True Story

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About 7 weeks ago I hit my absolute limit for how long I could go without hating my hair so much that I felt like I couldn’t go out in public.  Right then my life exploded, I cancelled the hair appointment and since then have withdrawn from social engagements to compensate.  "Dinner? No – sorry. Can’t come.  Hair’s gotten  too weird, can’t leave the house.  I’m sure you understand."  (They don’t.) 
The other night when Rachel H was over I said something to her like "There’s no way I can go to the school concert like this." and Rachel said something like "Don’t worry, people know you’ve been having a hard time" or something like that… but what she really said was totally irrelevant, because as soon it came out of her mouth I realized what she hadn’t said, which was "No, no. You look great.  It’s all in your head." so the next day I made a hair appointment, which was today. 

The lady who cuts my hair is awesome and I love her.  It’s taken us about two years to get where we are now, which is her totally accepting that I’m never going to take an interest in my hair in any way – other than showing up to have it wrangled.  I’m not going to straighten it or buy $80 worth of product.. I’m not going to discuss it or talk about it’s colour.  I’m not going to do any of the things she talks about, and I do not own a diffuser now, nor do I plan on getting one.  I don’t have a style – I have a cut, and I don’t want to talk about maybe getting a style.  I’m going to show up, say something about how I would like to be able to participate more fully in society and not be held back by my hair, and she fixes it, we chat nicely and I leave.  It works great.

So today I show up there and tell her that I told a friend that I thought my hair was bad and she didn’t disagree, and I pull of my hat and she says something like "Holy. S**t. No wonder you’ve been staying in the house" and sat me down in the chair.  I pulled out my knitting – like I always do, and the lady asked what I was making – like she always does.  I told her that they were socks for Joe, still not finished from Christmas, and then we chatted a bit more.  

So she’s cutting and I look at my sock, and I see that I’m done the leg and ready to start the heel, and because it’s socks with cables, I need to move the stitches around to get the heel in the right spot.  I set about it, slipping more stitches to one needle for the heel, moving front stitches so they’re evenly distributed between two needles.  Slipping them all around to get it right,  and while I’m doing this,  the stylist leans over my shoulder and watches for a minute – and then she says this. 

"Wow.  You’re such a fast knitter that it doesn’t even look like you’re knitting.  It looks like you’re just moving stitches.  I can’t believe you’re that fast!"

Now, maybe it was the fact that I had so little else going for me in that moment, what with the hair and all, or maybe it was because everybody is occasionally tempted when the mark is just too easy but I sat there, really just slipping stitches and not knitting them at all…and I looked up at her with every intention of telling her the truth,  that I have really bad hair and my knitting’s really not that special, and then I opened my mouth and inexplicably said:  

"Thank you. I’ve been knitting for a long time."

I’m waiting for my hair to dry to see if it’s funny lookin’.  She’s a good hairdresser, but that has to have cost me something.  Smart money’s on the haircut.

246 thoughts on “True Story”

  6. Ha!
    I still think about the woman on the train who told her child you were crocheting and when you corrected her she informed you she knew the difference.

  10. Oh, yeah. Probably shouldn’t cost you any more karma than dissing the doc during a colonoscopy. Child — where is your sense of self-preservation? What if it’s such a great cut you can’t stand to cover it and you catch double pneumonia in your big toe and die? Huh? Huh?

  11. I think you gave a completely appropriate response. You are a very fast knitter. We have all seen the video.

  12. My hairdresser’s given up, too, but I still go out of the house. I just never ever look in a mirror.
    Which explains quite a lot about me, really.

  13. I sm so with you.
    My hair is just wash and leave. i don’t care if it is snowing. I am not drying it. (I don’t think i own a dryer anymore. I had one once for the kids and realized i never use it.. yes, i gave it away when i moved! so no dryer), no nothing.
    just cut it once or twice a yera and let me knit.
    🙂

  14. ummm. I think you have enough good karma stored up from the Haiti KWB drive(and the days upon days of tallying and emailing) to earn you a few ego boosts.
    Plus it’s true, you ARE a really fast knitter.

  15. Awesome. I try to remind people that every one is born with the knowledge to cry and flail about, and that is about all. The rest is learned.

  17. My hair is long (and white) because when my wonderful hairdresser left town I never found another one who would just do a good, short cut that wouldn’t get in my eyes inside a bike helmet. So it grew like weeds and now I’m an old witch who still rides bikes.

  20. Sometimes we just don’t need to open our mouth and ruin perfectly good, albeit not completely accurate, compliment. This was one of those moments. Good for you!
    My hair is just as you describe lately. I wash it and the rest is up to it. 😀
    Karen

  21. OMG that is sooooo funny! I love when that happens, you open your mouth to say something and something totally different comes out.

  22. What did my mother bribe you with for you to write this? My hair used to be short and now I’m aiming for a pony tail but it’s at the straggly stage and she hates it. My son is telling me that I should get that stuff that covers up to 100% of grey because I really need it. I’m glad that it’s hat season because then I can hide it all away but I suspect that Spring will be here before the pony tail.
    Hope that the life thing picks up soon.

  23. I knit when I am getting my hair cut too. I have given up on my hair. The only way I can deal with the reality of it is to have it cut very, very short. Most of the time, I just hide it under a bandanna, but as I work in a school, and even purple bandannas with cute skull on them, are consider gang paraphernalia. Even the cool teacher with a Harley who wears biker leather to work can’t walk around with a bandanna.

  24. I think your hair is wonderful-not my lank tresses. What I would give to have hair with some body, some life…. And I knit slow.

  27. Great story! I had someone tell me, not too long ago, that I was “doing it all wrong” because I knit Continental. I thought of your crochet story when I heard her. I just told her that it was ok, I would cope.

  28. Why ruin a perfectly good compliment, even if it’s not entirely accurate?
    I go back and forth with trying to manage a “style” and giving up. Right now I am in a phase where I wash and the rest is up to the hair. It is what it is. 😀

  30. i think that it’s perfectly acceptable, even fashionable to wear a toque all day long, inside and out. add to that the fact that you are a knitter in canada during the winter and i think you can successfully hide your hair for at least 2 months. maybe an earflap hat for extra coverage?

  31. It’s ok. These things happen. This was our first year hosting Christmas, and I was all excited to make truly amazing cinnamon buns for breakfast Christmas Morning. On Dec 23rd, with a house full of people imminent and more obligations than I want to think about I came down with the Sinus Infection that Shall Not Be Named. Realizing that I just couldn’t do everything, I bought Pillsbury cinnamon buns, figuring that at least they would be fresh baked that day. I made them, without anyone really noticing the process. When we sat down to eat my future SIL said “WOW, I will never be able to make cinnamon buns like these!” And I said? “Oh, so glad you like them. I’ll send you the recipe if you want.”

  33. I told a friend of mine that my hair was being particularly expressive that day, she thought it was a hoot. I was just being honest. I have no idea what mine will do each day. I wake up, take a look, and go ‘huh, that’s interesting’. I feel for ya!

  34. Hee hee, well you are a fast knitter, so you weren’t really lying…sometimes if you explain too much about things like heel flaps, their eyes just start getting that glazed look. Best just to stick with the “Thank You”, really.

  35. Sorry about the doubled comment (well, I guess this makes three now, doesn’t it), but I guess something blurped!

  36. Sometimes you just need a compliment! Also, your hairdresser might have felt bad if her mistake was pointed out to her so really – you did her a kindness too. I think you gave the best reply for everyone!

