To let my 8 year old daughter shave half her head

[Missymini]

My daughter currently has a bob and she has decided she wants her hair cut shorter. We have looked together at pictures online and she likes the type were half the head is shaved and the remaining hair has a undercut. It feels quite drastic but I am tempted to let her as it is her hair we have discussed once it is done if she doesn't like it she will have to wait for it to grow out and she is adamant that is fine.

Freedom within reason. Natural looking colours - fine. If she’d have wanted it to be a ridiculous blue etc then of course the answer would’ve been no. Kids lack impulse control and need boundaries. Shaving half of your head off at the age of 8 crosses them in my eyes.

DD wanted to be fully bleach blonde when she was 15.. I said no because she would’ve looked ridiculous, it’s very high maintenance and as a natural brunette her hair would’ve been totally fried. Now aged 21 and she’s very glad I set that boundary - she agrees that light colours don’t suit her, she hates damaged hair and she would’ve looked plain silly!!

Maybe it's just where we live but I know quite a few little girls with undercuts and assymetric hair, and I've never once considered them "chavvy" or "one of THOSE children". They come from perfectly naice families actually.

I let my 6yo do it. She could let her long hair fall over the shaved part to hide it very easily, but she loved the look. We are growing it out now and will probably cut all the hair to a pixie crop when she's definitely done with it. No regrets and nobody's treated her differently for it. I've really enjoyed watching her experiment with new styles, full of enthusiasm and self confidence.

Good point. It actually looks great, I'd be proud if my daughter was interested in something a bit edgy rather than boring looking like everyone else

Freedom within the bounds of your tastes?

Because that's all it is isn't it? As you've seen lots of posters are far more appalled with your parenting than the OP's. A haircut is objectively less dangerous than hair dye (no chemicals involved, no chance of allergic reaction etc). You just don't like that style.

You don't like the chosen haircut so you wouldn't allow it. Your child isn't free to look how they want they need to conform to your idea of acceptable (which is many other people's idea of unacceptable/unpleasant).

Isn’t it weird that people have different opinions?
At the end of the day it’s a haircut. It’s not a tattoo.

The first day my dd went into school after cutting 18 inches of her her off and donating it to charity one child laughed at her and said why have you got a boys haircut. Apparently she had many comments after that. When we were out I’d have actual adults call her a boy, even if she was blatantly wearing “girl” clothes. Thankfully she didn’t care and i became proud of her dirty looks and deadpan I’m a girl responses, there were a few eye rolls too 🙄

Wow, I'm so shocked to hear that. I can't believe some people are so lame! Especially about a haircut

The haircut is lovely and as long as it isn’t going to create issues at school ( I don’t see why it would, it’s not particularly extreme) then let her. I think the fact she doesn’t care about other people’s opinions of her appearance is great and if we could all get to that stage as early as she appears to have everyone would be much happier. That confidence in herself should be encouraged.

Oh, is this cut back in fashion? I wasn't brave enough the last time but would love another chance at it.

(I can't imagine it in an 8yo though, if she hates it, it will be a long year for her to grow it out).

Is this not just the other side of the same coin? Why do they have to be either edgy or boring?

Well looking exactly the same as everyone else and being scared to do anything different is boring, so no I don't think they are similar.

I was thinking the same thing but I don't have the face to pull it off. I think it might be back, as I saw someone on TV the other day with this style too. DD will be a trend setter. My friend had this style, I think Victoria Beckham had it first ... 2009?

That’s horrendous. I can’t fathom why schools would wish to deprive children of their education for something as innocuous as a haircut in any case, but to do that because a child gets a traditional Afro cut is just awful.

Yes, I think it was late 2000's when the trendy girls at work all had this. Pretty sure my face is too round and fat nowadays 🙄.

i find it a bit architectural and mature for an 8year old.
unlikely to grow in enough in 4 weeks time to do anything much different come school start in september.

Can't believe all the comments about it looking "chavvy". Mumsnet's unpleasant middle class snobbery at its finest. I never allowed my kids to use the words chavvy, poor and council as insults, in the same way I wouldn't allow them to use racist or homophobic slurs. Really, just get over yourselves, you sound like a Catherine Tate parody.

It's hair, it will grow back. Mine had all manner of holiday hairstyles. I actually quite like the cut in question. Would look fab with combat pants, a funky tee and checked overshirt.

The irony is its the opposite, it's trendy and chic. Just shows the uptight and backwards attitudes, it's quite funny really.

I actually love this cut and would allow my DD to choose this all year round (except she's a rapunzel wannabe!)

Or braiding it?!

And some of the apparently grown adults on here should be ashamed of themselves. They are likely passing their horribly judgemental attitudes to their children who are then the rude children who are bullies

The haircut is cute. It's not even that extreme.

Long hair is hardly "low maintainence". It tangles, needs pulling back for sports and science, requires more washing...

I've seen people complaining on here about others calling all school holidays "half term" but not witnessed it myself until now.

Crikey - it actually is quite annoying, isn't it! 😄

I don't think it looks extreme, it's quite smart. Although I can't quite imagine it on a child. I think I would say she could have it when she's 9 (as long as that's not soon!) if she still wants to by then. It might just go away. But if she still wants it then she's obviously very keen and I'd let her experiment with it.

Some of the comments on here - quite a few posters really need to unclench. OP, my daughter had that haircut at age 6 and it was absolutely fine. It didn't become a slippery slope to heroin and no one ever made the apparently horrifying error in our very middle class area of mistaking her for being (whispers) 'working class'. Growing it out was also a complete non-issue.

Good grief! I am always astounded by how old fashioned and boring so many on MN are. Thank goodness people are a bit more open minded where I am and the sight of a haircut like that wouldn't be worthy of a second glance, on either an adult or a child.

Half term??