continuation to this.

when we moved to fiji, one of the things i had to adjust to was how most people took haircut for granted. not to say that people took their hair in general for granted. in fact, many of them obsess over it: they dye, highlight, perm, fix into cornrows, braids, dreadlocks more frequently than i know pinays do. but haircut in particular doesn’t seem as big a deal as what i am more accustomed to.

so if i can’t find the time to experiment with different hair stylists, i decided, what the heck, might as well jump into the bandwagon. besides, this is the immediate solution to my hair’s volume problem. a good old fashioned perm. and i mean not digital.

it looked great blown out and was a very fascinating novelty to me for the first two weeks. by the end of the first month, the curls started to show signs of unraveling. eventually, my naturally straight hair started to show at the roots. that’s when i started covering up with hats. good thing i have become a hat person moving to fiji, otherwise, i would have resented wearing headgear all the time.

by the end of the second month, my hair already badly needed fixing. it was either have it curled again or straightened to its old self. i decided to buy large curlers and a home perming lotion to see whether we could do this ourselves. apparently, we couldn’t. the result: my hair went back to its original straightness. and the worst part is it’s even limper than the most limp it has been in the past! i didn’t even know this was possible… how can you surpass a superlative?

but wait, this is the worst part: the roots where the curls ended were severely damaged! as my hair grew out, you can see a very clear demarcation between where the formula wreaked havoc and where my natural hair begins.

most people in fiji said they don’t notice… either a) they are being kind to me, b) they are not used to assessing hair or c) the rest of my hair look unhealthy, the damaged part just blends in. but when i got back to manila, jill, who picked me up from the airport, immediately noticed the difference. i was in permanent bad hair day mode.

the band aid solution was some repair treatment at home. it did wonders making the damaged portion look less noticeable, but there is nothing it could do about my hair’s stubborn lifelessness.

so i went to cris in basement salon. professional hair stylist that he is, he quickly noticed that there was something the matter with my hair. he told me there is no treatment that can fix it (oh the sadness), so i decided to just cut my hair short and let the flat parts grow out until i can chop them off. i can hardly wait.

but here was his challenge that day: create a cut that will provide body and structure to hair that refuses to live.

bob #1

since the bangs won’t sweep to the sides anymore the way they used to, he just gave me fringes that all drop to my eyebrows. he has this way of notching bangs that make them look wispy yet full. this is something i’ve been trying to describe to other stylists, but i don’t think they understand what i’m trying to say.

i couldn’t have him cut much because i was m.o.h. at a wedding and wanted something that can still be styled. he recommended something shorter because with the current state of my hair some rebellious parts would stick out. i appreciate him explaining the shortcomings of the style i wanted yet not insisting, letting me have my way in the end; nonetheless, i said i would come back after the wedding so he can cut my hair the way he thought was best. he angled the bob to give it some shape, but not too much.

the result: a moderately angled long bob with some layer.

bob #2

after the wedding, i was ready for a shorter ‘do. i gave cris free rein on what to do with it, i just wanted most of the aberrant parts gone.

cris spent a lot longer on my hair this time. aside from the usual layer and notching that i am used to, he skimmed an electric razor along the edges to create an illusion of volume.

the result: a slightly tapered chin-length bob with soft edges.

i like it so much, i think i’m going to stick to the bob even when my healthy hair grows back.

i’m glad i have a hair stylist i could trust. hope you have one too!