  37. ohmygod, too funny! I hear you on the hair – I have come to terms that I will never, ever achieve the sleek look (except when I was bald due to chemo), and the best I can do is ‘not complete mayhem’.

  38. You didn’t lie. You really were moving stitches. For those of us who have seen you knit…it is an honor to know someone who knits as quickly and as well as you do.
    Hope the hair is good.

  41. You know, there’s a lot to be said for a really cute barrette to pull your hair back in so you can enter society surreptitiously. The in-barrette time for my hair increases in direct proportion to the time since last hair correction. (I have no style either.)
    And you totally amazed your hairdresser and probably gave her a wonderful thrill. Correcting her mistake would only have destroyed the magic. You did the right thing.

  44. Haha!!! I guess I am in the same boat as you because I don’t even know what a diffuser is – sounds like something to google. I get my hair cut in the bathroom by my husband. I’m just totally not into that spend lots of money on your hair thing. I haven’t owned a can of hair spray since the ’80s.

  46. I’m lucky enough to have a hairdresser who is also a knitter. So we always have fun. After 25 years of dying my hair (I started going grey at 17) I let it grow out last year. It was such a painful process but now that it’s done it looks fabulous. Proof that you can keep your hair natural (and wrangled) and still look good–as you always do!

  47. Never dis a complement. Bad Karma. Therefore it should be the best hair cut ever. I’ve accidentally hit a spot where for the 1st time in my life if I just wash and air dry my hair it seems to work. The wonders of those the appointment card for the next hair cut and being to ill to care.

  48. I’m with you on the hair thing. My hubby uses the hair dryer and more product than I do and that’s just because his hair is floppy when it’s longer. (Really it’s gorgeous and baby soft and… Oh! Sorry!)
    Anyway…
    The rest of the story… fantastic! And yes… I’d be wary and make sure you have a hat you really, really like… just in case…

  49. Stephanie, I don’t know if you set a price limit on haircuts but going to a curly trained hairdresser is totally worth it. As a curly girl if I lived in Toronto I would go to Jonathon Torch Curly Hair Institute: 416-362-1068 (Salon). As it is I have visited (once) a Deva-trained hairdresser in Houston. She was expensive but my hair looked great and was manageable.

  50. This is not my original story but somehow it seems to go here. One day a woman got up and looked into the mirror. She had 3 hairs. She thought, “I will braid my hair today.” So she braided her 3 hairs and had a wonderful day. The next morning the woman looked into the mirror and had 2 hairs. she said,”I think I will part my hair in the middle.” So she did and had a wonderful day. The following morning she had 1 hair. “I will wear a pnytail today.” She did and had a wonderful day. The next morning the woman had no hairs. She thought, “Oh, I won’t have to fix my hair.” She put on a hat and had a–you guessed it–a wonderful day.
    It’s too bad we–me–cannot have this disposition and accept whatever our hair does! And, yes, you do knit fast!

  51. Coming from someone who hasn’t gotten a haircut in *mumble*mumble*13months*mumble*mumble* I understand. My usual instructions have always been ‘cut my hair, give me something I can run a brush through in the morning and walk out the door. Oh yeah, and I very rarely cut my hair so give me something that won’t look like the cat dragged in the minute it starts to grow’ It only took me 27 years of my life to find a sylist who understood that and gave me the perfect cut that would last me a good 6 months at a time. She’d show me how to primp it up for those occasions when I did need to look all dressy and learned after the 2nd visit that I meant it when I said I wasn’t going tobuy any products, and if she persisted in trying to sell me any, I would stop showing up to her.
    Then I upped and moved all the way cross country. I wonder if I can fly her in once a year to cut my hair? God knows the last woman I went to traumatized me so badly I’m scared to go looking for another stylist.
    And yes, we need pictures.

  52. Hysterical!!
    I freely admit that I was born without the hair styling gene. I keep an easy cut and know that for important events where it really matters (maybe once or twice a year) I go in and let a STYLIST play with my hair while I just watch in awe. 🙂

  53. You, my dear, are a genius! You have added two phrases to my life: “I had 22 years to plan this” and “It doesn’t even look like you are knitting.” Coming up with one is hard enough, but two??! Like I said, genius.

  54. No pictures…wow, what a let down. I read the whole story too, just waiting for the view. Don’t we all feel this way about our hair…I went two weeks ago to a “new” girl. It still looks okay, I am due back there is 5 weeks (letting it grow a little).
    Living in Maine where hats are in style. (Currently under 18 inches of snow, all in the last 72 hours.)

  55. This is the karmic payback to you for the lady who told her little boy that you were crocheting!
    Good on you for going to get your hair cut. I’ve gone for almost a year at a time without, but Laura still makes it okay. I guess I’m lucky. I have straight as a board hair and Laura tells me there are women who would kill to have their grey hair coming in like mine. No streaks so no coloring. Yay!

  56. That is exactly the relationship I have with my hair and my hair, er, cutter. (Can’t even SAY stylist–although she IS, just not for me.)

  57. When I go to the hair stylist/dresser, beautician, my line is “I do NOTHING with my hair.” And I know I have a good one when they no longer ask me to feel my hair when they are done, because my comment is always “feels like hair.” When a s-i-l came over once she asked where’s the hot rollers? The curling iron? We do have a blow dryer, but is so old is probably one that was made with asbestos!. But, I sit and knit, hand them $ and leave-and I aim to go as infrequently as possible.

  59. I like your hair and wish I had its body. But then I say that I wish I had curly hair to every person I know who does, in fact, possess hair that curls (or something) naturally, and they all give me *exactly* the same Death Stare. Is it some sort of Mafia?

  60. One of my very favorite things about your blog is your personality. You are what my friend Karen calls “Salty”. You are honest, and real, and you give flavor to life. We love that about you.

  62. My hair used to get a modest amount of attention from me. Until it turned traitor and started abandoning my head and turning grey. Now it just gets washed and put up in a twist with a clip. Every day. (And no, mom, “product” will NOT fix it.)

  63. Great Story 🙂 loved it. I have the in-between hair, some is straight, some wavy, some frizzy … oh and cowlicks too. It has a variety of ways to misbehave, so I went the wash-n-wear hair style years ago.
    I’m sure the Karma thing will be kind and yes, we do need a picture, even if it is just from behind.
    Finished my first pair of socks this past weekend, tube socks on DPNS. Next up … socks with heels on circs.
    Oh … and a picture of Joe’s socks?

  65. There’s such a thing as graciously taking a compliment, even if it’s slightly wrong! And non-knitters don’t really hear the details if we try and correct them, do they?
    And again, lots of sympathy for the difficult time you’re going through. Just caught a tiny bit of it in Rachel H’s comment and hope you’re ok.

  67. Hate knitting socks. Took my first class last week. Have knit for approximately 6 hours and have about 1/2″ of ribbing. I never drop stitches any other time, but when I get to 2″ of sock ribbing I drop one that pulls alllllll the way out. Hates it……this week I have the heel to look forward to….may just slip stitches and pretend to knit…..

  68. I really really needed a funny story today because it is an awful crabby day for me and that just made me laugh out loud. Thank you:)

  69. Second the request for a picture. And Here I am having spent all these years envying women with curly hair, especially red and spent way too much money on ‘permanent’ waves and artificial red. At last I have surrendered to straight hair, but still buy a little red which never looks as good when I do it as it does when my hair dresser styles it.

