Question: How Do You Grow Out Your Hair? And Update on Hairsaster.

A couple of weeks ago, I got a handwritten letter from my former hairstylist.

Remember the one responsible for this?

The Zebra Stripe Hairsaster of 2010

And this?


WHAT THE HELL is this? I said, "BOB!" not "CHOP!"

I am still trying to grow out those man-layers. It happened forever ago, it is July, we are almost there. Kill me now.

I have since fired her. Ok well she doesn't really know she's been fired, I secretly fired her, I am not the confrontational type. I just stopped going.

Anyways, recently she sent me a handwritten letter in blue pen on a piece of torn out notebook paper with scratchouts and misspellings on it inviting me to come visit her at her new salon. I am now convinced I made the right move. Not that I needed convincing. I had manhair.

I'm sort of glad that she's no longer where she used to be because now I don't have to cower in fear at the mall that she might spot me as I walk by headed toward Children's Place or Build-a-Bear. Yes it was a place in the mall. It was very convenient, don't judge me.

So now I've found a new home for my hair and I'm thrilled. For my Tampa Bay friends it's called Sophisticated Styles in Palm Harbor.

The man who does my hair is the owner and he is my literally my hairsaster savior. I plopped down a few months ago and said, "Fix me, please, I beg you." And he has. He blended, he snipped, my hair is no longer a damaged ball of mess, it is healthy and flourishing and growing again. (Thank you!)

He likes me (or pretends to which is fine by me), I like him, he understands me and my hair, it's a beautiful relationship. This place also fills a couple other salon prerequisites for me: it's very reasonable and he can get me in last minute, which is what I like because I don't like to make appointments 6 weeks in advance and my roots turn on me in 1.2 seconds.  If the place ever goes out of business I will die.

So right now I'm in hair heaven.

Except ironically now I want to grow it out. Allll out. I'm so tired of the short hair and hairsaster potential and the blonde Mary Lou Retton, it has to go.

So badly. I loved the convenience of short hair but I gotta be honest. It ain't sexy hair. At least not on me. It matches my minivan and my yoga pants uniform.

So now I need to know from you: what are your hair-growing secrets? Last night I found this article on how to grow long hair because I'd love to aid the process even though I already know it will take a while which will include a long period of awkwardness. And according to the article I have already violated rules #4, 5 and 6 (repeatedly) so I hope that doesn't mean I'm screwed. (Am I?)  I'd love to hear your experience!

Are there any brands of shampoos, leave-ins, hot oils, you use? Vitamins? And have you ever started from scratch like me? It used to be that my hair grew like a weed but something happened after I had babies, my hair stops at a certain length. Have you had that happen?

I am aiming for this:

Is it possible? Or are we talking Christmas 2013?

ps. My review of Winnie the Pooh is up over at 5 Minutes for Mom! Go check it out! I LOVED it.