I've now officially been growing my hair out for a whole year! I thought I'd take a few photo's to show how much it's grown and just to talk about it more. For the first few months I was cutting it monthly to keep the mullet at bay, but I cut it for the last time in August and ever since then I've just been trying to power through and strategically style it so the mullet isn't too obvious. For these photo's I decided to just leave it natural and unstyled so that you can properly see the length though.
There's been so many times that I've just wanted to cut it all off, but luckily I haven't gave in to the temptation! It definitely helps having pictures of long hair inspo to keep you motivated (I have Monami Frost and her beautiful long hair to thank).
There is a big possibility that I'll have a pixie cut again but for now I'm looking forward to growing my hair long and enjoying having my natural colour for the first time in a long time! For now hair pieces will have to be my new best friend!
Here's a bonus pic of Sabbath being cute as a thank you for reading this post!
Instagram @wolvesandflames
As you can probably tell I am well on my way to growing out my buzzcut.
It's been five months since I last shaved my hair to a number two and I am lucky to have hair that grows thick and fast, but I've still been looking up tips and making an effort to encourage my hair to grow as fast as possible (Come through hair!).
Keep it healthy
We have the amazing opportunity to start all over again with our hair! So it only makes sense to make a huge effort to look after it and make sure it stays as healthy as possible. I've invested in a new conditioner, deep conditioner and Moroccan oil so that I can create a new routine and have my natural, soft hair for the first time since I discovered straighteners in high school!
Embrace your natural oils
Although I'm starting the conditioning routine, I also want to calm down on the amount of times I wash my hair. Our scalp produces oil for a reason, so let it do it's job and keep your hair happy. When I had the buzzcut I was washing my hair daily, so I'm trying to get out of the habit of sticking my head under the shower head! Maybe I should buy a shower cap.
Stock up on hair product and accessories
When my hair was first growing I was so relieved to have my Superdrug styling wax, it made calming my hair and keeping it in the right place so much easier. I tried a styling putty initially but with my thick hair wax or gel is the best bet. When your hair grows a little longer it's good to have a selection of clips, hairbands, bandana's and hats. There was a bad two week period of my hair growth that I had to constantly wear a wig or a hat because it was out of control!
Fight the mullet
The hair at the nape of your neck is going to constantly look longer than the rest so I can't reccomend enough getting regular hair cuts. Trimming the back every two weeks is best for keeping the mullet in check. I couldn't be bothered taking regular trips to the hairdressers, so I just got my boyfriend Mike to cut it in to a straight line and that kept it looking neat and a bit more like an intentional haircut. I'm at the point now that I don't need to trim it anymore if I don't want to, so I'm excited to see how quickly I can grow it in to a bob.
Stay inspired
Through the entire hair growth journey I have been following people on Instagram who are also in the process of growing out their buzzcut. It's encouraging to see other peoples progress and it's definitely good to get inspiration from their look and how they are styling their hair during the process.
Have patience
It's obvious, but you really do need to be patient and just enjoy every step of the growth process. Have an idea of how you want to grow your hair, but don't be upset when it takes a few months to see the change. I've had my goal photo of Winona Ryder (this one) on my vision board since April and it defintely keeps me psyched and it just reminds me where I want to be!
My goal was to have a bob by October when I go on my trip to London with my Mum and I think I can do it!
Let me know if you have any tips for hair growth that I haven't listed!
Thanks for reading!
Satin vest - Charity shop
Crop leggings - Primark
Instagram @wolvesandflames
People keep on asking me if I regret shaving my hair off and since my "pro's and cons" post is still getting hundreds of views every week I thought I'd write a follow up with some answers. I had my head shaved for four months before I decided I wanted to grow it out again. It doesn't seem like a long time, but honestly I have changed since then and having a buzzcut had a lot to do with it.
When I first cut all of my hair off I was struggling with my identity. I was bored with my look and didn't know what I wanted to wear most of the time. I shaved it with the hopes of finding and reinventing my style, but it wasn't as instantaneous as I had hoped.
I've blogged about the fight I had with my mental health last year and I think my identity struggle was a reflection of that. I continued to dress the same as before but it didn't feel like me anymore and the buzzcut felt pretty weird teamed with the smart dresses and heels I was wearing. I feel my most comfortable dressed alternative or sporty but I felt like I was having to dress extra girly to compensate for my loss of femininity from having no hair (stupid, I know).
