Cut mullet or let it all grow?

[snuflan]

Hey guys! Firstly, thank you for such a great forum with lots of kind and helpful people :)

I'm growing out my pixie cut and I don't know whether to just let it grow or trim the mullet to slowly make it into a bob?
This is what it looks like freshly washed and when I'm wearing it "up". Check that tiny pony tail stub haha!

http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m220/matmusen/Hair/pic20140514215905_zpsbzqybjyr.jpg (http://s105.photobucket.com/user/matmusen/media/Hair/pic20140514215905_zpsbzqybjyr.jpg.html)

Please help me with your wise thoughs LHC people :)

ETA: It looks more mullet-y IRL, the curls hide it a bit in the pictures I think.

[divinedobbie]

It looks perfectly fine to me, I'd let it grow. :)

[Anje]

It doesn't look mullety to me yet. If I were in the same situation, I'd probably cut back a few times to shoulder fight the mullet as it formed, but you're not there yet.

That said, the curls probably are helping. Keep wearing it curly! The more you can get away with not cutting it, the quicker the awkward stage will be over.

[Quasiquixotic]

I agree it looks really nice. I like the body and color. I say don't cut :)

[Nadine <3]

I say let it grow! (let it grow, let it grow, let the love inside ya shooowww!)

Sorry, Just watched The Lorax with my boyfriend and his 6 year old LOL

It doesn't look mullet-y to me yet, and I think your little pony nubbin' is really cute!

[cosmic crusader]

I think it looks really cute. I actually loved that length when I was growing out my pixie. I especially liked having the tiny ponytail or pigtails and having the front down framing my face! I say let it grow :]

[snuflan]

Wow thank you all for the fast replies and praises :) I will probably try the pigtails as soon as I find one more small hair elastic hehe!

I do realize now that my hair was in a middle parting (is that how you say it?) in in the picture it's a little more hair on the "short side" than usual. It usually dries that way (I don't want to "correct" my hair while it's wet as it's kinda fuzzy about it) after I've washed it and then I comb it over to a side swept fringe. :)

I will try to keep it curly but it always goes straight after a day or so :/ These are my natural curls and they won't keep together so well..

[swearnsue]

It's adorable, do not cut.

I think you should win a star for having the smallest and cutest pony stub ever.

[woodswanderer]

Let it grow. It looks nice, and you can always change your mind later if it starts to get weird as it grows more.

[swearnsue]

It's adorable, do not cut.

I think you should win a star for having the smallest and cutest pony stub ever.

[snuflan]

http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m220/matmusen/c8478303-5e62-4ee9-b500-3f1185dc808d_zps1f2423e9.jpg (http://s105.photobucket.com/user/matmusen/media/c8478303-5e62-4ee9-b500-3f1185dc808d_zps1f2423e9.jpg.html)

Awww for me? :D :D

(I'm so sorry, I couldn't help myself!!)

On topic: Thank you, again. I think these comments is really what I needed to keep growing :)

[Ashflower89]

I'd let it grow a bit longer, but if the mullet starts to really bug you or get crazy long, nothing wrong with cutting it. Graduating to a bob feels great after the messy layers of a pixie. You dont really lose any "length" by cutting the mullet, it doesnt look like true length when the front half of your hair is several inches shorter.

When I grew out my first pixie, I let the mullet go and I looked pretty gross til the shorter front hit chin length.... at that point the mullet was like collarbone length. I grew out 2 more pixies after that, and kept the mullet cut up to the nape hairline and grew to a bob and it looked WAY more "on purpose" lol.

[memeow]

Yep, it looks good now and I think if you give it a few months you'll be able to cut it to a chin-length bob.

[hafattack]

I agree, your ponytail is so cute, let it be :)

[ErinLeigh]

When I grew a pixie I did the cut to bob thing. Now days I see pics like browneyedsusan's growth journey and see letting it grow and toughing out a small awkard stage really works.

To me your hair doesn't look mullety at all. It actually looks great. I would leave it as is at least for now. It looks lovely. You can always re assess later but I am loving it now :)

[snuflan]

You guys are so sweet! Sometimes when I think back to how long my hair was before I cut it all off, my stomach knots up because I was so pretty then, and now in the "in-between" stages I don't think I'm that pretty anymore :/ So I think I really needed an "outsiders perspective" of my hair. Thank you for that! :)

Ashflower89: Your pixie timelines were great! So inspirational and thorough :)

[spidermom]

I can only tell you what I would do, which is trim it. I had a trim about every 6-8 weeks while I was growing out a pixie. It went from short layers to long layers to no layers, and it rarely looked bad (we all have bad hair days).

[BonnieU]

Tough it out, girl, it looks cute still, love your color btw, and it will be sooo worth it!

