Making the Cut

  I am a strong believer in the idea that every woman should cut off her hair at least once in her lifetime. For one, I think a lot of us hide behind our hair in an attempt to shield the parts of us we don't love as much. I can't tell you how many people have told me "I wish I was brave enough to cut off my hair!" or "if I could pull it off, I would totally go short" The thing is, anyone can pull off short hair. The secret is your confidence. If that is showing through you, it doesn't matter what is growing out of your head. The second reason I am a big fan of the chop ties closely in with the first, but it has to be one of the most liberating feelings there is, getting rid of the blanket you've been hiding behind and then being complimented on it! I think some of the most beautiful women in the world look their best when they have short hair. There is something very raw and true about a woman who is not defined by it.

 When should you start considering a shorter hairstyle?

  As a stylist, I usually encourage a style change when a client wears their hair up so often that no one realizes it's long or if they have been nursing extremely damaged ends for months. In both of these cases, you really aren't holding onto much and it may be best to think about getting rid of some of your length. Maybe it's only a couple inches or maybe it's a whole new look entirely. Maybe neither of those circumstances apply to you, but you've been drawn to some cute pixie cuts lately, and that's great! The most important thing is to really know yourself. If you love big changes and you don't tend to go into shock too easily, look into the donating option, because great organizations such as Wigs 4 Kids are always looking for hair! On the other hand, if it takes you four appointments to get to a subtle blonde highlight, you should consider cutting it off in stages as you warm up to the idea. There is nothing wrong with working your way up to your goal, and if you're not ready, that's okay too. Because we've all had appointments go like this:

       Steps to a great chop

  -Avoid Debbie Downers

    Nothing is worse than feeling super excited about something until you share it with someone and they rain all over your parade. The good thing is you usually know who those people are in your life or you have that one friend who is completely against short hair, so avoid sharing your plans with them. Sometimes people just can't picture things until they see them, so there's a good chance they will love your hair once you cut it. (If they don't, that's okay too. It's not their hair)

-....But embrace your encouragers!

    Basically cutting your hair off is like naming a baby. No matter what you do, there is going to be at least one person who hates it. Stick with the positive people.

-Research how to style your desired look

    It's important to have an idea of what you are getting yourself into now that you can't throw it into the same old ponytail every day. Look into different styling options and don't skimp on product. In order to style your hair, you may need different products than what you were using when it was longer, so be sure to ask your stylist the day of your appointment for styling tips and what you should be using.

-Do a wardrobe look over

I have had many clients color their hair red and then feel like they could no longer wear their closet stuffed with reds, pinks, and oranges. I don't think it's necessary but it's a personal perspective, and the same goes for short hair. I have always liked collared shirts, details, and bigger jewelry with short hair, so when I had decided to cut my own, I slowly stocked up. Be sure to look through what you have and make sure you feel comfortable.

-Be sure to look your best!

Another big mistake a lot of my clients make when they are scheduled for a big change is coming in without makeup on or their lazy day clothes. Don't get me wrong, I think you're always beautiful no matter what. But when you have a major change done to your all over look, the first thing out of everyone's mouths is "I need to go put makeup on and clothes I like." My advice? Skip all that. Show up with your makeup done and in one of your favorite outfits, so the second you see yourself, you feel great about how you look even if you are in a little shock over your hair.

-If you are considering shorter hair I only have one thing to say. DO IT! 
The funny thing about hair is, it grows. Everyone should let themselves jump with both feet in at least once, and who knows, you may even decide to keep it that way. Some people swear they will never go back to long hair afterward, and I may be one of them!

Below are some pictures from my own transformation, the best decision I've made in a while! Thanks to Chelsea at Happy Hollow Salon for helping me feel like myself again.

 

                                                                                          

A Few Things You Should Start By Your 25th Birthday (or at least I'm trying to)

 Reaching my first adulthood milestone has been surprisingly tough for me, and by tough, I mean I am avoiding it like the plague. For whatever reason, turning twenty-five just sounds awful to me. The truth is, I’ve always liked being the “baby” of the group. I think it makes me feel more accomplished with my life when I seem young for where I am, and the older I get, the more I start to look around and wonder what the heck I have been doing this whole time. So to keep my mind off of my steady aging process, I decided to make a list of simple things I should try to accomplish for myself this year and thought I would share them in case anyone else is going through a similar quarter life crisis. Of course this isn't as age specific as it sounds, you're never too late or early to start!

Start A Hobby

 

I don’t know about you, but nothing makes me feel more pathetic than when someone asks me what I like to do for fun. Of course, the usual come to mind. I enjoy Netflix, naps, and eating Cadbury Mini Eggs by the handfuls... I can just imagine what my eHarmony profile would have looked like. I went through a phase where I would always tell people I love to read (which is true, honest) but then I would be bombarded with questions and I quickly learned to only say I love to read when I am actually reading something and it's something I'm not embarrassed to talk about. It isn't the best idea when I am in a dry spell and have preferred Finding Nemo on repeat to any actual exercising of my brain, or when I was in the middle of American Psycho and really did not want to explain to my seventy year old Nora Roberts loving client what Patrick Bateman enjoyed doing in his free time. Really though, we all should invest in something we enjoy completely outside of work, whether it be knitting, reading, zumba, or even wine tasting. Finding something you love is not only exciting because of a new activity, but it also helps to get to know yourself a little better. Who knows, you might find out you have a talent you never even would have found before.

