Dusting Versus Trimming: What's The Difference + How To Dust Your Hair At Home

When it comes to home-friendly beauty projects, the DIY haircut seems to get a lot of gravitas. It makes sense—mastering the at-home trim takes some incredible time, effort, skill, and a pinch of faith. But if you're looking to clean up your look without the stress of a full DIY trim, consider "hair dusting." No, it doesn't require a vacuum, but it is a sort of housekeeping ritual, if you will. Here, we dive into dusting, plus how to do it at home: 

With dusting, you're cutting into the hair rather than snipping ends off, and you can do it whenever you notice some split ends forming (whereas you may only need a full trim every few months, depending on how often you heat style). Think of dusting as a "bridge" to last you until your next haircut, explains celebrity colorist George Papanikolas—and considering it may be a hot minute before we find ourselves in the salon chair, many of us might welcome that bridge with open arms.

Another benefit? Removing damage and preventing future hair breakage. By shearing off split ends, you'll stop the hair from continuing to split, says Brook. 

That said, dusting is still a bit easier to replicate at home than your standard trim. All you need to do is twist a half-inch section of dry, clean hair to see if any broken split hairs come out. Make sure you're in a well-lit area (Brook recommends outside in the daylight), so you can see the damaged ends clearly. Then just take a pair of small scissors and trim off the split hairs. "Even nail scissors work, but make sure they're sharp," says Brook. Super-sharp shears are imperative, Papanikolas agrees: "Otherwise you risk fraying the ends, causing more split ends down the road."

If you're looking for a way to rid your mane of frazzled, split hairs without shedding length (or perhaps just a low-stakes way to change up your look during quarantine), dusting may just be the perfect DIY project. Snip your split ends, slather on a hair mask, maybe even perfect your air-dry game—you'll come out of this quarantine with healthy, glossy hair, even if your locks are a little longer than usual.