My Hair History
To chop, or not to chop
I’m at a hair crossroads. We’ve all been there. That inbetweeny time where you can’t work out if you should keep growing or go in for the chop. Part of you itches for change whilst the other is telling you that your patience will be rewarded. It’s a toughie.
With that in mind, it seemed like the right time to post up a little hair retrospective. I’d been looking back at hairstyles gone by for inspiration, and thought I’d post them up here to get your opinion.
Whilst I’ve never been particularly extreme, I do like to switch things up every now and then (that patience I mentioned above…I don’t have a huge amount of it..) – let’s take a little look back…
The Early Days
When I started worrying about how my hair looked, I was going through that Avril Lavigne phase that I’m sure many of you also experienced. That straight centre-parted look took me through my last few years at school, and then it was time to bring out the big guns (or just scissors and hair-dye, really…).
One day during the summer holidays after leaving school, 15-year-old Carrie and her non-hairdresser pal Katie decided that Avril as inspo wasn’t cutting it anymore, and in her kitchen she transformed me into the purple-and-black-haired scene queen that I’d been longing to look like for so long. This was the time of MySpace, lots of eyeliner and emo, and I embraced it to the fullest.
For a year or so after I’d keep it dark, chopping away at what was essentially a mullet in my bedroom (I didn’t trust any hairdresser in my Somerset town to understand what ‘scene‘ was).
Then things got a little indie. I started letting my dye fade out to a reddish hue, and Babyshambles were my new favourite band. It’s then that I began attempting to give it a faux wave or curl for the first time, at the same time attempting to grow out the stupidly short layers that I’d cut into my poor hair.
It took a few years for that dye to go completely, but by the time I started university (and this blog, of course!) my hair was back to it’s natural colour, and the longest it had been since I can remember.
The Chop
Starting uni and moving to London was a huge change for me, and with that change came a new hairstyle. I’d opted for a bob, cut in at my first proper London salon visit (Pimps & Pinups). I remember leaving and staring into every reflective surface on the way – I was completely in love with my new ‘do.
Whilst I couldn’t style it in a huge variety of ways (or so I thought at the time), I’d curl it both inwards and outwards at the ends depending on how I was feeling, and sometimes all over, but most of the time wearing it with a bright beret. I’m sure there are a few of you that remember those days!
The Extensions
A couple years later and the bob has grown out somewhat – I’m ready for another change. This time it was my first experience of clip-in hair extensions, and I wore them non-stop. The feeling of going from thin mid-length hair to thick locks was addictive – I felt more confident after clipping them in and I’m sure other people could see it.
And based on the pictures above, this was also the era of the bowler hat. I’d often use them to disguise my hastily applied clips on the way out of the house!
At the time I wrote a guide on hair extensions for beginners – so do take a look if this sounds appealing at all!
The Fringe
It didn’t take long before I fancied something new – this time it was about getting a full fringe, my first since school. I went to the wonderful TaylorTaylor for this chop, and they dyed my hair a richer, darker brown before giving me the long versatile full fringe that I was after. I bloody loved that haircut, and have tried to emulate it several times since, being that person that brings in an old picture of themselves to show the hairdresser (this has to be pretty common, no?)
The day I got the haircut I had a man shout “Zooey Deschanel!” at me from across the street, which was kind of the desired result really, because I was obsessed with her hair (who wasn’t?)
Growing it Out
In between every bold (I use that term loosely, I realise I’m not bleaching it or anything!) hairstyle, there is a lull. A lazy period where I forget to make a salon appointment or would rather push my fringe to the side that attempt to trim it. My hair goes that coppery “I-can’t-be-bothered” shade, whilst I decide what my next move is.
It’s at this point that big decisions have to be made – do I stick it out and let it do it’s thing? Attempt to go natural? Or chase that feeling of leaving the hairdressers as a new woman? It’s usually the latter, which brings me to…
The Bob
Just a couple of years ago I combined the fringe and dye with a bob – I’m sure lots of you can remember! I was going through something of an emo renaissance and tattoo artist Hannah Snowdon was the inspiration.
Whilst I loved the ‘do, the lazy girl in me couldn’t keep up with the maintenance of the short hair, blunt fringe and dye-job combined, so it was another one that I let go…
Today
And that brings us back to today. My last haircut was over six months ago now, and whilst I’ve added a bit of dye here and there, it’s relatively untouched.
I’m back in that waiting game again, asking myself whether I can put up with a faded dye-job, and if I have the patience to see just how long it will grow. I think getting married next year is a motivator for that – I want it to be as versatile as possible, and growing it and taking it back to it’s natural state seems like a good start.
I know I should get the ends trimmed, as it’s not looking the healthiest, but there is something stopping me from stepping foot in a salon – I think perhaps I’m worried that I’ll snap and come out with something new again! If I mention going for a haircut at any point, please do remind me not to do anything drastic!
I’d love to hear if you have any tips for growing your hair! It’s a bit of a boring process, but I can’t wait for mine to look and feel healthier again!
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