Monday, December 2, 2013

HAIR ( not the musical ...)




I had no idea that a simple haircut would be such a big emotional deal to me.

I've recently written about being a bit down in the dumps about my appearance, and a few weeks earlier, I wrote about burning big chunks of my hair off in an accident with a candle, and consequently getting it cut into a chin-length bob. It took me until the day before Thanksgiving last week to put the two events together.

Duh. I just had to finally admit that I hated having to cut my hair when I wasn't ready to do it, and hated how the resulting style looked on me.

I look like a garden gnome in all my pictures since "The Bob."

I've had hairstyle-fails before, but they didn't send me into a funk.

Next, I indulged in a good, thoroughly cathartic fit of weeping. Then I went to my old salon in the Big City, clutching a photo of a style I liked better and begged a stylist to fit me in without an appointment. She cut another 1.5 inches off, add some texture-y layers and show me how to flip them around a bit to break up what looks like an old fashioned "page-boy" to me. I am still learning some new hair styling skills, it's still bob-ish (in fact, another version) but not as rigid looking and I am happier.

But the big surprise in all this is how much I didn't like my original cut, and how low I felt about it. It was a good, competent haircut, but really not how I want to look. Lots of the women whose looks I admire most wear bobbed locks with panache, great flair and look completely beautiful in this very popular style. I envy all of you. I've appreciated and tried to internalize all the compliments and support I've gotten from so many of my bloggy friends in the comments section. But on me, I think it looks uptight (wow... how long has it been since you heard anyone use that word?) and more than a little constipated and stuffy. And I think I look just a little mean. I take notions about things, like leopard print and denim jackets and camouflage prints. Apparently, that applies to some hairstyles as well.

I'm still not happy about my hair, and I don't want to grow it long again, but I see a spark of potential. And I'm feeling better now that I've given up trying to force myself into liking it. Perhaps it's just me in my maturity, but life is seeming way too short to spend any more time at all trying to accept a haircut I don't like.

So I won't.



Here I am, still stuck in dressed-down, post-holiday, errand running mode, with the new cut. It was so cold out that Dan was shaky and the picture wasn't very sharp. I adjusted the color ... blouse is close, as are the oxblood jacket and cordovan booties. My hair came out much brighter than it really is, though, but you get an idea of the cut.
I was wearing lipstick that was almost burgundy ... go figure.

                 ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I'll be showing up "late but present" at the always sweet-and-kind-looking Patti's Visible Monday 
and the ever inquisitive Seeker's linky party, 

78 comments:

  1. Actually I think the haircut looks really cute, but I totally understand about needing to find a style that's "you."

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  2. I know how you felt Jan! So often I left the hairdresser feeling like Samson who lost his power. But most time the trouble disappeared within some days. I agree with you, life is too short to weep over cut hair.

    I think after some days you see and feel how fresh and sassy this hairstyle is. In any case you look fabulous in it.

    I love your casual outfit, particularly the red rose top!

    Have a fine week!

    Sabine - http://achtstundensindkeintag.blogspot.de/

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  3. I think this style looks great - it's probably just getting used to how to style it. I have the finest and limpest hair around so I could never do a cut like that even though I love it. I think it gives you a bit of a spunk!


    Alice
    www.happinessatmidlife.com

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  4. Mrs_Jack_of_all_tradesDecember 3, 2013 at 1:06 AM

    I actually like this new look, Jan.. makes you look sassy! I know haircut can be really tricky and letting the right person doing it is even trickier! But looks like you nailed both departments! I used to have a bob cut too and apparently it looked good on me but I need to style it (blow dry and all) and I am not good in that department (as in lazy) hence this long-ish look I've been having forever. Cheer-up girlfriend, you look really good, honestly :)

    WARM GREETINGS FROM DUBAI! xxx
    MRS JACK OF ALL TRADES
    http://mrsjackofalltradesdaily.blogspot.ae/

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  5. The first thing that came to mind with your new do is sponteneous and fun. You wrar it well.

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  6. You look terrific ! Good cut, fine top and smile: bravo from France !!!

