Hair Donation 101

As the results of my survey continue to trickle in (please take it HERE if you haven’t yet) it is clear that you all want more hair posts around here. I’m happy to oblige. Actually decided to grow out to donate again so I figured I’d share this retro post with you in case you’re interested in donating too!

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Now that my hair has almost reached hip length again, I’m ready to cut it all off to donate. In the past I donated to Locks of Love and am sending hair in to them again later this summer.

Have you donated your hair? Not sure how to go about it? Not sure if your hair even qualifies for donation?

There seems to be a lot of confusion about donating hair, whether you can have colored hair, curly hair, grey hair etc. So I’ve consolidated a little bit of information using the FAQs.

Here’s the scoop:

How do I donate my hair?

1. Grow your hair out (have 8-12 cuttable inches in good condition)
2. Wash and dry your hair
3. Put it in a ponytail and chop it off! (or have it chopped off for you)
4. Choose your charity and fill out the donation form
5. Send your hair to the charity
6. Feel awesome about your new short ‘do and your good deed 🙂

Where can I donate my hair?

Here are a few of the popular places you can send your hair to:

• Locks of Love
• Wigs for Kids
• Pantene Beautiful Lengths
• Children with Hair Loss

Who can cut my hair for me?

You can go to your favorite stylist, or search for donation events in your area. Some salons and chain salons offer discounted cuts to people donating their hair, so that’s an option too. I prefer to go to my favorite stylist Mike at Studio Mohair to chop off the length and then give me a cute short ‘do.  But honestly, you can cut it on your own if you wanted to. Just make sure your hair is clean, in a ponytail and snip away!

What do I get for donating my hair?

I always find it funny when people ask me what I got when I donated it. My standard answer used to be “shorter hair” but my new answer will be “satisfaction.” However if you want to receive a thank you card, you can request one when you send your hair in. Even though you’re not really chopping off all of your hair for a thank you card, it’s nice to know it has definitely been received.

What kind of hair can be donated?

Hair in GOOD condition is required of all charities. Curly, Straight, Wavy, Kinky, it’s all good. For all charities the hair must be clean, dry, and in a ponytail or braid (so the strands are all facing the same way) Here are the requirements for each charity:

Locks of Love:

• YES: Virgin hair, Permed, Color Treated, Grey*, Curly
• NO: Bleached

*note: grey hair, and hair shorter than 10 inches is SOLD to offset costs, not put into wigs.

Wigs for Kids:

• YES: Virgin hair, Grey hair
• NO: Color Treated, Bleached, Permed,

Pantene Beautiful Lengths:

• YES: Virgin Hair, 5% or less Gray hair
• NO: Color Treated, Bleached, Permed, Chemically altered, Grey

Children with Hair Loss:

• YES: Virgin Hair, Non-Chemically Treated Hair is PREFERRED, Grey Hair
• NO: Chemically Damaged, otherwise, they accept it all 🙂

How long does my hair have to be to donate?

Here are the length requirements for each organization:

• Locks of Love: 10 inch minimum (Layered hair OK if longest layer is 10 inches, the shorter layers will be SOLD)
• Wigs for Kids: 12 inch minimum (no maximum)
• Pantene Beautiful Lengths: 8 inch minimum (no maximum)
• Children with Hair Loss: 8 inch minimum (no maximum)

I hope this helps you make a decision on which organization will receive your hair.

I’m starting a series on Youtube to chronicle my hair’s growing process and teach you how to grow yours long enough to donate (or not donate) as well. Subscribe to my channel here. Good luck and happy hair growing!

Have you ever considered donating your hair?

Are you currently growing it out to donate?