A Surprise For Mom!

Guess who has always liked my hair SHORT.  No ifs, ands, buts, or etcs. That's just how ma rolls......

Frankly, for me, shorter hair always requires more maintenance - on a daily basis, yes, but also in terms of more frequent visits to 'the salon'. The cost of haircuts add up, but even worse is the truly hit and miss quality of haircuts. I've had two stylists in my life who consistently gave me great cuts. The performance of the rest varied from so-so to a recipe for certain despair. As a result, over the last year or so i've taken to trimming my locks myself. With lots of long, wavy-to-curly hair, any mistakes kind of got 'eaten up' by the overall volume of hair involved. And i've enjoyed wearing my hair long for a number of years now.

However, the last couple of months i've felt ready for a change. I've been enjoying the look of my hair more when i wear it up, but even more important i was feeling that my hair just wasn't adding much to my overall look. I believe you need to have all your areas working for you and working together in order to really be stylish, and the hair could be doing more. I wanted something edgier, and with this much and this type of hair that means going short.

I've worn my hair this short (and much much shorter) for many years, through my teens and twenties and thirties, so i wasn't worried about being traumatized by a 'big whack'. But how to find a stylist? I mean, this isn't just a wee bite here and there, we're talking Big Commitment.

Well, anyone who knows me can recite the rest of this story.......after all, if 'the worst' happens, how many hats do i have?

At first i thought 'well, i'll just try a little bob' - half an hour later i remembered the several times in the past i've tried a bob, with different stylists. It looks beautiful in theory (with my hair 'pinned' into a bob), but in practice it's 'instant dowdy'. So i snipped and snapped my way to this tried and true (for me) style. Don't look too close! I still need to neaten some up, and cut in some thinning to lighten up the top and sides. But i'm happy with the overall shape, and it's always so fun to have a new look!

As it happens, Angie wrote a piece recently about the centrality of hairstyle to overall style. She says, "...I’ve found that a person’s hairstyle has a very dramatic effect on how they view their current and future style. By addressing a client’s hairstyle right from the start, things naturally fall into place. Often the new hairstyle alone makes my client’s style feel completely different. And sometimes it is exactly the impetus they needed to get out of their comfort zone." Well observed, and i agree completely!

Cynthia at Be Fabulous Daily writes about how to find quality at any price point, (with an adorable shout out to me - i laughed out loud!). And the Sewing Pixie posts her first 'v-log' with some very interesting information about sewing knits and painting fabric. All my questions answered in an easy to understand (and hilarious ) manner! This look of The Style Crone shows my favorite colors to wear - warm, clear, a little quirky. These colors are just so hard for me to find - especially in cashmere - though she looks so yummy i know i'll be keeping an eye out, whether i mean to or not!

It's only been a few days since i performed 'the big whack', and i'm really enjoying the change. And it's great to feel like my hair is pulling it's weight, style-wise. So i'm happy.

But the most important part is - mom should be thrilled!!!!