  70. My last hairdresser haircut was when I was 14. Hmmm. That’s, ah, well, a little over 40 years ago.I wear it long and straight. Admittedly I’m getting a little bored as it thins a bit. I get a friend to cut it every 6 months or so. So, I am intrigued and a little nervous…. stylist? when did they become stylists? What the heck is a diffuser? They want you to buy products? I’m encouraged by the comments of those who have found (or trained) hairdressers to their own no-nonsense approaches to their hair. I do own a hair dryer. I last used it to dry out my spark plugs in my Honda after a bout of freezing winter fog.

  73. I used to have wash ‘n wear hair that actually looked passable. Time has diminished the hair and the curl. Sigh.
    Thanks for the good time!

  74. Oh Lordy! I laughed so hard I cried! I can just see you sitting there (never mind the fact that we’ve never met and so I don’t truly know what you look like) and this amazed look on her face when you say that. Too funny!!!

  75. Shave it off! I lost my hair to chemo 9 weeks ago and it is the MOST LIBERATING experience of my life. Bald IS Beautiful! (Of course, you spend a fortune in dangley earrings b/c you must have dangley earrings when you are bald, but who cares?)

  76. Steph,
    You’ve got so much good mojo/karma built up, I’m pretty sure the knitting goddess will go easy on you. This Time.

  77. Re: Knitting
    I love how she said “It looks like you’re just moving stitches.” In the eyes of a non-knitter, knitting can be perceived as something very daunting or magic, depending on whether the person is pessimistic or optimistic.
    Re: Hair
    I guess that’s the difference between a man and a woman. For a guy, if he doesn’t care about his hair (or lack of), he can always have his head shaved and other people will still be OK with him being bald. But for a woman, being bald might raise a few eyebrows. So, one solution is probably try find a style that you are comfortable with and requires little maintenance. Good luck!

  78. I have some form of hair illiteracy, we need a word. There is illiteracy for words, innumeracy for numbers and the ” don’t DO hair”? Oprah did a show 12-15 years ago about not fighting your hair so I quit getting perms but she still straightens her’s. What’s the deal? I’d feel sorrier for you if I did not have lank baby fine hair. My girlfriends with curly hair rant and complain but they can pull it back, put it up, and have a pony tail fatter than a dime. “Nobody knows da trouble I seen…” Even though I just spent $50 on a cut
    my bangs are too short, it’s awful and I don’t want to leave the house, okay, I don’t want to get out of my pajamas. It’s January in Seattle. Why. Bother.

  79. You didn’t *lie*, exactly. You just let her believe what she wanted. (Feel better? How’s the hair?)

  80. My hair doesn’t have the decency to be curly. It’s “wavy” which is what lazy hair is when it’s genetically predisposed to think about curling, but doesn’t want to, even when prodded. It also grows like kudzu. (If you don’t know about kudzu, google it; it’ll terrify you. The apocalypse will be born of kudzu.) So I can go from a pixie cut to shoulder length in under 4 months. Up side is I never fear a bad hair cut — it’ll be gone in two weeks. Down side is even the most amazing hair cut is ALSO gone in 2 weeks.
    Hair. It’s over-rated.

  82. I have curly/frizzy hair as well. I think that I would rather have the good karma towards my knitting.

  83. My hairdresser and I have a longstanding agreement. He cuts my hair so it will look good with minimal fuss. I pay through the nose for decent haircuts, and the occasional (ok, long overdue) highlighting session.
    In the interim, I discovered the Curly Girl method of treating curly or wavy hair, and I swear, my curls have never looked healthier. It’s pretty much no fuss. “Wash” your hair with a silicone-free conditioner, dry gently with an absorbent towel, scrunching in curl as you remove excess water, then apply a clear gel to define the curls. Voila. Done. No frizz, pretty curls. Sounds like it might be right up your alley, really.

  84. it maybe a totally gay thing to say (in fact, as a gay, i know it is) but you should consider a diffuser. it would change your life. for the better.

  85. The way I figure it, you’re already covered by all those times when you were actually knitting in a completely amazing manner and NOBODY NOTICED!

  86. Check out the book “Curly Girls” by Lorainne Massey. (A fellow curly-haired knitter in Seattle gave you a copy of the book when you were in the Northwest.) Massey makes the analogy that hair is like a delicate fiber…like FINE YARN and that our biggest mistake is washing it with shampoo. It is NO muss, NO fuss, cheaper, and low maintenance hair stuff. And, Massey is funny. A kindred, I tell you…

  87. I’m smiling, like I often smile when I read you. I’m thinking how that is the opposite of “no, it’s nothing” which is probably worse for all of us knitters when it is said.
    I’m happy because somewhere across a vast ocean and a whole land mass there is a knitter, who when faced with problems and hair, deals with both (eventually) in a style that has humour, panache and empathy.
    How lucky am I to have a link to a friend I have never met, who doesn’t know me, but adds pleasure and care, goodwill and amusement to my life?
    Thank you.
    ps today’s not been the best day for me … but you just made it better than it was.

  88. I only have a few hair rules, which I tell the hair person when I sit down. Firstly, do whatever you want, I just need to be able to get it in a ponytail; and two, NO PRODUCTS. Like the cheese, the haircut should be able to Stand Alone. I’m fixing to hack it all off. Just as soon as I find the right person to do it. Even the ponytail is becoming too much work.

  90. Here’s a parallel story. My mother is an amazing woman, one who does a ton of stuff effortlessly and very, very well. She raised us and farmed sheep and ran women’s voting groups, etc. AND KNITTED. Needless to say, there were people who were in awe of her.
    One of our ewes rejected a triplet lamb, and to our delight, we had to take it into the kitchen and bottle feed it. It peed and pooped everywhere, and when she got sick of cleaning up, my mom threw some newspapers around on the floor, more as a token than anything else.
    One of our neighbors stopped by to chat, and while she was there, the lamb wandered over to a piece of newspaper, hunkered down, and peed on the paper–first time ever. The woman watching went pale and looked at Mom and said, “I always knew you were remarkable, but only YOU could paper train a sheep!”
    We laughed about that for a long, long time. Still do. People see what they want to: I bet your hairdresser knows you’re outstanding. . .

  92. I have stick-straight, baby fine, cowlicky hair. Trade ya. And I don’t have the hairdo gene, so I can’t fix it. I wash, gel, and pick it into the only shape I know. Fancy night out, son’s wedding, going to mow the lawn? Same hair. I do have a hair dryer; I use it when I dry watercolors.
    Sock pictures? Please?

  94. Love it.
    (You do know about the wonders of the ponytail, braid, and other various ways of pulling ones hair back in order to disguise how long its gotten, right? RIGHT? 😉 )

  96. I so needed that laugh today. Thanks! And hope the non-hair things are going better for you.

  97. that’s funny. and…i’ve never thought of knitting while getting my hair cut. don’t you get little hair clippings all over your yarn?

  98. OMG. that is awesome. Sometimes one can’t help oneself.. 😀
    I hate my hair too. I get it cut cute (same way every time. lol), wear it down for a week or so, then I throw it up in a ponytail for 7-8 months or so. When my hair is too long that it bothers me, even in a ponytail, it’s time to go get it cut. lol. I’m reaching that point right now, which means I’ll wake up one Saturday or Sunday morning, decide IT HAS TO GO NOW, and will run to Great Clips instead of making an actual appointment with an actual hairdresser (do people still use that word?). oh well. 🙂

  99. No “before” and “after” hair? I thought that at some point I would get my life in order. Gave up on that and hoped I would at least someday figure out what to do about my hair. Now must accept that that will never happen either. Damn.

