Everything You Need to Know to Donate Your Hair

Photograph: AlexRaths/iStock

Never underestimate the ability of a haircut—not just is it the fastest way to make you feel similar a brand new person, it tin too help change lives. That's right, nosotros're talking hair donation. By at present, you lot likely understand what this entails: a portion of your hair is cut off and used to make wigs for women battling cancer and going through treatment that causes hair loss. It's an astonishing cause, but it'southward important to brand sure that you're donating your hair to a reputable organization.

Pantene is 1 hair care brand that'due south formed an unabridged program effectually it, teaming up with the American Cancer Society virtually a decade ago to brand and distribute wigs to cancer patients experiencing hair loss. Merely to get a better understanding of what'southward required to donate to this specific program, we chatted with the brand'southward stylist Danilo who walked us through everything you need to know.

Acquire the minimum length required for donation.
This is one of the nigh important things to know, as hair does need to be a certain length to donate. When participating in the Pantene Beautiful Lengths program, Danilo tells usa that they crave 8 inches of hair—that's the accented minimum. "Two of the inches are used up when the pilus is mitt tied on the wefting to create the wig," he tells us. "That ends up being a 6 inch wig. Nosotros'd honey to take more, simply 8 is minimum."

But if you don't have eight inches of pilus to donate, you lot can as well give $viii—the brand'southward new #8for8 initiative encourages people to either brand the cut or give $eight to the program.

I ponytail is your easiest option.
If you're doing the cutting by yourself and your not a skilled professional person, the recommended procedure is to put your hair in a single ponytail, measure information technology out, and make the cut. In fact, Danilo says that most of this program's donations have been from people cutting their own hair just like this!

But if y'all're going the DIY route, you should have a general thought of the haircut you want to end up with—Danilo explains that this will help you summate the maximum corporeality of hair to donate and avoid throwing away inches on the floor. All that hair that's existence swept up could potentially be a part of your initial donation. And so if you lot have incredibly long long locks and you're aiming for a pixie cut, make it a point to save as much of your hair equally possible for the cause.

But donate quality pilus.
That means pilus that hasn't been chemically processed to hell and dorsum. While Danilo says that hair that'southward been lightened past, say, the sunday or the sea, would potentially exist OK, virgin pilus is preferred. Co-ordinate to the program, this is because many ponytails are used to create 1 wig, and they all take to be dyed the wait the same. That ways they all take to "blot" the dye at the same rate and in the same way to brand the hair piece as realistic as possible. Then what about gray pilus? Every bit long as no more than than five percent of your locks are grayed, yous're good.

Information technology needs to exist make clean and dry.
Before you make the cutting, Danilo says pilus should be make clean (a shampoo and condition before should do information technology) and fully dry. Pilus that'due south sent wet could mold in the packaging, and it's important for the organization to have a understanding of the quality of the hair received. He too says to consider wearing it naturally when you cut information technology then that they can get an idea of the texture of the pilus.

Go to your stylist if you lot're not sure how to brand the cut.
While it'due south a relatively unproblematic process, if you're a scrap scared about the end issue of the big chop, visit your hairdresser. You're ultimately responsible for sending it through to the organization, but they can take the technical stuff off your shoulders. "Go in and say, I want to donate my pilus," Danilo says. "Everybody in salons gets very excited by it. Information technology doesn't cost anybody annihilation, and information technology'south such a dandy gift to someone in need." They may make the cutting in pigtails or several ponytails (this as well changes the cease cutting you walk out of the salon with), but Danilo says as long equally each ponytail is 8 inches in length, y'all're set.

Recognize the peachy value of donating.
Call back that your gesture can make a large, positive, impact to someone who's contesting cancer and going through treatment. "Information technology's interesting that hair has no life force in information technology, simply the gift of hair can save a life," says Danilo.

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Everything You Need to Know to Donate Your Hair

Source: https://stylecaster.com/beauty/how-to-donate-hair/

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