I grew my hair 7 inches in less than a year thanks to a £6 once-a-week purchase

YOU went for the chic bob – but now do you want to grow your locks and become a real Rapunzel?

While wearing a sleek bob is all the rage right now, there’s no denying that certain hairstyles look better with longer hair — and if you’re looking to embark on a hair growth journey, you’ve come to the right place.

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One beauty enthusiast, Mila Jay, managed to give her mane an epic makeover, growing a whopping 12 inches in less than a year – and has now taken to TikTok to spill the beans on her tips.

Before the breathtaking transformation, which has since taken the platform by storm, Mila’s locks were not only quite short and thin at the ends, but were also severely damaged by constant bleaching.

Now her hair is significantly longer, “healthy, strong, thicker and really shiny,” and she doesn’t have nearly as much breakage as she used to.

See how she took her ”fried as f**k” makeup to the most beautiful waves ever…

Lubrication is a must

The ”most important” advice to incorporate into your beauty routine was to oil your locks.

“If you’re not going to listen to anything else on the list and scroll away, just listen to this – but it’s hot oiling my hair,” the platinum blonde stunner said in the informative video.

Although you can buy ready-made hair oils in the store, Mila revealed that she liked to make her own DIY mixture at home, which consisted of castor oil, rosemary oil (£6 at Boots) and jojoba oil.

”This is a game-changer for your hair. When I started doing this my hair started to get thicker, I didn’t get any breakage in the middle of my hair, my hair stopped falling out excessively in the shower while I was brushing it. ”

According to the young woman, who posts under the username @vanilla_swirlxxshe applied the mixture only once a week, before rinsing it out thoroughly with shampoo.

Deep scalp cleansing

As your hair grows from the scalp, it’s essential to create the ultimate environment for the follicles, explains Mila.

Besides keeping the skin hydrated with the hot oil treatment, the stunner from Toronto, Canada likes to deep cleanse her scalp ”so there’s no gunk, nothing gross”.

To do this, she uses glycolic acid (currently on sale at The Ordinary for £8.85) once a month and follows the double shampoo method.

“Every time I shower, I go in with my shampoo and wash it two to three times.”

”One of the main benefits of double shampooing is that this technique removes all product build-up and excess oils, meaning the scalp and hair are well cleansed and free of impurities,” the professionals at Up Circle explained.

“This means you can go longer between washes because the scalp is cleaner than if you only shampooed once.”

The 4 phases of the hair growth cycle

Hair experts at Philip Kingsley shared the four phases of the hair growth cycle: Anagen, Catagen, Telogen and Exogen

Anagen phase: Also known as the ‘growth phase’ or ‘active phase’, this is the phase when the cells in the root of your hair divide most quickly to form more new hair.

During the anagen phase, hair grows about half an inch per month [about six inches a year]and faster in summer than in winter.

This phase of the hair growth cycle lasts an average of three to five years.

Catagen phase: After the anagen phase, your hair cycle enters a short transition phase known as the catagen phase. This phase signals the end of active hair growth and cuts off individual hairs from the blood supply and from the cells that produce new hair.

About three percent of all hairs are in this stage at any time and it lasts about 10 days.

Telogen phase: The third phase of your natural hair growth cycle is the telogen phase, a resting period during which the strands remain in their follicles but do not actively grow.

It is estimated that 10-15 percent of your hair is in the telogen phase at any given time.

The telogen phase lasts about three months or 100 days.

Exogenous phase: The final stage of the hair growth cycle, when individual hair strands release from their follicles and fall out.

Now the whole process starts again.

Protect your mane

If you go to bed with wet hair right after showering, you might want to listen up, because Mila had some bad news to deliver.

”I used to be someone who went to bed with wet hair, my hair in a messy bun, my hair not brushed and I wondered why my hair was breaking and falling out.

”So now I go to bed with a heatless style or I braid my hair. I just do something while I sleep so it doesn’t get tangled or wrapped under the pillows or anything like that.”

Condition – daily

Last but certainly not least on the list was conditioning your hair daily.

Although many of us use conditioner when we shower, Mila revealed that this isn’t enough to lock in the moisture in your locks until the next shower.

“Every day I use a product to add more moisture to my hair,” says Mila, who likes to use argan oil on her ends “to ensure they are hydrated, protected and strong.”