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  7. First of all, love the top and oxblood jacket...perfect colors for you. Second, I feel your pain. I think most of us are caught up in our hair, it's such a huge part of who we are. I don't feel like me if my hair isn't at least to my shoulders and some variant of red. A few years back the woman who had cut my hair for years was a bit distracted and took off about 6 inches (yes, 6) too much...I could tell by the feel of the first cut in the back it was going to be a disaster. When she was done, for the first and only time ever, I sat in her chair and sobbed. In the end, she was crying too and it was awful. I didn't get over it for a long time. You can tell yourself it will grow back, which is true, but that doesn't really help in the moment. That being said, I do love this new cut on you. The layers are fun and they do make it way less bob-like. You look gorgeous!
    Debbie
    www.fashionfairydust.blogspot.com

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  8. VersatilestylebytraceyDecember 3, 2013 at 6:43 AM

    I think since it wasn't really your decision, that it would be a normal reaction to feel down in the dumps over it! Glad you went back for improvements that made you feel better! I do agree that this cut and your leather jacket have quiet a sassy vibe going on here! So rock it and own it!

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  9. I really liked your bob as it was, but if you weren't feeling it, then time to change, and I LOVE the new flippy, flirty version! Glad you feel happier with it. I think we all get what you mean about a style - be it hair or clothes - that just doesn't seem to suit us or fit with our view of ourselves. And I completely understand that our relationship with our hair is loaded with associations, and can have a huge emotional significance. So you're allowed your tears - you're allowed a bloody great tantrum if you want! - but then you got on and sorted it out, so good for you.

    I once sat in a hairdresser's chair while he preened and postured and looked at himself in the mirror more than at me, and proceeded to give me the The Worst Hair Cut Ever, which I meekly paid for and said thank you. Then I went outside and cried all the way home. This was many years ago, I hasten to add, I would intervene sooner these days!

    Love love love the outfit - the jacket and the boots are delicious, the print on your t-shirt is beautiful, and you look vibrant and happy and... sexy! Yeah, I'm going there, cos it's true! xxxx

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  10. Patti_NotDeadYetStyleDecember 3, 2013 at 8:42 AM

    I think you look lovely and I really like the cut -- but I know it's not something you willingly chose! So give yourself some time to play with it, and scruff it up, and you may come to love it. Your red is as sassy as ever : > Thanks for sharing with Visible Monday. xo

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  11. I had to go back and look at some older posts to see your hair style again. I loved it! But I love it now, too. You are blessed with one gorgeous, full, head of hair! Do with it what makes you happy. :)

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  12. Your hair looks adorable! Maybe you don't want to look adorable, but it is really so much less "mean" or just "stern" than it was before. I hope you learn to like it, because it really looks good on you. But I know what you mean. I like a certain shape for my hair, and if it doesn't fit that shape it doesn't matter how many compliments I get.

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  13. I want to see more of your face, love, because yours is a face worth seeing! I like the new do because it does sweep back a bit (I would flip it away from your face even more!). You're in a funk because you are evolving, and growing pains hurt. Just let go; it'll be okay ;-)


    Alicia

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  14. Your hair always looks amazing Jan! I envy yours in all its styles.

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  15. Jan!!! I Lurve your hair! I really do! It's very spunky. I'm stuck in bob land myself. Maybe I need a little candle intervention. Congratulations on the Woody Allen test. I purposely made it difficult so I could find the true WA nerds. Yeah, he's a little odd. But there are a lot of geniuses with whom I would NOT want to spend the weekend!

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  16. Well I can say in all honesty that I do prefer this haircut on you. I think now looking back at the other one maybe the other style aged you. I know that it the last thing you'd ever want to hear. I can see with a bob that it is rigid. This looks fun and flirty.


    I think it is interesting because you obviously have an idea in your head about how you look or want to look and when that is altered it is shocking and doesn't align with the internal perception of yourself.


    I had this happen when I got my hair dyed almost black once. Every time I looked in the mirror I couldn't figure out who was staring back at me but I didn't like her. It months for my lighter colour to come back.


    The worst was when I got my last perm. The woman in the salon assured me it would be soft and full and not look like a poodle at all. My first hint should have been all the 85 year old women around me with extra tight curly blue/purple heads of fried hair. But no, silly naive me, I trusted her and came out looking like a frizzy fat poodle. I have no idea how getting a perm could make me feel fatter, but boy, this one did, and it made me feel ugly too. I was assured that it would "relax" in a couple of days but I couldn't wait. I went out to a new salon the very next day, paid even more money and got about 4 inches cut off. My hair was the worst it had ever been. When I look back on those photos I still hate it. And I still think it made me look fat! LOL


    And just for the record…you don't look fat okay? : ) You look cute and sexy.


