You’ve been growing your hair for what feels like an eternity. It’s finally reaching that mid-back territory, and you’re ready to chop it all off for a good cause. But then you hear it. The whisper of a rumor that if it’s not long enough, they just throw it away. Honestly, that’s a terrifying thought for anyone who has spent three years avoiding the salon just to help a child in need. When we talk about the locks of love minimum length, we aren't just talking about a random number a board of directors pulled out of a hat. We’re talking about the physics of wig making.
Ten inches. That is the magic number.
If you have ten inches of hair measured tip to tip, you are in the clear. But there is a lot of nuance here that most "how-to" blogs completely ignore. It's not just about the ruler; it's about the health of those strands and how they actually survive the manufacturing process.
The Reality of the 10-Inch Rule
Why ten? Why not six or eight?
Think about how a wig is actually built. To secure a strand of hair to the silicone base or the cap of a hairpiece, the artisan has to fold the hair over. This creates a "return." Basically, you lose a few inches immediately just to keep the hair from sliding out of the knot. If you donate seven inches, and two are lost to the knot, and another inch is lost to trimming the ends to make them even, the recipient ends up with a hairpiece that is barely four inches long. For the children Locks of Love serves—many of whom are suffering from long-term medical hair loss like alopecia areata—a four-inch wig doesn't always provide the "normalcy" they are looking for.
Is it ever okay to go shorter?
Technically, Locks of Love accepts shorter hair, but they can't use it for the custom prosthetics they are famous for. Instead, they sell the shorter hair to help offset their manufacturing costs. So, if you send in eight inches, you're still helping, but you aren't actually in the wig. You're more like the "sponsor" of the wig's production. If your goal is to see your actual ponytail on a child’s head, you absolutely have to hit that locks of love minimum length of ten inches.
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Layered hair is the bane of the donation world. If you have layers, the longest layer must be ten inches. If the rest is shorter, it might get culled during the sorting process. It's harsh. It's reality.
What People Get Wrong About "Usable" Hair
I see this all the time on social media. Someone posts a photo of a braid on the floor and says, "Hope this helps!" but the hair is bleached to high heaven.
Locks of Love is very specific. They cannot use hair that has been bleached. Color-treated hair? Usually fine. Permed hair? Usually fine. But bleach—or "highlights" that involve bleach—compromises the structural integrity of the cuticle. When hair is processed into a prosthetic, it goes through intense sanitization and color-matching. Bleached hair literally falls apart during this process.
- Grey hair: It's a myth that they don't take it. They do. However, like the short hair, they sell it to offset costs because their primary recipients are children, and children rarely request grey hairpieces.
- Curly hair: Pull it straight. If it hits ten inches when stretched, it counts toward the locks of love minimum length.
- The "Floor" Rule: If your hair touches the salon floor, it’s trash. It must be bundled in a ponytail or braid before the cut.
The Logistics of the Cut
Don't just walk into a Supercuts and hope for the best. You need to be the advocate for your hair. Tell the stylist exactly what you are doing.
You’ve got to dry it. Totally. If you mail a damp ponytail, it will grow mold in the plastic bag before it ever reaches West Palm Beach. There is nothing more heartbreaking than a volunteer opening a package only to find a biohazard that has to be incinerated. Wash it, dry it, then wait another few hours just to be sure.
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The ponytail should be secured at both ends. Use a rubber band at the top where the cut happens and another one near the bottom. This keeps the strands from shifting. If the hair gets tangled or "shuffled" in the mail, it becomes useless because the "root to tip" alignment is lost. In the industry, this is called "Remy" hair—keeping the cuticles all facing the same direction. If they get flipped, the wig will frizz and tangle uncontrollably.
Why Locks of Love specifically?
There are other organizations out there, like Wigs for Kids or Hair We Share. Wigs for Kids actually requires twelve inches, making the locks of love minimum length slightly more accessible for people who can't wait another six months for that extra growth.
Locks of Love focuses on children under 21. Most of their applicants suffer from alopecia, but they also help victims of severe burns or radiation treatment. It’s about the psychological impact. Imagine being twelve and losing all your hair. It’s not just about vanity. It’s about not being stared at in the grocery store.
The Hidden Costs of Giving
It is free for the child, but not for the organization. Each prosthetic costs between $3,500 and $6,000 to manufacture. This is why they sell the hair that doesn't meet the locks of love minimum length. They aren't "profiting" in the way some cynical Reddit threads might suggest; they are subsidizing the labor-intensive process of hand-tying thousands of strands of hair into a medical-grade silicone base.
The nuance here is that because these are medical-grade, they don't require tape or glue. They form a vacuum seal. A kid can swim in these. They can play sports. That level of quality requires the best raw materials, which is why they are so "picky" about the ten-inch rule.
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Preparing Your Hair for the Big Day
If you're still an inch or two away, don't rush it. Take care of your ends. Use a silk pillowcase. Stop using the high heat setting on your blow dryer. If your ends are split and "see-through," that last inch isn't going to count anyway because the sorters will have to trim it off.
A healthy ten inches is better than a ragged twelve.
When you're ready, put the hair in a padded envelope. You don't need a fancy box. Just a Ziploc bag and a piece of paper with your name and address if you want an acknowledgment form. It takes about 6-8 weeks to get that "thank you" in the mail, but honestly, knowing that your hair is being transformed into a confidence-booster for a kid is the real reward.
Actionable Steps for Your Donation
- Verify the length: Use a ruler while your hair is dry and pulled straight. Ensure the longest layer hits at least 10 inches.
- Check your color history: Ensure no bleach or lighteners have been used. If you have "sun-kissed" highlights from a bottle, that's usually bleach.
- The Salon Setup: Secure hair in multiple ponytails around the head to get the most length possible, rather than one single tail in the back.
- Drying Time: Wait 24 hours after your last wash before sealing the hair in a bag.
- Documentation: Download the donation form from the official Locks of Love website to ensure your contribution is tracked correctly.
- Shipping: Use a tracked mailing service. It’s a small price to pay to ensure your years of growth actually arrive safely.
Most people think the hard part is growing the hair. In reality, the hard part is making sure the hair you grew is actually usable. Stick to the ten-inch standard, keep it healthy, and make sure it's bone-dry. That is how you turn a haircut into a life-changing gift for a child.