Should I cut my hair? Short hair - over 50?

[Yowlingcat]

I’ve always preferred my hair short, it’s fine with a wave and is easy to quickly blow dry - I especially suit the slightly flicked out style like Kate Silverton used to have .

The past two years has seen me (very slowly) grow out to shoulder length. It’s so fine and quite ratty now on the ends so needs a really good cut. I’m quite grey but have a combination of highlights and a darker blond. I’m finding myself hankering after my old style but I’m 50, my face is fatter with a double chin coming along and I fear I’ll look older.

It’s wavy yet doesn’t look tidy when I scrunch dry it - it’s just dried and it curls up at the ends. It’s flat and it won’t hold much volume, it’s terrible day two and looks like it needs washing.

I have a hair appointment in the morning - should I be brave and cut it short again? If so what kind of style? I don’t want anything too ‘out there’ and all the pictures I like I suspect they are dated and the ‘id like to see the manager’ (as much as I hate that analogy so apologies). Any inspiration please?

I really like your colours and new cut.
It is not 60 yr old style, it is a nice shape.
Your hair curly looks gorgeous...exactly what I would like.
Change your glasses to a lighter frame?

Here goes. I should add that this hasn’t been given the usual ‘curly girl’ treatment with the right products. This is me dampening the straight hair - the curls form again immediately. Hence the fact it’s a bit frizzy too. It’s too short for this option now. 🥹

I think it looks great. You're so brave putting up a pic of yourself.
I like the cut. No way my hair would sit like your new cut, it's way too curly.
I like it but if you don't, just grow it, won't take long.

Ah not brave, just would rather honest opinions. I’m annoyed with myself for agreeing to something I didn’t really want.

The curly version is better than the straight version. If you went back (or somewhere else) and had some more off, you could turn it into something like this which I think would be more what you were after in the first place.

Oh op I feel sorry for you! I think yes it looked better before - longer and how you styled it. Definitely looks more mumsy and dowdy now :-(

But you gave it a try and because it's short even a little bit of growth will make a difference! You are gorgeous so stick with it and it'll be back to how it was before.

(Hate it when people post photos of Jamie lee Curtis and models on these threads - most people look much more normal and I think short hair only really looks great if you are skinny and young with a great jaw and no double chin - rules me out)

Omg do not do this you will look ridiculous

I love your new hair! and you're very cute 😍

I really disagree with the negative comments, it looks healthier and very sweet. The old hair looked more mumsy to me as shoulder length is very mumsy.

I like both curly and straightened are pretty, I strongly disagree with the haircut suggest by @BonjourCrisette

I LOVE your hair like that! - wavy pic

That's how I'd love my hair to look like! My colour is exactly the same but I want it blonder. But I can't get my hair to wave. 🙄

Def def def think that is better than the granny bob!

It's not too short for wavy look.

So envious of your curls!

I think your glasses are a bit black - maybe makes you look pale -something finer and coloured thankfully this is anonymous

Get high lights and lo lights, the choppy 3rd pic is lovely. You have a good jawline and can carry a short style maybe with long fringe. You definitely do not 50!!

@Yowlingcat my opinion, FWIW, is that your new cut looks 'ok' but much like a huge percentage of people outr age kind of overdone/boring. (Sorry, but you asked).

I LOVE the second picture, really love it. My hair is waist length (but too thin now thanks to stress & menopause) & it NEEDS cutting. It's incredibly fine and hasn't been short since I was about 4!! No idea what it'll be like short so I'm going to go up in chunks! If I knew it would look like your second photo I'd go and get it cut this afternoon.

My opinion... grow it out to photo 2 length!!

but do what YOU want!!

I’m pale and wan, I don’t have any makeup on in any pics 😂 not really doing myself any favours 😂

I wanted a pixie cut. Since menopause my hair is like straw and never looks healthy. I’ve always had to wash it every day because it’s so greasy and I just reached the stage where I couldn’t be arsed wasting an hour every day washing and attempting to style it.

My DH wasn’t keen, he said he liked my hair longer. I had it cut off anyway because to me the practical time-saving alone trumps his aesthetic preferences. Now I’m in and out of the shower in three minutes, rub a bit of wax through it and off I go. I love it!

And an added bonus is that DH says that he loves it even though he didn’t expect to, and it takes 10 years off me!

Last pic (natural wavy) looks best.
In one month it will be an inch longer and will also be healthier because of this chop.

Grow it a bit and keep it wavy. You look great. Lovely colour. Lovely skin and no jowels and slim face. No double chin!

I HATE how hairdressers blow dry... on nearly everyone! I always say "rough dry" please and leave after 5 minutes. (53 longish straight hair, DD trims my hair now!)

Also, I pick a week when I am doing nothing. I do not wash my hair at all, just brush it andmaybe get it wet. It rests it. I would never wash my hair every day.

(Hate it when people post photos of Jamie lee Curtis and models on these threads - most people look much more normal and I think short hair only really looks great if you are skinny and young with a great jaw and no double chin - rules me out)

It is hard to find pics of 'normal' people to post. Of course models and actresses are the people who are going to come up when you google a style.

FWIW, I am neither skinny nor young, have pretty much exactly that Jamie Lee Curtis hairstyle and I don't look bad at all, if I do say so myself. I don't have a double chin, but then neither does OP.

I suppose I feel a bit the same as some people do about short hair with respct to very long hair. It's somehow become the default but the actual numbers of people that it really suits are vanishingly small.

I think the curls really suit you more than the straight. It gives volume and adds a bit of vibrancy. I don't think it's too short for the curls now either.
Radical suggestion perhaps - grow it out a bit below shoulder length and keep the natural curls look.
You don't look anywhere close to 50s btw!

I have really bad dermatitis on my scalp and after 24 hours without washing my scalp begins to itch. After a week it would be a mass of weeping scabs! 😩 Interestingly my ds has the same greasy hair. During lockdown he stopped washing it every day and began to wash every 7-10 days. After 12 months it would still be dripping in grease a day after washing it. You can’t retrain your genes. On the plus side I’m 50 with no wrinkles thanks to my cursed greasy skin!

@yowlingcat I think you can probably get the curls and wave back in a shifter version with that cut she gave you. It looks fine but it is a bit boring. A lot.of hairdressers seem to struggle with the idea that women might want something funkier. When I went short, after 18 months of just not getting it right I eventually changed my hairdresser!

I love it curly and wavy. All the people I know who’ve straightened their naturally curly hair have always looked so much better when they’ve stopped straightening.

I think embrace the curls and grow it out a bit then get it cut by someone who specialises in curly hair.

I do think a change of glasses may help how you view your reflection.

Wow! Now I have wavy hair and would love your wave! It looks amazing like this. Defo wear it wavy 🙌🏻

Would love to see a pic. Would love to go short, but I'm not brave enough 🥴