Your Guide to Living with Long Hair

Many people love long hair – and for a reason. Fans of it will tell you that it looks better, more luxurious, and classy. However, it can be a little high-maintenance.

Do you have long hair, or you're trying to grow it? Hair requires special treatment and care to grow to a healthy length. Once it's long, it may need even more of your attention to remain healthy and shiny at all times.

However, there's much to the process that people don't know or seem to overlook. There's so much to the process of dealing with long hair than just using a good conditioner.

Before you decide to grow long hair, you should know what to expect in terms of house maintenance. In this article, we'll focus on more than just how to grow your hair. We'll share some tips on how to maintain it healthy and pretty, but also how to deal with the long hairs in certain situations.

House Maintenance Tips:

We can all agree that long hair looks pretty, but it may feel overwhelming at times. Not only it gets in the way when you're cleaning and doing makeup, but it's nearly impossible to have a shower without wetting it.

As you're growing your hair, you'll notice it everywhere around your house. Bathtub drain, your bed, carpets, and pretty much every other area of your house will have hair. Here's how to prevent this:

1. Get a silk pillowcase

Have you ever tried to count the hairs on your pillow when you wake up? It may be impossible, depending on how much you toss and turn.

Sleeping puts a lot of stress on your hair, even if you tie it. For this reason, you should get a silk pillowcase to make the process a bit less damaging.

Other cases are rough on your hair, even if you can't feel that with your hands. Silk is smooth and gentle and will allow your hair to slide across the case without tangling and breaking.

Invest in a good silk pillowcase, and you'll notice fewer hairs on it each morning you wake up. Plus, silk is better for your face as well.

2. Vacuum your carpets regularly

Long hair is nearly impossible to clean once it builds up, especially if you have thick, high-pile carpets. This is precisely why you should clean your carpets regularly.

Having a precise cleaning routine that you'll commit to is a key to keeping all the hair out of your carpeting. However, you need the best vacuum for long hair to help you do the job.

The truth is that not every vacuum can pick up the long hairs without them tangling. For this, you need a cleaner that's specifically designed to remove this kind of a mess.

These vacuums typically come with all the right features and accessories to make the overall maintenance easier.

While having a suitable vacuum for long hair is critical, it's equally as important to use it frequently. In other words, you should vacuum at least once or two times a week, depending on the type of carpets you have.

3. Get a drain protector

How often do you have to pull the long strands out of the tub drain? Hair can clog pretty much any drain, and pulling it out is a nightmare. For this reason, you should consider getting a drain protector.

You may come across different products that are made to protect your drain. The most popular one (and the cheapest one) is a simple piece of plastic net that covers the drain. It lets water through, keeping all the hairs.

This way, you can simply pick it up whenever you see that the net is full. It's a great way of preventing all that hair from ending up in the drain, possibly clogging it. Plus, you'll realize the amount of it that used to go through before you got the protector.

4. Keep your clothes hair-free

There are many ways to remove hair from your clothes. One of the most popular is to get a lint brush. However, it works better on mid-size than long hair. Using a damp sponge or cloth to remove the hair is also a good idea.

Another thing you can do is put the clothing items in a dryer on a low-heat cycle. Check back in ten minutes to see if the hairs have fallen off your clothes. If not, run the cycle for another ten minutes. Once this is done, it should fall off your clothes and end up in the lint trap/filter.

If this doesn't sound too bad, and you still want that long ponytail, you should check the tips below. These things can help you grow healthy and strong hair in less time.

Hair Maintenance Tips

1. Hydrate your hair

The key to having nice hair is hydration. Everyone can agree that a frizzy hairdo isn't as attractive regardless of how long it is. For this reason, you should help it to replenish the lost moisture by using masks.

You can either buy hydration masks or make some yourself. Many recommend coconut oil as the best hydration product, but you should be careful with it. Too much oil might make your hair oily over an extended period. Olive and avocado oils are equally as good.

Warm the oil a little before applying it to your hair. Wrap it all in a towel and let it sit for a while before washing it off. However, this is only effective if you warm the oil. Cold oils are tricky to work with and nearly impossible for hair to absorb.

2. Use the right brush

How do you brush your hair? Are you ripping through the tangles, or you take the time to break them apart gently? The wrong type of brush can be fatal for your hairdo.

A wet brush is probably your best choice as it can help smooth the hair shaft. This helps to eliminate the breakage, especially if you're brushing the hair while it's wet.

A boar bristle brush is ideal for people who have frizzy hair. It helps to minimize friction and knots, making it silky and smooth.

What you want is a brush that doesn't put as much stress on your hair. However, the sole process of brushing is also important. There's a way to properly do it so that you're not breaking the strands.

For starters, you should only brush it when it's dry. If you have to do it as soon as you're out of the shower, make sure to have a wet brush. Even then, be careful and do it slowly.

3. Use the right accessories

We can all agree that girls love their hair buns. Wrapping your hair around feels great, and most of us can go a whole day with our hair lifted like that. Even just a simple ponytail feels great at times, especially when you're busy and have to focus on something.

If you often feel like hair is in your way, you probably tie it at least once a day. And while this may feel great to you, your hair may struggle. In other words, using rubber bands and accessories can damage the hairs beyond repair.

However, this doesn't mean you have to wear your hair down at all times. What you want is to use accessories that are gentle and won't cause any breakage.

Scrunchy hair ties are making a comeback, and it's the best news for your hair. These ties are gentle and soft, which makes them perfect to use all day long.

4. Avoid heat

The number one thing that's in the way of your hair growing long and healthy is your flat iron. Using heat tools is perfect for styling, even the most stubborn hairs. However, too much heat will weaken your hair, causing it to break easily.

Now, we know that avoiding heat altogether is nearly impossible. But, you should at least try to the best of your abilities. Heat tools like a curling wand, flat iron, and even blow dryer can burn your hair if used too frequently.

Make sure to use heat protectants whenever you need a little help from your heat tools. This will minimize the potential damage.

5. Don't wash it too often

Hair is only pretty when it's clean and healthy, regardless of how long it is. However, frequent washing is bad, even if your hair tends to be greasy.

Its natural oils are protecting and hydrating. If you shampoo often, you remove the oils, which causes your body to make more of them. As a result, your hair becomes greasier and greasier as time goes by.

Ideally, you should try to shampoo only two or three times a week. Use a dry shampoo between washes when you want to revive the hair a bit and add texture to it. When you do wash, try leaving it to air dry instead of using a blow dryer.