    bisous
    Suzanne

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  17. Wow, I love the cut and sassy with the layers! Finding the right short hair style isn't easy, it can take many cuts. At least it did for me. I love the bangs and texturizing is so anti aging. I did a bob when I first cut my long hair and I felt the same. I thought of mine as "TV hair" and that just didn't work for me. I have colored my hair darker also and that makes me crabby. I think you have a winner here on the second cut, impressive!


    blue hue wonderland

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  18. Dawn @ AlterEgoFashionistaDecember 3, 2013 at 11:27 PM

    Hair is huge! The other day, my hair was all weird, and I found that my confidence was diminished! A short cut can be tricky...I'm just starting to (usually) like mine after about a year with a new and darling gal...seriously! I think yours looks frisky and cute...the wilder, the better!

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  19. First off, I was serious about liking your hair last week, but you're absolutely right, it's much better with a little funk and flare to it. Isn't it amazing what a hairstyle can do to our self image? It's quite obvious you have beautiful thick and healthy hair which is an envy to many many women abd with hair like yours, you can do countless cuts and styles with. You are one lucky lady.

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  20. Tamera Ferguson WolfeDecember 4, 2013 at 9:18 AM

    Jan--I LOVE the new hairdo--it's very fresh and spunky with the little wispy pieces!!!
    I liked the other cut but comparing the two--this one makes you look younger. The other was a bit more harsh and aging!!
    I tried a bot cut a couple of years ago (pre-blog) and it was AWFUL. My hair doesn't have sleek bob tendencies and I'm hopeless with hair products and tools!!
    Love the outfit--you look very stylish and cute for running errands (not like some of the denizens of peopleofwalmart.com-LOL)
    Love to you and your furry kids!!

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  21. You are so attractive you could sport a buzz cut and still look gorgeous! I know what you mean though, I hated my hair for years, I couldn't put my finger on why but as soon as I dyed it black everything felt right and for the first time in my life I looked right.
    I do like your hair flicky and edgy like that, the colour is fabulous and the lipstick super sexy! xxx

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  22. Dear Jan, I so LOVE your new hair cut!!! You look so beautiful, well you ARE beautiful! There's something wild in it that makes you look younger. Not that you didn't look great, but it's always good to change our hairdo from time to time, so I think.
    I'm a short hair lady and right now I'm not liking my hairstyle that much. I'm trying to find some time to go to my hairdresser before Christmas.
    But back to you, you look sexy girl, in that outfit. The jacket and the boots are amazing and you look happy :)

    Thank you so much for the shout out and for linking up on Tres Chic Style Bits.

    Big hug.
    xoxo

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  23. I think your new hair cut is spunky! Really, cute, youthful and fun. Change is good you know (I wonder who said that?).


    Monica, www.pear-shaped-gal.com

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  24. Jean at Dross into GoldDecember 4, 2013 at 10:09 PM

    Gorgeous!! Amazing what a little tweaking can do for our mood and self esteem. Been there too. XXXOOO

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  25. Mrs D from Hello The MushroomDecember 5, 2013 at 5:01 AM

    I totally know what you mean, some things don't look bad on us, they just don't feel 'us'!

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  26. I am getting on the bandwagon and saying I like the newer version of you too. I liked the original bob it was more traditional looking. I think this one gives a little more spunk to your step. You are styling girl keep standing up for yourself cause I admire that in you.

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  27. It's amazing what a new cut can do to raise the spirits. Nothing like taking action and getting what you need to feel and look absolutely radiant, which you do. Looking very chic on an errand running day!

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  28. Jan I like the new do because it looks like you! Your eyes sparkle, your smile is brighter, you look more at ease with yourself, you look happy. No, you are happy! hope that makes sense.
    hugs
    Lenya

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  29. Thanks so much Sabine! I'm glad you like how it looks now ... means a lot. Still a bit of a styling learning curve, but I'll get there!
    I hope you have a good week too!
    (We're about to get hit with a bad ice storm ... we're closing the restaurant and going into hibernation in pajamas. Hope the power stays on!)

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  30. Thank you, Alice! That's exactly it ... a styling learning curve. Mine is fine and limp, too, but I'm learning a lot about *product* as my hair folks call all the gunk it takes to keep it pointy!
    (Keep your fingers crossed for us down here ... very big ice storm on the way ... worse than snow, and the restaurant is closed. I just need to keep the power on!