Support A Charity

Even if you have little to spare, there is always something you can give. Whether it is money, donations, or your time, someone can benefit. As I have gotten older I have started to realize how important it is to invest in things you believe in. Take some time to research different organizations and really get to know what they stand for and what they are accomplishing, and then choose one or a few to support in whatever way you can. Helping others always is the best way to lift your own spirits, because nothing feels as good as accomplishing something bigger than yourself.

Find A Wine You Enjoy

Now obviously this one isn’t for everybody. Some of us don’t drink, others are whiskey girls, and that is completely okay. This is for the few of us who order wine like I do, find the cheapest five on the menu and narrow it down by ones I am confident in pronouncing. I’m not going to lie, it is pretty rare I find a homerun with that method, so now that I’m no longer twenty-one and just excited to show someone my ID, it may be time for me to actually know what I like. The best way to find your favored wine without a few strike outs and wasted money, is to go on a wine walk or tasting. This way the cost is minimal and you get to experience different wines with someone more knowledgeable at your exposure, so get some girls together and taste away!

Master One Meal For Dinner Guests

 

For some of you I am sure I am about six years behind, but for the rest of us, Easy Mac and cheese quesadillas were perfectly acceptable for anyone who could have ended up at our house until now. Now that I am truly reaching adulthood without excuses, I think I am at an appropriate age to start preparing more desirable food. Just to be clear, I am not at all saying we are all to become little 1950’s housewives and should labor away in the kitchen all day, because that just won’t do. We all have different talents and different interests. While some of my friends would love to be June Cleaver, others would run into the street at just the thought of it, and that’s why I love them. But we should all feel like we can have friends over and make something super awesome, whether it’s a homemade pizza, grilled chicken breasts, or some crazy vegan rice dish. Lucky us, we now have Pinterest. So search ‘til your heart’s content, eventually you’ll find something you can totally rock. 

Turn Off Electronics

Not surprisingly, this is by far the hardest challenge for me, but I think it is also one of the most important. The more electronics and social media become a part of our everyday lives, the harder it is to separate from them, making the people you are actually with seem to be second priority. Try to challenge yourself to not only turn your phone off when with others, but to also give some time to yourself where you are unreachable, even if it’s only for a half hour to an hour. People need to recharge, too.

So if you are like me, it's time to celebrate getting older with a few personal accomplishments you can be proud of instead of dreading your birthday. This is also an ideal time and excuse to eat cake.

you deserve it.

Why The Frozen vs. Other Disney Movies Rivalry Should End

As anyone who knows me in person or has followed any form of my social media for a period of time probably knows, I am a huge Disney fan. When I was a little girl, if I behaved my dad would wake me up at midnight to watch the reruns of the original black and white Zorro and Mickey Mouse Club that the Disney channel would play when no one else was awake back in the 90's. To this day, we quiz each other on random Disney trivia (such as name the 12 rides that were running opening day of Disneyland and still in operation today, and what characters had parking lots named after them between the years 1955 and 1998.) Basically if Disney created it, I love it. Unless it's the current Disney Channel, but that doesn't really count anyway.

Naturally, when Frozen came out, I was ecstatic. I loved it the first time I saw it, and never had any doubt that I would. I assumed that everyone else would feel the same way, but over the next few months what I watched unfold over the internet in regards to the movie was quite surprising to me. There seems to be two teams, and very few people in the grey area. One side, adores Frozen, to the point that it has replaced all other classics and beloved characters, while the other side is somehow deeply offended by the movie and feels it has betrayed Disney's history. In all honesty, I don't understand either of these points, and while there are quite a few arguments, I'm just going to focus on a few of the main ones I have come across.

You can’t marry a man you just met

This line apparently struck a cord with almost everyone, just in different ways. I'm sure if you have been on Pinterest at all in the last four months, you have seen the meme of multiple princesses in the signature lay on the ground sob in response to Elsa's line, or another one with 'It's about damn time, Disney' underneath. The other side of this battle is that this line was so insulting of Disney's past. 

When I saw this scene, neither of these perspectives popped in my head. I saw this as a way of showing how seclusion was different for both sisters. For Anna, she was so open, trusting, and excited for love, of course she fell for Hans! Just like she sings in the scene before, it's the first time she has ever been noticed by someone. And you know what? That's okay. As for Elsa, she has lived in fear most of her life, and has a secret that not a single living person besides herself knows. When you are holding something so heavy inside of yourself, of course you will be guarded and the thought of letting someone into your life so easily is ridiculous, who knows what they too could be hiding. And you know else? that's okay, too.

Elsa and Anna's parents were abusive

Wait, what? I don't understand this one at all. Apparently because they tried to teach Elsa to 'conceal, don't feel' they were intentionally causing emotional abuse. In other situations, yes of course this would horrible advice, but I truly believe the King and Queen thought they were doing their best to protect both of their daughters. If you remember when they visit the trolls, Elsa is warned that fear will be her enemy. As viewers, we understood he meant her own fear, but I think Elsa and her parents saw it as the fear of others, (like in Beauty and the Beast, we don't like what we don't understand, in fact it scares us) and thought they were protecting her. Because her powers are a direct result of her emotions, of course learning to control it would seem to be the answer. But did you also notice her parents were never afraid of Elsa? Her father isn't afraid to touch her or help her. And guess what? Sometimes parents mess up, sometimes they make mistakes and it plays out in their children's lives. They're human. Which in this case complicates things further, because neither of them know how to handle her powers from personal experience. But I truly believe they both were doing their best to love and protect both of their girls.

 

Elsa was kind of a b!tch

I read a blog the other day with one of the points being that Elsa was quite a b-word and I was actually floored by it. The writer went on to say that Elsa was so self involved and cared so little about everyone else that all she cared about was that she got to “Let It Go” and the line ‘the cold never bothered me anyway’ shows how it only mattered what bothered her. Also the fact that she didn’t know that her kingdom was covered in ice obviously means she clearly only thinks about herself, that she didn’t even care about leaving her sister behind, especially after all those years of Anna wanting to play with her and Elsa just ignoring her constantly. After all that, Anna comes to help her sister fix the problem and she doesn’t even care to help anyone else, freaks out and tries to kill Anna and then throws her out in the snow to freeze.

….I’m convinced this lady watched Frozen on mute without the subtitles, because my four year old neighbor understands Elsa better than her. I don’t feel like it’s necessary to explain where she totally went wrong, but just to touch on it a little, Elsa lived most of her life sacrificing not only interaction with the person she loved most, but also having that same person think she didn’t care at all. Have you thought about how hard that would be? Losing everything to protect one person who just thinks you’re a coldhearted jerk? I’m assuming this is what it feels like to raise a teenager at times.

And tried to kill her? If you’re not sure about this part, I’ll have my little friend next door help you out.

 

Frozen is the first Disney movie to teach girls they don’t need a man to save them.

Ugh. Maybe if this is the only Disney movie you’ve seen, then you can think that. I’m not sure how they came up with that one but seriously, Merida? Mulan? Belle? Pocahontas? Did you miss all of those? And in all honesty, I grew up watching the other princesses as well and I am proud to say I grew into quite a strong, independent woman. Watching Snow White and Cinderella didn’t teach me to take food from strangers or sit in my room waiting for a man to save me either. You know what I learned? To be kind to animals, and to show love and respect to people, even when they aren’t kind to me, and that if they can spend years slaving away for awful stepmothers while wearing wooden clogs and still continue to sing and whistle through it, I can probably manage to clean my room every once in a while for a mother that loves me.

And yet the other side of the argument is that Frozen made all men the enemy, it taught girls to never trust men and that Kristoff could have easily been edited out of the movie because he was totally pointless. I don’t understand this angle either. I guess if you move enough things around you could take anyone out of a story, 
depending on how you do it, but Kristoff was quite important. And Anna still got her love story in the end, so no, it didn’t turn all men into the enemy. It showed that Anna was still the same sweet spirited optimist even after her first heartbreak. So despite the fact that not every princess/queen ended up with a prince in Frozen, it is far from the “shove it down your throat feminist movement” some people seem to be so bothered by, but I will say it is the first fairytale I can remember that displays true love in a different way than romance, which I actually think is pretty cool.

 

Tangled is better because Rapunzel is so much more likeable than either Anna or Elsa.

This is the point that bothered me most of all, and not because I don’t like Tangled. I actually love Tangled, just ask my husband. I can easily watch it three times in one day, in one sitting even. One of the articles I read said that Anna was a less desirable version of Rapunzel, but the only comparison I can see is they both were secluded dreamers, just like Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, and Jasmine. As a little girl I loved all of those princesses, and I know I would’ve loved Tangled as well if it had come out during my younger years. But the truth is, we can’t all be Rapunzels. Not all girls are peppy and bubbly. For whatever reason, some of us just feel a little darker inside, our hearts might feel a little heavier. Some of us are carrying things with us, and others of us are just naturally quieter, deeper. Since I was very little I have always been called an old soul. I have always struggled with social anxiety and a terrible shyness, and I am more comfortable observing from the outside. For years I battled internally with my introverted mindset and tried to change, but ultimately that’s not who I am, and I know that and embrace it now. But as a little girl, I would’ve loved to have a princess that I felt like I understood, and I think it’s important for girls to feel like they are okay just the way they are, even the quiet ones. Reserved girls deserve a Disney princess too. Hell, we got a queen. 

Basically, I don’t care if Frozen is your favorite Disney movie, I don’t even care if it’s your least favorite, and that’s the great thing about it. We don’t have to agree, and we also don’t have to chose, because we're all different and we are all going to feel closest to different ones for different reasons. It’s also okay to like them all, and as a Disney fan through and through, that’s my choice.

I know that I’m beginning to sound like this girl, and I’m okay with that.