[seven77]

You will thank yourself later for keeping the mullet, trust me.
I've grown out a pixie for over 2 years and have trimmed along the way.. after every trim I sort of regretted it, especially the last few trims. But I'm the type that gets bored and I think "Hey if I trim it'll be new hair!" but not, it's more like the same hair just will take longer to grow out lol. Good luck!

[Lazy Loop]

Agree! "Let it grow, let it grow, scissors down and walk away" (frozen, lol) ;) Nadine!!

I did cut my mullet and went for the bob. Now, I have a straight across hem and bangs almost caught up in the front. But....

I also have seen many others here tough it out, and I wish I had. I LOVE fairytale ends, too. Now I might not ever have them, even if my hair gets very long.

I sacrificed "length" for "vanity & ease". When I look back at how long it would be today, :doh: :steam

Things I tried: pinned the "mullet" up to disguise it, scrunched with gel to make as curly as possible, straightened sides to make them look longer.

But when the going got tough, I was not patient enough. I caved. I did what beauticians advise, "Neck trim until its all one length; then it will be a cute hairstyle". Yea, and take an eternity to get LONG!

Now, I wish I had moved my goal further out: wait 8-12 months! Then, if it's awful, even it up. At least when it's a long mullet, you can put it in a bun!!!

Good luck, Your hair is adorable like this!

[Kherome]

You guys are so sweet! Sometimes when I think back to how long my hair was before I cut it all off, my stomach knots up because I was so pretty then, and now in the "in-between" stages I don't think I'm that pretty anymore :/ So I think I really needed an "outsiders perspective" of my hair. Thank you for that! :)

Ashflower89: Your pixie timelines were great! So inspirational and thorough :)

Hair does not make you ugly or pretty. Ever.

I would not cut at this point. Let it get a little longer and then maybe microtrim to get a blunt hemline if that is your goal.

[noludoru]

That said, the curls probably are helping. Keep wearing it curly! The more you can get away with not cutting it, the quicker the awkward stage will be over.

Best advice!

I say let it grow out. That's what I'm doing, and I DON'T regret it. I kept it curly in the mullet stage, I used headbands, etc. Now it looks so much longer than it actually is, I can do a ponytail to keep it out of my face about 6 months sooner than I could have if I'd cut it, and when I do half-ups, my hair looks LONG!

Photos are all on here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/noludoru or in my threads if you want to search. :) Your hair is adorable where it's at.


I'd let it grow a bit longer, but if the mullet starts to really bug you or get crazy long, nothing wrong with cutting it. Graduating to a bob feels great after the messy layers of a pixie. You dont really lose any "length" by cutting the mullet, it doesnt look like true length when the front half of your hair is several inches shorter.

I disagree. You lose out hugely on the ability to put your hair in a ponytail sooner and keep it out of your face. You lose the look of length when putting it half up, and a year or two years from now you lost the 4-ish inches of growth in those layers.

[queenovnight]

I'm with Kherome. I'd just micro-trim to an even length, if that's what you want. I say, it looks cute though and doesn't look like a mullet yet.

[AcornMystic]

I strongly advise not cutting it. I had an orchid bob when I first joined LHC. Second picture down. I don't know what I was thinking with my long face (with an under-bite on top of it) other than that I was trying to make it all one length to eliminate growing out layers right at the beginning.

http://www.retrochick.co.uk/2013/02/15/history-of-the-bob-2/

As my starting length I chopped it all one length just above chin to look like that picture. I was growing out blunt eye brow length bangs. It was a nightmare. I am fighting layers again because I eventually tried to blend the bangs into my hair to avoid this from happening:

http://tommybeautypro.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/trend-blunt-bangs-antonio-berardi-2.jpg?w=490

Imagine the blunt bang being the length of the cheek length layer. That length and the length in the back totally out of whack. Yet little did I realize being so naive at that time that the hair would have slowly fairy-tailed and feathered since it does not all grow at the same rate. It wouldn't always stay blunt. If I had let it grow I'd have 3 years worth of growth. Approximately 18 inches. Dummy me could be past waist right now. I'm sitting 5 inches above waist hoping to heck that I can get there before the end of the year. If I'd stated off my journey with more knowledge I would have had the patience with that knowledge to bun/pony the length I grew and pin back the sides and bangs that were growing out until they could reach the bun/pony. All it takes is being able to disguise the lack of length and create the illusion. Curl the ends of the length under to make it look shorter, like a bob. If you watch the earlier episodes of The X-Files and look at Dana Scully's bob you will see what I mean. Her length is purposefully longer than the sides so that she can pony tail her hair with face framing layers while still creating the somewhat rounded bob look. Like this:

https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQK42cuBMninjidd1o5-mAejwwTN6BLrr77JScmpEPvUiyQEbAa7Q


If you simply let your hair grow it will begin to do the same thing. You just have to be willing to work with it. Styling awkward hair can be a lot more rewarding than maintaining shorter hair. Again... I really wish I had done that. My journey has been a long one discovering new things. Sadly, I'm just not able to enjoy the length right now to apply all this knowledge.

