Oh my goodness Sam, I loved this piece and can relate. I am 63 and still coloring my hair because I always loved being a ginger. I had the dreaded mullet in 7th grade, the Dorothy Hammill in 9th grade ( picture this haircut on a tall skinny teen with frizzy red hair…). Some above-shoulder frizz bomb haircut that I had while living in New York in the 80’s. Finally, in my late 20’s, I decided to grow it out and wore it long until 60, then I chopped it into a pixie like Mia Farrow in Rosemary’s Baby. I actually loved it up until now because I was tired of being defined by my hair and I like how it feels, especially during our atrociously hot humid summers in Austin.
I was just in London on vacation and noticed many lovely older women with varying lengths of silvery white hair. And no, they weren’t wearing Talbots twin sets. All this babbling to say, many thanks for this piece. You have inspired me to grow my hair out again. The only decision left is to go gray or not..
Love this article. So relatable! My hair was short until I was 16 yo and genuinely grew outwards and upwards in a true 80's bouffant! I've embraced the whole range of hair dos over the years but allowing the wild locks to grow long and free is definitely the most liberating and easy to manage.
When I worked at Redbook, Elle, and Teen Vogue we ALWAYS had to include a coverline about hair. A hair story was an automatic magazine seller -- pretty much the most important topic we covered every single month! 😂. One year when I was at the Atlantic we lost an ASME (on a deeply reported political piece) to Oprah magazine for their feature on hair! 😂.
Also, chiming in with everyone else -- your hair is so incredibly fab. It's the kind of hair I pretended to have in the swimming pool when I was being a mermaid.
My daughter is blessed with a head of glorious red curly hair. When she was young and at school she got teased constantly by others which understandably made he miserable a lot of the time. At that stage she Hated her hair. However, as she got older she realized what an absolute gift her hair is. (Helped by the fact that so many people comment how lovely her hair is these days!.) Long reign red hair!
I have always favored boy-short pixie cuts (think Jamie Lee Curtis) because my hair is very curly. It’s chic and cool-looking now that I’ve got lots of gray. For a while, I had shoulder-length hair that I was blowing and ironing straight, but I just hated the daily maintenance and the amount of time it took to get ready every day. So yeah, I cut it all off again and I think it’s staying that way for good. Wash, towel dry, massage in a bit of hair wax and done. Literally takes no time at all. And for you older women like me, a fun pair of funky glasses to go with the short hair and a great pair of earrings is all you need for instant style. 😎
I posted this on my socials just last week: The New York Times has published another article about going gray. They talk to two women in their 60s. Maybe you’d like to hear from someone who is, for a couple more months, in her 40s. So, I was born graying. It’s in my genes, as was the lustrous black-brown hair of my first years (seen with my innate resting bitch face in the accompanying photo). I first found silver hairs when I was 14 (My boyfriend at the time also found gray in his hair. We thought this meant we were destined to be together. We were not.). I started actively going gray by 30, and I tried to color it, but it was expensive and, more important, NOT MY HAIR COLOR. Then I got pregnant with Samantha, who is now 16 and a half, and I stopped coloring it forever. It is different hair, but it is my hair. The gray and the curl mean that it needs a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner. Shampoos/conditioners for curly or glossy hair don’t work. I use a purple shampoo for blonde and silver hair once a week to brighten it (use more often and it will turn purple). I deep condition once a week. I use a combo of curl cream and gel to style. I also had to change my makeup, but that was fun. I like makeup. It’s also a beacon: My children and colleagues find me by looking for my hair. Most important, I get a lot of compliments. My favorite was a man who pointed at me and said, “It’s electric!”
Love the photos Sam. I have several very similar including with the dreaded Trisha flick, shaders, toners and sun in. Luckily not all at the same time but very close to that TBH 😂
I think the photos are lovely! Admittedly through a 70’s/800’s lens, but that’s what we looked like! I’ve had a page boy, the 80’s perm, tried sun in (orange for me) and various other things. As I’ve got older it’s got curlier but since I’ve been a teenager it’s been frizzy. Even if I straighten it. I am really trying to make peace with the frizz, but as it’s also grey, I do struggle. But I’m also unwilling to spend time or money on it, so I really do just need to accept it!
I love this so much and have to say I love that perm, it looks fab. I was literally just sitting in a hairdressers chair holding my frizzy frazzled locks saying “can’t you make this…. Better?!?” Maybe I should go long long. You make me want to
I, too, am a red curly girlie. I process it to the point of manageability, hack it to my shoulders every so often, then let it grow to its heart's content. I feel you!
The photos remind me of how less gendered clothing and haircuts for kids were in the 70s-80s. I know for my parents it was money saving as clothing could be passed on but pudding bowl haircuts were everywhere too.
We always have the hair we don't want! I am a pin straight blondie and spent my childhood and twenties wishing desperately for body, bounce, and curls! I finally gave up when even a perm fell flat after a few days!
My hair has always been poker straight and boring brown so I was always jealous of anyone with curly hair and with a more interesting colour. When i was about 14, I went to the hairdresser's clutching a picture of Courtney Love and asked if I could look like that (i know, but it was the 90s). The hairdresser was horrified and suggested if I wanted a big change, why didn't I try a perm. I agreed, thinking it'd be beautiful loose curls. Instead, I looked like peak Deirdre Barlow and cried all the way home.
