how long does it take to reach WL?

[FoxxyLocs]

It took 3 yrs to get to MBL from 0". Then I took a detour and had locs for a while. I would guess I would have been WL by 4 yrs if not sooner if I had left my hair loose.

Sent from my HTC Evo

 

[Ms Lala]

It took me 5 yrs to go from 0 to waist length. I had to cut out an entire head of color damage (I did it a little at a time) to go from shoulder to waist would probably have taken me 3 yrs I would guess. My hair does not grow super fast though.

 

[danniegirl]

i did my measurements

i actually have a wee bit over 9 inches of hair measuring from the nap of my neck only

so i would just say 9'


i think my waist is around 20 inches from my nap im not exactly sure where the waist is at from the back but my tail bone is 26 inches from my nap i have 26 inches of neck and back lmao thats a lot of back

so i am going to say my waist is 21 inches

here is my personal example

9'/ 21 (the months i have been natural)

9'/21 = .43 i have retained .43' of hair retained a month

.43* 12(months in a year) = 5.16 a year retained so far

21' / 5.16 would be 4.07

so for me i would actually be waist length in 4 years and about 26 days if i continue to retain at this rate

not bad but life changes so much who know what will happen

my measurements are confusing me im going to get someone to measure me latter

i tried to measure to apl and got 10 inches from the nap of my neck

from the top of my ear i got 13' to apl

so that would mean i was one inch from being apl and from the back my hair looks about 3 years from being apl

i dont know this mess is confusing me now

 

[DrC]

i did my measurements

i actually have a wee bit over 9 inches of hair measuring from the nap of my neck only

so i would just say 9'


i think my waist is around 20 inches from my nap im not exactly sure where the waist is at from the back but my tail bone is 26 inches from my nap i have 26 inches of neck and back lmao thats a lot of back

so i am going to say my waist is 21 inches

here is my personal example

9'/ 21 (the months i have been natural)

9'/21 = .43 i have retained .43' of hair retained a month

.43* 12(months in a year) = 5.16 a year retained so far

21' / 5.16 would be 4.07

so for me i would actually be waist length in 4 years and about 26 days if i continue to retain at this rate

not bad but life changes so much who know what will happen

my measurements are confusing me im going to get someone to measure me latter

i tried to measure to apl and got 10 inches from the nap of my neck

from the top of my ear i got 13' to apl

so that would mean i was one inch from being apl and from the back my hair looks about 3 years from being apl

i dont know this mess is confusing me now

Me too!! I was thinking you would get to WSL in less that 4 years. Do you trim frequently?

 

[ellegantelle]

I'm curious...for the ladies that made it to WL in 2-3 years, did you go to the salon for trims or did you self-trim? Also, how often did you trim? TIA!

 

[getoffmylawn]

It took me roughly 10 months or so to go from SL to MBL and I'm 5'9 but unsure of my torso length. I figure to reach WL it shouldn't take more than 1.5 years if you trim regularly

 

[jbwphoto1]

it depends on how much your hair grows and how much you retain

i use this formula of where i should be and how long it may take me to get there if all is going well

here is a poor estimated example:

measure from nap to waist = 20in

i grow a half of inch a month .5

20/.5 =40

40/12(number of months in a year)

40/12=3.33

so it should take me over 3 years to get 20 inches of hair if i am consistent with my retention

Here I am sitting at my desk at work wanting to get out my ruler and go hide in a bathroom stall and figure this out for my hair.

 

[jbwphoto1]

see below my post and follow the timeline of pics. From shoulder... that was a year and 2 months to almost waist (I was about an inch to two inches from waist and cut to shoulder...I was leaning I'll admit lol because I was so upset I just cut my hair back to shoulder. Second pic no leaning, straight up). Also that growth included small one inch cuts (about two inches of cuts) in that time frame as I was trying to get out layers.

Currently at hip if I'll stop using my scissors I can get to my next goal lol.

Slightly off topic, but luckiestdestiny, what's your goal?

 

[SherylsTresses]

I was SL around Aug 2010 and I expect to be full WL in August 2013. This includes trimming/dusting. Currently MBL but not full; last relaxer date is in siggy.

 

[AtlantaJJ]

I depends on how tall you are too!! I'm 5' 11"

 

[MystiqueBabe]

It takes around 18-20 inches of hair to get to my waist.

If I was starting from SL which is 7" of hair for me and granted my hair grows .5" - 1" a month. It would take either 1-2 years.

 

[constance]

It took me about 2.5 yrs and I started at a little past sl.

