Getting a Haircut
I’m pretty low-maintenance when it comes to my hair. I usually just throw it up in a ponytail or a bun and pretend it doesn’t exist. Sometimes if I sleep on it the right way and I’ve washed it the night before, it settles into ringlets which I look at in the mirror for about 30 seconds before throwing it up in a bun. And washing my hair is a chore. Right now it’s pretty long, so I pull fistfuls of long hair out of it every time I get it wet. When I actually use shampoo and conditioner, I comb through it with a wide-bristled brush and end up with even larger fistfuls of hair to extract from my hands by sticking them to the shower wall. My hair is currently in quite a state because I ran out of conditioner and combed through it without it. This was not wise. I’m almost afraid I have bald spots from so much hair pulling out. Aside from brushing it through in the shower (usually with conditioner), I do not brush or style my hair. The last time it was cut, I did it myself in the shower and was fairly reckless. I flipped my hair upside down, twisted it into a single ponytail, and hacked away at the ends. I was in no mood at the time to see a professional for this task. I’m typically pretty unfazed by haircuts as it usually ends up in a vaguely layered style, often “blown out” and straightened by the stylist so I have no idea what it will look like in real life. I’m usually unimpressed.
When I was in my twenties, I “buzzed” off all of my super-long hair and then went through various awkward stages of regrowth. I never felt bad about how it looked, but it never thrilled me either. And then years later there was one haircut I got in New York (for which I paid about $200) by some celebrity hair stylist. It was in a fancy apartment downtown, and he had a glamorous assistant giving the place a professional air. He really talked to me about what I wanted, trying to get a real feel for it. And the haircut I ended up with was fantastic. It was a long bob (or lob as it’s now called) that could be parted on either side and required little to no maintenance. Sometimes I’d put a little product in the roots and muss it up to give my curls a little edge. It was the perfect cut, even when I straightened it for auditions. But $200 is a lot for a haircut and New York is now hours away, so I’ve settled for random stylists who all pretty much do the same thing. But since my self-cut in the shower was even less impressive than what the pros do, I’ve booked an appointment to get a haircut the day before we leave for Berlin. I’m not worried- in fact, I’d be thrilled if the stylist does something crazy. And just to make sure she does, I’ve been hunting for pictures online of haircuts I like. I searched “choppy curly hair,” “edgy curly hair,” “curly lob,” “inverted bob,” and various combinations of those words. Let me start with the fantasy photos. These are looks I wish my hair agreed with, but I’m unlikely to achieve without serious styling and maintenance. Here’s the first one:
This is how I would love to look- modern and badass and pretty intimidating. But I doubt my hair would do that.
And then there’s the fantasy of getting bangs:
These all look like styles for wavy hair, not curly ringlets like mine.
There is this one photo of bangs that looks like my hair, but since I’m not a supermodel, it might not look quite right on me:
This is what my hair usually ends up looking like, just not as good:
And then these are the pictures I’m left with:
Apparently this style is called an “inverted bob” or “inverted lob” where the hair is longer in front than in back. I think this angled cut will give me that bit of badass-ness I crave, but still work with my hair’s natural texture and curl. I hope the stylist is up to the task- it is a really nice salon. I’ve been there before- once to get a “Deva-Curl” cut where the stylist actually knows how to cut curly hair and I got a somewhat better-than-usual result, and once with a “beginner” (cheaper) stylist who just did the usual. Maybe using real hair terminology like “inverted lob” will help get me what I want- or maybe the pictures will get the idea across. I did request someone who “can cut curly hair,” so it’ll surely be pricier than the beginner cut. But hopefully I’ll get a little boost from a new style, just in time to start our trip.