Oh my goodness Sam, I loved this piece and can relate. I am 63 and still coloring my hair because I always loved being a ginger. I had the dreaded mullet in 7th grade, the Dorothy Hammill in 9th grade ( picture this haircut on a tall skinny teen with frizzy red hair…). Some above-shoulder frizz bomb haircut that I had while living in New York in the 80’s. Finally, in my late 20’s, I decided to grow it out and wore it long until 60, then I chopped it into a pixie like Mia Farrow in Rosemary’s Baby. I actually loved it up until now because I was tired of being defined by my hair and I like how it feels, especially during our atrociously hot humid summers in Austin.
I was just in London on vacation and noticed many lovely older women with varying lengths of silvery white hair. And no, they weren’t wearing Talbots twin sets. All this babbling to say, many thanks for this piece. You have inspired me to grow my hair out again. The only decision left is to go gray or not..
Love this article. So relatable! My hair was short until I was 16 yo and genuinely grew outwards and upwards in a true 80's bouffant! I've embraced the whole range of hair dos over the years but allowing the wild locks to grow long and free is definitely the most liberating and easy to manage.
When I worked at Redbook, Elle, and Teen Vogue we ALWAYS had to include a coverline about hair. A hair story was an automatic magazine seller -- pretty much the most important topic we covered every single month! 😂. One year when I was at the Atlantic we lost an ASME (on a deeply reported political piece) to Oprah magazine for their feature on hair! 😂.
Also, chiming in with everyone else -- your hair is so incredibly fab. It's the kind of hair I pretended to have in the swimming pool when I was being a mermaid.
Yep. Hair and skin. Banker coverlines. I was going to say in the bad old days, but it’s clearly no different now.
My daughter is blessed with a head of glorious red curly hair. When she was young and at school she got teased constantly by others which understandably made he miserable a lot of the time. At that stage she Hated her hair. However, as she got older she realized what an absolute gift her hair is. (Helped by the fact that so many people comment how lovely her hair is these days!.) Long reign red hair!
Absolutely adored this, Sam. X
I have always favored boy-short pixie cuts (think Jamie Lee Curtis) because my hair is very curly. It’s chic and cool-looking now that I’ve got lots of gray. For a while, I had shoulder-length hair that I was blowing and ironing straight, but I just hated the daily maintenance and the amount of time it took to get ready every day. So yeah, I cut it all off again and I think it’s staying that way for good. Wash, towel dry, massage in a bit of hair wax and done. Literally takes no time at all. And for you older women like me, a fun pair of funky glasses to go with the short hair and a great pair of earrings is all you need for instant style. 😎
I posted this on my socials just last week: The New York Times has published another article about going gray. They talk to two women in their 60s. Maybe you’d like to hear from someone who is, for a couple more months, in her 40s. So, I was born graying. It’s in my genes, as was the lustrous black-brown hair of my first years (seen with my innate resting bitch face in the accompanying photo). I first found silver hairs when I was 14 (My boyfriend at the time also found gray in his hair. We thought this meant we were destined to be together. We were not.). I started actively going gray by 30, and I tried to color it, but it was expensive and, more important, NOT MY HAIR COLOR. Then I got pregnant with Samantha, who is now 16 and a half, and I stopped coloring it forever. It is different hair, but it is my hair. The gray and the curl mean that it needs a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner. Shampoos/conditioners for curly or glossy hair don’t work. I use a purple shampoo for blonde and silver hair once a week to brighten it (use more often and it will turn purple). I deep condition once a week. I use a combo of curl cream and gel to style. I also had to change my makeup, but that was fun. I like makeup. It’s also a beacon: My children and colleagues find me by looking for my hair. Most important, I get a lot of compliments. My favorite was a man who pointed at me and said, “It’s electric!”
Love the photos Sam. I have several very similar including with the dreaded Trisha flick, shaders, toners and sun in. Luckily not all at the same time but very close to that TBH 😂
I think the photos are lovely! Admittedly through a 70’s/800’s lens, but that’s what we looked like! I’ve had a page boy, the 80’s perm, tried sun in (orange for me) and various other things. As I’ve got older it’s got curlier but since I’ve been a teenager it’s been frizzy. Even if I straighten it. I am really trying to make peace with the frizz, but as it’s also grey, I do struggle. But I’m also unwilling to spend time or money on it, so I really do just need to accept it!
grey and frizz is difficult. that’s my problem too. I spend a lot of time conditioning!
I love this so much and have to say I love that perm, it looks fab. I was literally just sitting in a hairdressers chair holding my frizzy frazzled locks saying “can’t you make this…. Better?!?” Maybe I should go long long. You make me want to
You have lovely hair that suits you long and bobbed.
Love this so much!
Thank you!
The first photo with your absolutely glorious hair is iconic!
Sam! I love this and I love your hair! And I am deeply sorry about that “khaki” phase 😅
I, too, am a red curly girlie. I process it to the point of manageability, hack it to my shoulders every so often, then let it grow to its heart's content. I feel you!
The photos remind me of how less gendered clothing and haircuts for kids were in the 70s-80s. I know for my parents it was money saving as clothing could be passed on but pudding bowl haircuts were everywhere too.
Good point. No room for pink BS in your average working class 70s household
We always have the hair we don't want! I am a pin straight blondie and spent my childhood and twenties wishing desperately for body, bounce, and curls! I finally gave up when even a perm fell flat after a few days!
Isn’t it typical?
My hair has always been poker straight and boring brown so I was always jealous of anyone with curly hair and with a more interesting colour. When i was about 14, I went to the hairdresser's clutching a picture of Courtney Love and asked if I could look like that (i know, but it was the 90s). The hairdresser was horrified and suggested if I wanted a big change, why didn't I try a perm. I agreed, thinking it'd be beautiful loose curls. Instead, I looked like peak Deirdre Barlow and cried all the way home.