The Dilemma of At-Home Haircuts
Image Courtesy: Pinterest
Hair is such a precious thing. It’s our identity. We brush it, wash it, flatten it down, straighten waves out, add curls in, pull it up into ponytails, braid it, shave it, cut it, dye it, and repeat. When I debate a haircut, I scroll for hours on Pinterest. I yearn endlessly for Sophie Thatcher’s perfect mullet in Yellowjackets. I comb through old-fashioned magazines, searching for a cut that perfectly mirrors my own. Yet no matter how many pictures I would show my hairstylist, she could never get it right. I’d leave feeling like barely anything changed. Even if it was close to what I wanted, I never felt completely satisfied. Sometimes, a picture can never come close to what you really want. I’d find myself showing her a picture while describing something completely different.
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There are endless movies about a woman’s big transformation. She gazes into herself in the bathroom mirror, mascara smudged under her eyes. She grabs a pair of old metal kitchen scissors and starts hacking away. Punk music is blasting in the background, and she glares into her reflection as she cuts it off, lock by lock. After, she smears on more eyeliner and smokes a cigarette outside. The shedding of hair symbolizes the shedding of her past self, a cliche that is endlessly reused.
Or maybe, you’re scrolling on TikTok and see a grieving girl who just got broken up with. She firmly grasps her kitchen scissors and looks into the camera and says, “I’m sorry, Brad Mondo,” and proceeds to cut her hair off into two ponytails, held together by rubber bands. The video ends with a hairdresser reacting to the final look, which is usually horrifying.
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The last time I got my haircut, I decided I was never going back to the hair salon. I purchased a feather razor and spent hours watching classes online on how to give myself the perfect shag. When I scraped off the first strand, I felt so weirdly empowered. Each cut was my choice, and my appearance was entirely in my hands. There was no one I could blame for my decision but myself. When I finished my work and looked in the mirror, I was so proud. Not only was I responsible for my hair, but I loved it!
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Your hair is a part of your autonomy. I think that everyone should know how to cut their own hair. It is such a freeing skill. There should be no need for an “I’m sorry” to a hairdresser. Haircuts are fluid and free, not uniform. They absorb your identity, and however you want them to be is how they should end up. There’s no need to worry about falling victim to “bob summer;” it will grow back, and you can cut it all off again, all the same. Everyone should always have a haircut that aligns with every part of themself.
Strike Out,
Writer: Abby Marshall
Editor: Isabelle Kim
Graphic Designer:
Tallahassee