My hair is long and I want to sell it.  I want to sell 12 inches of it.  I have never had my hair chemically treated.  It is thick, healthy,virgin hair.  Does anyone know where in Los Angeles they buy hair?

Hairworks has advertised that they purchase hair.  This is the site that makes jewelry from human hair.

To donate your hair, just check with your local hair salon, most of them have an arrangement with either Locks of Love or Wigs for Kids.  I don't endorse either of these organizations, as they both have deceptive practices, but if you are going to cut your hair anyway, and if you can't find anyone to purchase your hair, the donation route is better than nothing.

Here is a quick list of my objections to these organizations.

1.  Both organizations advertise that they collect the donated hair to make wigs for kids.  Much of the advertising will reference kids undergoing chemo or radiation treatment.  The medical profession does not recommend human hair wigs for temporary hair loss - synthetic hair wigs are more comfortable to wear, less expensive and easier to maintain.

2.  If you review the organization's financial records, you will see that a very small percentage of the donated hair is ever made into wigs for kids.  Most of it is sold.  Both organizations have a large cash balance due to the sale of the hair.

3.  For the amount of hair that is donated, a very small number of wigs are actually produced.

4.  Locks of Love hair gathering campaigns have coerced long-haired women into donating their hair.  If a gal is crying while they cut her hair, she is not ready to have her hair cut. 

5.  Locks of Love's financial reporting does not meet the Better Business Bureau's reporting requirements for charities.

I will say, however, that if someone is ready to cut their hair and they have no other purpose for the cut hair, go ahead and donate it to these organizations.  Some kids will benefit. Better that it might in some way benefit a kid than go into the trash.

To be fair, LofL has stated that most of the hair they receive is unusable for wigs.  I tend to believe this, since many women I know who've donated had overprocessed hair.  In addition, the majority of wigs they make are not for temporary hair loss, such as chemo, but for children who lose hair due to a permanent condition such as alopecia areata.  In which cases synthetic wigs would not be as desirable. 

If, instead of selling the excess hair they can't use, they tossed it out, we'd be flaming them for poor stewardship of their resources. 

In regards to the woman who is not yet ready to cut her hair, well, that sucks.  But noone put a gun to her head.  We can't hold charities responsible for someone else's irresponsibility--you wouldn't think less of Make a Wish just b/c someone dontated their whole life savings and then had nothing to retire on--that's not the foundation's fault.  Same deal.

Krystal

ScrapGirl wrote on Nov 29^th, 2006 at 10:55am:


I'm sure a large percentage of the donated hair is unusable.  I don't have a problem with them selling what they can't use.  My issue is more with the number of wigs made.  They have many applicants for wigs, but very few are actually made.  I know that in reality the wigs they make are for kids with permanent hair loss, but when the cutting sessions are promoted, they push the cancer angle, which is not accurate.  They "distance" themselves from the campaigns to collect the hair, by having the salons do the promotions, that way LOL is not accountable for deceptive practices.

No one may be putting a gun to anyone's head to donate their hair, but on the other hand, no one should be made to feel like they are being selfish for wanting to keep their hair.  I've been on the receiving end of that logic more than once - it is not fun. 

Don't get me wrong.... I'm not saying these organizations are all bad, I just wish they would improve on their methods.

LofL does not give the wigs to children, they SELL them.  The families have to pay for the wigs and they are very expensive.   They are also not covered by most insurance policies.  One of my students did a speech on LofL and this is what her research turned up.