Short hair on older women

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m just amazed that so many people care about hairstyles so much. 7 pages of comments?
I see nearly every HS girl with the same long hairstyle. My generation (Gen x) seemed to embrace more individuality. Now, the trend seems to be to blend in and not stand out. Gen X was all about being unique.

Unique while fitting in and looking the same. I’m Gen X, I don’t think my teens are more conformist than we were, no.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what kind of short haircut you all are imagining when you say it’s high maintenance?

My hair is a pixie like Mia Farrow wore in the 70s. It takes 1 minute to wash and 1 minute to dry and 1 minute to apply some bed head type product to give it some volume/lift and I usually leave it spiky.

My very short hair takes less time to wash dry and style than it has at any other length over my lifetime. And I’m finally at that place in my life where I know I’m freaking gorgeous and amazing so I feel totally confident in it.

That’s it. Short hair requires confidence which many women don’t have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what kind of short haircut you all are imagining when you say it’s high maintenance?

My hair is a pixie like Mia Farrow wore in the 70s. It takes 1 minute to wash and 1 minute to dry and 1 minute to apply some bed head type product to give it some volume/lift and I usually leave it spiky.

My very short hair takes less time to wash dry and style than it has at any other length over my lifetime. And I’m finally at that place in my life where I know I’m freaking gorgeous and amazing so I feel totally confident in it.

That’s it. Short hair requires confidence which many women don’t have.

For me it's being realistic: I do not have delicate features at all. I need some hair to balance that out. You can't fault people for trying to make the most out of their look. Why would someone knowingly get a haircut that will make them look worse?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m just amazed that so many people care about hairstyles so much. 7 pages of comments?
I see nearly every HS girl with the same long hairstyle. My generation (Gen x) seemed to embrace more individuality. Now, the trend seems to be to blend in and not stand out. Gen X was all about being unique.

To be fair, I see lots of shorter hair on Gen Z - all the variations of mullets, wolfs, side shaves, pixies and so on. I think it’s Millennials who are afraid to cut their hair.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what kind of short haircut you all are imagining when you say it’s high maintenance?

My hair is a pixie like Mia Farrow wore in the 70s. It takes 1 minute to wash and 1 minute to dry and 1 minute to apply some bed head type product to give it some volume/lift and I usually leave it spiky.

My very short hair takes less time to wash dry and style than it has at any other length over my lifetime. And I’m finally at that place in my life where I know I’m freaking gorgeous and amazing so I feel totally confident in it.

That’s it. Short hair requires confidence which many women don’t have.

For me it's being realistic: I do not have delicate features at all. I need some hair to balance that out. You can't fault people for trying to make the most out of their look. Why would someone knowingly get a haircut that will make them look worse?

Because “worse” is subjective. I am Gen X, and I remember when the skinny jeans were only for the super skinny ones as they were thought to create “the dreaded ice cream cone look” for anyone who had even a hint of hips; boot cuts were thought to “balance out” the hips. Fast forward, and the cone suddenly became “flattering”, and some Millennials are still afraid that an extra inch of fabric will make them look fat. Same with the haircuts - short hair used to make you look “young”, then long hair made you look “young”, but really face lifts make you look “young”.

[Anonymous]

How do you hide the front of your neck (where aging shows) with your hair? I need a pic of this magic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what kind of short haircut you all are imagining when you say it’s high maintenance?

My hair is a pixie like Mia Farrow wore in the 70s. It takes 1 minute to wash and 1 minute to dry and 1 minute to apply some bed head type product to give it some volume/lift and I usually leave it spiky.

My very short hair takes less time to wash dry and style than it has at any other length over my lifetime. And I’m finally at that place in my life where I know I’m freaking gorgeous and amazing so I feel totally confident in it.

That’s it. Short hair requires confidence which many women don’t have.

For me it's being realistic: I do not have delicate features at all. I need some hair to balance that out. You can't fault people for trying to make the most out of their look. Why would someone knowingly get a haircut that will make them look worse?

Because “worse” is subjective. I am Gen X, and I remember when the skinny jeans were only for the super skinny ones as they were thought to create “the dreaded ice cream cone look” for anyone who had even a hint of hips; boot cuts were thought to “balance out” the hips. Fast forward, and the cone suddenly became “flattering”, and some Millennials are still afraid that an extra inch of fabric will make them look fat. Same with the haircuts - short hair used to make you look “young”, then long hair made you look “young”, but really face lifts make you look “young”.

I don't agree. I don't do trendy anything specifically because I know myself and what looks good on me. It happens to include short hair being a definite no. I could not feel confident with short hair because I would look bad with short hair, that's all. It's great if it works on someone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Thin hair. With very short hair, and it would be white/grey, some scalp showing doesn't look quite as bad.

It sucks. Be glad you don't have the problem.

You can buy a wig. They are very comfortable, affordable and nearly undectable to 99% of the population (only other wig wearers know what to look for.)

Okay, you are probably not an older woman.
In the midst of menopause and have to dress very lightly. Can't imagine having to wear a big hairy thing on my head too.

Exactly. I wouldn't say wigs are comfortable. EVER. It's like wearing a huge hat all day long.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Because with god only knows how much longer I get to live, I DGAF about this sort of nonsense anymore.

