cutting it all off! Update w/Pics!

[beemama]

I'm about to take the plunge & cut it all off!
I've been no poo for almost a year now, and still find my hair to be too much work. I didn't mind when I had time to shower every day & I could wear it down all the time. We're also heading into some warm weather & I've often felt like I have a large mammal perched atop my head, even if it's all up it's like a furnace.
I think I want it pretty short & I'm not into styling. Btdt. I cut it all off about 10 years ago into a page boy but it was so much work straightening the curls & I hated how big it was if I didn't straighten it. I don't know that I'd mind now, or if the right cut would keep it from getting too big.
... can anyone point me in a direction? ANyone cut theirs off & have any advice? Anything would be appreciated. In my neck of the woods, the hairstyles are pretty artificial looking. I've googled some & keep finding cheesy ads for various hair care products.

[oldermamato5]

First I have to tell you I looked at your photo. Your family is precious!
And your hair is BEAUTIFUL!!! Please think hard about cutting it off. I know most people are like,hey, it's only hair,it'll grow back,BUT it takes a LONG TIME! I say this because I had really long hair,cut it off short,and wished I had my long hair back every day. I'm growing it now,and it's real heavy too,like yours is. I guess I'm just saying please be very sure you want it cut before you take the plunge!
Blessings,Kim

[beemama]

Awwww, thanks mama! Thanks for reminding me... I did cut it all off a while ago and wanted it back right away... but I've been on the verge of cutting it for a year. I actually had my hair up in a pony tail in the bathroom w/ dh & a pair of scissors last fall & backed out. I decided to wait until after winter & everytime I'm in the shower combing through my big head of hair for 10 minutes I'm wishing it away! I also wish it were short everytime dd uses it as reigns, or when it lands in a poopy diaper (YUCK! It has happened), or when it gets all frizzy & looks bad. I put it all up & my neck aches.
But you're right, too. There's something about long hair that's really feminine & sexy. I used to get compliments on mine all the time, my faves were "fantasy hair" & "mermaid hair". I haven't had any comment other than "you've got a lot of hair" or mentioning that dd got my curls lately. It's been kind of a security blanket for me, the one thing that is unusual about me... I feel like it would be really freeing to start all over again! And I do remember how neat it felt to run my fingers through my short hair. Ahhh, and showering was so relaxing instead of .

[momto l&a]

Imo short hair take lots of work where long doesnt. but then I havent had hair past my waist when pulled out of it curls. I normally keep it pulled out lenght to my bra strap.

I have natural curly also As do all 3 of my girls

[beemama]

momto l&a, so do you think that maybe just cutting it shortER as opposed to short would be the easiest? Do you have tight curls? Why was it harder to have it short? Lots of questions, I know. I'd just love to have someone else's experience with this!

[momto l&a]

I dont have as thick of hair as you have, so take what I say with a grain of salt :LOL
Shorter may be easier but IMO its needs to be a lenght that can be easily pulled up without anything falling out.

Short for me HAD to be washed every day for it to look good for some reason.

My hair is funny in that when its short it has body but NO curls, when its long its ringlets but its not a tight curl maybe an inch -inch anmd a half in diameter? I like my hair layered, but then again I dont have thick hair. I have lots of hair but its fine.

Could you cut your hair shorter and see if you like it? If not then you can go shorter.

What does your dh think?

[beemama]

Dh loves my hair long, but also sees how hard it is to maintain it.. He's also curious to see what it would look like short. He thinks it'll look good. We both have an admiration for dd's cute/short hair.
It does grow back, mine took about 3 years to get really long again.
I COULD just cut it shorter, I guess I just wanted to have it all off in one long ponytail for a keepsake or donation if I could find a reputable organization. Last time I cut it to shoulder length & then decided that I wanted to see it short first before I grew it back out... even tho I know I did want it long again so my cut ponytail was only about 10" long. I think my hair is a little longer this time.

[OliveGirl]

Good luck with your decision. My hair is short -- layered and too short to pull back -- and I'm thinking about cutting back into a super-short pixie cut, which is SO easy to style. I have lots and lots of hair and my current attempt at growing it long is frustrating. It grows bushy before it gets long. And I don't even know if I'm going to like it long, so I keep wondering if I'm just frustrating myself with this in-between hair for no reason whatsoever. *sigh*

I recently compiled a hair album to try and help me decide what to do:

http://northwestmom.typepad.com/photos/hair/

[momto l&a]

Olivegirl, Your hair in all of those pics is wonderful looking It all looks so good with your face.

My favorites are pixie short with you dc and July 2002 short but not pixie shortyet.

[*~Danielle~*]

I love your hair.

I agree with other posters, that maybe you should cut it shorter but like to your bra line or something. That way it is still long, but not obscene. You can still pull it up but get a comb through it easily. With some inches taken off you'll be surprised at how much easier it will be to take care of.

IF you still aren't satisfied with getting it cut halfway up your back, then go shorter. You can always go shorter later.

I would do the pixie cut after you have tried the medium length.

Let us know what happens.

[~*max*~]

BeeMama, yur hair is gorgeous! I'll trade with you any day. You have a lot of options. How about going gradually shorter as others have suggested? Maybe starting with mid-back length and some long layers? That would lighten it up a lot for you. Will you post a pic for us once you decide?

