The Great Haircut of 2009!

I'm feeling short and sassy now!

Yes-sir-ree! After thinking about it for months, I finally took the plunge and cut off all of my long hair!

The best part? It's for a good cause. I'm going to donate it to Locks of Love. Locks of Love is a great non-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children in the United States and Canada under age 18 suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis.

This has actually been my plan for quite a long time. My hair grows very quickly, is fairly healthy, and I knew that at some point, I'd want short hair again. So, I let it grow, and grow and grow... probably the longest it's been since I was a kid. It was halfway down my back. I've been letting it grow (with cuts to shape it now and then) for about 3 years.

But the time has come!
You know - sometimes, you're just ready for a change.
I had a lousy last couple of weeks, so I figured, it was time to do something drastic, and really shake it up.

So, I made an appointment yesterday, and went in this afternoon - fully prepared. I had a picture of the cut I wanted, a couple of ponytail holders, and a zip lock back to bring my hair home in. I had also done my research online yesterday to see what the guidelines are for donating hair to Locks of Love. I knew that my hair was longer than the minimum 10 inches necessary to donate, so I was set to go.


Before....

The process was all very exciting and therapeutic at the same time. My hair is very thick, so my stylist had to section my hair into 3 separate ponytails before she cut my hair. This makes me feel great, because I think my hair will be able to help out more than one child. In the end, we were able to use 2 of the ponytails. They each weighed in at around 14 inches. The third one, which would have had the most layers in it, was just a bit too short.

I knew what kind of hair style I wanted - it's something I had many, many years ago. It's more or less a asymmetrical bob - longer in the front, shorter in the back.


...After

My stylist did a really great job. She even allotted extra time before her next appointment because she knew that my hair is really long and thick. The whole process took an hour and a half.


View of the sides

I'm really happy and excited about all of this. It makes me so happy to know that my hair can be put to good use, and hopefully make a child (or two) very happy! What a great experience! :)