This. Once you're close to 50 you become largely invisible to men (in any sort of romantic sense) and many/most young people (they pass you by without looking either). So you're really just dressing for yourself and other women your own age (who still notice things like clothing, etc).
Does it really matter what women your own age think? Yes and no. I dress well, spend a decent amount on skin care and other cosmetic stuff but there is no hiding my age to anyone.

This all happens in the later 40s. Before then (age 42, 45, even 47) I might as well have been 35. Then boom. The hormones drop, you age quickly and with time you realize that no hairstyle on the planet is going to make you look 40 again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder what kind of short haircut you all are imagining when you say it’s high maintenance?

My hair is a pixie like Mia Farrow wore in the 70s. It takes 1 minute to wash and 1 minute to dry and 1 minute to apply some bed head type product to give it some volume/lift and I usually leave it spiky.

My very short hair takes less time to wash dry and style than it has at any other length over my lifetime. And I’m finally at that place in my life where I know I’m freaking gorgeous and amazing so I feel totally confident in it.

That’s it. Short hair requires confidence which many women don’t have.

For me it's being realistic: I do not have delicate features at all. I need some hair to balance that out. You can't fault people for trying to make the most out of their look. Why would someone knowingly get a haircut that will make them look worse?

This is me, too. I keep my hair long and 99% of the time in a simple bun. In addition to being easier, it at least helps me feel feminine. I have had short hair (which was difficult to wrangle on daily basis) and on me it looks quite masculine because I have heavy features, don't wear makeup, and I must wear glasses. It's just not good on so many levels! Great that it works for many. On me, it just does not.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My theory is that American hairdressers are lousy and cutting short hair. It takes more skill than cutting longer hair because each cut needs to be custom to the head shape and hair of the person. They've also only ever seen the awful cuts that are ubiquitous on older American women, so I that's what they do. I agree that it's often a terrible look, but I don't think the solution is going long.

I had an amazing pixie cut when I was living in France, but never could get it replicated in the US, even with photos of the original. Now I have a wavy French bob, which is harder for hairdressers to butcher to cut than a pixie. I do think short hair can look super chic. I just think it's really hard to find an American hairdresser with that skill set. By contrast, I saw beautiful and flattering short haircuts all over France.

It's not the hair stylists... it's the person. Most people don't have the bone structure to pull off short hair. You need a more compact face, a smaller nose, strong cheekbones, etc.

You'd be surprised how skilled stylists can match a modern looking short haircut to a face. The cuts can be striking.

Photos?

[Anonymous]

One of the things I love about the show Hacks is that it shows real aging in all it's nonglory. That lovely hair Deborah has? It's a wig and what's underneath is short and, well, pretty thin and dry. Jean Smart is gorgeous AND she looks her age and is showing it like it is.

Women who are premenopausal just have no idea how fast things change when the estrogen goes. As I got into my 40s, I started to look really young for my age and especially so as I rounded into my early 50s. Every time I ran into an old acquaintance, I would hear, "my god, you haven't aged at all!" and it was true. And the reason was that I was late to menopause. Almost all of my friends hit menopause 5-10 years before I did, which meant their estrogen was declining several years before that. Mine carried me right into my mid 50s. I finally hit menopause at 57. And let me tell you, the last few years.... Nobody tells me i look young my age anymore lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why do older women get their haircut short when that exposes their necks and necks show age? And is it because their hair gets thin, they think it makes them look better, or they want less hassle of washing it?

Op Why can't we show our necks? Do you want us to cover up so you can't see us? Then I suggest you move to Afghanistan where women can't be seen or heard

[Anonymous]

My mother told me that women over 40 have to have short hair. Period. It’s culturally appropriate, she said.
Of course, I vowed to have long hair forever. And I’m in my 50s with long curly lustrous hair. Ha!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am 58. My hair is naturally wavy and I still have a lot of it. I straighten it about half the time. Barring a major health issue, I have no plans to cut my hair short enough that I can’t pull it up. Even my hairdresser says short hair would be way more work for me based on my hair type.

I don’t wear it as long as I did in my 20s and 30s but that’s a personal preference, not pressure to follow an unwritten rule about long hair on older women. I keep it around my shoulders or just below these days.

+1
This describes me too. I almost always wear my hair in a ponytail, so it has to be at least long enough to pull it back. I do think it would be more work if I had shorter hair that couldn't be pulled into a ponytail. It would have to be styled every day and I'm not up for it.

Dp. It is not 'more work' to have short hair! Since when did having less of something take more time?

I don't care what you do with your hair..no judgement but I have short hair and do not style it every day! That is very funny!!

My hair has its own personality with a lot of cowlicks. When long, the weight of the hair keeps it presentable right from when I wake up. Short, some of my hair goes one way, the rest is straight. I use a round brush to get my cowlicks to heel with a hair dryer. So...longer time styling.

See how that works when you don't assume everyone is the same as you.
NP

In general less of anything is less work. Would you say having a fewer children more work? Or a smaller house? Of course not ( not talking about kids with disabilities)

So excluding you and a few others would you agree that shorter hair is less work than long hair?

I have no idea why you keeping insisting when your comments are wrong for many of us. It takes longer to maintain a smaller ornate garden than a bigger plain yard.

Right back at ya! I notice you skipped the bolded and gave a totally bad analogy! Here is a better one: example your yard.
Would you say a small plain yard is easier/takes less time or harder to take care of than a LARGE plain yard?