 

[ManeStreet]

I'm curious...for the ladies that made it to WL in 2-3 years, did you go to the salon for trims or did you self-trim? Also, how often did you trim? TIA!

I self trimmed once every 4-6 months. I never took off more than about 1/4 of an inch.

 

[leiah]

I'm curious...for the ladies that made it to WL in 2-3 years, did you go to the salon for trims or did you self-trim? Also, how often did you trim? TIA!

I self trim 2 times a year. Occasionally search and destroy but not very often.

 

[luckiestdestiny]

Slightly off topic, but @luckiestdestiny, what's your goal?

Classic Yeah...My goal has evolved over time but I'm pretty sure that's the end of the journey.

 

[luckiestdestiny]

I'm curious...for the ladies that made it to WL in 2-3 years, did you go to the salon for trims or did you self-trim? Also, how often did you trim? TIA!

Self trim with the exception of the one time I lost my mind. I wanted a few layers but she went edward scissor hands with thinning shears leading to my last setback (as I had to get all of that out). Glad that's over and done with for the most part.

I dont' let anyone "trim" it for me. That's my job. I follow this method on youtube w ponytail http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xw76mmh4o8Y&playnext=1&list=PLE2A38238C8DF79C6&feature=results_main

I also search and destroy in between

 

[luckiestdestiny]

i did my measurements

i actually have a wee bit over 9 inches of hair measuring from the nap of my neck only

so i would just say 9'


i think my waist is around 20 inches from my nap im not exactly sure where the waist is at from the back but my tail bone is 26 inches from my nap i have 26 inches of neck and back lmao thats a lot of back

so i am going to say my waist is 21 inches

here is my personal example

9'/ 21 (the months i have been natural)

9'/21 = .43 i have retained .43' of hair retained a month

.43* 12(months in a year) = 5.16 a year retained so far

21' / 5.16 would be 4.07

so for me i would actually be waist length in 4 years and about 26 days if i continue to retain at this rate

not bad but life changes so much who know what will happen

my measurements are confusing me im going to get someone to measure me latter

i tried to measure to apl and got 10 inches from the nap of my neck

from the top of my ear i got 13' to apl

so that would mean i was one inch from being apl and from the back my hair looks about 3 years from being apl

i dont know this mess is confusing me now

See now I'm confused If you measure from different areas there are different results. Let me go from nape to tailbone and see what I get.

Okay so I just got 25 1/4 from nape to tailbone (trying to bring in my theory of height in the legs lol) How tall are you and do you have a long torso? I'm just curious so that everyone can get a good idea (I'm 5'4 3/4 but I always knock up that 1/4 inch lol)
my waist comes in an inch under yours as well (at the full waist) at around 19 inches from nape to waist (if we're talking just where the waist curves it's around 18 and change". Unfortunately I have short legs but I seem to have a regular torso. Wish I had the height!

 

[CandiceC]

forever.......

Seriously!!

That's never been a goal of mine, but I suspect it would take me 10 years or so if I was already completely natural. And I'd have to be in braids and other protective styles most of the time.

 

[ilong]

Exactly.

I'm just gonna say until death for me.

I'll report back in another 45 years w/ pics.

Too funny - but I definitely feel you.

 

[IMFOCSD]

Wow once you think about it so much goes into growing (black) hair long. This might be another thread...but what would you ladies say is most important when it comes to retention? I definetly think protedting your ends at all times & just leaving your hair alone are very important.

 

[ManeStreet]

See now I'm confused If you measure from different areas there are different results. Let me go from nape to tailbone and see what I get.

Okay so I just got 25 1/4 from nape to tailbone (trying to bring in my theory of height in the legs lol) How tall are you and do you have a long torso? I'm just curious so that everyone can get a good idea (I'm 5'4 3/4 but I always knock up that 1/4 inch lol)
my waist comes in an inch under yours as well (at the full waist) at around 19 inches from nape to waist (if we're talking just where the waist curves it's around 18 and change". Unfortunately I have short legs but I seem to have a regular torso. Wish I had the height!

Yeah I think u have regular torso. I'm 5'8 with long legs but my nape to waist measurement is 18'-19' too.

 

[luckiestdestiny]

Wow once you think about it so much goes into growing (black) hair long. This might be another thread...but what would you ladies say is most important when it comes to retention? I definetly think protedting your ends at all times & just leaving your hair alone are very important.

