Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Speaking of Hair

When I'm pregnant, my hair grows long and thick. I have way more hair than I usually have, and it grows so quickly that I never keep it short. However, there is a point postpartum, where all that hair betrays me and begins to fall out in enormous gobs while I am washing it. The good news is that this usually coincides with the same point where my newborn discovers the joy of pulling my long hair anytime her tight little fist is in the same general vicinity as my head. (Roughly speaking, about 90% of her waking hours.)
So, it's time for a haircut. I usually donate the 10 or so inches of extra to Locks of Love, so I'm going short--quite short. I want some input. Here is what I look like now. Do you have any idea how hard it is to take a good picture of yourself? Either you aim wrong. . .
. . . or your eyebrows raise involuntarily. . .
. . . or your tongue sticks in your cheek with the frustration of it all.
That was just a refresher, for all of you who haven't seen me in a while. (And who am I kidding. How often is my hair actually down? Once a week, on Sunday. Most of the time it's in a ponytail or a pen-bun. So the pictures above were taken on a good day--a good hair day. Ignore the crazy wrinkles and bulges of my shirt. Definitely not a good shirt day.)

Here are my options:
(A)
Isn't that a cute little pixie cut? But that girl, Jesse Kelly-Landes, whoever she may be, has such a cute little pixie face to pull it off. Could I pull it off?

(B) Ignore the stain on my magazine cutting, please. She doesn't really have an enormous dog-spot birthmark.
John calls this look the "disheveled vagrant", but it looks easy to do. So easy, in fact, that I might actually do it every morning.

(C)
Do I have this texture of hair? No. Do I have this color of hair? No. Do I have this incredibly fabulous sweater? No. Somehow, I still like the haircut. But it's probably not an option for me.

(D) What list of short cuts would be complete without Katie "I'm-from-Toledo, too" Holmes?
Really, this is probably the most realistic of the options (cut and color-wise, I mean. The whole stylist-on-call/personal shopper/crazy movie-star husband/rich-rich-rich thing is probably out of my league.) But I feel a little cliche taking a picture of Katie Holmes to a stylist and asking for "this look."

(E)
I have, if you can't tell from the wrinkles, been carrying this picture around in my folder of ideas for a while. I love this haircut. Doesn't she look cute?

Are all these cuts exactly the same? Pretty much. I could go with some sort of chin-length bob. (But I must admit to being TERRIBLE with a round brush. I've really never been able to learn that skill. There are some people out there--Lyndsay Peterson and Becca Larsen, I'm talking to you--who always have perfectly round-brushed bobs. How do you do it? Is it a skill you are born with or can it realistically be learned?) What do you think? Give me the haircut you vote for, and if you have any other ideas, please tell them to me. I need some help.

Bibliography:
a) Tease ( a book about remaking t-shirts)
b) Glamour, October 2008
c) Knitpicks catalog, Fall 2008
d) Glamour, October 2008
e) Playtex Hip Hammock advertisement, circa 2005

22 comments:

The Ziemers said...

Actually, I like your hair long, but if you are going to cut it, I definitely like the first haircut--letter a. I can't wait to see the results!

Andrea said...

You are brave emilee. I liked all the cuts. Good Luck!

Sara said...

First of all, you are beautiful. My goodness Emilee Wells, you belong IN those magazines.

I have loved the hip, hip, hooray picture since 2005. But I also like the pixie cut.

Will your 10" be gone by Thanksgiving? (I'm visiting Kami (Holiday Mark's wifey) on Saturday, but I won't look nearly as beautiful as you!)

Elizabeth Reid said...

I love it long as well. But if you have to cut it, then B, or E would be my votes.

adventure knitter said...

my vote is option a or b! i love them! I'm jealous that your hair grows that quickly! I thought my hair grew quickly when i was prego...but maybe that's just with girls, cuz I didn't feel that way this time around. I want to cut my hair, it's in that awkward "almost to the shoulders, can barely pull it up" phase and I hate it...but my hair stylist just moved to oklahoma!

Kate said...

I love A. I love short hair. You are making me want to chop mine all off... so cute. Whatever you do will be perfect. You have such a good face. :)

Lyle said...

I'm posting to state emphatically that I have no opinion.

lauren said...

Em you are so brave! I agree with the Ziemers- i like it long and i also like the 1st picture.

Story Family said...

Em, you are so adorable. And I totally agree with Sara--you belong in the magazines. And sporting.....letter A. LOVE IT! I do the same thing every time I have a baby. Chop it all off. And I've loved it every time. Be sure to post some after pics!

mags said...

I pick A the tease, i'm begging for A actually. em you are fantastically beautiful, and your fanatastically beautiful face would look great with the pixie do! please post pictures post-haircut.

ps know what ya mean about big clumps of hair falling out, jace is 17 months old and i look like i have alopecia!

Denise said...

my favorite is the first one. You look great with any hair type! I am hoping to donate my hair next summer before swimming season starts. I've always wanted to do it but never have been brave enough. Good for you! Can't wait to see your "after" pictures.

Michael n' Brooke Sanderson said...

I am voting for B, although they are pretty much a different version of the same haircut. They all would be cute.

Logan said...

I vote for E. In fact, put me down for three votes for E.

(Plus, your name starts with the letter E. Coincidence? I think not.)

Emilee said...

Logan, if you check these comments again, I am politely requesting an invitation to read your blog.

Outlandish McCandlish said...

I vot for b. I think for as far as short goes and all that it will compliment your face shape best. I always have a hard time choosing a hair style because I never know how my curls will take it. I love your staight hair.

Mike and Kelly said...

I like a and b. I will be envious that you are brave enough to cut yours. I never do mine, so other than ponytail length is not a good idea for me. Good luck, and I want to watch your kids for you when you do it.

Brian and Martha said...

I like A, but I think any of them will be fabulous. I sometimes wish I had hair that looked good short.

Schnike Meisting Kiken Piker said...

Jesse Kelley Landes, just cause it would be better to take that to the salon.

Lyndsay said...

I LOVE letter A and I'm SO jealous you can pull off a pixie haircut. I would do it in a second if I had the facial features (you definitely have them).
As far as round brushing goes--my secret is a good flat iron. I am not exaggerating when I say the Chi is magical (and worth the expense). It can fix almost any roundbrushing error. Also, I make my stylists tutor me on blowdrying whenever they do something new with my hair. I'm pretty inept at hair styling (I have given up on french braiding my own hair and anyone else's), so if I can blow dry short hair, so can you. I'd be happy to share my limited knowledge any day.
Definitely definitely A.

Kenna said...

You probably really didn't need another vote but I also love A. It looks cute and easy. The pictures made me laugh. I've never tried the mirror, as I usually let one of the kids try. The results are similar!

Bonnie said...

I vote for A or B. I love your pictures! You can always make me laugh!

Logan said...

Emilee - I see your request for a blog invite. If you'll send your email address to me at logandowell@yahoo.com, I will gladly invite you to my blog. Oh, and did I mention...E! E! E! E! E!