I’ll start by saying haircuts have always been a thing for me. Variety + long for change = I cut my hair. When I turned 30, for example, I welcomed that new decade by chopping off my long hair into a shoulder-length bob. In my mind, it was time for “adult things”, and I needed to say goodbye to my 20s in that definitive way. (My mother nearly fainted.) Of course, years later, I returned to natural with my beloved big chop. Fast forward to three years ago, when I decided to try on a tapered ‘do in an effort to maintain a visible style and shape to my hair. I fell in love with it! Nevertheless, anytime I saw my fellow naturalistas sporting big, beautiful hair on the ‘Gram, I drooled a little. Result: I decided to grow out my hair several months after the tapered ‘do. I truly wanted to stick it out and really see how big my hair could get…
…but I just cut my hair two weeks ago. Feel free to LOL with me.
My decision to cut wasn’t surprising, though, not to me. When I get bored with the same old look, I long for scissors and shape and style. Anyway, I told my stylist what I was looking for: something fun and different, not necessarily tapered in the strictest sense of the word, but not necessarily chopping all my strands off, either. She took all those words and gave me a chic, stylish cut that I love and adore now. Notice that I typed that I love it and adore it now. Because on that night of The Cut, as I gazed down at the ground and saw chunks of my three-years-grown-out ‘fro on the ground–I almost burst into tears.
Yes, really.
Me, who looks at my hair as a canvas that I can change whenever I want, who loves the variety that comes with our hair, our gift of strands, and who believes that hair grows, so what’s the big deal? Well, that same me nearly lost every bit of her cool. But I held it in. I thanked my stylist for her creativity, paid, and walked out. I got into my car. And I just sat there. What had I done? Why didn’t I just keep growing it out? Why did I make an impulsive decision like this? The questions echoed repeatedly in my mind, searching for answers, and yet finding only one answer: I had just cut my hair.
The drive home was interesting, to say the least. I was lost in my emotions, that’s for sure. I called my little sister and engaged in a meltdown stating that I had made a terrible decision, that my head was far too big to sport this shorter style (seriously, I uttered those words), that I was far too impulsive. She calmly reassured me that no, I didn’t have a giant head and that she believed, without even having seen my new style, that it looked great on me. I reluctantly agreed, despite not really believing her. We ended the conversation by me promising to think positive about this new change.
The following morning, as I untwisted and styled my new hair, I slowly came to a realization: my hair actually looked great! It was chic. Easier. Another canvas to try new looks. What a surprise from the night before? I then wondered: why had I been so emotional and negative about the cut? Was it the fact that I visually saw chunks of hair on the ground? Was it the self-disappointment of not following a goal (to grow out my hair) through? What was different from all the other cuts I had done in the past? Did I just have a “moment”? Perhaps it was all of those things. But here are three things I know for sure when it comes to style changes in general:
Make sure you really want the change. I did weeks of research; searched for pictures of hairstyles online; looked at YouTube videos. Which means that looking back, my belief that I was being impulsive wasn’t accurate, was it? It just felt that way. I really wanted that change and I made sure it was what I wanted. Ensure that you’re 100 percent good with your decision. (This goes for any style change; it may not be a haircut, but change overall isn’t always easy.)
A reassuring voice. Like I said, even before seeing it, my sister reassured me that I hadn’t made a bad decision and that my hair likely looked great. Similarly, make sure you have a calming, reassuring person in your life to talk you down when that inner voice is going a bit crazy.
A cut is a cut. *The specific thing*: Yes, there will be hair on the ground. Lots of it. You need to be ok with that. Because, girl. I struggled with seeing all of that hair!
In the end, I plan on maintaining my new, short ‘do rather than growing it out. (Don’t tell Mom.) Change isn’t always easy, but it can definitely be fun.
Thanks for stopping by! Do you have an exciting haircut story/journey to tell? Share it in the comments below! For more of my writing, check out my lifestyle blog at www.okyerewa.com. You can also find me on the ‘Gram @frowriter.
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