How to Remove Split Ends at Home When You Can’t Get to a Professional

Back at the very beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, when most people still took it seriously, haircuts were one of the first (and most visible) parts of “normal” life to go out the window. Social media was flooded with photos of hair that previously found itself in the hands of professionals on a very regular basis, but now was left on its own to grow and slowly return to its natural colour.

But once businesses started reopening in the spring and summer of 2021, trips to the hair stylist resumed, and many people haven’t looked back — regardless of new variants or surges. Others, however, continue to err on the side of caution, and either avoid trips to the salon or barber completely, or cut back on their visits significantly.

If you’re in that second category, you may find yourself dealing with split ends more now, without the benefit of regular trims. Fortunately, there’s a technique called “dusting” that can help get rid of the damaged hair at home. Here’s what to know.

What are split ends?

Split ends are strands of hair that are splintered, frayed, or taper off at the bottom. Sometimes, a strand can be so damaged that it breaks off mid-length, making it uneven with the rest of your hairs. And once a hair has split, no amount of deep conditioner will bring it back to its former glory: The only way to get rid of split ends is to cut them off.

How to get rid of split ends at home

The term “dusting” refers to cutting off split ends without changing the length of your hair. So it’s not a trim (with takes off length), but rather, a way to remove the split pieces of hair before they split even further and get even worse.

The dusting technique you use depends on your hair type, but they all require starting out with completely dry hair, working with only small sections of your hair at a time, then twisting it or wrapping it around your finger until you see little hairs sticking out (that are shorter than the rest), and cutting them off.

Here are a few dusting tutorials to walk you through the process:

Straight hair:

Curly hair:

Type 4 hair:

Also, we should mention that you should invest in a pair of scissors designed to cut hair if you plan on doing some DIY dusting. They’re not only much sharper than regular household scissors, but they’re also a little smaller and easier to manoeuvre.