Saturday, December 1, 2012

flat iron curls, you make the rockin world go round.

Listening To: The General Specific by Band of Horses
Quoted: "Someday you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again." - CS Lewis

Biscuit says hello!!
Hey beauties! How was your Thanksgiving? Pie-filled and fantastical? I'm pretty sure I ate enough to hibernate safely for the rest of my life. Tis the season, yes? I have some thoughts to share about Thanksgiving, as well as some blinks I've been saving up. But I'll wait and unleash those next week. (They're kinda sappy.) Today, I would like to discuss the miracle that happened to ... my hair.

My hair is very straight. It kinks in a pony-tail, and sometimes it gets bendy on the ends. But most of the time, it's just straight. And this is fine by me. Like many goofy girls back in the early 90's, I used to perm my hair into a frazzle-tastic poufball. (I still remember scrunching my faux-curls with gel until they were the perfect crackly texture.) But at some point, thank goodness, I realized it was kind of dumb to work so hard against my natural hair. Perms are now stored alongside TGIF, slap bracelets, and Leonardo DiCaprio in the mental vault of my awkward adolescence. (Except Leo is still a thing, which is kind of cool, isn't it? Does anybody else remember him from Growing Pains?) Sometimes, however, I think it would be fun to do something different with my hair, just for a day. Usually I'm limited to messy ponytails, etc., but occasionally I've tried curling it. I've tried curling irons and hot rollers. I even tried some dumb "sock roll" tutorial I found on Pinterest. Those things ... did not add curl. They only added frazzle-bends. So I had all but given up.

And then.

I dropped by ye olde salon for a bang trim this week. My friend Bethany is an amazing stylist, but she's also fun and easy to talk to, so I always look forward to hair days.

We talked about books and Henry Cavill.

We talked about movies, and about how I'm going to see Les Miserables on the day it comes out, probably by myself so I can wear a costume and sing.

We talked about parades. I told her that I had a bad craving for a sweet, small town Christmas parade. Another stylist overheard my plea (probably because my "inside voice" is roughly the pitch of a fog horn) and told me about a nearby town with an amazing parade, where the floats toss off all kinds of amazing stuff. He said that he took his daughter last year, and she got like an entire set of My Little Pony's and a backpack full of school supplies. They throw rich stuff from the floats!!

(Which reminded me of the time in college, when some guys on a homecoming float got in trouble for throwing bouillon cubes instead of candy. Which is awful but kind of funny too.)

And then Bethany said, "Your hair would hold a great curl right now."

And I was all, "Pfffft."

The reason Bethany thought my hair would hold a great curl is that I hadn't washed my hair in like six months (slight exaggeration). But seriously, 2nd or 3rd day hair really is my favorite kind of hair. And I knew that, technically, dirty hair does hold a better curl. But my stickly-straight hair is independent, and will not be manipulated.

I shook my head, sadly and reminded her:"My hair won't hold a curl ever."

And then we made eye contact in the mirror. And I could see this eerie gleam fill Bethany's eyes. Like, challenge accepted. And suddenly, it was like the room magically morphed into an Old West movie scene. Tumbleweeds blew across the salon. Bethany pulled a can of dry shampoo and a flat iron out of her holster. (Totally making this up. She doesn't have a holster.) And she whooshed my chair around so I couldn't see what she was doing.

I was like, "It's not going to curl."

She said ... nothing.

She worked in silence. So I filled the silence with brilliant conversation, like so:

"So, Breaking Dawn 2. Have you seen it? You know what I still wonder? Ed gave Bella an injection of his own venom to make her live again, right? And he doesn't bleed, right? So where'd he get the venom? Did he milk his fangs? Also, do you think the Volturi flew commercial on their way to stare-down the Cullens? Or do you think they have a private jet? Because it does kind of make me laugh to think of them all waiting at the gate, and then boarding the plane at the same time, wearing their black cloaks, trying to shove their luggage in the overhead compartments, and fighting over who gets the window seat. I've sat by some vampires in my day, for sure. I'd actually prefer a Volturi to the magician I sat beside that one time. Have I told you about him? How he showing me ridiculous magic tricks? First, he did a card trick and I laughed, politely. But then I put on my headphones to insinuate that I did not want to be disturbed. And then he started pulling colored handkerchiefs out of his bag. Just one right after the other ... hundreds of handkerchiefs. It's good that people are passionate about their work, I guess."

