Long Term Locks

I'm not the biggest fan of my hair and have hair envy of girls with curlier hair and girls with straighter hair. I'm also pretty awful at styling my hair and my hair has no style of its own which makes my lack of styling abilities even worse. I have weird cowlicks that cause my hair to grow funny. If I don't style my hair, one side curls under while the other side flips out, I refer to it as my hair wave. 

In high school I had long, straight hair...I would dye it occasionally but nothing to extreme. It wasn't until college that I really started experimenting. I chopped it off bit by bit and tried darker colors and highlights until I finally found the style I loved. The structured bob, that sits just below my chin, colored a medium shade of brown...and sometimes reddish highlights.

Personal picture circa 2009

Like most brides, I have been trying to grow my hair out for the big day. Yes, knowing that I like my hair shorter and knowing I look better with shorter hair. It's been rough to say the least. I haven't drastically chopped it or colored it for about a year. Prior to my recent hair cut, the last hair cut I had wasssss, well lets just say I have only had it cut once in 2011 and that was two weeks ago. On the very rare occasion that my hair is down and not in a ponytail, it looks like this:

Personal Picture in April 2011

When I went to get my hair trimmed a couple weeks ago, I talked to my stylist, who is also a great friend about doing my wedding day hair. And she is in! She will come up to the lake the morning of the wedding and do my hair and whoever else wants theirs done. And she will drink mimosas with us because she's cool like that.

This got me thinking about what I want for my "I Do" hair. To be honest I really wasn't excited about figuring out how to wear my hair because I've had bad luck with up-do's in the past. I knew right away that I didn't want an up-do, it would just be too formal for the Honey wedding, but I didn't really know where to start and didn't know what I was looking for.

Enter Pinterest. The greatest hair inspiration site ever. There are enough images being pinned daily to indulge any bride-to-be. Cha-ching! Just like my wedding dress inspiration, I have a very clear pattern in what I desire...



Image via Pinterest & Perfect Bound Blog/Photo by Kaysha Weiner/Stylist Serene Bridal Beauty 




Image via Pinterest, from SunshineandPearls



Image via Pinterest, from Style Me Pretty/Photo by One Love 

{Image via Pinterest, from Everything Fab}

...And what I desire are curls. Soft and romantic curls! Plus this is something I never do with my hair so it will be different from my daily routine. Obviously I would love for my hair to instantly be longer so I can pull of some of the longer versions, but I think even with my (almost) long hair, it will look perfect. The only style I have come across that varies from the lovely curls is the beautiful low, side chignon:



Image via Pinterest, from Martha Stewart Weddings

Unfortunately I don't think my hair would look this perfect, and you have to have some good length to make that chignon work.

My hair inspiration post may seem a little premature but I needed to focus on the long term and see where I wanted my hair to be in January. Knowing I don't have the most disciplined habits with trimming and taking care of my hair, I wanted to get a jump start. These pictures help me remember why I'm growing out my locks in the first place. At my last hair appointment I told my stylist to expect me two more times between now and January (perhaps she will help hold me to my word?), and of course we will do a hair trial closer the day.

Being that I use a hair dryer and hot iron on my hair nearly every single day, I also invested in this amazing product:

Image via Amazon



I've been using Moroccan Oil for two weeks now and it's perfect. My hair feels less damaged and it looks much more nourished than before. The fact that it smells insanely good is just a bonus.

My plan may not appear to be too hard, but considering I've very much neglected my hair over the last year I'm hoping to salvage what I've got left. Here's to happy, healthy and long hair in six months!

Are you growing your hair out for you wedding? What strategies are you implementing to get your hair to it's healthiest and longest for your big day? Fill me in on your secrets Hive!