More by: Marlee
since the age of two my hair has been nothing more than a constant art project. chop this side, burn this part, dye that section, dip whole head in peroxide, etc. the most important thing i have learned through my many different hair styles is this : DO IT YOURSELF. or : DO IT TOGETHER.
not much need for the ole’ barber shop. or the fancy hurrr salon. grab some scissors. a towel. and possibly a friend or two.
AND HAVE AT IT. WITH THIS BURNING HEAT IT’S THE PERFECT TIME TO SHED SOME LAYERS!
* projects to try on your own head that i have found generally destructive :
1. SHAVING ENTIRE HEAD.
for some women, this is liberating. for me, it was terrifying and i had no bangs and got real pissed.
2. DIPPING ENTIRE HEAD IN PEROXIDE.
it doesn’t turn out like lady gaga, and your skull burns.
3. FIXING PEROXIDE JOB WITH BLEACH, BY YOURSELF.
mine turned a terrifying shade of yellow. ask a friend. this is a classic DO IT TOGETHER. you probably have a friend who knows a thing or two about bleaching hair. and can do it on the cheap.
4. CUTTING YOUR OWN BANGS AT AGE TWO.
nuff sed.
* projects to try with help of a friend *
1. HERE IS A RAZOR DO WHATEVER YOU WANT
i said these words to sam snedeker last week. and now an entire side of my head is shaved. the a-symmetrical look is nice. i would advise that if you have a natural part – go with that. i managed to keep my bangs and length of one side while reaping the benefits of a shaved head.
2. HERE ARE SCISSORS. MY HAIR IS LONG. IT’S HOT.
the words of a one melissa mazurek. her hair is the perfect example of a collage of hair projects. a few dreads here and there. very short bangs. yet long in the back. we cut off a large chunk of her hair in the front, layering it so that it wasn’t always getting in her face. then i went through the back and just sort of hacked away, leaving some fresh layers.
NOTE : IF YOU PIN BACK HAIR THAT GETS IN YOUR FACE EVERYDAY : JUST CUT IT
OFF.
3. OH HAY YOU GOT EXTRA HAIR? GIVE ME IT.
i dreaded a long piece of melissa’s hair into mine. it looks special.
4. WOW, MY NATURAL HAIR COLOR ISN’T ALL THAT BAD.
i died my hair red for years, and everyone thought it was natural. my mother worked at a real fancy salon and they did it there for free so it never had the “just out of the box” look. after shaving it i let it grow back and was really impressed with the color i saw. i was 21 and hadn’t seen it since i was 12. it was like finding an old friend.
* here is the real kicker, that everyone should understand how to do by themselves *
TRIM YOUR OWN BANGS ONE OH ONE.
you DO NOT need a friend, professional, or parental supervision for this project. i would imagine a lot of the people reading this have bangs. NO FEAR. YOU HAVE THE POWER TO CUT THEM YOURSELF.
STEP A : GET THEM WET.
STEP B : BRUSH THEM FORWARD AND IN THE EXACT DIRECTION THEY FALL (STRAIGHT
FRONT VS. SIDE SWEEPING LEFT/RIGHT)
STEP C : IF CUTTING SIGNIFICANT LENGTH OFF : CUT STRAIGHT ACROSS SLIGHTLY
BEFORE DESIRED LENGTH.
STEP D : ONCE LENGTH IS REACHED IN ORDER TO SHAPE YOU MUST HOLD SCISSORS *VERTICAL* THIS WILL TAKE AWAY THE WEIRD “OH HAY I CUT MY BANGS MYSELF” LOOK THIS IS IMPORTANT EVEN IF YOU ARE GOING FOR BLUNT STRAIGHT ACROSS BANGS.
ok. i hope that helped.
MORAL OF THE STORY :
don’t be afraid. it grows back. and be proud of your natural hair color.
mgcp
i can say from experience, marlee has always rocked the best fucking hair in the midwest and even all across america. thank you for inspiring us to believe in our diy skills.
One thing I think that is criminally overlooked by this column: COMPOSTING.
If you’re not composting your hair you should really ask yourself why you HATE THE FUCKING PLANET?
i know a thing or TWO about cuttin’ hairs. kevin, i throw the hair outside for birds to make nests out of.
i like that when i click DOMINIC it sends me to the damages myspace page.