Major haircut

Matt has been cutting my hair for about eight years. He’s an awesome stylist and is honest about what looks I can wear. Bangs? No. A sweep of layers around my face? Sure.

So I went for my Big Chop today.

Here I am (mere moments before my haircut) with Tammi, another stylist at Erik of Norway. She was wearing her hair in a really simple but cute ponytail (a look that became impossible for me to achieve as my hair got superlong).

I like Matt's approach — measure twice and cut once. Though, he didn’t actually measure this time. He put my hair in pigtails and pulled the elastics down.

He adjusted, he compared, he chopped.

After putting my pigtails in Ziplocs, he washed, dried, and flat-ironed my hair. Then he cut and shaped it into a “long, lean bob.” Quotes are not necessary here, but I’m having a hard time seeing my new style in quite those terms. It’s been over a decade since my hair was this short. (And it had never been that long.)

My long hair had really become a habit. Not that I hid behind it, but when you have long hair, that's often the first thing people notice. Now I feel lighter but also more exposed.

My next move: sending my hair to Pantene Beautiful Lengths. They use the hair to make wigs for women with cancer. Their website also has “before” and “after” photos of the community of people who have donated their hair.

Two years ago, UCLA hosted a Locks of Love event. I happened upon it when I was walking through the Alumni Center — and I remember wishing that I could do it.

Later, Erin and I really tried to recruit the BeadStyle staff to donate their hair, but each of us had our own hair imperatives: Cathy and Jane both love short hair, Kelsey has long hair (and no interest in hacking it off), and Stacy is just starting to grow hers out for her wedding.

But I'd like to think that this story will go on. So let's hope that Erin will keep us updated about her progress. And in a few short months, my hair will be long(ish) again.