair accessories.

Frank has written on the web site that he tried to find books on long hair and couldn’t find any, but I own 12 different books, all listed below. (Note: several of the books have “Beautiful Braids” in their titles, but the books are different.) I have also listed videos in this section.
45 All New Beautiful Braids by Mary Beth Janssen-Fleischman
46 Beautiful Braids by Patricia Coen and Joe Maxwell
47 Beautiful Braids by by Mary Beth Janssen-Fleischman
48 Beautiful Braids by James Takos with Karin Strom
49 Braids and More by Andrea Jeffery
50 Braids and Styles for Long Hair Andrea Jeffery and Vickie Terner
51 More Beautiful Braids by Patricia Coen and James Wagenvoord
52 Twists and Braids Made Easy by Mary Beth Janssen-Fleischman
53 Great Braids by Thomas Hardy
54 Hair - a Book of Braiding and Styles by Anne Akers Johnson (comes with 3 scrunchies!)
55 Salonovations’ Braids & Updos Made Easy by Jamie Rines Jones
56 The Topsytail Book by Tomima Edmark
57 If you can’t find these books at your bookstore, try www.amazon.com on the Internet.
58 Video: Buy Jim Butchee video # 2 if your hair is (or will be) at least waist length
59 Video: Buy Jim Butchee video #1 if your hair is from shoulder to waist.
60 Video: Buy Jim Butchee video #3 if you like the videos above.
61 Video: Buy Jim Butchee video #4 when it comes out - I’m sure it will be good.

Sometimes very long hair needs to be protected from safety hazards. Let’s be careful out there!
62 Be careful when sitting in a folding chairs so that you don’t get your hair caught in them.
63 Be very careful around machinery and fire.
64 Pin up or braid your hair if you are around a baby who likes to pull hair!
65 Tuck your hair down the back of your clothes if you temporarily need to keep it out of the way.
66 Watch out for tangles if you are wearing a dress that buttons up the back - lift your hair away from the buttons frequently (or wear it up).
67 Wear your hair inside your coat if it is windy.

Here is some common sense advice for the health of your hair, and in some cases, the rest of you, too!
68 Don’t color - your hair will be healthier.
69 Don’t crash diet - it can cause hair loss.
70 Don’t perm - your hair will be healthier.
71 Don’t smoke - your hair will smell better.
72 Don’t smoke - your hair won’t get dull and discolored by the tobacco smoke.
73 Don’t smoke - you will reduce your risk of cancer (Chemo is not good for your hair!)
74 Don’t hang around smokers - see previous three tips.

Long hair is beautiful! Enjoy your own! Enjoy seeing it on other women!
75 Compliment other long-haired women on their hair. Take pride in it together.
76 Feel good about how much money you save by wearing long hair. Recommend it to your friends.
77 If someone compliments you on your hair, savor the compliment.
78 Remind yourself how few women like their own hair. We do like ours!
79 Watch “Dr. Quinn” reruns and savor the scenes where Sully brushes Michaela’s hair!
80 Write to fashion magazines and urge them to feature more long hair articles (where the hair is not “made over” to short hair!)

I am 41 years old and want to encourage”older” women like me to keep their hair long:
81 There is no age limit for wearing your hair long - and if you need convincing, consider the ladies listed below:
82 Crystal Gayle - born 1951
83 Jane Seymour - born 1951
84 Peggy Fleming - born 1948. Her hair isn’t extra long, but this lady isn’t afraid to let it flow as she approaches age 50!
85 Jane Fonda - born 1937 - her length fluctuates, but lately has been beautifully long. And she is 60 years of age!
86 Did you know that silent movie actress Louise Brooks, who was sort of the high priestess of the bob, had long flowing silver hair towards the end of her life? Even she eventually knew the truth about long hair!

Unfortunately, some people will dislike your hair and tell you so, directly or indirectly. Here are some tips about that:
87 If someone criticizes your hair, try to just ignore it.
88 If someone says “Your hair is so long” but you’re not sure if they are complimenting you or not, just tell them “Thank You.”

Answers to the stupid question, “Do you think you’ll ever cut your hair?”
89 A nice, simple, truthful answer: “Probably never.”
90 Say: “I don’t think I’d be wearing it this long if I wanted to cut it.”
91 Say nothing. Just look very confused that they’d ask this.
92 Say: “Why do you think I would want to do that?”

Answers to another stupid question, “How can you stand having such long hair?”
93 “It’s no trouble at all, actually.”
94 “It’s worth the trouble.”

Answers to someone who suggests, “You’d look so pretty if you cut your hair.”
96 “Actually, I think YOU would look prettier with LONG hair, but I have my taste and you have yours.”
97 Just stare at them as if they’ve lost their mind.
98 Say, “That’s funny, most people tell me how pretty I look BECAUSE my hair is long.”

Answer to a dumb remark someone else is apt to say to you if some other lady cuts her long hair, namely, “You’ll be next!”
99 “Don’t count on it.”

And my last tip, so we can keep enjoying the Long Hair Site for a long time to come:
100 Keep sending Frank your photos, interviews, tips, and feedback!

Entry Filed under: Articles