Any oldies gone from long to short hair and not regretted it?

[IslaValargeone]

I'm in my 40's and have long straight hair with fringe.
I'm loathe to have it cut as I feel I'd be saying goodbye to my youth, fertility and sex goddessness.
That being said, my style is really doing me no favours as it's dragging down my increasingly sagging fizzog.
I feel I should liberate myself and go very short, I can't shake the urge, but after having long hair forever, I'm a scaredy cat.
Convince me, mature beauties.

Really interested to see this thread. I'm 52 and have wavy shoulder length layered hair, long layers at the front which I have to blow dry carefully otherwise I look like Crystal Tips (for those old enough to remember her).

I do think that women's hair is generally quite boring at the moment, it seems to be uniform long but not styled, sassy bobs (nice on others a total disaster on me), or mum hair - not the mammy look so much as that short unisex cut that looks as bad on men as women.

I'd sort of like to go for a shorter cut as my face seems heavy and dragged down (by age, rather than hair) but I don't want to go near mum hair or also look even older

Any thoughts?

What do you do if you are a) crap at styling hair and b) can't afford to go to hairdressers every 6 weeks? There are cheap places (Supercuts etc) but you have to have a 30 - 60 minute wait (and unlike the no-appointment kids' hairdressers you can't nip out for 20 mins and come back, if you set foot outside the door you count as starting again when you come back in!) and the quality of the stylists varies so much.

I'm 46 with shoulder length hair - I grew out a short cut because I couldn't afford the upkeep of the haircuts and the hair dye, so now it is coloured to hide the grey but only cut every 2-3 months. Thing is, when I was younger and first had my hair short, it used to look a bit Kirstie/Nigella-ish. All long and wavy. Now it's finer/dryer/frizzier :( Too scared to have it chopped though as I feel this is my last chance to have it this length.

OP - just looked at your photos - I think you need it just below your cheekbones, side parting, slight asymmetric look just like mine

Just posted on the "Clair Underwood" thread as thinking of having the chop again. This is me (short) but, had it like this for do keys years. Am now growing (for the last ever time) but am fed up with having to "do" more with it.

OP, what I will say is, that if your hair is poker straight, like mine, with a good cut, you won't need to do anything with it. When my hair was this short, I washed it, combed in a parting and left it to its own devises.

Am seriously tempted by the "Clair Underwood" (House of Cards)

That's a beautiful cut Eliza. Really lovely. Suits you.

Bloody hell! That should have said DONKEYS YEARS!

I forgot to say, I like the bob on you. It's a good length and you have a firm looking jawline to carry it off!

I'm 55 and this is my hair, I know I'm going to have to short at some stage but I keep putting it off.

tigerdriver I look like Crystal Tips when its windy and raining

Thanks Milly. I'm like you. Went shorter than that pic, (proper pixie) this time last year then decided "I'm growing to grow it" as I'd had a lot of stress, aged overnight and needed something to hide behind. It's just touching my shoulders now so, should persevere as I'm early 50's and spent a decade with a crop. If I don't have it longer now, I probably never will. But...... It was soooo easy!

OP, I realise now, that the lady with the 2 pics is NOT you! Apologies! You could do it in stages....long bob, shorter bob, crop. That way, if you get to shorter bob and feel "older" with it, you can just grow again. Simples

I'm 49 and have gone the other way and grown mine. It's between my shoulder blades now and I love it.

I make sure it stays in great condition and is cut, coloured and styled in a way that suits my face, style and colouring. I feel and look loads better than when it was short.

I had a Annie Lennox crop for years and year shut 50 and decided to grow it out. Now have it bra strap length :)

Suits me much better

Doesn't matter how old you are, have your hair long or short whatever you like. Regardless of your age if your current style isn't working for you, change it.

Plenty of short cuts aren't mumsy. Get an undercut!

I cut mine pixie short in the summer, similar to this except I don't look like Charlize . it had been shoulder length. I love Claire Underwoods hair, I had mine similar for years and I'm going to grow it in again. .

The Claire Underwood cut is gorgeous. I would love to chop my hair (currently below shoulder blade length) into this style. I'm really not sure a 5"3 curvy 12/14 could get away with it. But I'm very tempted!

Gemma, your colour is gorgeous and your hair is shiny and healthy looking. Leave it alone!

What I will say is that I've had to forgo my highlights pretty much as long hair, on and older face, when it's very highlighted can be ageing and knackers your hair so, I've returned to the blonde mouse of my youth and without exception (or they might be being kind) people have said that it suits my complexion better. Also, it matches my eye brows and is nice and shiny!

Still might go for the chop, though!

Ive recently gone from just below bra strap length to collar length. Front doesn't look very different full fringe graduating in layers to just below chin length, but the backs all layered and flicky. I've had lots of complements and people asking if Ive lost weight so it must be reasonable.

Will be keeping it like this or similar for a while, had always thought if I hate it it'll grow but no need.

Another advantage I've found of very short hair is that, as I'm going grey (gracefully) it blends in a lot better being short and choppy. If it was longer it would look a bit 'witchy' and I'd have to have it coloured.

I used to have highlights, which blended the grey quite well, but they got cut out so quickly it was a waste of money. Now I've more grey I'm just going with the flow, quite happily.

I'm 50 and decided to grow my fine wavy hair one last time. I ended up with completely unmanageable frizz. So I've gone for a sort of wavy pixie cut (think my mum had one in the sixties) coloured a rich red brown. I'm rather pleased with it.
I've also noticed my face had gone a lot thinner in recent years: I've lost my chubby cheeks. Suddenly I have the cheekbones I would have liked for when I was 18

I'm 46 and I spent the last few years thinking exactly that. I resisted as long as I could saying "but if I get it cut now I'll never have it long again", I thought it would be symbolic of the end of my youth. I got it chin length and I love it, I look years younger and it's so much easier to handle. In fact it's on better condition and I'm now not a slave to my straighteners.

Not a beauty by any means but I have had my hair shortish for a few years now. I began to worry when my long hair just made my face seem heavier. It's now a short bob - longer at the front than the back and with a graduated fringe that I am growing out.

Do sex goddesses always have long hair?

Do it in stages, I say. Try a sleek bob or something, then you can go shorter in a few months. Mine's been supershort for years, like this (not quite the same face though, sadly).

Im going to let my grey through as well chablis, thats the reason it's very short atm. I have very dark brown hair naturally and have been colouring it brown for years. I cut it because it was thinnning out too much and looked horrible. I have Lupus and have got very allergic to everything, and, for the first time ever, I'm wary of using a dark dye, in case I have a reaction.
It's dyed a dark blonde , so I'll see how it goes. I'm imagining lovely silver hair, thd reality will probly be brillo pad .

I asked for this when I had my waist length hair cut last year. I do miss my long hair, but I like my short hair(which looks nothing like the picture).

I love Jamie Lee Curtis. My hair is a similar style, I'm just hoping my grey ends up like hers!

I've got highlights and lowlights in mine while my grey comes though (DH despairs at my hairdressers bills!)

I'm hoping for this colour and this is as short as I'm prepared to go: