By Miriam Raftery
Photos: Creative Commons via Bing
March 28, 2020 (San Diego) – As the COVID-19 stay-home order drags on, with barber shops and hair salons shut down, you may feel ready to pull a paper bag over your head and cut eyeholes to hide bad-hair-days that are now every day.
Here are a few other options.
Gimme head with hair
Long beautiful hair
Shining, gleaming,
Streaming, flaxen, waxen
Give me down to there hair
Shoulder length or longer
Here baby, there mama
Everywhere daddy daddy
Hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair
Flow it, show it
Long as God can grow it
My hair.
SHAVE IT OFF
WEAR A HAT
Add some panache to your wardrobe with a signature hat – or several! Historically, standards for men include fedoras, bowlers, Panama straw hats, baseball caps, golf caps, and cowboy hats, to name a few. Traditional women’s favorites include bonnets, berets, factinators and other small hats all the way up to elaborately festooned broad-brimmed hats ready for the races. Or don your best party hat or Mardi Gras headwear for a festive mood at home!
HAVE A HEADBAND
A simple fix to overgrown hair is to smooth it back and tuck it under a headband of any variety. Hair clips to hold stray strands in place can also be helpful, as well as devices such as banana clips or pony tail holders.
TRY AN UP-DO
From buns to French twists to beehive hairdos, updos offer creative ways to pull hair up and off your face and neck – adding a touch of elegance to boot.
APPLY MOUSSE OR GEL
Scrunch it or spike it to control volume, create curls, spikes, or other style statements.
KEEP IT CURLY
Curls can hide overgrown layers. Try hot rollers, a curling iron or old fashioned curlers – after all, you’ve got the time now! For perms grown out, you can also consider a do-it-yourself perm kit from a pharmacy or online outlet, but be careful to follow directions carefully to avoid damaging your hair.
COLOR AT HOME
If your dyed roots are showing, you can find do-it-yourself hair-dye solutions at some pharmacies or online outlets. Be aware that colors may vary depending on each person’s hair. Temporary color rinses that wash out in the shower may be better options – or make your own hair color enhancements using coffee, henna, lemon juice or other items on hand.
GO WILD
If you’re off from work, school and church, why not indulge your creative spirit? Go for a wild color using food coloring in your cupboard, or make your own hair dye juices from beets, carrots, or other natural products you can pick from your garden or pick up at the store. Thanks to Rebecca Jefferis-Williamson for this tip!
BRAIDING IS BEAUTIFUL
From simple pigtails to elaborate dreadlocks, Victorian-style crowns of braiding or braided heart hairdos, this is a classic option used by women through the ages and some men, too, to contain flowing locks in chic style.
WEAR A WIG
Cover up that overgrown hair with a wig or toupee in any style—from a simple pageboy to fluffy Afro. Dare to be different!
CUT IT YOURSELF
Comments
Back to the 70's
Back then I could grow my hair long enough to tie it back with a rubber band. Now it's thinning but I'm going to let it grow and see if it looks OK or if I should shave it all off.
I've been cutting my own hair for decades. . .