Why I Got a Pixie Cut

I’m definitely one of those people who are not afraid to change up their look. I’ve had my hair pretty much at every length and also dyed plenty of times since high school. If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook you already saw my latest haircut, but for the rest of you, this is now my hair. After years of wanting to get a pixie cut, I finally got the courage to sport the short hairstyle. Why the sudden change of heart?

I’ve never been one to get attached to my hair, in fact whenever my hair is below my shoulders I just feel the need to go short (I think that partly has to do with the fact that I have so much hair and its thick). Last year when I returned from Paris I decided to go real short after having my hair below my shoulders for about 2 years. When I saw the pony tail that was cut off I was like “Ok, this the point of no return.” At first I was a little scared because this was the shortest I had ever gone in my life, but when I saw myself in the mirror I just felt like this is how I’m supposed to look like. I pretty much ended up with a modern take on the Amélie haircut if I may say so. I felt like my hair finally reflected my playful personality for once.
When you have short hair you don’t have the option to hide behind your hair, and this provided me with the perfect opportunity to face my self-esteem issues. I had to grow comfortable with the fact that my face would be the first thing that people would see. I’ve had to work through my issues and you know what? I really think I’ve made a lot of progress in a year. I have honestly never been as happy with my hair and appearance in my life. I know most girls depend on long hair to make them feel beautiful and feminine, but short hair made me feel more feminine than when I had my hair below my shoulders.

To me short hair is the definition of feminine. When I first saw Michelle Williams’s pixie cut a few years back I was dying to get my hair cut like hers. She just looks like a goddess with short hair. She just always looked so fun, fresh, and feminine (the three Fs) and I wanted that so bad. But then when I saw my favorite French actress, Audrey Tautou, get a pixie I knew the cut could definitely work on me. That’s probably the first time I saw the cut on someone without straight hair so it was a lot easier for me to imagine what it would look like on me. Throughout the past years it seems like more and more high profile women have gotten pixies and they look even more beautiful with their hair short. They just exude confidence with short hair, which is very inspiring for a girl like me.

I have to admit there were a couple reasons why I had not gotten a pixie cut and most of those reasons revolved around what others would think of me. In the Mexican culture, your hair is very important. There are very few women in my family who have hair above their shoulders because that isn’t exactly considered to be sexy nor feminine. And then there’s Mexican men. Mexican men (for the most part) like to voice their opinion about a woman’s appearance. Sometimes they compliment, but other times they are very critical of a woman’s appearance and like to be controlling of a woman’s appearance. I know in my father is one of those men. My father is definitely not a fan of short hair in the slightest and he hasn’t been too keen on my androgynous taste in fashion either. But it wasn’t him that I was worried about, I was a little worried about what my boyfriend would think about me getting hair almost as short as his. So what did he have to say? Go for it. I have to tell you even my parents were surprised by his answer. My boyfriend really tried to emphasize that hair is just hair, he didn’t fall in love with my hair. What he had to say really motivated me to finally deciding on getting a pixie, it just felt really nice knowing that he was supportive of the idea. And it feels even better knowing that he really likes how my hair looks like right now.

Well after years of wanting to get a pixie haircut but settling for a bob, I finally got the courage to go ahead and get it. I went to Cash for Cuts and showed him this picture of Audrey Tautou and then she worked her magic and gave me a very layered pixie cut. I know this is going to sound so cliché but I felt so free when all my hair was gone. Girls who cut their hair short always say its a liberating experience but it truly is. Getting a pixie cut was the perfect way for me to move on to the next step chapter in life. Goodbye to being an undergraduate student, and hello adulthood!

I know its only been a couple days since I got a pixie but I’m already in love with it. I love how my eyes just pop now that my hair is short. And I know this may sound weird but I also love how my face shape now that I can actually appreciate it. Although I look like a little boy with bad bed head when I wake up, once I get dressed and do my makeup I feel more feminine than ever. Yes, I feel fun, fresh, and feminine! I don’t regret going short one bit. And so what if people don’t like it? The only thing that matters is if you like it. And if people call you a lesbian? Just remember there’s absolutely nothing wrong with being a lesbian in the first place. Hair shouldn’t be something that defines you, it should just reflect and enhance your inner beauty.

If you’re considering getting a pixie but been scared to go that short, I say you should go for it. I hate saying this but YOLO! (Just pretend its the Stokes song so it doesn’t sound completely obnoxious.) But in all honestly its just hair, if you don’t like how it looks it’ll grow back in a couple of months.

If I can inspire one girl to get a pixie then that would just make my whole year, it really would.

~By Lara Nuetz