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  31. Sassy ... that's such a sweet word for my backtalk and smarty-pantsing around. Thanks though, it is a kind thing to say! I'll imagine you can wear any hairstyle you like, and I love your hair now. It's so versatile ... you have so many looks. I'm considerably more cheerful about the hair the last couple of days, but now there's a big ice storm headed our way that will close the restaurant for the whole weekend! Yikes ... but Dan can cook for me for a change, so that's good. Pajamas and old movies, not too bad!

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  32. Great first thoughts, Glenda. Thank you very much, Madam! I'm liking it a lot, but learning how to make it look this way ... lots of product!
    Nice of you to stop by!

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  33. Merci ! I'm so happy you like it. And I'm so glad you came by to say so!

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  34. Oh, thank you Debbie ...I thought of you when I picked out that jacket. It just looks like you.
    Awwww.... what a picture! Both of you weeping buckets in front of the mirror!
    At my age, "it will grow back" isn't as certain as it once was! That's one of the reasons I was feeling especially bad about the first cut! But all is well for the moment, and I'm on my styling learning curve. I wanna look shaggy!
    Have fun with the new puppy ... can't wait to see more pictures soon!

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  35. Thank you, Tracey, for the sympathy! That was a big part of it. Control. All an illusion, isn't it, but feeling much better now!
    So happy you stopped by to add your thoughts ... I always love it when you do!

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  36. I can always count on you for the best sympathy, Curtise. I'll try not to post any more whiny (wingeing; yes?) posts for a while.

    I can just see your hairdresser ... what possesses them? Bet you tipped handsomely, too. We learn to step up after a really bad experience or two, don't we. I had a particularly bad cut one time, when my then *stylist* (now *fired stylist*) swung the chair around so I couldn't watch in the mirror (first bad sign). Then she spend the entire time ooozing on to her confidante-colleague about what a passion she had for her very hot minister and what a wonderful spiritual relationship they had in spite of his wife! AGGGGGGG! Ewwww. And then, all about her religious philosophy. Urk? I, too, was shocked at the result, and paid, tipped and left. But I didn't cry. I went about a mile, turned around before the vein in my neck burst, and spoke privately with her about my annoyance, at the top of my lungs. She's lucky her boss wasn't there.


    The lady who initially cut my bob did just what I wanted, and really saved my butt. All this, not her fault but my own mistakes.


    Lest I ever get a big head over compliments, Dan read through the comments this morning and told me that "sassy," "spunky," and "frisky" all are euphemisms for "smart-ass". I'm pretty sure he's right. But I can hang on to "vibrant" and "sexy", at least !

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  37. Ha! Thank you Pao! Good to see you out and about! Know you are sewing up a storm and we'll see stuff soon from you! We miss your face, darlin"!

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  38. Thanks, Patti! So much! That's what all the angst was about ... controll. I'm working on scruffing it up, as you say ... love that, 'cause it's what I want. It's a Work In Progress! Longish learning curve, though.


    I'll have the weekend to mess with it ... ice storm coming my way, and it looks ugly. All secure here, though, and Dan can cook for me!
    Wave some of that balmy, Florida air my way, please!

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  39. You are just the kindest girl, Shams. Don't let my mop fool you .. it's thin and fine as can be... I'm doing minoxidil, twice a day ... forever! And color helps.
    I'm so stubborn though, that it bends to my will eventually!
    I'm so happy you stopped by to chime in ... thanks sooooo much!

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  40. I loved reading your words in this post. Made me smile, and remember, and wince a little. I can so relate...I think it was two years ago that I had my own hair crisis, and let my daughter (who was, at the time, studying to be a beautician) chop all my hair off. Super short. I hated it. A neighbor cooingly told me I looked like Julie Andrews, who has a beautiful voice and a beautiful face but whose hair would be the last I'd like to mimic (seriously...would rather try Sinead O'Connor's early 90's shave). Anyway. Had to check earlier posts and see your bob (which did look very trendy and fashionable, by the way). In this post's picture, honestly, the first thing I notice is your smile (I imagine you're thinking wry, humorous thoughts as the photos clicked?) and your lovely length of leg. I'm envying your leg length. My hair is longer than yours, but you can grow hair all your life (or wear a wig, which I've done). My leg growing window closed decades ago. Happy hair growing! Your hair angst days are (thankfully) numbered!