  104. It’s so nice to know others don’t make their hair a priority. I’ve worn mine long for years and years. Recently, due to the what I assume was the physical stress of surgeries I had a lot of hair fall out. It felt all wrong, so I got it cut short, which is waaaay too much work. I miss the long hair that I could wash and run. Like you I have curl/wavy hair that takes care of itself. I tell myself I got it cut planning to grow it out long again. I’m trying the Knox gelatin to see if it helps. It’s probably one of those urban legends that Knox helps hair grow faster.

  105. I hate styling hair. My favorite style is a bun because you don’t even have to comb it, you just pull it into a bun. When I went away to college, my mom gave me my own dryer. I still have it and the box, 15 years later. She likes to use it when she visits otherwise it stays in the laundry room in the spare drawer.

  107. Man! I’m glad to hear about someone else who does as little her hair as possible. I get mine cut – straight at shoulders and trim the bangs. I used to perm, but no more – don’t want the extra chemicals near me – and I’ll never color. I just wash it, blow dry it until it’s no longer drippy, and hit the road. Thank you!!!!

  109. I so thought this was going to be a tale of you converting her. Oh well… Perhaps once your hair is dry you’ll find out she’s “really fast at cutting hair, it doesn’t even look like you’re cutting any off”.

  112. My wonderful hairdresser despairs of me…. he does his best… he mentions things like straighteners… products…. I let him colour it and cut it and do whatever but he knows that next time he sees me dashing passed the shop my hoodie will be up hiding my hair for fear he will tell me off.
    I just am glad to have my hair back, why worry about what it looks like. I am however enjoying running my fingers through smooth, silky hair at the minute, but with this rain I’ll be lucky if I get through another day.
    And why do people only say how nice our hair is when it’s straight? Forget gingerists…. what is with the picking on people with curly hair? We can’t help it… and we do a great wash and wear act… I salute your stand against styling… when do we start the war? Grin.

  113. gosh, it’s so GOOD to know there are so many other women who do nothing with their hair, and who tell their hairdressers “i won’t do that. i won’t do that, either. actually, i won’t do anything, so please just make it shorter”. i ran out of conditioner three days ago and that hasn’t even made it to the top of my priority list – but i AM going to finish the socks i’m knitting for Pine Ridge Reservation.

  114. I knit slow, and my hair is straight and boring. I’ve wished for wild curly hair all my life. You win!

  115. I can just see the angle of your neck as you look around at her… so descriptive! The whole moment’s motive is priceless. Thanks for living this with us.

  116. My apartment neighbors are wondering what the crazy knitting woman is laughing about.

  117. My only rule to the hairdresser is the cut must be wash and wear. No I don’t have time to blow dry it as I would rather sleep in than spending 20 minutes getting it past the damp stage. So I wash it, towel dry, use some stay on conditioner to keep it from getting bad ends and so I can comb it, get dressed and head off to work. Eat breakfast at work. Not a morning person. 🙂 So I can relate.

  119. I understand the issues with hairdressers deeply.
    I will wash my hair – more infrequently during the winter. I refuse to use product, blow dry (unless it’s below freezing and I have to leave the house and my hair is wet), color it (allergies to everything), etc.
    And because I have very very curly hair, I very rarely, if ever, brush it.
    Go forth and have wild woman hair!

  120. All I can say is I understand completely. I tried a rather drastic method of recreating my hair—I had chemo and started over–it still came back as a rats nest! Then I found a group on Ravelry called “Naturally Curly Crafters” We are not alone!!!!!!!!!!!! And the best thing is they have a “method” to cope with our type of hair. It is all about a book called Curly Girl. I don’t have the book yet but I’ve started using some of the suggestions from the other crafters and WOW has it made a difference. Those rats are going to have to look for a new home now. My hair is getting sexier by the day and better yet I don’t use a ton of products trying to tame it down.

  122. I am extremely low maintenance. I got tired of dealing with my shoulder length hair, so I got some electric clippers and vroom, vroom, hair be gone! I cut it to 1/8″ long. I love it. I do have to cut it every 3-4 weeks, but the rest of the time all I do is rub a wet washcloth over it. No long showers. No shampoo. No conditioner. No comb. No towel. I should have done it years ago.
    And now I can wear hats without them messing up my hair!

  123. Now THAT’s the way to Cowboy up! (Also, I hope things smooth out a bit for you soon.)

  124. my hair’s straight as string, except sometimes at the ends.
    as a child, i was stuck with either a dutch-boy bob or worse yet, a frizzy perm. no wonder i hate having my hair done!
    usually i keep it short, but NO FREAKING BANGS! right now, i’m trying to grow it out to donate to locks of love. at my most recent haircut (early last year), the aveda beauty school student complimented me on my gray streaks — which other “stylists” always want to cover up. not only that, now that my hair is long, it resembles gloria steinem’s famous ‘do, but with a side part.
    how nice. at 65, i’m finally at peace with my hair.

  127. Y’know, it is my firmly held belief that sometimes in life, we’re on a kind of karmic pre-pay plan. We deal with a whole lot of sucky stuff, and then later the universe gives us a pass when we do something less-than-good.
    I’m going to hope that, having been stuck in your house for weeks because of wretched hair (which I completely understand, my husband has curly hair and every so often he wakes up to discover it has well and truly rebelled, completely out of nowhere, and he too finds himself unwilling to leave the house), you’ve got a karmic gift card going on to pay for your little white-ish lie.

  128. love it. I’m so with you on the cut and I’m way overdue too. Except you have a lot more hair than I do and it’s much prettier. I have 5 cowlicks, and if it weren’t for them, my hair would just stay flat on my head. Ugh.
    Hope your hair is much better now!

  129. Steph – I have hair like yours. You are not alone. (I did read the book Curly Girl – and it is true – use conditioner to wash your hair). But, the alternative is this: Moroccan Oil Intense Curl Cream for curly hair – I use it after I get out of the shower – like speed conditioner because you don’t have to rinse it (I just saved you some time). Air dry. No more hair the size of a Volkswagon (been there, done that)

  130. My daughter oddly enough, would never even brush her hair, she never liked it styled, or played with. She is 17 now, and she dyes it pink, and purple, and red and green for the holidays. I vote, forget the styling and just paint it fun colors…

  132. Your hair philosophy (or is it a manifesto?) is perfect. There should be salons just for people like us. All of us don’t-care-about-the-hair folks need a place where we can feel accepted!

  133. I know how you abhor the idea of actually having to do something with your hair…but for the sake of your sanity…consider the bare minimum which is a cream to help keep your curl from running wild. I have a toddler and an extremely active family schedule consisting of church activities, work, school for myself, my husband, and our 12 year old, and what ever else crops up in a week. I suck it up and put in the hair cream so that I don’t want to kill myself over my ridiculous hair. It works and I can do it in seconds, and then get on with my life. It might be time to give in, just a little bit. 🙂

  135. Why in heaven’s name don’t you get it cut short, you have the face / head shape that suits short hair, you’d be even more adorable, and curls too! I’m jealous of the curls.
    I have short hair, I just wash it. No conditioner, no hair dryer, nada. I unfortunately have no curls, nor am I adorable. Convenience (laziness?) trumps adorable every time. Especially when I’m closer to 50 than 45, and don’t give a sh*t what people think about my looks anymore.

  136. I’ve gotcha beat. My last hair cut was 2 1/2 months ago and later that same day I landed in the ER and almost shuffled off the planet. Needless to say I didn’t, but it was as near as dammit. After a week in the hospital and over two months on oxygen, I really, really need a hair-cut, but I’m afraid to make the appointment! Makes no sense, I know: hair-cuts do not cause pulmonary embolisms, but there you go. Just call me Pavlov’s dog.

