Masculine haircut

[Iused2BanOptimist]

I had my haircut yesterday, it's been so hot, sweating on the back of my neck, I told the hairdresser to chop it off, so it's now quite short and feels so much more comfortable. Anyway, as the hairdresser was snipping away she remarked "When I do haircuts like this some people are concerned it's a bit masculine and they want a feminine haircut". I really thought that was bizarre (I don't now look like a bloke btw but if people want to misgender me I couldn't care less, I will consider it a huge joke). Women do their hair in a million different ways and really I don't think I've ever once looked and thought "How feminine" or "That's very masculine". One of the hairdressers had a very sleek silvery close crop, she looked amazing, she certainly didn't resemble an old man!

I asked the hairdresser if it was more younger women that said this and she agreed it was.
I just find it strange and I suppose it's all part of this gendered nonsense, putting every little part of a person's appearance and behaviour in a box. I find it very sad that people should feel under so much pressure to conform to a particular type. I thought that was what we had been fighting against for so many years?

I think that we fought the good fight against beauty standards, and this is the backlash. We now have to police whether we look 'feminine' enough instead.

It's strange for her to say that because shorter hairstyles have been common for women since oh, i dunno, forever. At least the 60s.
You'd think a hairdresser would be well aware of that.

I cut all my hair short in Year 8 at school. I got called a boy by quite a few people. And a dyke/lesbian.

I've had a close crop for 25 years - since I was 20. I absolutely love it and I go to a men's barber. They know how to cut it properly. I don't want a woman's cut for 3 times the price.

One hairdresser asked me if I wanted the sides feathered and the back left longer. He was shocked when I asked him to get out the clippers. I don't want to go back in 2 weeks because it's not short enough...

I had a similar comment at the hairdressers, the stylist said ' I'll leave it a bit longer at the back, you don't want to look like a man!'. I said I wanted it cut shorter, as I had asked, and it was my hair, not a man's. It annoyed me a lot.

Oh and I do get misgendered (or should that be missexed? ) but I really don't care! I just get a 'sorry' when they've realised and that's that.

Oh and yes, the stylist was early 20's

Exactly Deydodo I found it a really strange concept. What does one make of those mullet cuts some men prefer, like Ian Botham used to have? Is that masculine or feminine? Or binary? can't decide short or long so a bit of both
I'm sorry Amethystical that you had such judgemental school mates.
I don't remotely care at a personal level, it's been so hot I considered doing The Macmillan shave, after all hair grows, winter will come. I just found it a surprising remark from the hairdresser at a wider level.
Are women not allowed to cut their hair short now in case they are judged to be too masculine?

What a very odd thing for a hairdresser to say.....

Brysonette I'm laughing at the thought people would need to see you from behind to decide if you were a man or not! There's logic. Anyway, anyone seeing the size of my behind would surely, correctly identify me as a woman whatever the hair looks like.

I don't want to waste needless time and money on my hair or ruin the environment, so have a simple cut occasionally that allows my hair to dry naturally and can be worn up to avoid the sweaty neck problem.

For years I have wanted to have my head shaved but have never been brave enough. Fast forward to 3 months ago I finally bit the bullet and asked my husband to get his clippers out and shave my head, grade 4. IT FEELS BLOODY FANTASTIC! It's been great for the hot weather and requires no maintenence whatsoever, save for a bit of wax to stop it looking fluffy.
I dont wear make up/dresses very often and wear jeans/shorts/t shirt most of the time but no one has said that I look masculine. In fact most people have said it looks great and wish they were brave enough to do it themselves.
If anyone has ever wanted to I would urge them to give it a go, it will always grow back. The only drawback is that it feels so good, I can't stop rubbing my bonce. Go for it girls, be brave and don't give a hoot what other people think.

I don't think it was a bizarre or odd thing to say. A hairdresser should always be sure what they are doing is what their client wants. Especially if being asked to chop hair off.

She clealy referred to her own past experience of her clients' concerns. She didn't want you bursting into tears because you had Mia Farrow or Agyness Deyn in mind and you ended up with Lea Delaria.

Short hair cuts on men and short hair cuts on women are not the same. They can be but short hair cuts on women are often cut in a different and feminised way.

Really do have to make such an issue of and take offence at what was no more than good customer service?

Lass I didn't take offence. It's not an issue for me. I was just surprise at the concept. But then I'm not a hairdresser.

Do you really not understand why she asked? Particularly when she said it was a concern for other customers whose hair she had cut?.

I'm at work on my lunch in an open plan office. Looking across the room there is a female colleague in her 60s with very short (not bobbed) grey hair- her style still looks different from the male colleagues' short hair cuts.

I came out with a generic pixie crop so many times that I ended up googling men's haircut terms - 'really short on the sides please' vs. '#2 medium fade' gets you two very different results.

I think that some hairdressers are frightened of cutting off too much and you being angry and slandering them in social media - I tried to get the back of my head shaved very close in an undercut at one women's hairdresser and she just couldn't bring herself to go as short as I wanted no matter what I said, to the point where I had to go to a barber straight afterwards and ask them to just shave all the pixie layered area as a no1.

"The only drawback is that it feels so good, I can't stop rubbing my bonce. Go for it girls, be brave and don't give a hoot what other people think"
I agree with you (shaved or number 0 all over) about the way it feels! Although in my case revealed a few unknown scars, which led to me discovering that my brother threw a brick at me when I was a kid, and claimed I had fallen over...........

When I was at school, I remember the hairdresser not wanting to cut it as short as I wanted -- I had to wait until I went to uni and finally got up the courage to go into a gents barber and get it as I wanted. Then buy your own clippers, and you're away! I convinced my missus as well, although she won't let me go shorter than #2 in summer.................