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  41. I think your haircut is cute but I can understand that you're not feeling ok with your hair even though people give you compliments about it!.
    If you need some adaptation period to your new hairstyle or if it would be remade soon, anyway you're cool enough to manage it!
    And love your blouse and all those burgundy shades!
    besos

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  42. You look so chic Jan! I LOVE your hair...very sassy!!!

    xo,
    Janise

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  43. I suppose you just didn't feel yourself with that haircut. I've been through this too. Everybody said I looked fine but I just hated my hair and avoided to look in the mirror. I'm glad you feel better about your cut now.

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  44. Darling Val ... I can handle "adorable." Nice. I'm really in new territory with short-ish hair, but am working on it. Much depends on learning how to use "product". Who knows where this wall will end. Hair ... really important!
    Just got the power back on after not quite 2 full days with none ... am heading hot-bathward soon, after some Direct TV and some Internet catching up. 22 degrees here tonight.
    Thank you so much for your very sweet remarks ... they are so appreciated, especially amid all the confusion!

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  45. Nope, not much more face-flipping-away-from ... doesn't look good on me, but I'm flattered that you think more of my face is a good thing. There isn't much more than what's here! Work in progress. And yes, funk from evolving style pains is common, and I admit to that.
    Not quite ready to just let it go, quite yet. It's my freaking hair ... always a challenge, but important to me. Our hair, generally, is a style issue. If my blog were about something else, you wouldn't hear a peep out of me.
    But I hear you, and will quit bitching ... trying to entertain with my misadventures is all.
    Thanks so much for such nice support, as always. Sweet thoughts, and I appreciate them.
    (Just got power back on after not quite 2 days out, and am high from the warmth, hot water and Direct TV access ... not to mention the internet. Stay warm ... one little system to go... not supposed to be much, but worth watching!)

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  46. So sweet, Laurie. Thank you ... not much to envy, though. Color is from a box, cut in flux and I have to use minoxidil twice daily or it falls out in chunks. But, could be worse ... after all, it's common at my age. I'm happy to hear from you ... so kind.

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  47. Hey, Connie! So nice ... thank you so much for your very kind comments. Yours was one of the bobs that inspired me to keep trying it, 'cause you look so pretty and sleek in yours. No intervention needed ... you can relax in that you are highly styled in fabulously flattering land o' bob ... you don't look mean in yours! It's my nose and lack of chin, I think.
    So happy you stopped by, and am always tickled when I find you on Vis Monday!

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  48. Yes ... that's another thing ... "TV Hair". I just am not cool enough to pull it off. It's a Mom-Bob on me, and that's not always awful, but not what I'm ready for. I'm deep into Grandmother territory age-wise, but my hair doesn't have to submit to that completely.
    Thanks, Ann ... our previous chat reminded me that I should take advantage of proportionality, and that helped a lot. Work in progress, but it's an important one to me. So kind, your comments, and I appreciate the support.

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  49. I know we have a lot more to offer than our hair but let's be honest, it is amazing how much a hairstyle can influence the way how we feel, behave and look at ourselves... it doesn't matter how many people say how much a new cut or colour suits us if we don't feel confident or happy with it.

    Having said that... you looked and look great :-)

    Annette | Lady of Style

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  50. (Hmmm .... my reply from yesterday has disappeared .... gremlins? Forgot what I wrote, but trying again ...)


    Thank you! You get me on this! I think you're right about the bob aging me .... and at my age, that's not desirable. However, I worry less about looking old (I am undeniably old, and will look old no matter what) but I'd like to look as good as possible.
    And we all know, life is better when you have more good hair days than bad ones. So I want to like it. This is better. I understand exactly what you mean about looking in the mirror and not liking just what you see, but WHO you see. Scary, the power of hair color, yes?


    Salon horror stories; Yikes, poor baby. Sounds horrific, Stephen King-terrible. See my reply to Curtise above for mine. And OH, YES ! Hair can make you feel fat! Not that so far, but it can also make you feel short. Like my age, my height is what it is.


    You are so kind ... I appreciate the empathy!

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  51. I always envy those women whose hair doesn't affect their day ... and you are so right, it can make a difference. I can accept that pretty easily as long as I have the capability of whipping it into shape pretty quickly.


    Come to think of it ... I noted that your hair was looking great the last time I was over at your blog! Voluptuous and naturally pretty! A great stylist is a wonderful friend.


    Thanks so much for the understanding! So happy to see you stop by, Dawn.

