“I feel like if I cut my hair I would look like a boy.” “I don’t have the right face shape.” “I think I would regret it if I cut my hair.” “I wish I could cut my hair short.” This is what I hear whenever I talk to another woman about short hair and concerns people had every time I brought up the idea of cutting my hair.
Hair grows and no cut is permanent, but so many women I know are afraid of what short hair means. It’s seen as unfeminine instead of empowering and a pixie cut is something that “only some people can pull off.”
Short hair is not inherently masculine, it’s all about your personal style and how feminine or masculine you choose to present yourself.
A pixie cut is something I always wanted to try but was always told that my face was too round or that I wouldn’t be able to style it well. So it took me a long time to finally do it but when I did, it was awesome!
I cut my hair short after a really difficult semester of school while working retail, a long year of struggling with a hormone imbalance and two years of bleaching and dying my hair. I found myself unwinding by watching videos of girls shaving their heads for the first time. I could feel the empowerment and relief through the screen.
This led to watching instructional videos on how to shave your head, upkeep and tools. Since I know myself and I have never had the same hairstyle twice, I knew I would eventually want to grow it out again– so I also watched videos on how to grow it out again after. I found myself seriously considering shaving off all my hair because at this point in my life, I needed a change and I needed it to be drastic.
When I told my best friend about my plan she convinced me to cut it short before commiting to a buzzcut (which honestly, was great advice). I ended up modeling my cut after an instagrammer named Sarahlouwho who posts quick tutorials on how to style a pixie.
I compromised by shaving the side and leaving length on top and once all that damaged hair was off I felt so goddamn free. Cutting my hair didn’t reduce the stress of finals, it didn’t give me energy to work and it didn’t help the awful mood swings I was experiencing; but it gave me a sense of control and relief I really needed.
It took me so long to cut my hair short and even then, I only did it after lots of research and consideration. But short hair is NOT that big a deal. We see people with short hair and assume it is something that only certain people can pull off. The idea that you can only have certain hairstyles based on your face shape is total bullshit.
Live you life, Do what you want and don’t be afraid to experiment with your look.