It wasn't until I became more comfortable with myself that I started to challenge these views. I was watching Party Monster one day (if you haven't seen it yet you need to!) and it dawned on me that there was no need to keep on trying to be someone else anymore. Wearing makeup every day and living in a push up bra wasn't me, it was as though I was playing a character. I knew I would be so much happier if I stopped caring about what people think and if I just dressed like my androgynous self.
People were definitely confused at first, admittedly it must have looked like quite a big change, but for me I was just finally being myself. It's crazy how much we let other peoples opinions dictate us, when in reality most people don't care at all about us or what we wear, they're more concerned about themselves and how we are perceiving them.
Shaving my head was the best thing I've ever done in terms of finding myself. It's extremely liberating and although it was scary at first, I ended up loving myself more than I ever thought I could.
Now that I've started to grow my hair, people have been asking if I regret my decision to shave it and I find it really funny. When I had my long, blonde hair it was constant upkeep, stress and anxiety that it would go wrong or become damaged.
I've spoken before about my anxiety linked with cutting my hair, I would be on the verge of a panic attack over the hairdresser suggesting I get an inch off the ends. Now luckily I have no attachment to my hair, it's not a mask for me to hide behind anymore. I'm excited to grow it out, but I know that if I ever have a bad haircut in the future I would be completely fine.
Another bonus has been getting rid of the blonde and having my own hair colour for the first time in seven or eight years. I used to hate it, but now I couldn't be happier to see my natural hair. I'm excited to see how it will grow and what texture it will be because honestly it's been so long I can't remember!
I think that if anyone has a strong urge to shave their head then they should go for it.
It's not traumatic like people make out it is and hair doesn't define someone and it certainly doesn't define a persons gender.
It's hard not to pick up my clippers and shave it off again because having short hair is the easiest and most comfortable thing, but I will persevere and hopefully grow it in to a short bob!
This has taken me almost a week to write because I didn't know how to word certain things, so I hope that it all makes sense and that I didn't deviate too far from my point!
Thank you for reading!
Instagram @wolvesandflames
I'm starting to get quite a collection of cropped vests, they're so comfortable and I literally want to wear them every day. Luckily the sun is finally shining and I can live in vests and even ditch the tights and show off my pale, sun deprived legs.
Apologies for yet another monochrome outfit, I really do wish I gravitated towards colour more! I'm just so predictable.
I'm so excited about these platform shoes. Every time I went in to Urban Outfitters I was picking up the Vagabond platforms and swooning over them until I looked at the label and realised they are real leather (not cool). I found these dupes for £20 and they make me feel like I'm in high school in the 90'sand who doesn't want that.
I've decided I'm going to start growing my hair out now, shaving my head has been one of the most amazing, eye opening experiences for me and I'm so glad that I trusted my instincts! My plan is to have a short blunt bob with a short fringe (like this or this) and it will be my natural hair colour! So that will be crazy since I haven't seen my natural hair in almost eight years! I honestly don't even know what the colour will be or if it will be straight or wavy, so I'm excited to find out!
Sorry for not writing a blog post in a while, I've been rather uninspired and lazy! I have a few ideas for rambly posts and they are my favourite to write so hopefully I can get my act together. As always I have some controversial topics playing on my mind and so I'm eager to sit down and aggressively type and share all of my moody opinions.
Vest - Primark
Flannel - Primark
Skirt - Charity shop
Boots - Similar here
Thanks for reading!
Instagram @wolvesandflames
T shirt dress - Cheap Monday
Bomber jacket - New Look
Boots - River Island Similar here
Once again I've managed to accidentally wear an all black outfit. I'm trying my hardest to wear more colour but I tend to just gravitate back to my monochrome pieces (oops)!
Today wasn't as baltic as I expected, Spring is starting to creep in and I couldn't be happier!
Instagram @wolvesandflames
I've followed so many Instagram accounts selling amazing pins lately! I love seeing all of the pics from fashion week of people covering their jackets and bags in cute, colourful badges and pins. I would love to buy some new ones from the amazing illustrators I've followed, but sadly I'm on a mission to save money!
During my recent spring clean and clear out I found a lanyard that I had bought in Disneyland and filled with pins over the years. I decided to pick off my favorites and put them on my Missguided denim jacket and I love how it turned out!
Also I'm sure you have noticed that I had a haircut, I was fed up of trying to tame the permanent bed head so another buzz cut it is!
Having short hair is amazing, I highly reccomend it!
Denim jacket - Missguided Similar here
Cropped jumper - Old Similar here
Dress - Zara
Boots - New Look
Bag - Primark
Fluffy pom pom - Primark
Instagram @wolvesandflames
