Growing out your hair: why it's a stage, not just waiting.

Editor's note

The grow-out is where most hair regrets happen. Not in the chair — after it. People cut short, then decide they want length back, then discover they didn't have a strategy for the awkward middle. The difference between a graceful grow-out and a year of bad hair is almost entirely about how you trim during the process, which styles you use at which stage, and what you're actually growing toward. Below: the map, by starting cut and by stage.

Grow-out strategies by starting cut

• Pixie grow-out — the longest and hardest: 12–18 months to a lob
• Bob grow-out — 6–12 months to shoulder; the mullet phase is real
• Lob grow-out — 4–8 months to mid-back; easier than most expect
• Undercut grow-out — the contrast line is the problem to manage
• Bangs grow-out — 6–9 months; side-sweep helps at every stage

All growing-out how-tos

• The pixie grow-out timeline — month by month
• Growing out a bob without an awkward phase
• Styles for every awkward length stage
• Should you trim during a grow-out?
• Growing out natural hair — what's different about the process
• How to grow out a fringe without looking unkempt