I used to have long, naturally-spiraling curls. When it started going gray (at 27) I realized that my hair wasn’t curling the same and was more apt to stick out in strange directions. It was still long, but I had to pin it up for it to look decent. This year (I’m now 36) I decided I’d try a shorter shag cut, and I love it. It put some of the curl back in and, since I don’t have all that heavy hair pulling down on my head, I stay much cooler. It also dries in a fraction of the time.
Both my fiancee and sister have short hair, in both cases it’s because they are so active that it’s either easier to deal with/maintain or because long hair gets damaged from being tied up all the time, or washed too much (post-workout), or chlorine damage, etc.
Come to think of it, when I had my sensitive artsy-fartsy hippie-dude long hair a) I looked like a girl, and b) it was a snarly mess from all the sporty stuff I did, so I’m pretty sure I got my Forrest Gump cut for that reason too.
I tend to cut mine short before any overseas travel. I just don’t want to deal with it while I’m on the road. I’ve got better things to do.
Hmm, my hair is getting long again. Must be time to schedule another trip.
My hair is currently down to my bra strap. I can’t seem to get it much further, because of all the split ends and breakage. While I like the way my hair looks long, I’m constantly tempted to cut it shorter.
When my hair is long, it tangles all the time and gets weighed down with scalp oil very quickly. It gets caught on things. It tries to strangle me in my sleep. The dog tries, and sometimes succeeds, in eating strands of it. Eighteen inch strands of hair in dog poop is a bad, bad thing. I’m also having to unplug my bathroom drain every month or so.
The only time I’ve gotten a compliment on my long hair was when I mentioned that I wanted to cut it. Gentlemen, if you really like the way it looks, you need to give positive reinforcement more often.
I’m 55. My hair has turned from dirty blond to ash blond, and it 3 or 4 " below my waist. Taking care of it is easy for me: Wash, condition, blow-dry when it’s cold out. I usually wear it down, unless it gets in the way of whatever my project is (painting comes to mind). No plans to cut it any time soon. It’s actually longer than it’s ever been.
Oh, yeah! After 10 weeks of backpacking to places with only cold water and/or the kind of setup where you have to shower with one hand because you are using the other for the shower spray, I went to a hairdresser in London and told them I’d pay them anything they asked to wash and comb out my hair. After they finished wondering what kind of crazy Yank had wandered into their shop, they got down to business and two people spent three hours just getting it cleaned and combed!
A little more on the topic of why long hair is work - if you have never had long hair you don’t really know. When your hair is short and you take a shower you can dunk your head under the spray and call it good (at least some of the time). Some of us actually need all those special shampoos and worse, conditioner (probably lots of it) and, for curly hair at least, probably some kind of leave-in product afterwards. It runs into real money and time. This means having to rinse and rinse and rinse or else you get greasy film on your scalp.
Going short isn’t necessarily giving up or rebellion - we just found better uses for our time. (Mine is still long - for now. Only because I have some time on my hands, though.)
For me, there are usually two reasons: Either I get bored, or…well, my hair is my “control” thing. When other things are out of control, I change my hair, and that usually means either changing the color or cutting it shorter, because my hair’s not good when it gets much longer than my shoulders.
ETA - I’m 41.
Love, love, love really short hair on women if they have the face to pull it off.
I have a long neck and a narrow face so long hair would make me look even longer. I need volume. Plus I have a nice jawline and good chin, coupled with fine hair; I just look better with chin-length hair.
I’m not nearly as hot as these women, but for examples of people with my predicament, see Tea Leoni and Linda Evangelista.
I’m 45, and I find the long, vertical lines of long hair emphasise the vertical lines on my face. That’s not really what I want to draw the eye to so I have a layered, shoulder-length cut.
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It was hot. I was tired of having a hot, sweaty neck.
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I used to have trichotilomania(sp?). It didn’t go away when I cut it, but it lessened to a degree that I no longer had a bald spot.
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I’m not a “hair” person. When I was a kid, I would cut off the hair of all my Barbie dolls. It took me years before I learned how to braid my hair to keep it managenable, and even once I learned I was never good at it. I hated going to the beauty salon, hated the regiment associated with straightening kinky hair, and hated people constantly remarking about how wild my hair always was. I’ll never forget the day, in the 12th grade, my English teacher sat me on the floor between her knees and combed my hair in front of the whole class. I found it hilarious at the time, but I should have felt embarrassed.
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I was curious what I would look like with short hair. It took some time before I finally found a look that suits me, but I am happier with short hair than I was with long hair.
My reasons related to less maintenance and a more professional look. However, my husband also prefers short hair on women.
Hmmm… I am 47 and have tried to have short hair several times in my life. It doesn’t work.
I look like shit in short hair. I have very thick, wavy-curly hair. It is actually hotter when it is short–I’ve been known to drip sweat onto my blouse/shirt when my hair is short. When it’s long, I can wet it down and then French braid it, and voila! instant-all day cooling. I find short hair unbearable in the summer.
At present, I wear it collar length (I just got it cut this way 2 days ago–it was down to my bra strap). I confess I don’t understand the “long hair is more work” position. IMO, it’s no more work than a short hair style. Obviously, mileage varies.