And then ten minutes later she whirled me back around and ....


MY HAIR HAD CURLS!!


Look how it spirals!

I thought it looked super fun!  But, ever the realist, I said, "This won't last an hour."

And she smiled, confidently, shoved the flat-iron back in her holster. And then she said "It will last about three days if you don't mess with it too much."

Indeed, the curls lasted three days. They actually would have lasted longer but, eventually, I did have to wash my hair. Dry shampoo is an amazing invention (and it's something she says helps my hair hold curl) but alas. I have such fond memories though. The curls even bounced! For the record, I'm fairly certain that I won't be able to replicate this amazingness, ever. But I'll try eventually. Some of the fab folks in Twitterville tell me that flat irons give them curls when nothing else will, and also that there are lots of tutorials for how to figure it out. I shall figure this out!

Bethany the Hair Wizard is also trying to convince me to give in to ombre highlights, which would require swallowing some pride on my part. First, because I've joked about that word - ombre - ever since I first heard it. I think it's funny how certain words magically make things cool. Second, I feel like - on SOME people - ombre highlights just look like overgrown roots. Which actually does look kinda cool on some people, but not on me. Ombre hair, mustache icons, zombies, Gagnam style -- these are trends I don't understand, and don't particularly care to embrace. But Bethany is like, "You seriously think I'd let you leave here looking like you had overgrown roots?" She swears it can also be a very subtle, funky thing that looks awesome. I don't think I'll ever give in, but I'l keep you posted. Because I'm sure you can hardly wait to find out the answer.

I'll be back next week with some slightly more interesting posts, I promise ;) How've you been? Did you have a good holiday? Reading anything awesome? Do you have a favorite way to wear your hair, or do you just sit back and let it do it's thing?

Happy December to you!!

15 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh, I just had the BEST visit to the library on Thursday after school and found so many books that have been on my list forever. Like I just finished a memoir about Beverly Cleary and am inspired to go to school to become a librarian and read everything she ever wrote.I finally found the Humming Room, which is on my list as well as The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight which is a love story pretty similar to One Fine Day---they basically fall in love in a 24 hour period. My sister's reading that one now, but I'm excited about that one. I have an entire stack of other books on deck and we finished exams this week and had Friday off, which means no homework for me and all this time for catching up on reading time :))So I'm a pretty happy camper right now

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    1. I'm jealous of your reading frenzy!! :) I've seen TSPoLaFS but didn't know exactly what it was about. I'll check it out for sure! That's the best feeling, when you walk of the library loaded down with books. (Also, until I saw it on your Pinterest, I did not know Beverly Cleary had a memoir!)

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  2. Your hair looks so cute like that! I think it's hilariously ironic that everyone tends to want the opposite hair of what they have. Straight-haired girls will do anything for curls and curly-haired girls straighten theirs. :)

    I used to straighten my hair every single day. And about lunch time, every single day, I would get unpleasant-looking bumps in my hair...my curls/waves trying to break free, I guess? Finally I just quit. I am not a person who likes to spend that much time in front of the mirror. :)

    Now I try to do things the natural (and easy :) way. I don't use any heat (dryer, hot curls, straightener), because they make my frizz even worse and make my hair feel fried, and I use natural shampoo and conditioner. I wash my hair, put in a tiny bit of curl product, and let it dry (which takes forever because it's long and thick). It will look okay the next morning, but looks oily by the evening. I keep hearing about dry shampoo lately and I need to give it a try!

    ~Kristin

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    1. Your curls were determined to let loose! :) I think hair usually looks it's best when people work with what they've got. I like to change things up every now and then, just for kicks. But yes- dry shampoo pretty much just sucks up the oil. I got a cheap kind (Suave) and it works okay! But let me know if you find a brand you like. I love the way it adds just a little bit of body.

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  3. I totally agree with you on the zombie trend! Why do people love them so much? Makes no sense to me.

