Day 346: Cutting your own bangs for fun & profit

Great Moments in Bangs:
Zooey Deschanel teaches us that a strong fringe can emphasize your eyes better than any eyeliner can. (Don't tell her bosses at Rimmel Cosmetics that, though)

I mentioned yesterday that cutting my own bangs is one of the things I wouldn't have done this year, were it not for the whole shopping detox thing. And then I remembered I had never blogged about it!

First off, I would like to note that bangs are not for everyone. That being said, cutting bangs (or "fringe" as you say across the pond) is a great way to freshen your look without dying or chopping it all off. It's a good half-way extreme hair change, juuuust enough to satiate those cravings for a total makeover.

Great Moments in Bangs:
Reese Witherspoon cuts bangs for the 2007 Oscars, following her divorce from Ryan Philippe.

I would like to note first off that I have the utmost respect for the hairdressing industry. But it's a lot easier to just trim my own bangs than make an appointment to go see someone for 4 minutes while they do what I can do (nearly) as well at home. I used this tutorial from the retro fantastic Retro Chick.

What I have learned (the hard, unflattering bangs way):

- cut your bangs DRY (because if you cut them wet, they will get shorter when they dry and you may wind up with too-short bangs)
- get good haircutting scissors (seriously, don't use your kitchen scissors - use nice, sharp, clean ones)
- don't get too carried away (it's exciting to cut your own hair, but always err on the side of cutting a bit too less, not a bit too much)
- bear in mind that HAIR ALWAYS GROWS BACK, and if worse comes to worst, you can use a combo of bobby pins and headbands to hide the bangs away.

Not-So-Great Moments in Bangs:
Peggy from the first season of Mad Men clearly got a bit carried away with cutting her bangs, to disastrous consequence. 

Anyway, the real secret is that you snip the scissors UPWARDS - don't slice straight across the bangs. It's  varsity level home haircutting to cut a perfectly straight fringe, so go with a piecey look - that way, it doesn't have to all be the same length so there's less pressure.

Great Moments in Bangs:
Marianne Faithfull, 1960s. Along with Brigitte Bardot and Julie Christie, she founded the heavy bangs-with-wavy-hair look currently popularized by Zooey Deschanel.

*Important note: bangs are useful in the winter, when wearing a hat, because the bangs keep the hat from leaving a mark on your forehead.

Bang trims are free at most salons anyway, so this isn't necessarily frugal. But it saves time and is convenient! So I'm all for it.