  137. Hurray! Another woman who just wrangles the hair!
    I am proudly going gray… hey, I worked hard to get those gray hairs and I like the fact that I’m real.
    Not saying others can’t do what they want. Just don’t assume all of want it!

  140. I have, on occasion, been known to let the truth slide when meeting such a person. It’s almost as if they have a target on them and it’s my duty to see just how much they will believe. I usually tell them the real truth in the end, after I’m done pulling their leg. Now, 16 years later, my grandson rarely believes me when I tell a story unless I get backup from his parents. Please don’t tell him, but sometimes they might just be backing up one of my “stories”. 😉

  141. I second/third/whatever the Curly Girl book/philosophy. i can really tell right now that I need to quit using regular shampoo and conditioner and go back to actually *shopping* for conditioner instead of just buying whatever is cheap. I spent a lot less time cursing my hair when I paid a little more for conditioner. 🙂

  142. thanks for the laughs! I am another one that wash and towels dry – I threaten the person that cuts my hair with using products will cancel out your tip!
    Hope the other problems/issues are getting worked out for the best

  143. Ever since a recent perm brought my straight hair to life in a mad scientist/lightening/monster kind of way, I am getting an idea of what you go through. I hope you get some control over the beast with your new cut.
    Ok. I’m sitting in church knitting before the service starts and a family comes in and sits in the pew in front of me. One of the kids turns around and says, “What are you making?”
    “Socks,” I answered.
    “Socks? You don’t MAKE socks, you BUY them!”
    “Well, I make them. These are better than the ones that come from the store.”
    “How?”
    “They feel better, fit better and they’re made with love.”
    “Love? That looks like string to me.”
    “Yarn. And yes, Love.”
    “So is it easy to make socks?”
    “Well, I’ve been doing it for many years, so yes, it is easy for me.”
    “Well you shouldn’t be knitting in church. It’s time to pay attention to God!”
    Then the service started, and I just couldn’t argue with that one.

  144. Funny, funny story!!! By the way, do you realize how lucky you are to be able to get an appointment at such short notice? My hair dresser is great and she knows I refuse product, even hairspray. I DO let her blow dry my perfectly straight, very fine, very thick, silver-streaked, bobbed hair. However, I have to make my next appointment at the very latest as I am leaving the salon(for 5 weeks later). Otherwise, I’d be out of luck getting an appointment. How come no one really seems to like what they’ve been landed with in terms of hair?

  145. I didn’t LOL at that. I WOL’ed at that (whooped out loud!). I was all ready for you to say you made some inadvertent move and she made a diagonal slice of a swath of your hair and now you had a style…a punk style! but your comment was perfect.

  146. well…no lack of truth there really. that made me smile – people are fascinated with sticks and string. I have same perspective on hair, altho I would like big-big hair like yours…however, mine gets near moisture and kaflangs itself all over. Never going to change it really…a hairdresser once said “well, you were behind the door when God gave out hair”. HAHA. We laughed and laughed.

  150. I love my hairdresser. We’ve evolved to the point where it’s perfect every time. (I have a thing about having great hair.) So at my most recent appointment, I don’t even remind her how perfect it is because she does X. And when we were done, there was way too much hair on the floor, and it wasn’t the cut we’ve come to know and love. Crap.
    So, same story, from the opposite end. Hubris bites you in the butt, every time. Well, maybe not you. You have enough KWB karma to save your hair!

  151. ‘Low maintenance’ hair here. I googled ‘diffuser’ – it is not for me, no ‘product’ either, just a cut every six weeks to thin the ‘thickness’, roll on having thinner hair in later years.
    I was so impressed at doing the difficult stuff on the heel of the sock at the hairdressers that it took me a while to cotton-on to the idea of slipping the stitches rather than knitting them. You made her feel good – don’t worry about it.
    DH married me because I didn’t own a hairdryer, and so he wouldn’t be expected to fix the hairdryer as he did his sisters and multiple relatives. Thank God DD (15 yo) has got over the ‘product in the hair business’and is learning to live with what she has. I don’t half look forward to having fewer ‘products’ in the shower though.

  152. …still laughing (very loudly). I scared the cat when I burst out laughing at the end of your post. You ROCK the knitting world I live in.

  153. @ least you didn’t say something snappy & then “here’s your sign” ala Bill Engvall…but you will pay because while she was watching you, who was watching the haircut?!

  155. Thanks for the chuckle- I needed that.
    My hair and I have a similar relationship – each time I think I understand it change occurs- Finally after 59 yrs. we have an understanding – it will curl and I will get it cut to its best advantage”Thank you Curly Girl stylist”. Now I wash shake and go

  157. We met at Sock Summit. I had ironed my hair into submission and I feel that we didn’t develop a kinship because of it. I have a goal to let go of products and irons and be at “one’ with my unruly hair. You are my mentor 🙂 Please don’t judge me because I wrestled with my hair that morning!

  158. Your hair and mine must share a stretch of DNA. I just tell the hair cutter that if it curls up in back it is still too long. Wash, finger comb, go! Mine doesn’t get long, it gets wide (but only every three months or so. I hate going to the salon.)

  159. I get my hair cut about three times a year, and my requirements are so draconian that I always get the same cut and it always looks long and flat. (Grass/greener: my straight hair won’t do nothin’. Just hangs by my face making me look like a less-pretty Morticia until I yank it into a ponytail.)
    I worked for a woman who was in a similar situation in a deli.
    Counterwoman: Where are you from?
    Boss: Scotland.
    Counterwoman: My, you speak such good English!
    Boss: (baffled and rushed) Thank you.
    The counterwoman went home and looked up Scotland and called Boss on it the next day. 😉

  161. I’m with the non-cut contingent. I feel that having long hair gives you better options. Frizzy day? Twist and pin it into submission. Flat as linguini? A french braid will add some textural interest. I have never paid for a haircut, since I stopped getting it cut in my early teens. Also, I suspect that long hair is less curly simply because of its own weight.

  162. Half my previous comment got eaten. Long hair is better because it can be manipulated. Frizzy hair can be twisted and pinned into a bun, and flat hair can be french braided.

  164. I am so glad I am not the only one still plugging away on my husband’s Christmas socks. Cabled socks, at that.
    And I feel you on the hair. I’ve been braiding mine every day for months now because I haven’t found a hairdresser who will accept and understand that I am not going to use a diffuser, a straightening iron, or various goops in my hair.

  165. ROFL! This could mebbe be why I haven’t been to a hair place in many years…or part of it, anyway. I’ve gotten weary of people going “WHAT???” when I go in and say I want a haircut. They look down… and down… and down, and think I want this mid-thigh length cut off! So I just trim at home. I also don’t have as portable a pastime as yours. I spin and weave, neither of which is conducive to sitting still. Maybe I should learn to knit better, or crochet (my first fiber initiation) without looking.

  166. as a stylist w/ wavy hair I understand.I only use mouse or gel to keep down frizz or flat Iron to last longer
    I only shampoo every 2 or 3 days

  167. Like many of your posts, this one made me laugh out loud. God blessed me with good hair, but a recent illness has caused me to have hair issues. I can’t imagine dealing with it every day.

  168. I figure my hair has a split personality…no two hairs on my head want to go in the same direction. Flat ironing does help, but a good, short cut works for me. I also like it long, but it just takes too long with many awkward stages to deal with between short and long enough to put up.

  170. I haven’t been to a “stylist” in at least 10 years. I cut my hair with the vacuum cleaner! FloBee actually. It works on the kids, husband, and even the dog!

