Yes, You Can Get a Pixie (And Grow It Out!) Without Tears

     Pretend like this was posted a month ago...

    It's been a full year since I chopped off 18 inches of my hair and I'm here to say that you can absolutely get a pixie and grow it out in a year and not be miserable. In fact, I would do it all over again in another couple years. I got to try out pretty much every hairstyle I've ever wanted to try and not be afraid that it would look bad because I learned the greatest lesson life can teach: hair grows.

     Here are a couple tips I have, should you decide to take the plunge and chop it all off:

• When deciding what kind of pixie to get (there are so many), find a picture of a cut that is most similar to what you want and use this to show your hair stylist. This was the picture I showed my hair dresser:

Trying to describe a hair cut can be pretty challenging, but if you have a visual, you'll be much more likely to get what you want.

• Your hair dresser will probably blow dry your hair or style it in a way you wouldn't normally. Don't freak out!!! Give it a few days, a couple washings, and wait till then to decide if you hate it or not. When I first got my pixie, I felt like a pre-pubescent teenage boy because my hair stylist blow dried my hair perfectly straight and that just did not feel like me. It was a great cut--exactly what I wanted--just not styled the way I would've styled it. Once I washed it and my natural wave came back, I like it a lot better.
• ACCESSORIES ARE A MUST. Headbands, clips, bobby pins--get them all. The day I got my pixie I went to Rite Aid and bought a bunch of hair accessories. These were my saving grace on days when I didn't want to deal with my bangs or was just having a bad hair day.

The nicer side of growing out a pixie...

This is the truth.

• Be prepared to embrace your natural hair texture. Unless you get a long pixie, you will not be able to curl or straighten it. As someone who only straightens or curls her hair on special occasions, this was not a big deal for me, but I know some girls who NEVER wear their hair naturally so it might come as a shock when they can't flat iron their two inches of hair every morning.
• Be prepared to grapple with your self confidence for a few days or weeks. It'll feel like everyone in the world is looking at your hair and wondering why you have so little of it. I promise you, they're not. They couldn't care less if you have hair down to your waist or are bald. Yes, you will draw more attention the shorter your hair is, but that doesn't mean it's BAD attention. It's just simply more unusual for girls to have short hair and people tend to notice when you go against the grain.
• Get used to taking morning showers. The bed head is REAL. The only case in which I imagine pixie-cutted girls wouldn't have trouble with bed head is if their hair is stick straight. Even then...I'm not so sure. Short hair and sleeping just don't go well together.
• If you decide to grow out your pixie, DO NOT LET THE MULLET GROW!! CUT THAT THING OFF!!! The number one tip I have for growing it out is to always, no matter what, keep the back short. The front will take twice as long to grow out. Let it. And keep the back in check in the meantime. You'll have a short bob in no time and you won't have any embarrassing pictures of you with a mullet.
• If you think your hair is the most beautiful thing about you and realize that you don't have that security blanket once it's all gone...don't panic! Find other ways to express your personality and unique beauty. Get creative with your outfits, wear things that make you feel good, and embrace the fact that you now have a bada$$ hair cut!
• And on the days that you don't feel so bada$$..remember: hair grows. I promise. Before you know it, your long, tangly, obnoxious locks will be back in all their annoying glory.

-SE Wagner