# Donating (gray) hair



## tallpines (Apr 9, 2003)

Apparently some organizations don't accept gray hair.

Apparently some organizations do more charity work than others, with the donations they do receive.
(Some sell the donated hair for profit, or charge huge prices for the wigs they make with the donations.)

I'm wondering where to send hair mostly for charity uses rather than to fatten someone's wallet.


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## alpacaspinner (Feb 5, 2012)

tallpines said:


> Apparently some organizations don't accept gray hair.
> 
> Apparently some organizations do more charity work than others, with the donations they do receive.
> (Some sell the donated hair for profit, or charge huge prices for the wigs they make with the donations.)
> ...


I'll be interested in your replies. Earlier this year I cut my well below waist length hair (not yet gray; not that part, anyway :hysterical to just below shoulder length (several reasons, and I'm not yet completely sure it was a good idea.) Several people, including my hairdresser, have asked about whether I meant to donate it somewhere. I have also heard that some places are not quite above board with the donations they receive - though I haven't really researched it. I have said that I plan to give the hank of hair a decent burial, as it had been with me for for more than thirty years, but I got some rather funny looks - and not all of them funny-positive. The hair resides at the bottom of a drawer at the moment, and if I can be convinced that it will truly go for a good cause I may yet donate it.


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## Grandmotherbear (May 15, 2002)

I donated my graying hair in 1998 to Locks of Love- they provide hair prosthetics to child victims of alopecia, andare up front about selling donated gray or white hair for funding for the child charity. At the time. LOL was headquartered in Lake Worth FL. Donations had to be 9 1/2 inches in length. That was the first tijme in decades my hair had been that long, and I wanted a really short bob before taking to the wilderness with my Boy Scouts.


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## tallpines (Apr 9, 2003)

Locks of Love was one of those that makes wigs for children but a very low percent of those wigs are donated.
Most all of their wigs are sold for profit rather then donated to needy children.

I think I read that on 
http://www.squidoo.com/locksoflove

Will need to research that again.


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## tallpines (Apr 9, 2003)

.....


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## tallpines (Apr 9, 2003)

Actually, I see there was a previous discussion here on HT about hair donations and Locks of Love that I'd forgotten about.

Interesting information included there.

Seems to indicate Locks of Love may not be the place I'm looking for ~~~


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## SilverFlame819 (Aug 24, 2010)

Ugh. Just don't donate to Locks of Love!!  Most of the hair they receive is sold off, and the hair that IS given to children is NOT donated, it is sold to them on a sliding scale based on how much money their parents make! Unreal!  They also do NOT give wigs to kids going through "short term" situations (which they consider cancer)... So people think those wigs are going to kids going through chemo, and they're NOT.  Just a good example of a good idea that has been turned into a marketing gimmick to make the company more money...

I have heard some good things about Wigs For Kids, but have not researched them myself. 

Good luck to you, whatever you decide, and it's good of you to consider donating it rather than just tossing it!


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## SilverFlame819 (Aug 24, 2010)

Another idea... You could sell the hair yourself online (there are TONS of hair selling sites) and donate the money to a good cause.  

A really great one is This Star Won't Go Out. The organization donates money directly to the families of children currently being treated for cancer, since families with kids going through treatment and living in hospitals puts most families under severe financial strain. (Kind of the opposite of SELLING wigs to kids in need, huh?)


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## pheasantplucker (Feb 20, 2007)

Nine years ago, after my mother died, I decided to grow my hear for "Locks of Love". My hair is (and was back then) white. I grew my hair for four years. It was really long. My friends who knew why I was growing it would tease me and ask, "Who's going to want a white wig?" Well, the day finally came and I went to my wife's hairdresser and they put it in a pony tail and then cut it and donated it to LoL. I was surprised that I was told they need a dozen such donations to make one wig. My ponytail was 17" long after it was cut. I was told that white hair was actually in high demand, as few women with white hair have it long enough to cut to donate, and very few men do. I don't know if grey runs in the same problem, but I would suspect it does. I would call salons and find out what they have to say about it. Certainly they know how to contact these agencies. Best of luck.


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## Use Less (Nov 8, 2007)

I was told by a small group making wigs for older women that they still don't want grey hair for wig-making, just for re-sale, since grey hair is often either brittle or thin.


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## Jan in CO (May 10, 2002)

Interesting. My 17 year old gs has been growing his hair for LOL for the past two years and took a lot of flak from his coaches and other parents of team members until I contacted a sports writer from his city who did an article about him. He'd be very disappointed to find out they don't donate the wigs to children with cancer!


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

Jan in CO said:


> Interesting. My 17 year old gs has been growing his hair for LOL for the past two years and took a lot of flak from his coaches and other parents of team members until I contacted a sports writer from his city who did an article about him. He'd be very disappointed to find out they don't donate the wigs to children with cancer!


I'm not really sure it makes a whole lot of sense to give wigs to kids going through chemo. They don't lose their hair for all that long. Wigs are expensive. My 18 year old niece must wear a wig and they cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $1,000.

When I researched wigs, the only hair color not accepted was bleached blonde hair. They take colored hair, just not bleached hair.


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## beaglebiz (Aug 5, 2008)

I donated my hair several times, there is a charity for adult women....
http://www.pantene.com/en-US/Panten.../beautiful-lengths-donation-requirements.aspx
They only want hair less than 10% gray, no perms, colors etc. I only have a few gray strands, and my hair is hip length now, I have thought about donating one more time before it grays any more.
According to what I am reading, locks of love does not use any hair that is gray, color treated or permed


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