Here's the thing. After a while it's like second nature. I'd say that because we need to find the right tools (wide tooth combs, etc) it appears that things are more "difficult" when really once we find what works for us...it's pretty easy. I don't even think about it anymore it's like automatic pilot (don't get me wrong detangling is annoying as my hair is super thick and with 4a and I suspect a 4b part at the top middle of my head without a pattern...it's slow going for me)...but for the most part if someone came up and buzzed y hair off (I may be annoyed) but I know how to get right back to where I need to be without trial and error. You can see that from my pics...that was 12 months apart and I had to chop a set back, but got back to a longer length pretty fast.

As for your statement I think it's 100% true for me. I know that washing frequently and constant manipulation will not work for me. I have tons (dense) fine 4a strands which makes my hair appear thick (but the strands are NOT). That means all that manipulation=no hair for me. Leaving it alone, deep conditioning (and oil rinsing) seems to work for me (along with of course moisturizing as needed). I've heard people talk about how they need to style their hair different ways while I sacrificed and kept the ends up. If you do that you'll get to your goals faster. It's a matter of whether you want a slow and gradual progression or the fastest progression (and retention) according to your growth potential.

Wow that was a mouthful. Hope I didn't overdo it.

 

[lucky8502]

I have a question: Once you ladies have reached your goal length do you have to continue to protective style religiously to keep your progress or does it allow for more styling options and freedom to let your hair down more often?

 

[Shadiyah]

Now that I am older my hair seem to retain slower and grow a little slower. it has been almost 4 yrs in dec from 1/4" and I am only just touching bsl and thought I would have been there.

 

[MystiqueBabe]

Wow once you think about it so much goes into growing (black) hair long. This might be another thread...but what would you ladies say is most important when it comes to retention? I definetly think protedting your ends at all times & just leaving your hair alone are very important.

Not really. This is just my opinion but it's not hard at all to make our hair grow. I grew my hair to BSL without any of the practices on this forum. I just used shampoo and never trimmed. IT could have been longer though but I really wasn't into hair then it was just there. Also limit heat and leave your hair alone. All I really need is water and shea butter, if I were going the no-product route, but you don't need 2,343 products either. Just stick with what works for your hair. Personally relaxers kept my hair at SL for two years, I never needed advice until I got my hair relaxed and thats when the breakage problems began and I think it's what keeps most black women at SL for God knows how long.

 

[SmilingElephant]

I have a question: Once you ladies have reached your goal length do you have to continue to protective style religiously to keep your progress or does it allow for more styling options and freedom to let your hair down more often?

So i just realized that i can't multiquote with this app.

But i wanted to say...from experience, hair at WL allowed me to be more lazy with my hair. As far as maintenance...its easier to just throw it in a bun or ponytail and KIM. With shorter hair u have to do more for it to look right.

Long hair, to me....is way easier to care for than short hair. The timeframe between CBL and APL was hectic for me. I thought it would be harder as my natural hair got longer....but it's getting easier and easier. The only con for me is the weight of my hair....it's getting heavier....which is why i think the area between WL and HL is where im gonna stop growing.

Sent from my N860 using LHCF

 

[ManeStreet]

I have a question: Once you ladies have reached your goal length do you have to continue to protective style religiously to keep your progress or does it allow for more styling options and freedom to let your hair down more often?

I mainly wear wash & gos. Probably 70% of the time. I do a protective styles when I'm getting restless, it stops me from coloring, cutting or doing sumthin else that I will regret later.

Once I make my goal, I will continue doing the same thing but I will trim more to keep up with my rate of growth.

 

[Katherina]

I estimate that it will take 4.5-5 years for me to reach WL starting from 1" (I had to trim all my damaged SL hair except 1") in 2009.

When I most recently checked my length in April, I was 1.5" from MBL.

I didn't really protective style except by wearing buns sometimes, and I didn't really moisturize and seal. If I had done that consistently, I probably would have shaved a year off of my total time.

 

[havilland]

i started with relaxed damaged neck length hair and it has taken me 5 years to get to BSL.

this is with regular light dustings. one hair cut of 3 inches to remove damage. one 1 inch trim per year.

i am a slow grower.

i have a long back...i think.

so all that to say.....i think it depends on the person. their beginning hair health. their retention rate. their growth rate.

but for the record my answer is FOREVER! LOL

 

[havilland]

Wow once you think about it so much goes into growing (black) hair long. This might be another thread...but what would you ladies say is most important when it comes to retention? I definetly think protedting your ends at all times & just leaving your hair alone are very important.

i would say protective styling. staying away from heat. deep conditioning or co washing on a regular basis. not using chemicals OR using chemicals as little as possible ie. stretching at least 10-12 weeks or more if your hair can handle it.

most of the ladies i see with long hair practice most if not all of these tactics on a regular/consistent basis.