If you follow along on Instagram, then you know I went in for a haircut this weekend and walked out a little bit lighter. About 6 inches worth of hair lighter! Well, I got some questions as to the why and who did the cutting so I’m answering those questions here today.
WHY I CUT MY HAIR
In a nutshell, I didn’t want to put in the time and effort it takes to upkeep long bottle blonde hair. Between routine washing, drying, and styling as well as damage control (deep conditioning treatments) a couple times a week, just dealing with my hair was taking up way too much time. Time I wasn’t willing to put towards my hair when I could be doing so many other things instead.
How much hair is too much? The day I went for my haircut, I’d been wearing extensions earlier in the day and my natural hair was longer than the clip in extensions. It was bananas!
A secondary reason I decided to cut off my hair is due to damage. If you’ve been a reader here for a while then you might remember this. I had gone to someone new to get my hair done and she destroyed my hair. She over processed and left the bleach in too long which resulted in near platinum locks within one session. This basically kills your hair and leaves you with a straw broom on top of your head instead of hair (you’re supposed to gradually lighten your hair over 3-4 sessions to not cause as much damage).
I’ve since found an amazing new stylist who has been working with me to reverse the damage for the past year. Over a couple appointments, she’s been able to reverse most of the terrible dye job but you can’t completely reverse the damage. So in cutting it short, I’ve basically gotten rid of all the damaged areas.
And finally, I’ve been toying with the idea of trying out short hair for a while. The last time I had short hair was almost ten years ago in 2009! Lots of my reluctance towards giving up long blonde hair is tied up with my own sense of identity. I had long blonde hair when I danced ballet, I wore giant braids, I did hair tutorials, etc. Who would I be without those things? Well, I’m about to find out and frankly, it’s overdue.
Since my cut, I’ve been loving how fluffy and full my hair feels compared to its normal state – limp and super fine. Long hair shows damage and breakage so easily compared to shorter hair. If I’m going to have long hair again in the future, I’m going to make sure it’s long and strong rather than ratty looking.
WHO CUT MY HAIR
So who is the hair wizard that reversed a bad dye job and restored my hair? Well, she’s Ashlee of James Alan Salon for all my Seattlites looking for a great new do. I found her between looking up Yelp reviews and googling people who specialize in blondes in the Seattle area. I can’t say enough good things about her. Between her positive, can-do attitude when faced with a nasty yellow mess and the results that she churned out, I have a feeling she will be the only person touching my hair for years to come.
WHAT SHE DID | The Cut
Ashlee stated by taking off 4-5 inches on dry hair before washing. After a shampoo, she took off close to another inch. From there she added some long layers but made sure to leave the ends blunter – giving the illusion of thicker fuller hair as my hair is naturally baby fine.
AT HOME CARE & STYLING
There’s nothing quite like coming home from the hair stylist feeling like a million bucks but then you get to that first hair wash at home. Dun Dun Dunnnn! Just kidding.
I’ve been using the same leave-in and styling products as always, It’s a 10 Leave-In and the Tresemme Touchable Bounce Mousse, but I’ve just recently started testing out this new drugstore shampoo and conditioner.
Drying and styling have now become a much faster process with my shorter locks. I’ll normally try to allow my hair to air dry about 80% of the way then I hit it with a round brush and a blow-dryer (I use this one). I’ll finish off by wrapping sections of hair around my 1-inch curling iron and giving it a hit of hairspray.
GET INSPIRED
Are you also itching for a hair change? You might be interested in checking out this Pinterest board for all things hair inspiration.
Some other beauties who has hair inspired me include: Dakota Johnson in How to Be Single, Taylor Morgan of Little Blonde Book, Anna Jane of See Anna Jane, Jacy of Love Lenore, Michelle of Michelle’s Pa(i)ge, and Adriele of Style Assisted.
Until next time,
Ana Luiza