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  52. I'm thrilled, Trina, that my hair looks thick to you ... it is fine and thinning. I use minoxidil to keep any of it! That's part of my angst; I've been battling hair loss for years. It also falls flat at the first change in barometric pressure.
    If I could make my bob look as fresh and swingy and youthful as yours, I'd shut up and be happy. Your hair is one of the reasons I hoped it would work for me ... you know you're a hairstyle icon as well as a dress-style icon for me!


    Thank so much for your lovely remarks ... you're always so nice.
    You are always welcome here!

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  53. Thanks so much, Tamera ... you're so nice to say so. Glad you like it, and am working on how to do it! I've learned to use tools pretty well ... not so hard if your hair is straight to begin with. Products are confusing to me 'cause the language they use is so subjective. When the product claims to make "beachy" hair, do they mean windswept and casually wavy ... or do they mean limp, dingy and vaguely stiff and dirty looking?
    I'm so confused!
    Stay warm, all you kids, furry and non!

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  54. So sweet, Vix! I have considered, in saddest hair considerations, hacking it all off, and shaving my head ... I guarantee, it was not anything but frightening! Thanks so much for liking the new effort.


    Yup ... your long black locks are signature for you, and they work so well with any vintage look or contemporary one you can imagine.
    Flicky ... that's what I want. May need to have a bit more off the back, but I think it's going in the right direction. I'll keep that word and use it to describe to my hair cutter!


    BTW ... I have to thank you for sending *The Thoughtful Dresser* to Curtise ... who in turn sent it on to me! BEST BOOK EVER, and although I haven't told her this yet, I spent the last couple of days without power, snowed-in here in Nowhere. I piled up in a blanket, with the cats and dogs, near a well-lit window and read until I needed my "Itty-Bitty-Book-Light" ... and I read on into the night until it was done. That woman understands why it's all important to us.
    Visible Monday blog ... instant material, just add water!


    So happy you stopped by! Thanks again for all.

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  55. Thanks so much, Seeker, for your extremely kind words.
    Hair is difficult! Good hair is even harder! I'm so glad you like my mop in it's new form.
    It's a challenge just getting to the hair salon in the very season when we're supposed to look our best, isn't it! Everyone has expectations, yes?
    I hope you'll keep your linky going. It will grow, and I know that it just takes time. Hang in there, kid.
    Hope your weather has improved ... ours is still cold, we're still housebound, but the power is back on, so that's good!

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  56. You are so right, Jean! Young or old, it's why we fuss with our hair in the first place. Thank you so much for your kind compliment!

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  57. Yup. That's it. This angst-ridden episode has made me think long about what hair says, as well as the narrative in my clothing.
    So glad for all the support ... thank you so much for stopping by!

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  58. You're always welcome on any bandwagon that rolls down my street! Kind of you, Adrienne. I need something in my step these days ... it is turning into a very long winter here.
    I really appreciate all the empathy, sympathy and good thought. Hair is one thing we all have in common, whether it's easy and celebratory or hard and disheartening.
    So happy you stopped by!

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  59. You're so right, Judith ... sometimes it is just forward momentum that counts. Just doing something to make different, and the hope is that change will make it better. You're so kind. Thank you so much for your sweet thoughts, nice compliments and for reading my whiny posts!

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  60. Wow! So happy it appears that way ... and yes, I am happy. Or just happier, but that feels very good. And it does make sense. Bad hair days, when you have a lot of them in a row, can make you blue and sad. Better hair = better mood! No doubt.
    Thank you, Lenya, for the very sweet remarks.

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  61. Thank you so much for stopping by, Lynaea, and offering so much empathy. I know my recent hair posts have been a bummer, but hair disasters and triumphs are so much a common experience, and the kinds of challenges we face as we get older are as well.
    There is a point in life when hair doesn't grow back so easily, and most of us have reached that, or are approaching it.
    I SO know what you mean about the Julie Andrews comments. It's been a while, but I used to be told I looked like Carol Burnett ! Yikes ... NOT a compliment on my looks, although she's a multi-talented lady. I don't hear it so much any more ... not that my looks have changed, but younger folks don't know who she is anymore!
    Leg length ... boy, is that a lesson on how photos can lie! Camera angle and dark dressing plus a deliberate pose! One of the nicest things anyone has said to me. And least realistic ... I'm sure my inseam is not even 26"! Soooo kind of you!
    So happy you came by for a visit A real pleasure for me!