  171. No haircut! Just a wash, condition, trim and maybe a set or a blow dry.
    My hairdresser and I go through the same thing twice a year. No dye, products, bangs, shaping or whatever other fuss (she’s wasting her talent on me) she wants to try. I just want to be able to run a brush through it without hitting a bird nest.
    I thank her kindly for the suggestions, but I don’t want my hair don’t to become a hair do. It’s just too much work.

  172. Sometimes we open our mouth and learn something – or, at least, find out we have learned.

  173. Being a guy and all, I do get the occasional haircut.
    Occasional meaning once every two, three months or so.
    At the moment, my hair is in such a way that it adds three inches to my height and is luxuriously managable. No snarls, no tangles, nothing. I don’t want a cut, but dangit, it’s like having a fifteen pound [7kg] barbell on my head! 😐

  174. I once brought my daughter in for a cut and when I was asked what kind of cut I wanted for her, I said that I was tired of having her look like a hobo, just fix it.
    The French have absolutely no sense of humour. At all.

  175. First hair dryers. Don’t let anyone tell you hair dryers are just hair dryers. They are a “Good Thing”. They have been used under the house to defrost water pipes to the added on bathroom. They take the chill off of cold clothes in the morning.(I currently live where pipes don’t freeze but where winters are chilly and damp and no one’s heard of central heat. Clothes that were dry last night will be very damp in the mornig if you forgot to put them away.) They are good for drying out damp newspapers, quick-drying paint or glue or nail polish (I know, but once in a while…) Later today a hair dryer is going to puff up some puff paint on the bottom of knitted slippers. Once in a while they are used to give a little lift, again for special occasions, to long (if you don’t get a chance to get it cut who knows the difference), always fine and now thinning hair. Also to occasionally smooth out erratically wavy ends of otherwise straightish hair. Oh yes, forgot to mention that when I lived in a cold place in a 200 year old house, one lived by the bed and was used as the modern day equivalent of of pan full of hot coals to warm said bed. The list goes on.
    Second – I forgot. Thanks for the very loud smile!

  176. LOVE. Here’s a similar (but obviously totally different) story:
    I have a same-sex partner, and I gave birth to our son a couple of years ago. Partner goes out with son when he is about 2 weeks old to the grocery store while I was passed out somewhere. Group of ladies come to coo, asking how old he is, all that sort of thing. One then says, “He’s only 2 weeks old? Your figure is AMAZING! Doesn’t even look like you were ever pregnant.”
    Partner: “Yeah, I just got lucky I guess.”

  177. What a riot! Sometimes you just can’t resist letting one slide. I think all the work you’re doing with Doctors without Borders will balance it all out. I totally understand about the hair thing though. I have what I call Wash n Go hair. It’s long and semi-wavy, even though it was so straight when I was younger you couldn’t get it to curl if you tried. I just wash it and go, usually while it’s still wet. I don’t have a style or anything either. More power to all the people with gorgeous hair that’s styled and lovely, but it’s so not me. I have limited energy and I’d rather spend it doing something fun (like dyeing, spinning or knitting) rather than waist it on my hair.
    I’m with Karen J, you are missing out on all the varied and wonderful uses of a blow dryer. In my house a hair dryer is used for almost everything except drying hair, and yes I’ve used it to thaw frozen pipes too. There is one use that Karen didn’t mention though. I put my hairdryer on the cool air setting and use it to blow out the long, soft, and very inclined to mat coat of my Jersey Wooly bunny!!!

  178. I empathise totally; I once let someone believe it was amazingly difficult to make a ribbed vest 🙂
    As for hair, I do try to oil it once every 20 days. Wash it out after a few hours. Hair shaft becomes so plump and conditioned that it stoutly rebuffs all unseemly come-hithers from atmospheric moisture

  179. Before and after pics please. 🙂 I’m finding myself looking for the ‘agree’ button on the bottom of many posts! Reminds me of dinner with Uncle and his wife years ago. I make most of what we eat from scratch. We had pizza and other goodies. That being said, I decided to buy a delish apple pie from Costco (my fav). After tasting the pie, with tears in his eyes, Uncle Joe said to me……”I’m so glad you have Grandmom’s recipe for Apple Pie!”. What could I say? Mrs. Costco and the international community have it too? My response? “You know me, Uncle Joe…… ” Better to take the compliment then to ‘splain’ it all away.

  180. Right there with you and your hair. People think naturally curly hair is great, but it’s hard to find a stylist who wants to deal with it. I am also way over due for a trim and I have to be in public every day (have my own business.) And I have no desire to spend time trying to tame hair that will just do what it wants anyway. I don’t own a brush or comb for my longer than shoulder length hair, just wash, finger comb, and a little gel and out the door. I still get compliments even with the grey. I’m not about my looks, but what I do with my hands. Knit on.

  181. Very funny! I thought you were going to tell a story about how your hair got knitted into Joe’s sock and observe something witty or wise in that (I don’t know what that might be, but I was waiting for it!). You are a wonderful story teller.

  182. That’s too funny. I am also glad to hear that others care as little about their hair as I do. It needs to be quick and passable. It took my hairdresser a year to realize that I was serious about not ever dying my hair again and let the grays be grays. He is very nice too and always gives me great cuts the 3 times I go to him in a year.

  183. Ah yes the hair… I live on the opposite end of the spectrum, baby fine and straight. This will end up thinning out to where you’ll be looking at my skull when I’m a senior judging by the preview given by my Mother and Aunts. I too insist on low maintenance so for years I corralled it in either a pony tail or a braid and when I got sick of that returned to my 80’s pageboy, twisting it up and and holding with a clip when it’s hot. Perhaps the corral could work for you judging by the volume you can generate you could probably come up with one of those lovely Edwardian hairdo’s featuring the bun on the top of the head, corral, twist, anchor, forget, think Katharine Hepburn in her later years, it would seem she was not a woman interested in fussing either, plus you’d end up with a place to store knitting needles as a hair accessory -stab thru bun (just a thought, and you’d be armed and ready for marauding squirrels)
    I must admit I was hoping for an after shot of the tamed hair
    Hope the exploding life is a little more under control I too am trying to corral one of those “Keep Calm – Carry On”

  186. Hi! I spent last evening at a school concert as well – mine was all string orchestras, grade 3 to grade 7. I bet yours was more in tune! Fortunately at these ages most of the tunes are fairly short. And it does provide some good knitting time…
    My last short haircut was when I was five. My hair is still long and straight, although it seems to be falling out some; the replacement hair doesn’t grow very fast, so the resulting length (after a tidying up trim now and then) just keeps getting shorter. I still have enough to make a ponytail or clip up, but I am scared I will reach the point where I will not be able to keep it out of my eyes. Then what will I do?

  187. Heh heh! Absolutely with you ! I had my hair cut for the first time in 3 years in November. I went from tying it down (or up) to having to “wrangle” it every morning. It is so very much not ME! My daughter and I were cornered by a hair-appliances salesman in the mall at the weekend and his opening gambit was “Madam, what kind of straighteners do you use?” Surely he could tell I never did, and never would?!

  188. I have found the hair dresser of my dreams. She knows that I mean it when when I walk in and say “I wash it, let it air dry, comb it and occasionally pull it back. Cut it however you want as long as that’s all I have to do to it to have it look decent, and for the love of all that’s fluffy, no bangs.”
    That being said, the last time I got my hair cut professionally was about 2 years ago, right before my wedding. Since then, I’ve cut my own hair once, and had my husband trim it even in the back.

