Hair Donation

[cara1]

Anyone done this? I want to get my hair cut, and thought it would be worth donating to something like Locks of Love. But I don't want it short short, I'd like it still shoulder-length. Locks of Love requires a minimum of 10 inches. I'm not sure I'd have enough (I haven't measured). Are there other places to donate that don't require as much?

[shilo]

hi, i did it in grad school. i did go from very long (i used to trim it straight across it when i had trouble tucking my shirt into my pants without tucking in my hair as well) to about an inch above the shoulders (i think it's what hairdressers term 'medium' length) all in one go. it was a shock for the first day or two, only because i'd had long long hair all thru my childhood/teen/early adult years. i've worn it just above or at the shoulders ever since and haven't looked back (love it!). i haven't heard of any other organizations that take shorter lengths, although, you might try contacting a local childrens cancer or allopecia support chapter?

lori
Sam 5/19/05 How lucky I am that you chose me.

[Jenn98]

I did it once or twice. It was easy. Just ask your hair dresser if you have enough. I think my hair dresser said I only needed about 9 inches.

[annex]

I'm not sure about other places, but I do know Locks of Love has gotten some criticism for the way the run their organization. See the FAQ at the bottom of this page on the Long Hair site:
http://www.tlhs.org/faq.html

On the one hand the "long hair" folks seem to have some bias, but on the other hand, it still makes me wonder about donating.

Anne

[bcky2]

i did it once and i have not gone back to long hair at all. i had to have 10 inches they said. i went super short when they did it. i have been thinking about growing it out again, it has been short for about 6 years now.

[rlu]

I did it about 1.5 yr ago and donated to Locks of Love. I cut about 13 inches. I did cut more than I would have normally, to make the donation, but otherwise a good 8 inches would have been wasted.

Do not know of any other places.

ETA: as with below posters, first a ponytail of 10 inches, then about 3 inches to make a decent hairstyle.

[s7714]

I just saw this listed in an article in Redbook magazine last night:
http://www.pantene.com/en_US/beautifullengths/index.jsp
It's a program sponsored by Pantene. Looks like their min. is 8 inches.

Jennifer
Mommy to
Miss Pure Energy 3/03
Miss Antsy-Pants 6/05

Calling fellow BBB SoCal moms...we'd love to meet you!
(100 posts & BBB member for 3 months req'd)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/babybargainssocal/

[mommyoftwo]

Kristine (kboyle) just donated hair a couple weeks ago. I'm sure you could email her and ask for the details. Her hair isn't too short now and it looks really cute.

[kimbe]

Kudos to you for wanting to donate! You have a wonderful heart and you will make someone very happy with your donation. It is totally worth it! I have donated to Locks of Love two times and I am working on the third time now.....so I don't know of any other places. Just wanted to cheer you on!

[cara1]

That criticism of Locks of Love sounds bizarre, like Locks of Love has it in for long-haired women. Is that for real?

I looked at the Pantene site. It's not clearly a charity, though; looks like they sell the wigs. Anyone know?

[kboyle]

gee thanks jess :)

i know that most places (haven't heard of the Pantene one, or know of any salons that do it) require 10in...and they'll measure...and they do it dry.

plus you have to keep in mind that once it's cut, you'll lose some length after you decide what style you want. for the donation they put it into a low ponytail at 10in, unless you donate more, and cut...THEN they cut your hair to the style that you want.

this is the 2nd time i've donated and i've gone to two different places and they pretty much did the exact same thing, so i know there is a specific procedure or guidelines. plus you can't have highlighted hair (i think, or maybe you can't have single-process'd hair, they allow dyed hair now, i just don't know how "dyed" it can be)

i'd call around though, because some places that i've called still use the 12in requirement, and though most places do complimentary cuts if you donate, i know that my regular salon does not, they charge (which totally pi$$es me off, since you are donating towards cancer and all)

oh, and my hair was to my bra line & now it brushes my shoulders, i think i got exactly 10" off, and then an xtra 1-2" for the style.

the first time i did it (labor day weekend 04) i got about 12" donated and then another 2" cut for the style, but my hair was MUCH longer pre-cut than now & then shorter post-cut than now.

call around, salons will help you out & give you some info.

[s7714]

From what I read regarding the Pantene one, I'm under the impression that the hair will be made into wigs by the wig company partnering with Pantene, and then the wigs will be given to women who lost their hair from cancer. I'm sure you could call them to find out what the details are though. The number for the program is: 1-800-945-7768.

Jennifer
Mommy to
Miss Pure Energy 3/03
Miss Antsy-Pants 6/05

Calling fellow BBB SoCal moms...we'd love to meet you!
(100 posts & BBB member for 3 months req'd)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/babybargainssocal/

[kimbe]

My cuts have gone the same way. The first time was a single low ponytail --- they cut off 12'' and then another 2-3'' for the style. The second time my hair was much thicker and the stylist had to put it into pigtails and cut each one off. I DO NOT RECOMMENED DOING THAT! I donated 11'' that time and my hair was so screwed up after she cut TWO ponytails off --- that it ended up being very short. Got in the car and DH said "Hmm, I didn't realize you were going that short!" LOL!

I also had to pay for my haircuts.

[kboyle]

i paid for my first cut at my reg salon and my 2nd was complimentary from anupscale salon in the cleveland area.

[ykc]

I've donated to Locks of Love twice. There are other organizations out there, as mentioned above, but LOL tends to be the best known. I think they have such long minimum lengths because, once they get the hair and put it in a wig, they need to be able to cut and style it into something attractive. So I doubt there are very many places that will take shorter lengths.

I actually cut 2 pigtails the first time because I could donate more length in front, without sacrificing more hair in the back, since cutting off a ponytail in the back leaves all the front hair really long. Does that make sense? My 1st experience wasn't that great mostly because the stylist had never done it before, and she was completely new to me (my hairstylist moved right before I cut off 11" of hair!!!), and I didn't like the way she cut my hair. The 2nd time, my regular salon gave me a free cut, even though they're not listed on the LOL website as a participating salon, and they mailed in the hair for me.

Both times, I got my hair bobbed to about my chin, so I didn't go super short. Just got my hair cut off again (at least once per pregnancy!), and everyone asked if I donated again, but this time I didn't have the patience to wait until my hair got long enough.

Alopecia is a really traumatic problem for kids, so I think donating to LOL is a really worthwhile endeavour, if you have the patience to grow 10 extra inches of hair!

[kochh2]

thanks for this thread.. I am just waiting till my goal date or August 1st (or around there) to donate mine... It is really long, but i sent a goal that i'd keep my hair long for one if my best friend's weddings, which i am in... it helps to have a goal, and i am really excited about finally having the willpower to not chop it off before having enough length! I love going for a dramatic cut, as my hair grows relatively fast... I'm just afraid of what my 2 year old will do seeing mama with shorter hair all of a sudden!!!

oh well, shock or no shock, he'll get over it!!