Meet Melissa.
Melissa needs a CHANGE. From her email:
I turn 40 this year and am having a mini mid-life crisis. I am a stay-at-home mom and have 3 boys – ages 5, 2 and 10 months. I knew things were bad, but once I took the pictures to send to you, I had no idea how bad. Ugh. Talk about a humbling moment.
I am in desperate need of advice. I must have a new style, but have no idea how to go about choosing one. I have had this exact same haircut, if you can call it that, for YEARS! Everyday, I pull it up into a clip and that’s my “style.” I am known around the preschool set as the, “mom who wears the hair clip.”
My lifestyle involves children, children and more children and that’s about it right now! I spend no time on myself, but this year I am going to change that, starting with make-up and fixing my hair several days a week. I have not had bangs since the 80s, but after viewing my forehead in the photos I’m sending you, I think I might need to invest in some! Maybe sideswept? I don’t think I can pull off the blunt ones.
I realize I will probably never get chosen, but I have decided to force myself to try new things this year. Just the act of taking the photos to send to you and stopping to right this email is more than I have done for myself in a long time! Regardless, I wish you and your family best of luck in 2010!
Melissa, thank you for taking the time and effort to send me that great email! Emails like this really give me good insight as to what kind of style would work best for potential HT participants. (Related- for those of you who send me one-word answers to my questionnaire or a tiny blurry photo, your email usually goes straight to my delete folder. What can I say, I’m a TYRANT.)
Okay! Let’s learn a little more about Melissa’s hair.
Naturally light brown. Blonde highlights applied about every 12-13 weeks.
Fine texture and stick straight
Would like to spend 15-20 minutes styling
Prefers chin length or longer
Uses no products, just shampoo and conditioner
Wears a banana clip almost every day (NOOOOOOOOOOOO!)
Melissa, THROW AWAY THE BANANA CLIPS. Seriously, right now. Walk over to your banana clip drawer and dump them in the trash. Okay? Great. Wait…I still see that one stashed away over there. That one goes too.
I completely understand that your daily life includes running after three children. I get it. But if you are going to pull your hair back, please please use a hairband. Or braid it! Or a chic headband! Or even a barrette! JUST NOT A BANANA CLIP.
Now for your options.
Forget the “mom who wears the banana clip” moniker. Melissa will be looking HOT with either one of these hairstyles!
Option #1 is a stylish shoulder-length bob – long enough for Melissa to get off of her face, but short enough to give her fine, straight hair some fullness and show off her shine. Since Melissa doesn’t need to coerce her hair straight, this style could be achieved in minutes. Just a quick blowdry and some serum and Melissa would be ready to go.
Option #2 would keep most of Melissa’s length, but the addition of sideswept bangs would give her tons of movement around her face and help make her overall look more sassy. (I hate that word, but I have pregnancy brain and can’t think of anything else right now.) Plus, if Melissa wants to pull her hair back (NOT IN A BANANA CLIP), those sideswept bangs would give her more of a style than the traditional SAHM slicked-back ponytail. I would recommend Melissa using a light, volumizing mousse to give her hair some bounce, as well as controlling her newly shorn bangs.
As for color, I definitely see some root growth in that photo. If highlights are only going to be done every 12-13 weeks, I would recommend some lowlights throughout to keep the hair looking healthy, modern and not so one-dimensional.
What do you all think? Which option would you choose?
Mel
April 8, 2010 at 7:01 am#2 Is just too close to her current hair. To make a serious change, she needs to change the length!
Amy in StL
April 8, 2010 at 8:40 amI also have very fine straight hair. The curly girls in the office are always amazed that I can come to work with straight hair and it only took 5 minutes. I spent the last several years growing my hair out (because all the boys like long hair) and finally this fall found a MAN to date who was totally supportive of me growing out my hair. My hair looks so much thicker at chin length. Even my stylist was like dooooood! I voted for #1 because I tried to go to something closer to #2 when I first got my hair cut and dealing with shorter hair and more layers all at once after years of longer hair was a lot and meant some really bad hair days. So we went shorter and fewer layers. Now, for summer I’m ready to add some bangs and layers.
I guess what I’m saying is when you don’t spend a lot of time on your hair, and it’s superfine, two small steps might be easier with styling than one huge step.
Amy in StL
April 8, 2010 at 8:41 amDuh, I meant supportive of cutting my hair. Where’s my coffee?!?
Emily
April 8, 2010 at 8:47 amIt’s long and she puts it back EVERY DAY. She needs to just cut it off. Option 1!
Kat
April 8, 2010 at 8:50 amI voted for #1 as well! It would be such a striking change with what Melissa has now. Plus I think it would frame her face beautifully.
I also wanted to support a color change. I lke the blonde but perhaps going back to her natural color would up the dramatic factor!
Danielle
April 8, 2010 at 9:07 amI like option #1 for length, but option #2 for long, sideswept bangs. I agree that she should incorporate some lowlights. Eventually she can just do less highlighting and her natural color will provide the lowlights.
Mrs. Schwartz
April 8, 2010 at 9:39 amWow! She does not look 40 at all! She looks great! I would have guessed early to mid-30’s!
Good for her! :)
(I vote for Option #2!)
Jessica
April 8, 2010 at 9:52 amI voted for option 1. Change is good, and if you’re going to do it, you should DO IT! Plus, if she needs to she can pull back her hair with a cute headband. Bangs with option 1 might be cute, too.
Jamie
April 8, 2010 at 9:57 amBlunt cuts like Option 1 can be a little severe for those of us with rounder angles on our faces…I suggest option 2 as a starter – and if the length or shape still seems too similar to the current style, then hack it off, sister. But until then, there’s no need to create a full face where there wasn’t one before.
Heather
April 8, 2010 at 10:39 amAgreed, she needs to lose some of that length. BTW could Naomi Watts look prettier there? Wow. All shimmery.
I recently added bangs to my wavy hair and LOVE the versatility and how much more stylish my hair looks, even in a banana clip! KIDDING! No seriously, it looks so much more “done” with bangs.
Sarah
April 8, 2010 at 10:59 amI say #1 for sure!
And Sarah, can you share ideas of different ways to wear your hair up but still look chic, cool, hip? I am growing out the bangs now and my clip to pull them back is getting OLD!
Jammer
April 8, 2010 at 11:50 amOption 2!! A side-swept bang would look great on you!
I wear my hair pulled back all the time and having a little bit of a bang to frame my face in the front makes me feel/look like I actually styled my hair that way on purpose.
Berlin Hair Baby
April 8, 2010 at 12:06 pmdude, Melissa, you have so much to work with, girl! Many people would kill for that mane. I chose option 2 because its a crime for you to have short hair. my advice would be to go blonder and then learn how to create the waves featured in photo 2. Sarah has a great tutorial up on that:
Stephanie
April 8, 2010 at 1:01 pmIt’s gotta be option 1!! If she keeps it long, it’ll be too easy to slip back into old ‘pulling it back every day’ habits.
She’d look SO fab with that long bob!
Mary
April 8, 2010 at 1:07 pmI voted for #1 also…I agree with the commenter who said #2 was too similar to her current style. Whip out a curling iron and she’s got the second ‘do already. Also, she’s gorgeous — she can’t really go wrong.