  189. I love my hair, but whenever I’m feeling strapped for cash or otherwise meh about the time it takes the hair appointments are the first thing to go. When I do go, I remember how much better I feel when I can at least leave the house feeling like part of me is put together. It’s certainly not the clothing, because I dress like clothing is a necessity rather than style or art and things are mostly just thrown on higgedy piggedy.

  190. I feel so much better having read these comments! I’d gotten the feeling that I was the last woman on earth who didn’t care about hair. My favorite haircut is cutting it(myself) to about 1/2″ all the way around. But in a concession to adulthood and winter, I’ve let it grow out a bit. But I can hardly wait for spring and off it goes!

  191. I have a question. How does one knit while getting a haircut without getting the cut hair knit into the knitting? Just wondering–

  194. I have issues with my hair too so I know how you feel. The following is one nightmare from about a year ago. The sad part is, just when I thought I had found a hairdresser who actually listened to me I find out (after the third haircut she does for me) she just does what she wants and then says “Oh we must have a lack of communication problem.” Yeah, she doesn’t listen! So needless to say I’m back to cutting my own hair.
    http://chickswithsticksofglenmontny.blogspot.com/2009/01/dont-try-this-at-home.html

  195. Shhh, we’re not talking about hair. I have a great hat, and everyone has hat hair this time of year, and no one cares if you leave your hat on all the time. It’s winter in the copper country. Last night at skiing, 4 people stopped and admired the sock I was working on… 2 asked how much I’d charge to make them a pair for snowboarding/skiing 🙂
    And Steph, I’ve seen video of you knitting. It doesn’t look like you’re knitting, dude, your fingers move faster than the eye can see.

  196. My hair is very thick and sort of not-so-much curly as frizzable. Any two adjacent hairs stick together like velcro. Hairdressers never understand, so I just chop off the bottom with sewing scissors at home from time to time. I keep it long so that I can control it better. Here’s the funny thing – in recent years, I’ve learned so much about my hair from reading knitting blogs. The same carding and washing and taming techniques that work on animal fibers will work on human hair!

  198. Great story! Thank you so much for giving me a reason to laugh (other than when I giggle insanely every time I look at my work desk)!

  199. You know, I’ll spend $40 on yarn without hesitation, but not for a haircut. Last person who cut my hair was a dog groomer. And people at work told me how good my hair looked!

  201. I ask for a dog cut – when they want to know what a dog cut is – get wet(shower) – shake – go end of story – we need to stop believing the hair people who seem to feel mousse is right up there with bread and water on out daily needs schedule.

  202. Dear Yarn Harlot: Thank you so much for making me burst out laughing not once but twice while reading your story. Thank you for the current smile on my face.

  203. How very gracious of you to not make the dear woman feel like a fool. Give yourself good marks for civility and don’t even think about there being a payback on this one.

  205. I always am thankful I have this easy lightly wavy natural looking hair, once foxygolden blond, now nicely turning into really white between shimmers of gold, because if I had not my own satisfying hair I would be so jealous of yours, I think it would be the next best. What is really funny is that you accepted her compliment so gracefully (fitst time for you?) and wrote about that the day here in the Netherlands some people started a campaign to teach people to accept compliments gracefully. So, no: Oh, it’s just an old blouse, but: thank you, I do like it myself a lot. You get the picture.

  206. You know how you treat a lovely sweater that you’ve just knitted? You cleanse it gently in a non-abrasive detergent, carefully squeeze out the excess water, and then let it alone to dry, right?
    That’s the same thing us curly haired folks need to do with our hair. Because our hair is fiber. Just like yarn.
    You might want to check out the Curly Girl method for more info, but it’s basically scrap your shampoo, cleanse with a light conditioner, and air dry. Easy peasy and doesn’t cost a thing.

  207. Its so nice to know that there are other people with complex relationships with their hair and hairdressers. I recently cut my hair myself because I was so tired of the mess and couldn’t bring myself to make an appointment with my latest attempt at finding a hairdresser. I think my lack of interest in add-on sale hairproducts distressed her. I just got a weird vibe when I left and I was scared to go back (I did tip though, generously!).

  208. That’s really funny and I would have totally said the same thing. Your hair in any photo I’ve seen of you on the blog looks great. You have a lovely wave in your hair and it’s very thick.

  209. I’m impressed that you are able to knit while getting a haircut. I can’t knit and be still enough while my stylist is working on me. How do you keep cut hair from falling onto your work?

  211. With curly hair, all you need is a good cut and you’re good to go. Wash it, put a little bit of some kind of curl goo on it, let it dry, tousle, and you’re home free. No muss, no fuss, and practically no bother. Trust me, I have hair very much like yours.

  212. Curls are like fine merino. A hairdryer is like a tumble dryer. The two don’t do well together. But I can’t dry my hair in the oven, and some days I can’t wait for it to air dry, so the next better thing is to use a diffuser. It drys my hair without the tumbling that makes it felt. It takes me five minutes to get my hair dry enough to not turn to ice when I go out, but not so dry that I can no longer fit it through the door.
    My other big trick for avoiding frizz is not brushing it. No combing, either. I just knock the curls around with my fingers (which I like to think of as ‘blocking’ my hair). A tiny dab of very cheap conditioner (99 cents a bottle) used as a leave-in helps keep the frizz down, too.
    Took me more than three decades, but I’m finally learning to get along with my curls.

  213. I feel the same about my hair. Years ago I started calling my style “polyester” aka wash and wear.

  214. Oh yes, oh yes. The bane of curly hair if you have it; the jealousy if you don’t. Am currently avoiding the public too until my favorite hair lady comes back from her out of state home to visit and cut my hair right. Very few people truly can cut curly hair right. Maybe this is why I have so many hats? I understand the use of a diffuser and it does help – but it takes too long! If I’m at all interested, like a date with my hubby, I just use some anti-frizz stuff or even curl inducing stuff and let her rip, wild and uh, wooly. BAAAA!

  215. A friend has a grandaughter of four who has curly hair and dancing eyes. Her mother calls her ” a hot mess.” I love it!

  216. I once left a salon for good when a stylist tried to insist I change my ‘style’. I repeated what I wanted (a wash-and-go cut, no fuss, no product), she said “Oh, honey, all you need is a little push”. She didn’t even get to do what I came in for – I didn’t trust her. At all. I now use my husband’s barber and am never disappointed.
    I would like curly hair. I spent my childhood with kewpie-doll hair. So fine and straight that, except for the cowlicks, it looked painted on. Anybody remember the pixie cut? That was me. With a crooked part because of the cowlicks. And it never grows out past just brushing the tops of my shoulders, where it frays into an irregular fringe, so I gave up and keep it short.
    When I tried to get a perm…. Well, the first roller went in. The second roller went in. Midway through the third roller, the first roller fell out. Midway through fixing that, the second roller fell out. Muttered cursing. In an hour, my whole head was done, but wound so tight that I looked like I was standing in a gale, or had been to Mary Tyler Moores’ plastic surgeon.
    Gray hair’s been good to me, because it’s coarser. I did start dying it myself and am someday going to have to figure out how to stop.
    And I can’t do without a hairdryer – the lock on the back gate keeps freezing up. Never use it on my head, though.

  217. I don’t think there are hair goddesses like there are knitting deities, so I doubt you’ll be “smote”. (If there are, please let us know us know. I have the total opposite of thick curly hair, but I don’t do hair products either. Wash it, let it dry naturally, maybe blowdry if it’s really cold, get it cut every two months whether it needs it or not.)