I have often heard that “older women” should not have long hair. IMO, it all depends on the long hair. I know a woman in her late 60s who still wears her hair the way she must have in college. It no longer suits her face and it makes her look older (center part with one barret on each side). If she’d try a bun or a braid or a page boy, something! She was my HS math teacher and now I see her around town–her hair hasn’t changed in all that time. :eek:
Whatever length your hair, as long as it is clean and groomed, I don’t think there is any hard and fast rule to who can wear what length etc.
When my wife was in her 20’s she wore her hair so long that she actually sat on it.
In her 30’s it was midway down her back.
In her 40’s she went with the big hair look, but combed out it was still below her shoulders.
In her 50’s it barely covered the back of her neck.
Now that she’s turned 60 her hair is even shorter. Everytime I’ve ever asked her why she cut it she’s always answered “because it’s easier this way.”
I have very fine, nearly straight hair, and when I was a kid my mother kept it cut short “so it will grow thicker’. I looked like a boy, and my hair never got thicker. As an adult, I went blonde, back to brunette, red for a while, back to brunette, and every length from 1” long to just-skimming-my-shoulders.
I am now in my late 40’s, and in the past two years I have let my hair grow, mostly because I don’t know how I want it cut. It is now officially “long” for the first time in my life, and I am torn between feeling like I’m too “old” for long hair, annoyance at what to do with it to keep it out of my face, and feeling that it’s kind of cool to have a real, live 12" ponytail instead of a little stubby one. I can actually flip my hair like Marcia Brady!
My BESTEST, favorite hair look was a cut a’la late 80’s Madonna, that chin-length scrunchy-curly bob. But after waiting for so long to grow it out, I don’t have the heart to cut it again, and I think I have to wait a few more years for that look to come back in style - I’m seeing too much of this Demi Moore-Courtney Cox-Jennifer Anniston long straight hair now, I think I would feel that my bob would look “dated”.
I’m not the age group you’re looking at, but my mum is at 57.
Mum used to have extraordinary black curls, which looked amazing longer, but as she’s aged they’ve got coarser, as they do, and the curl’s dropped out. It just doesn’t look good when it’s long. With her bone structure, she could look fantastic with about an inch all over, Judi Dench like.
Her hairdresser annoys the hell out of me, actually (and my mum - she’s got some customer loyalty thing going on, though), because she sits her down in the swivel chair and thinks “Oh, fifty-seven year old woman”, and gives her something inoffensive and wispy - totally ignoring the fact that mum’s amazing looking and could absolutely pull off something stronger. Wisps on her look like a tassel on a hammer, and I mean that in the most complimentary way.
Love those who listen to hairdressers who say older women should never wear their hair long - it’s called “vested interest” - of course they say that! Some people look great with short hair. Some don’t. I don’t. Plus I hate the lack of flexibility of short hair.
I’m late 50s and wear it long. I had it short as a child for a while, and again in my 30s, and have never liked it cut - although it is important to trim the ends. It naturally grows to mid back length, no longer. I’m dark, going gray, and find the mixed textures fun and just add thickness. I like the way the grey streaks curve with the natural wave as I catch it in combs to pull it back from my face. I sometimes plait a scarf through, or pull it back into a loose pony tail. Depends if I want to add accessories to pick up on whatever I am wearing. I love playing with colors in clothing and accessories. Occasionally, especially if it’s very hot, I wear it up.
I haven’t heard the “older women should cut their hair” very much lately. Hm.
I’m another one who finds long hair easier to deal with than short hair. But, yeah, everyone’s mileage varies. I wash, condition, and throw some gel in and I’m good to go. I don’t bother to blow dry. Short hair tends to require styling and more cuts, which annoy me far more than a couple of extra minutes rinsing in the shower.
I’m 38. I’m a natural redhead who has never colored or permed, so my hair is pretty healthy. I have no gray. It’s 3-4" below my shoulders now, and I need to get a couple of inches cut off, not because it’s inappropriate but because it looks better that way. It has some long layers in it which work well with my natural wave.
I sometimes wear it down, but it’s usually up in a twist with a barette. I hate the way it looks short-short, so don’t ask me why I think it looks good all pulled back and pinned up, but I like it. As I grow older and get some gray, I’ll reevaluate.
Anyway, there are a lot of good reasons listed in this thread. I’ll add/elaborate on a few others:
–It’s easier to use color if the hair is shorter. Less to color. Less fading. And it can be easier to camouflage roots.
–Shorter styles can seem more professional, which is important for many women’s careers.
–As women age and their faces change, they’ll probably pay more attention to finding a style that’s flattering. When you’re 18, you’ll usually look good no matter what. When you’re 45, you need to try a little harder to make the most out of yourself.
And in the end, women will gravitate towards styles that they find easier to maintain. Even if we did have the time to fuss with our hair, who wants to spend the time on that every day. There are many more interesting things to do.
I first cut my hair short when I was in my late 20s. I went away from it for a few years after I had kids (didn’t have enough time to get haircuts to maintain the short cut). I got back to it last year, at age 38. I mainly like short hair because my hair is very fine and it gets damaged and scraggly very easily. So with the short haircut my hair is a lot healthier. Plus I like that it dries quickly. The only downside is that I have to get a haircut at least every 2 months.
I had hair down to my elbows until I was in my late 30’s. When I cut it I gained an hour per day. (shampooing, conditioning, rinsing, drying and styling add up.) That’s right, an extra two weeks every year. If I had realized that sooner, I would have cut it off sooner.
I’m sure there are many men who would find me more attractive with the long hair, but then, they are probably not the sort of man I am hoping to attract.