Locks of Love Review

Locks of Love may be able to use your spare hair to help a child.  

About the Website: 

This is the Locks of Love website. It has beautiful pictures and a short instructional video explaining how to properly cut and donate hair.

The FAQ section covers numerous questions you may have regarding this great program. It provides helpful information for those who wish to donate or become recipients of Locks of Love.

They also have a form to print and send in with the hair donation. The website lists the address to which you need to send the donation as well.

About Locks of Love: 

Locks of Love is a non-profit organization that does not have any affiliation with religion or politics. Their mission is to provide children who have alopecia, hair loss, with a high quality hairpiece for free or on a sliding scale. 

As a cancer nurse, I see people of various ages who have alopecia on a regular basis. I don't notice that they do not have hair. What makes a person beautiful to me is their character. Most of my patients' hair loss is temporary, but their hair may return a different color, texture or even curly when they previously had straight hair.

Before and after pictures show children who are beautiful without and with their hairpieces. I can see where these hairpieces can give them a boost of confidence and will help them to better fit in with their peers.

People may think that all hair recipients have cancer. Some do, but most have a condition called alopecia areata, an autoimmune disease causing loss of hair on the scalp and elsewhere. Others may have severe burns or trauma or other genetic and dermatological conditions.

You may think that your hair is too thin to make a hairpiece. Don't worry! Six to ten ponytails go into one hairpiece.

Locks of Love provides vacuum-fit, custom hairpieces for girls and boys with permanent hair loss between the ages of 6 and 18 who apply and are accepted into this program. Retail price of a comparable hairpiece runs $3500-6000.

Younger children accepted in this program experience rapid growth and receive synthetic hairpieces. Children experiencing short-term hair loss who are accepted in this program also receive synthetic hairpieces.

Locks of Love can produce a hairpiece for about $1000. Monetary donations are always welcome and are tax deductible. Donations of gray hair or clean hair shorter than 10 inches will go toward offsetting their costs.

Here are a few examples of what types of hair they accept:
--clean and dry
--in a braid or ponytail
--recently cut hair or hair that was cut years ago and stored in a polytail or braid
--straight or curly
--all one length or layered

Here are a few examples of hair Locks of Love cannot accept:
--dirty hair
--hair that is not in a polytail or braid
--hair that has been swept off the floor
--bleached or highlighted hair
--dreadlocks

My personal experience: 

I've donated my hair to this great organization three times. My husband's uncle also donated his hair. I've heard of other children who have donated their hair as well. It's easy. You get to sport a new 'do and it takes a lot less time to wash shorter hair once you've donated!

My Viewpoint:This website tells you everything you need to know if you wish to donate hair or money to Locks of Love. It's a great organization for a great cause.