By Matt Gephardt
(KUTV) Mary Beattie's look is prone to drastic changes. She grooms her hair, growing it nice and long, then every few years she chops it all off donating her hair to the charity Locks of Love which supports cancer patients. But this time around, Mary says she would like her hair to support a different charity.

“Just this last year, Alzheimer’s stole my dad so we wanted to send some money there,” she said.

Mary wrote to me asking, "Are there reputable places to sell human hair?" It's a good question.

The answer is, yes. In fact, someone who can help Mary sell her hair lives right here in Utah. Marlys Fladeland is a collector of hair art. Hair art is human or sometimes animal hair that is used to make all sorts of different stimulating creations like flowers and wreathes. Marlys says that hair art is a tradition that dating back centuries.

Several years ago Marlys launched Hairwork.com as a place for hair artists to share ideas but the website quickly evolved and became a way for people looking to sell hair to get bids from people looking to buy hair. Marlys says the most money she has seen trade hands between an artist and a hair seller on her website was $3,800. In that transaction, Marlys describes the product as “really long hair.”

So, there you have it Mary. If you're looking to make some money off of your hair, you can sell it to a hair artist.

If you're interested in selling your hair, there are a few things Marlys says you ought to consider:

#1 - She says if you are chopping off less than 10 inches, don't bother because it probably won't sell. She says anything longer than 10 inches will sell for an average of about $10 an inch.

#2 - After you do cut your hair, don't store it in a plastic bag. The bag will make the hair brittle. Instead, Marlys suggests you put the hair into a paper bag and then keep that paper bag dry.

#3 - Get a video of yourself cutting off your hair because, she has found, it often make the hair more worthwhile to a buyer. Hair art is passed down for generations and long after you are gone from this world, the art made from your hair will remain and future generations might want to see the head that produced their art.

If you have a good question for me, email Gephardt@kutv.tv or call (801) 839-1250.

(Copyright 2013 Sinclair Broadcasting Group)
Good Question: Is There A Market For Human Hair?