    Your hair is so beautiful! My hair doesn't hold a curl either. It's not straight, but it's not curly. Kinda wavy, but more on the straight side. I've tried so hard for spiral curls, but just can't make them happen. Only bouncy ends. This has inspired me to try again! This is what I would really love to happen to my hair, but I have a feeling this takes forever and a day and I don't have that kind of patience when it comes to my appearance :) http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=377895198963329&set=a.377865242299658.91354.274760002610183&type=3&theater

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    1. See, I'm the same way with hair: I just don't have the patience. And unlike makeup, which I do like to play with ... it's like I've never messed with my hair enough to know how something's going to work out. I bet your hair is gorgeous (I love the little whisper of a wave in hair :). See if you can figure the flat iron curls out and let me know! (That pic is so pretty!) Some people can work curls with a curling iron, which seems like a no brainer ... but that has never, ever worked for me. (And Zombies ... I will never get the fascination there.)

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  4. This cracks me up! Ditto on Leonardo DiCaprio from Growing Pains. He was cute but dorky back then. Now, yaow! ;)
    And I love the hair. I noticed your Twitter pic was different. Glad to hear the back story behind it. Funny enough, my new Twitter pic has a similar back story, curls and all. I've been messing with my hair an trying to figure out various styles that I can do myself. (The hair dresser does a great job but I've been trying to lessen my $70 trips and save the money, ya know?) I hit the jackpot with that style in the picture. It was pretty simple and wait for it...it was done on slightly dirty hair. Go figure!
    When next we gather, we must compare notes.

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    1. We should - I think slightly dirty hair factored into mine too. Also, truly, I've just never messed with my hair much. I like makeup, but hair just hasn't seemed as fun. But I would love to add some more variety too. It's just FUN. And, this sounds nerdy, but when my hair looks good ... I feel way more put together. We need to compare notes, for sure. I LOVE your hair in that picture!! Though, for the record, your hair has always looked awesome when I've seen it.)

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  5. Oh, it looks fantastic!

    I have curly hair that has to be gelled if I want it to look its best. I'm actually getting a little bored with my hair and kind of want a new style. I've never really had a particular style. I don't maybe it's time for something new...
    LF

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    1. Thank you! And I'm jealous of your naturally curly hair. I'm sure it's gorgeous. I think it's always fun to change things up, too. Ever so often, I get a hankering to chop all the hair off ... but then I think about how much I like it long. As if it won't ever grow back or something :)

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  6. I chopped off my hair yesterday. I just moved back to my hometown, but I'm still in search of that perfect stylist who "gets" me and can carry on enough of a conversation with me that she can read my mind and figure out exactly how to make my hair perfect. It's a little bit difficult because haircuts are not something I plan. Usually I think about the possibility for a couple weeks, then one day I decide I cannot wait a moment longer and call around for the closest salon that has a same-day appointment available. This happened yesterday. "We have a cancellation for an appointment that begins in 20 minutes, if you'd like to take it." "Done." Within an hour, I had shed seven inches of hair. It's gone. Usually I'm a little sorry, but I'm not regretting it yet.

    I'm usually a hot curler girl, but my hair is weird in that it will hang on to any style I tell it to as long as it's been freshly washed. Anything I try on day 3 hair falls flat by the time I'm done with it. Not that I'm complaining. But it is fun to see how different products and tools work on a fresh haircut after they've lost their use on dead ends.

    And if I were to have a tender Tennessee Christmas, I'd definitely wear an Eponine costume and sing along with you on opening day for Les Mis.

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    1. Have you posted a pic of your hair?! I want to see it!! I bet it's crazy stylin. I'm proud of you for going for it. I keep thinking about cutting my hair, doing some kind of really fun something-or-other. But I wimp out.

      I saw somebody tweet that they'd gone to "musical movies" or something. Like, the entire theater was filled up with people there to see Labyrinth. And they had the words to the songs on the screen so everybody could sing along. I can't even imagine that level of fun.

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    2. I haven't posted a picture yet (it's not anything crazy or special), but be on the lookout for a whole lot of pictures to be posted after this month. Hint: there may be a handsome man and a piece of jewelry involved.

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  7. Thank you for addressing the sudden influx of moustaches. I asked Allie about this since she is much younger and hipper than I (did I just make up a word???). Anyways she simply replied with one word - hipsters. And that made all the sense in the world.

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    1. I get that it's just a trendy thing, but I don't really see the cuteness. It just makes everybody look like the guy on the Pringles can, right? But I'm painfully uncool most of the time. :)

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