To some people, hair is just another part of their body.
To others, their hair is everything to them. It’s part of their identity. The style, the texture, the color- so many options, just to find the one that fits you most.
For me, it’s the latter.
I’ve struggled and gone through trial and error for my hair, just for it to still end up disappointing me.
That’s when I make the impulsive decision to chop it off.
If you’re anything like me, you constantly debate between keeping your hair long or starting over by cutting half of it off. Then, once you cut it off, you regret it after a while.
But then it gets long again, and you look at good pictures of when it was short and you’re like, “Aww, it was so cute! I’m gonna cut it again.”
Basically, it always comes full circle. Grow, cut, regret, repeat.
And yes, I’m currently writing this because I’m having this exact debate crisis right now.
So, I’m here to offer some help. If you’re having the same internal battle as me, here are some things that might be helpful.
figure out your face shape
Now, this isn’t a determining factor, but face shape can impact a lot. For example, round face shapes work well with layers and longer hair, while shorter hair works with longer face shapes.
If you look in the mirror and decide which face shape fits you best, you can decide what kind of decision to make from there.
Look at old photos, and I mean really Look
Usually, the first thing people do is look at old photos to see what their hair used to look like. This is a good method, but you also need to take into consideration what it looked like on a bad hair day as well. I don’t know about you, but I probably wouldn’t take a picture of my hair on a bad day, which means I might not remember what it looked like most of the time.
We won’t always have perfect hair days. Sometimes it looks worse than others. So before cutting your hair off, decide whether or not you had more bad hair days than good.
Take your hair texture into consideration
This one is extremely important. For people with curly hair, cutting some length off may take the weight off of your curls, making them spring to life. For others, cutting your curly hair may increase frizz and shrinkage.
With straight hair, consider the thickness of your hair. Thin hair may benefit from a shorter haircut with some layers.
Look at your typical outfits and style
Hair length can change how your overall aesthetic appears as well. Some outfits may look better with shoulder-length hair, while others may work better with longer hair. Planning your outfits and style can help determine whether long or short hair could work better.
Think about hairstyles
If you’re someone who constantly puts their hair into a ponytail or bun, short hair might make it more difficult to do that. Short hair can be low maintenance, but depending on how you wear it, it possibly may be even higher maintenance than long hair.
So, what now?
Well, I gave you some tips, so now you decide. Remember, hair grows back (eventually). If you’re really scared about a haircut, get it over a period of time where you aren’t going anywhere special, just in case it needs time to grow back out.