I Have Long Hair
I am going to be 51 in September and I finally have long hair. It has been growing for nearly 4 years and is now down to the middle of my back. It is naturally black, very, very thick and has tons of body and wave. It really is my crowning glory. I get it trimmed every 3 months or so and it is shiny, healthy and really quite lovely.
I am at that certain age when women aren't necessarily supposed to have long hair, especially long dark hair. All the "advice" for women my age says that our hair should go shorter and lighter -- definitely not longer and darker. But so what?
When I was growing up in the 60s, my hair was as it is today; very thick. It got long when I was a little girl but my twin sister and I have vivid memories of our mother complaining and bitching while she combed out our just-washed hair, dealing with tangles and snarls. Conditioner had not been invented yet (seriously) and my mother mixed her own Breck shampoo from an industrial strength concentrate, and I remember our hair being squeaky clean and very painful to comb out when wet. I thought that my mother maybe mixed it up wrong -- too strong -- but then I remember what a cheapskate she is, so if anything, she probably diluted it to get more than her money's worth.
Anyway, when I was in 5th grade she decided that she had had enough of my hair and all the trouble it caused. She convinced me to get a shag, which, looking back, was really nasty of her. And the haircut was atrocious. I had hideous layers cut and never again had long hair.
My next desire was for a Cleopatra-like bob and I did manage to get it to grow out and somewhat even when I was in my mid 20s. But my hair's natural thickness and waviness wasn't suited to the precision of the bob I envisioned. I just had a series of chin-length cuts with various layers. Every picture of me is just a swath of blackness. Stylish cuts don't work for me because my hair is so thick that layers don't really show up and my hair doesn't "move" like other peoples'. It just sits there, huge, black and overwhelming. "It's like a black hole," my husband and kids say. Ha ha.
Somehow, I'm not even sure how, I just started letting it grow. I stopped going to the hairdresser, began to trim my own bangs (successfully), only getting the barest of trims if the ends began to look bad. So my hair grew and grew and grew and one day I had my daughter touch my back where it ended. And it was LONG; really long, way past my shoulders and down my back.
I LOVE IT!
I do color the roots and my temples were there is gray. But overall it is naturally black. I love buying smoothing shampoos, moisturizing conditioners, smoothing serums and shine boosters. I only wash it every 3 days or so and sometimes I only wash the crown. I let it air dry on many days, but then it is very wavy. So most days I let it air dry for an hour or so then I dry it with a huge, metal barrel brush, smoothing it into long, straight sections with a big, soft curl at the end. I can wear high, swinging ponytails, french twists, casually-messed up up-dos with pretty clips. Sometimes I pull the sides back high on top of my head with barrettes and let the sides fall and curl.
I finally love my hair.
My daughter's hair is unbelievably thicker than mine. Many days I brush it and massage her scalp and it is almost inconceivable how much hair is on her head. How one scalp and have so many zillions of follicles is incredible! It is an auburn brown with lots of gold and red highlights. It is magnificent. And guess what? I never tell her what to do with her hair, never complain when clips and elastics break, never ***** about the cost of products she needs to keep such hair healthy and in control. I want her to love her hair and herself.
I am at that certain age when women aren't necessarily supposed to have long hair, especially long dark hair. All the "advice" for women my age says that our hair should go shorter and lighter -- definitely not longer and darker. But so what?
When I was growing up in the 60s, my hair was as it is today; very thick. It got long when I was a little girl but my twin sister and I have vivid memories of our mother complaining and bitching while she combed out our just-washed hair, dealing with tangles and snarls. Conditioner had not been invented yet (seriously) and my mother mixed her own Breck shampoo from an industrial strength concentrate, and I remember our hair being squeaky clean and very painful to comb out when wet. I thought that my mother maybe mixed it up wrong -- too strong -- but then I remember what a cheapskate she is, so if anything, she probably diluted it to get more than her money's worth.
Anyway, when I was in 5th grade she decided that she had had enough of my hair and all the trouble it caused. She convinced me to get a shag, which, looking back, was really nasty of her. And the haircut was atrocious. I had hideous la
My next desire was for a Cleopatra-like bob and I did manage to get it to grow out and somewhat even when I was in my mid 20s. But my hair's natural thickness and waviness wasn't suited to the precision of the bob I envisioned. I just had a series of chin-length cuts with various la
Somehow, I'm not even sure how, I just started letting it grow. I stopped going to the hairdresser, began to trim my own bangs (successfully), only getting the barest of trims if the ends began to look bad. So my hair grew and grew and grew and one day I had my daughter touch my back where it ended. And it was LONG; really long, way past my shoulders and down my back.
I LOVE IT!
I do color the roots and my temples were there is gray. But overall it is naturally black. I love buying smoothing shampoos, moisturizing conditioners, smoothing serums and shine boosters. I only wash it every 3 days or so and sometimes I only wash the crown. I let it air dry on many days, but then it is very wavy. So most days I let it air dry for an hour or so then I dry it with a huge, metal barrel brush, smoothing it into long, straight sections with a big, soft curl at the end. I can wear high, swinging ponytails, french twists, casually-messed up up-dos with pretty clips. Sometimes I pull the sides back high on top of my head with barrettes and let the sides fall and curl.
I finally love my hair.
My daughter's hair is unbelievably thicker than mine. Many days I brush it and massage her scalp and it is almost inconceivable how much hair is on her head. How one scalp and have so many zillions of follicles is incredible! It is an auburn brown with lots of gold and red highlights. It is magnificent. And guess what? I never tell her what to do with her hair, never complain when clips and elastics break, never ***** about the cost of products she needs to keep such hair healthy and in control. I want her to love her hair and herself.
By:
WaterdogsRule
Age:
51-55
,
Female