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  62. Now that I see both versions of your hair, I like this one better only because you are happier and it shows! It doesn't really matter what others think, if you don't like it then you can't be confident. But Jan truly you are gorgeous! I love, love the deep and rich colours.

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  63. I actually love bobs but this new version of yours is more fantastic! You look so much younger and I´ve always wanted those short waves/layers. Don´t be sad, I prefer this over your longer hair. :)

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  64. Thank you Janise! High compliments from one of my most admired fashionistas. Lots of people have used the word "sassy" but my huz reminds me that a synonym for it is "smart-mouthed" ... he's right, but I reminded him that those comments were about my hair more than my personality. He rolled his eyes.
    There's no justice, I tell you. I'm glad you were all so nice.
    He's about to experience "sassy".
    Have a great week!

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  65. You're so sweet, Olga. Thanks for the support. Instead of avoiding the mirror, I found myself looking in it a lot more often. It wasn't fun, but I kept hoping it would look better to me, or that I'd catch myself at a moment when it looked good. Better now ... at least I'm used to the length! Now for the style ...

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  66. So sweet, Annette. That means a lot coming from you. I hope I'm more than my hair, but in my head, the hair is a major part of the "bookcover". I know you get that, so thanks for the reassurance and understanding and the reminder that the cover is not the book!

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  67. Awww ... thanks so much! I've grown uncomfortable with my own complaining, so I'll try to stop now, but this has been a strange fall and early winter. I so appreciate the empathy, sympathy and kind words. I'm glad to know that hair is a common Achilles heel for so many of us.

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  68. Thank you, Che, so much. I've always wanted choppy layers, too, so my instinct is to ask myself "if not now ... when?" In a whole new world of product and the learning curve is steep!
    So happy to see you stop by!

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  69. Love your title!! lol - Hair (not the musical)

    You look beautiful Jan, but I know what you mean - YOU have to be happy with the cut. Hair is a woman's crowning glory and most women with style fuss over it because hair can make us feel pretty or not so good - hence - bad hair days! We all have them.

    The good thing about hair is that it grows!! :-) I'm due for a cut this Friday, nothing drastic, just a trim.

    ♥ carmen



    http://fashionableover50.wordpress.com/

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  70. OK I like this cut, but I have no idea what you were talking about. I am afraid the problem is all in your head. I thought your first cut looked ever so nice. Even better than the longer hair. And I like this new cut too. You just have beautiful hair. You might know I never lie, not on blogs either. If I don't like something I will say it to a blogger I follow every post (or hint so not to sound mean). But I really like your hair. Perhaps it is because I see a similar bob in the mirror every day haha. My hair it terrible: thin and little of it. So this is the best I can do.
    Greetje

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  71. Forgot to say: your outfit is very good: nice and casual wear with elegance.

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  72. Wow! This will be my third time trying to send a reply to your post! Must be Disqus. Are you getting them, and they are just not showing here, I wonder? No matter ... I may just be crazy.
    Thank you so much Senora ... I'm always happy when you drop by. Hope you actually see this one! Please drop a "got it" if you receive this.

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  73. Thank you Carmen ... glad you got a laugh. Sweet comments!
    There's a stubborn element to my attitude, I think. I hate being told that as an older woman (okay, old woman) I should keep my hair short. Then I had to cut it. ARRRRRRGH.
    I don't want to look like I gave in and up. That's a lot of my problem. Not a great reason for all this angst, so I'm making every effort to let go.
    Sorry for being so slow in reply! Always happy to see you here!
    Have a lovely weekend ...

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  74. oh yes, I drop it!
    thanks for everything!

    En Fri, 20 Dec 2013 20:54:41 +0100, Disqus escribió:

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  75. No worries about tardy replies ;-) I am amazed that you take time to write to so many people! You are either a very fast thinker and typist (I am not) or you don't get much sleep! At any rate, I enjoy your blog and photos and I appreciate you stopping by my blog and leaving a note!

    Have a great weekend!
    ♥ carmen

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  76. I love the conversations you have going in your comments. Yes, ug, about a bad hair appt. I had one a while ago too and the follicular assault is gradually fading from memory. Don't dislike me when I say I like this cut and colour. It looks fun, flirty, and, yes, your eyes are mesmerizing.

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  77. While I did really like the longer bob, I think this new shorter version is spunkier and just a bit more "you". It is amazing how much a hair cut can affect how we feel.

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