My Hair Evolution

Hair is a funny thing. A bad hair day ruins even the best of days, and a good hair day can brighten up even the darkest day. For years, I was too scared to do anything to my hair, like a lot of people. I stuck with long layers, even though I found them uninspiring and often wore my hair in a messy bun (back before messy buns were cool. I'm a hair hipster). I thought it might be fun to take a little trip down memory lane...with my hair.

Undyed, ungray, and long. I wore my hair long back then. The shortest it ever got was the middle of my back, and the longest was my waist. But it was boring. And so, at 21, I cut it off for the first time. I liked it for a while, but the long hair came back...as did the boring pony tails and buns. When I turned 30, my hair started to fall out. A lot. My previously medium-thick hair was now so thin that bobby pins would slide right out. That was part of a tipping point for me. I started figuring that if I wasn't going to have healthy hair, at least I would have some fun hair.

This first collage is of my "normal" hair. The top picture is from my 17th birthday (1997 for those keeping track). That, folks, is my natural hair color. In 2007, I started dying my hair black (bottom left is from 2008). As dark as my hair is, it wasn't too shocking against my skintone. I fell into the "mommy" trap and rarely did my hair, or even got a haircut. In 2009 (the picture with the hot roots), I decided that I was bored with my box-dyed black hair and had it professionally stripped out (mostly)...in case you were wondering, that doesn't work well. I lived like that for another year, cutting a good bit off each month. In 2010, after the birth of my second spawn, I decided to give bangs a try for the first time since 1993. I didn't hate them, but they took some getting used to. My main problem with the last hair style is that it looks like a mom hairdo.

boring, boring hair

I had a serious reality check in 2010, and stopped giving quite as many fucks. I also turned 30 that year, and I am sure that had something to do with it. I embraced bleach (again, at the hands of a professional) and color. I pretty much changed my hair color every eight weeks...though my obvious favorites are teals and blues. I toyed with the idea of getting a pixie, but chickened out. Even when I got the balls to really do it, I did the Weenie Hut Jr. version, and went with a shag-style. Looking back, it was not the smartest move I ever made.

starting to be fun. still kinda mom-ish

Sometime last year, I finally cut it all off. Honestly, I kinda hated it at first. It was such a culture shock. I had to actually style it, I needed product. This was a whole new world for the formerly long-haired girl. But I started to figure it out...and fell in love. One time, I went really short (back around Christmas) but I don't have a lot of pictures that show exactly how short it was. It took me a long time to get used to it, and sometimes I do miss my long hair...especially on days when I am feeling like a lazy shit. I miss throwing my unwashed hair into a pony tail and leaving the house. Short hair is not conducive to super lazy days. The bedhead that comes with a pixie-ish cut is pretty epic, if I do say so myself. There have been a lot of mornings where I start to wonder if I should start talking about aliens.

the current state of affairs.

I toyed with different shapes and styles, and most of all had fun. I enjoyed my hair. It's only hair. It grows back (for most people). If you are careful, and don't overdo the bleach, you won't damage anything beyond repair. And if you do...oh well. Six months from now, it will probably look like it never happened. Sure, I may stand out at school events and get a few stares...but who cares? Blue hair makes me happy.