I love my hairdresser (if you’re in Atlanta and interested in who she is, contact me and I’ll send you her details). I went in yesterday to have a quick trim, but mentioned that I’d love to get my hair off my face, and away from around my neck. I have had a bob hairstyle for years, with long layers and tapered in the back – and it was getting long. Anyway, she suggested bangs. Bangs? I haven’t had bangs since I was 12, and I wasn’t at all sure they would suit my face (which is generally round, and rounder now that I’ve gained a bit of weight). But it’s not hard to convince me to experiment with my hair (of, if that was only true in other parts of my life…) and I trust my hairdresser to help me look my best, so away we went. I was immediately pleased with the results – it was different, yes, but in a good way! When she added the highlights and lowlights, it took my hair to a whole new level…and I couldn’t be happier.
It’s funny, after I got my hair cut and went out to run some errands, I noticed that hardly anyone I saw had bangs. Maybe one out of ten women over 20? Why, I wonder? I definitely think they make me look younger (which is not such a bad thing), but I can see how some may think they are “little girl-ish.” My boyfriend thinks they are ‘weird’ – but I told him he’d get used to them – and I definitely feel like I stick out a little more than usual now. I do feel that many women (and I was also guilty of this when I was in my 20’s and much heavier) hide behind their hair and use it as a safety net. It doesn’t make a lot of sense, really; longer hair doesn’t hide anything. But long, shapeless hairstyles do blend into the background and keep the wearer from being noticed, and when I was in my early 20’s, I didn’t want to be noticed at all. I kept my hair all one length, and down around my face – hiding myself from anyone who would DARE want to approach me or talk to me. **cue world’s smallest violin**
In my mid-20’s I broke out, in a HUGE way. I got my hair dyed blonde, and cut it all off – well, almost…I left about an inch and a half. It was fun for a while, but not my best look in retrospect. After that, I changed my hair every few months, coloring it, highlighting it, letting it grow a bit, cutting it off again…you name it, I did it. That was my rebellious stage – I was making up for ‘missing’ out on my teenage years and early 20’s because of course, I was too fat to do anything. **again with the violin**
Once I turned 30, my life changed. Not overnight, but almost…I began to care less and less about impressing other people, and started looking more inside – learning more about myself, what I wanted and who I was. I lost weight, and that was when I started seeing my current hairdresser, and discovered my ‘perfect’ haircut. Or so I thought…until now 🙂
Who knows if I’ll keep the bangs indefinitely, but I love them, and feel great with my “new” look. It’s also served as a reminder to me how GOOD it feels to do something nice for myself. I do get regular haircuts, and my eyebrows threaded, but I haven’t had color in forever…and highlights make SUCH A BIG difference in depth of color, and add texture to my hair (which really needs it). I also recently updated my eye makeup routine; it needed serious help.
Makeup is a whole other story with me…color scares me…but that’s for another post. If you’re interested in my makeup in this picture, here are the details:
Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer
Bobbi Brown Eye Brightener
Bobbi Brown gel eyeliner in Sepia Ink
Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick
Kiss Me Mascara in Black
Anyway, my whole point with this post was to remind you to try something different – in every part of your life. It opens you up to things you might not have noticed before, and makes life generally more interesting.