[beemama]

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh! dd just erased my post! We're new to NAKing.
THANKS, MAMAS! You've all been so kind!
I didn't mention it, but I cut my hair bra-length early in my pg w/dd. It was a little easier, I guess I'm wanting really easy... and a new look to boot.
Does anyone know who Nina Utne is, I wonder how her cut would look on me. It looks nice & easy.
Something someone brought up today was that it may be traumatic for dd if I cut it short... any thoughts on that?
In that case I'd have to transition into short hair. I really wanted to cut it all off & have a really long ponytail to donate somewhere. I've also never had anyone but my mom cut my hair & we'll be down there a week from Friday(on mom & I's birthday) so I'll only have a weekend to get it done.
Thanks for the replies! I'll definitely post a pic when it's all said & done!

[Bella's Mama]

Okay OliveGirl and BeeMama,You have beautiful hair, I love your curls!!!!! I have SUPER straight, long hair. When I was a little girl I used to beg my mom to put in those pink foam rollers. I would sleep on them all night (not comfy at all) and then in the morning my hair would be beautiful, tons of curls...for about 20 minutes! Then it would be right back to straight! I think you both look great with long hair, but I know long hair can be a pain, and long curly hair is probably even more of a pain, I wouldn't know! I would leave it long, just my opinion...

[sweetpeas]

Originally Posted by beemama

Something someone brought up today was that it may be traumatic for dd if I cut it short... any thoughts on that?

I can tell you that when I was in 4th grade there was a baby at our church who adored me, wanted me to hold him every week after church. I had hair down past my waist, it was too much for me to handle on my own but I was getting old enough that I didn't want mom having to help me wash it, etc. So that summer I got it cut SHORT. The baby from church (Christopher) was probably 8 or 9 mo old then (guessing, still a baby, but old enough to be very aware of his surroundings, etc) & he apparently didn't recognize me w/ my hair cut. He went from fussing for me to hold him to crying when I tried to pick him up. He slowly got used to me again, but never to the same extent as before I cut my hair (a few months later he & his family moved away, so I don't know if, in time, he would've come around more).

Anyway, your dd is older than Christopher was (& obviously a mother is a much closer relationship than just a friend at church), so I don't know if it would be an issue or not, but figured I'd share my experience

[celestialdreamer]

I also have long thick hair...about down to my elbows but mine is straight/slightly wavy. I found that if I cut it up to about 3 inches past my shoulders it is SO much easier to comb out, so when I start getting fed up with it, thats what I do. I did cut my hair really short once, although it was very cute, I missed my long hair tremendously. I also found that it needed to be washed and styled much more than very long hair. Right now, I can just brush it, put it up and run out the door without showering. So I agree with one of the pp who suggested shorter with long layering. That would take out some of the 'weight' and make it easier to brush. Make sure to show us a pic of your new 'do!

[Village Mama]

You have gorgeous hair. I have similar hair, really thick(and red). When I was 20 (after a breakup with my high school sweetheart) I wanted to cut it all off. It was about the same length as yours is. I had lots of negative comments from people when I told them I was going to cut it. I went into the funkiest most expensive salon I could afford and just let them do whatever short cut they wanted to do. It looked soo great. I loved not going through tons of shampoo, and headaches, and broken hair elasics from so much weight. Every time I cut it I love it for a while, but there is always the dreaded "in between stage" where I dont know whether to be patient and let it grow or cut it off again. Mine is almost bra strap length again and reading your post makes me want to shave my head! Have fun with it! Hope your cut goes well. You will always look gorgeous!

[CarrieMF]

I have very thick & coarse hair, mine was down to almost my bum quite a few years ago. It was layered though, the shortest layer was at my elbow. I had it permed but it had grown out a good 8". We had a propane stove and a propane heater beside the stove, dh was showing me how to turn the heater on and I leaned up against the stove. I heard it turn on, I never saw any flames. Dh said my hair was on fire, it was only slightly singed. 3 days later I cut my hair off because I didn't want to risk it over the winter. I cut it so my chin and I had short bangs cut. I never regretted it, it was a cut I'd had before and because the perm had grown out it was straight. The only problem was because my hair had been weighted down for so long that my bangs stood straight up for a few days, this was long after high bangs were in. People at school did not recognize me. Sometimes I wish I had my hair back, but mine grows very fast. I have been doing shorter hair but have been growing it out since the fall. I plan on keeping it slightly shorter(it's shoulder length) for the summer and letting it go wild over the winter. I don't do no-poo, but I only wash once a month and I think that's why my hair grew so much faster this winter. It grew 1-2 inches a month, which is what it does in the summer or when I'm pregnant. In the winter it usually only grows 1/2inch/month. I don't think I could do long hair with curly hair, I have 2 girls with curly hair and it's a pita.

[Jachut]

I think short hair, any kind of "styled" hair is way more work. YOur hair is truly gorgeous.

You could cut that off to between bra and shoulder length and still have "long" hair but it'd be much lighter on your neck, it sure must get heavy wearing all that hair. But it'd still be beautiful and long and feminine.

We all get sick of our hair sometimes, but it'd be a shame to lose that, it really is your crowning glory.

[meggles]

beemama~ Best of luck to you whatever length you decide on. I was in the same dilemma 6 months ago. Even though long curly hair *is* a style, it stops feeling like one after awhile. I didn't want it short, though, because for me that means so much more work. So, I went to a stylist and paid a ton of $ : for a fantastic haircut. We did long layers, with some shorter ones around my face. I love layers in curly hair because they aren't as obvious and they really do take a lot of the weight off. Plus, because we left some pieces long, my hair actually looked longer due to the difference between the short layers and the longest ones. I would really think about doing this if I were you. (If you want to keep the length, that it). My head feels immeasurably lighter, but I still have long ringlets. It's great!

Good luck and post a picture for us!

[meggles]

Oh, and from what I've seen of Nina Utne, her hair is actually somewhat fine. It looks like her hair is layered as well, despite it being neck-length.