How to Trim Your Own Natural Hair: Stop Shedding & Hair Loss (NO HEAT)
Is your natural hair shedding and breaking often?
Are your twist outs suffering from frizzy ends?
It may be time for a trim curlfriend.
I know, the daunting thought of trimming or cutting the hair you worked ever so hard to grow may be the last thing that you want to hear. But, it's totally necessary. Word on the street is, It's easy to grow long natural hair but hard to maintain the growth.
What good is a growth spurt if the growth is breaking off?
Simple and necessary trims are the key to holding on to as much growth as possible on your head and not in your drains or pillow case!
Dusting is a beginner friendly technique of trimming your own natural hair at home with little to no professional experience.
This technique is performed on a stretched hairstyle such as two strand twists, or braids where the hair has already been detangled and sectioned.
You'll just need a few simple tools to master a pretty decent trim, getting rid of old, damaged ends.
You'll need a pair of hair shears as well as butterfly clips/scrunchies to separate the hair for an easy trim.
Start by sectioning the hair into various large sections so that you're able to identify which pieces have already been trimmed and which pieces are next in line to be trimmed.
Grabbing one twist, run your fingers from root to tip to find the weak point of your hair in which your hair becomes very limp and thin. Often times, you may be able to see straight through the ends of your hair. This is the damaged area that needs to be trim.
Cutting/Trimming Point: Trim right above the damage to completely get rid of the damaged split ends or single strand knots. If you cut too low or exactly on the damage (sparing length), you'll risk having the split or damaged ends work their way up your hair shaft further damaging the rest of your healthy hair.
DO
Trim as often as you see fit. All hair grows at different rates, different directions and textures. There is no set time frame to trim your ends. You may find times in your hair journey in which you experience growth spurts or even slow months. If your ends become extremely tangled, thin or damaged, it's time for a trim.
Trim on twists/braids that are no more than 2 days old for the most accurate indication of damaged frizzy ends vs an old naturally frizzy twist out/braid out.
DON'T
Use regular scissors to trim or cut your hair. EVER. Hair shears are your go-to tool for a precise trim. Unlike traditional all purpose scissors, hair shears will accurately remove unwanted hair with little to know damage to your fragile ends. All purpose scissors (aka the scissors you use all over your house) are often dull from being used on multiple surfaces and textures, thus creating weak or dull incisions in the hair.
Never cut on wet hair. Think of cutting on wet fabric/paper, the incisions are usually weak, limp and far from accurate. The same rule applies to hair. Want precise cuts? Trim on dry (preferably stretched) hair.
If you do not see a difference in your curls post trim, it may be time to identify some faulty techniques or incompatible products that you may be currently using.
How often to do you trim?
Are you a DIY curlfriend or Salon Ready natural?
