In Which I Cut My Hair (also ft. Some New Year’s Eve LooksTM)

HELLO PALS,

You may have noticed the Considerable Variety of hair lengths and bang styles in Previous Posts, which does not mean that my hair grows exceptionally fast or that I get it cut Frequently—instead, it means I am Very Behind on posting, so any photos you’ve seen so far could have been taken at any point between “two minutes ago” and “Ye Olde Days of 2021.” However, those posts were just the beginning of the Hairstyle Whiplash you are about to experience, because a couple of weeks ago, I GOT MOST OF MY HAIR CHOPPED OFF. #newyearnewhair AM I RIGHT!!!!

This decision has been a long time coming—I first considered it after seeing Gozde Kansu’s pixie bob in İçerde, which I started watching in 2019. (Going bleach-blonde was never part of the plan, but I thought I might have to wait to go this short until I turned grey, since I have a weird hairline at the side of my neck and thought it would be extra noticeable with dark hair. I don’t mind my hair doing what it wants, but I didn’t want it to look like dirt.)

Gozde Kansu as Yeşim in İçerde - Episodes 5, 17, and 29

HOWEVER, my sister’s wedding was last October, and I didn’t want to cut it before that—mainly because I wanted it to cover the open back of my bridesmaid dress, a solid move because traipsing around the city for photos turned out to be freezing.

That gave me a lot of time to think about LooksTM, though, and I eventually narrowed it down to two options. Even though I’ve been going to the same hair stylist for fifteen years and she knows my hair well, I’m a big fan of bringing pictures to show what I’m looking for. It’s helpful to have some “hair role models” to use as reference, and for the last several years mine have been Anne Hathaway and Bensu Soral. But for this Large Chop, I branched out, and now Present To You Charlize Theron in The Old Guard and Tuba Büyüküstün in Cesur ve Güzel (I think??? I haven’t seen it) and the pictures of their haircuts that I gathered from Pinterest.

If you are currently saying, “Those are two different haircuts,” CORRECT! I was still going back and forth the night before the appointment, and while I would have had no problem letting the right choice leap from my mouth when the Spirit Came Upon Me at the Moment of Truth (that’s how I order at restaurants), I instead decided to seek my hair stylist’s Wise Counsel. Wisely, she suggested doing something in the middle, but leaning more toward Tuba’s LookTM, with the reasoning that if I liked it, I could always go shorter later on.

Pals, I like it SO MUCH! At first, she told me I’d have to straighten it, but once she started cutting, she said I should be able to wear it curly, too—a choice I’d been counting on, since the last time I’d cut my bangs, they’d been giving consistently A+++++ curls and swoops. (The Styling SecretTM? Suave kids’ detangler. Clearly I only use the Highest-End Products!!!)

So, the next time I washed my hair, I left it curly (this time with a bit of Cantu curl activator scrunched in), and in the famous words of Olaf the snowman: “I LOVE IT EVEN MORE!!!”

This is what I wore to our annual New Year’s Eve LunchTM (left/middle), as well as on a trip to Target earlier that morning (left). Whatever this AestheticTM is called, it’s Exactly The One I Want.

OUTFIT DETAILS:

Shirt - Target A New Day Elbow-Sleeve Mock Turtleneck T-Shirt, bought Fall 2022 - still available in other colors. Also worn here in a very similar look.

Jeans - AE Ne(x)t Level Super High-Waisted Jegging, bought 8/2020 - similar still available. I consistently wear a 10 X-Long at AE. Also worn here and here.

Belt - bought at a county fair booth ca. 2010 - also worn here, here, and here.

Booties (left/center) - Diba, ca. 2019 or 2020 - also worn here and here.

Paddock boots (right) - Ariat Heritage III Paddock, bought 12/2016 - similar (Heritage IV) still available. I have always found Ariat boots to fit true to size. Also worn here, here, and here.

Burgundy coat - Venus Belted Faux-Wool Coat, bought fall 2022 - still available, wearing size Large.

Leather jacket - Meijer ca. 2017 or 2018 - also worn here, here and here.

Also, here is a picture of my faithful Head of Security. Normally he follows me between the tripod and wall every time I set the timer to take photos, which is how we get many Delightful Cameos, but this time he decided to luxuriate directly under the tripod where he could keep an eye on everything, including his favorite Spring On A Stick toy. I love him. (He’s also sitting on my lap as I edit this post, Purring Loudly.)

So far, my New Hair has also looked enjoyable clipped back at the side, and I plan to try styling the front brushed back like in the first picture of Tuba. It’s long enough to get into a Tiny Half-Ponytail or braid the front, and I think I’ll discover lots of Styling Possibilities as it grows over the next several months.

Also in line for potential Styling Possibilities? My cut-off ponytail, which is currently chilling on the back of my bathroom door. I brought it home because I might try making Victorian Hair Jewelry or horsehair braids or something. It was very creepy when wet, but not nearly as much so when dry. (Still, one of my pals politely refused my offer of mailing her a Recreated Victorian Hair Lock. This is, I admit, Understandable.)

So, in Future Posts, you can be sure to enjoy not only my leftover long-haired LooksTM, but also some Character Style Recreations ft. short hair—including Yeşim’s, even without being blonde.

And, you know, maybe some hair jewelry. We’ll see.

Until then, I remain,

YOUR PAL.