  218. My sister has beautiful naturally curly hair. Mine is naturally crooked. What ever I want it to do it does the opposite. Add to that the fact that I live in a motor home and travel full time so no long hair down the drain, must have fairly short hair.I’m at that point where two daughters-in-law say color it and one says leave it. I can’t make up my mind.
    If anyone has an in with one of those attack make over shows please sent them to me. I’m ready to let anybody do anything to my hair,makeup, wardrobe etc just to look fabulous for one day and one photo!
    BTW, Reading the comments on your blog is almost as much fun as the blog itself.
    Best to you!

  220. I had 1″ bleached hair for 20 years. Until the only person who could successfully cut/thin it enough and color it left the state. It is now past the middle of my back. Haven’t had a trim/cut in 16 month (I can do that myself if I bothered). A friend henna’s the gray.
    It drives me *nuts*. What a mess.
    I still forget to comb/brush it after a shower (hey, I didn’t have anything to comb/brush for 20 years!)

  221. I am dying to know the identity of the Famous Writer to whom you allude in your latest tweets. Does Canadian etiquette demand that you keep his/her name under wraps? (I’m Canadian too; I’ll be discreet!)

  222. Have you seen Claudia’s recent posts about her experiment with Brazilian keratin treatment?? (www.claudiasblog.net, start with Jan 13th). For those whose relationship with hair is typically marked by high levels of combat and frustration, this sounds like a once-in-a-very-long-while fix that could really help without adding more work (or even thought requirement!) to your daily schedule!
    On a different note, I (a Canadian anglophone from the prairies) was once having my hair cut by a sweet young stylist in New York State, who said she was impressed because my english was very good…sometimes it IS just easier to thank them than to try and go back and unravel the parts they are not understanding!!
    (And what happened when you went back to actual knitting and your groundspeed slowed down?!? Did you have a moment when you were tempted NOT to resume knitting since it would not likely be quite as smooth or fast looking, if she checked???!?) =)

  223. 😀 This story made my day!
    …as for hair, I love wild hair. Rock on with your wild, feral faery look!

  224. LOL!!!
    See, with that response alone, you’ve almost made up for all the knitters and crafters who make way too light of what they can do with a needle or more, especially when they lie and say it’s nothing or it’s easy.

  225. So a lady at my work was discussing how it is so hard to be female, because we have to do our hair and makeup and shave our legs and armpits everyday. I just poked my head up over the cube wall (yeah, it’s that kind of job) and said, “we do?? Since when . . . I must have missed that memo.” She was horrified to learn of my lack of girlie skill or care. Whatever. I can knit socks.

  226. and pps (apropos of nothing)
    I love Guinness and chocolate cake – Nigella Lawson – If I make some will you come>?

  227. “Curly Girl” will change your life. All of us who are recommending it to you do not lie.
    Rav group too

  228. Dearest YH, I know you probably don’t do this sort of thing but if you would check my blog – you would see me in my wonderful new knit wig that I won from Denise at Grrl + dog. It would be just the thing and you can curl it so it flips up in a ….hmmm…flip…or down and under into a pageboy. I am going to wear it to feed the chooks and I’ll post a pic when I do that too. I’m getting my hair cut tomorrow. I’m paying someone though in my feckless past I would take the nail scissors to it with a shout of ‘it’s just hair’ – makes my best friend of thirty years simply crazy. My new hairdresser said that he wanted to do something more contemporary with my hair and I told him not a chance – I will not curl it, colour it, blow dry it or put anything other than cheap shampoo on it and that not very often. And I have to say it is quite nice for all that. I think hair is like surly teenagers, all the nicer for a bit of neglect.

  229. Maybe the reason why you knit (or slip stitches around the needles) so fast is BECAUSE you don’t spend so much time sitting in hairdressers’ chairs getting all super-duper fancy.
    Hmmm…something to ponder…nice hair or ever-increasing speedy knitting?
    Tough choice.

  230. CUT IT SHORT! CUT IT SHORT! CUT IT SHORT!
    THINK Mia Farrow/pixie-cut short.
    And then, a little pomade (very small hair product investment) and you’re set!

  231. I love the hair story and the comments. Good to know there are sister knitters out there who don’t obsess over hair. Mine is heavy and straight and I keep it short. I get it cut and I wash it. Period. To quote another comment, “It is what it is.” Another one of those things that drives women crazy for no good reason!

  232. What I like best about you is how different we are. While my knitting just sucks, I spend way too much time and money on my hair. It would be heaven if I would work from a pub every once and a while. You have a great and wonderful life, and you deserve it all!

  233. I checked out the Naturally Curly Crafters on Ravelry and my curly hair has never looked better. Best things I ever did were to buy one of those super-absorbing towels (got mine at Target in the automotive section) and stop using product with silicones. Rarely do I use my dryer with diffuser; I generally wash it at night and sleep on it and it looks great. I only shampoo & condition once or twice a week; I don’t do the conditioner-wash thang.

  234. Steph, I have the same hair as you and I too don’t like to even think about it. Here’s what I do that makes it somewhat acceptable in public. Get it cut in lots of layers to cut down on the bush look and use Aussie Tis No Frizz. Magic stuff there. Buy it in the grocery store or at drugstore.com or the like. I shower, rub a dollop of that stuff in and I’m good for the day. It doesn’t get stiff like a lot of them do. God, I sound like I own stock in the company but give it a try.

  236. My hair-lady was chosen because she knits!! It is nice to talk knitting when she does my hair.

  237. Ha, ha, ha. Explains where my former hairdresser ended up after she moved from San Diego.

  239. LOL I have the same conversation with my hair stylist. AND I have to keep her from putting crap into my hair.
    I keep telling her, put that crap in there and I’ll go home and wash it out again. I hate hair “Product”. I do like a good haircut, though.

  240. Ingredients
    2 cups all-purpose flour
    1/2 teaspoon baking soda
    1/2 cup packed brown sugar
    1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    1/2 cup butter
    1 1/4 cups room temperature beer
    1/2 cup chopped walnuts
    Directions
    Cream together the butter or margarine and the brown sugar. Cut in flour, baking soda and spice. Blend in beer slowly to form a soft dough.
    Drop by teaspoonfuls and top with a walnut piece.
    Bake 12-15 minutes at a 350 degree F (175 degrees C) oven until lightly brown. Cool one minute on cookie sheet and remove to wire rack

  241. OMG I nearly peed myself! Where would I be without your comic relief???? It reminds me of when I’ve done demo with my spinning wheel and a woman asked how I got the string to be turn into fluff. I just stared at her. I thought she was joking.

  243. I’ve been growing my hair for about a year & a half…..It’s just long enough now to use hairsticks….
    I am a relatively new knitter (2 yrs)so I try to find ANY excuse to knit…even to the point of having extra needles with me at all times….The hairsticks are a good excuse!!!
    Keep up the good work!!!
    1

  244. LOL!
    Uhm, I’ve done that. I’ll take it further. I’ve let people tell me how much they like my knitting when, in fact, I’m wearing crochet. (I do both.)
    Sometimes, I’m just a wee bit reluctant to explain myself to the muggles. It’s a weakness. I’m sure the karma points are stacking up.

  245. I am so glad that someone reminded us about the lady on the train story – that was the first blog I ever read of yours and I was hooked from then on. Hair story was great – but the “lady on the train” story is the best!

  246. LOL this is a great story. I can not tell you how many times I’ve had someone say the same thing about me moving stitches around. As far as the hair thing goes people love you for you and I don’t think they spend one second thinking about your hair. Somethings are meant to left to their own devices, hair being one of them, it is what it is so go forth and wear it with pride.

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