Short Hair Don’t Care: Is the Big Chop Right for You?

This could be a good #pandemichaircut to try! 

As someone who has tried just about every hairstyle, it’ll come as no surprise that I once rocked a buzz cut. Here’s how it happened:

At the time, I was wearing my hair in a below-the-shoulders relaxed lob, and over the course of several months my hair kept breaking. (I’m sure that in addition to anything else that was going on, the fact that I had recently moved countries, and started my Master’s degree, contributed to my hair’s harried state of affairs.) Anyhoo, with every salon visit I cut off more and more, and finally one day I had had enough. I told my stylist to buzz it off. He initially hesitated, probably because he thought I had taken leave of my senses, but once he realized I was serious, he was all for it. 

Did I like it? Yes! Here’s what I enjoyed the most:

The sense of freedom.

After my big chop I felt liberated, happier, and healthier. It was easy, no-maintenance, and completely stress-free. My favorite part was not having to worry about getting my hair wet! I could shower without covering my hair!! Feeling the water on your scalp is soooo relaxing. That alone made it an instant win.

I saved so much time.

Less hair (or actually no hair) meant fewer hours in the salon, less time styling it at home, less time getting ready to leave the house, less time maintaining it…oh joy!

I saved SO MUCH MONEY!!

This cannot be overstated. Anybody who does even the bare minimum with their hair knows how much hair maintenance costs. Whether it grows from your scalp or you purchase it, hair is expensive to deal with. With my minimalist do, I took occasional trips to the barber and that was it. I saved thousands of dollars on salon visits, products, hair accessories, curlers, hair dryers, you name it.

I loved the look.

Even though I was occasionally mistaken for a boy, I fully embraced the style. My low haircut gave me complete freedom to play! I experimented with bright colors and bold accessories, and loved every minute of it.

Would I ever do it again? 

I don’t think so. Not for aesthetic reasons, but emotional ones. As it happens, I wore my hair short during a very stressful and traumatic period in my life, and wearing it short now would just bring back bad memories. That said: I still loved my buzz cut while I had it, and I would absolutely recommend it to anyone willing to be bold.

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Text and images ⒸLisa Hurley/@happyhappyphoenix