Ultimately it's up to you, but my advice is to not do any more than dusting to maintain healthy ends. Hope this helped.


P.S. With those curls, you're going to have a killer mane. ;) I look forward to watching your journey unfold. ^.^

[kyle_f]

I'd just keep growing. Curly is harder to tell anyway that the back is that much longer.

[Ashflower89]

Ashflower89: Your pixie timelines were great! So inspirational and thorough :)

Thanks =D I was so desperate and miserable every time I decided to grow it out, and spent all day looking for before/after pictures to remind me that it wouldnt last forever. Taking monthly pictures helps sooo much... just to see that little bit of growth and look back over the months helps when it feels like its not moving at all. So I made a public blog to help out anyone else who needs motivation like I did lol

[Rosa Harris]

You Know, I been in rural South Georgia all my life and I can tell you that no-one would see that as a mullet. A mullet has a much more distinct line between long-ish to long hair and a short top up high. You have a much smoother transition than that.

What you have going on is very cute and you can style it out nicely. Heck being an old punk I would grung it some and give it a bead-head look.

[Weewah]

Every time I see this thread title I read "cat mullet" and for a split second I'm like wat?

But I agree with everyone else, keep letting it grow! Growing is fun lol

[snuflan]

Wow thank you all, again, for the lovely advice :) I will make sure to try to grow it, and I'm hoping, since I'm starting an education this fall that I will be busy thinking of other things than my hair lol ;)

Kherome: Yeah, I know. But it made me feel prettier with longer hair, more feminine kind of!

So the conflusion is: Let it grow, try to keep it curly, "grunge it up" and mostly ignore it :D

[clioariane]

Say no to the mullet!

[browneyedsusan]

I think your hair is darling!
FWIW: I grew mine without trimming, and pinned up the front everyday for 6 or 8 months. It looked like a half-up, and no one knew how crazy it was under there! When I finally wore it down, a friend asked if I'd gotten extensions! LOL! You can camouflage the mullet if it bothers you, but I don't see anything to scare small children there. Yours looks better than mine ever did! :)

[Annibelle]

I think it looks good! I haven't read all replies, but you may want to check out Michelle Williams for some pixie grow-out inspiration; she seems to have cute ideas for every stage. :)

[molljo]

I agree to let it grow, and your waves will help you out A LOT. I cut my mine into a bob, and honestly, I didn't even need to. My waviest hair is at the back of my head (lots of shrinkage), so the "mullet" was mostly in my imagination, and I'm kicking myself for being paranoid about it and needlessly chopping.

I also really feel you on feeling ugly. There seems to be about an 8 month period that everyone growing out a pixie goes through where they feel ugly and gross and awful, and that's what makes it so hard. I was where you are a little over a year ago, so it's still fresh in my mind. Maybe try to keep in mind that these feelings are just a crappy but necessary evil, like a right of passage in growing out a pixie. I always feel a rush of solidarity any time I meet someone who's gone through it, like we're all members of a club or something by having dealt with this.

No one addressed how you said you hair goes straight after a day. You can solve this pretty easily by using a mister to dampen your hair on non-wash days and scrunch to refresh them.

Good luck on your journey! Your hair is lovely, and I look forward to seeing how great it's going to be as it gets longer!

[LauraLongLocks]

I had a lot less volume and my hair looked a lot more mullet-y than yours does. If mine looked like yours I would never have trimmed it up. I trimmed mine in back until the front was closer to the same length, but not quite. My consideration also included the time of year. I think it's best to have your awkward length stage where you can't really get it off your neck in the winter, when it's not so hot. I did half-ups until my hair was grown out long enough to put it all the way in a ponytail. Then silly me, I had layers and bangs cut in when it was all one length at APL. And then I had a repeat touch-up on my layers (not at my request... but she had me turned around and it was too late, plus I didn't expressly tell her not to touch my layers), and a "dusting" that was probably more like a chopping, which made it a lot choppier/less blended and caused me to lose almost a year of growth. For an 18 month period, I think I only had about a 2-3 inch gain, looking back at my photos. So, it took me 6 years to get from my pixie to hip length. I could have done it a lot faster if not for the multiple trims, and those layers (I'm still growing out the face-framing parts, and recently decided to grow out my bangs, too). Since your hair looks much cuter than mine did, and you have a clearer goal in mind than I did at the time, I think growing without cutting would work really well for you. When you reach a milestone you are happy to maintain a while, then you can microtrim until the last of your layers are gone if they are bothering you.

[Aderyn]

I agree with the rest, just let it grow. You'll be able to do ponytails and some updos earlier (which will help get out of the awkward phase).


Of course, if you are extremely uncomfortable with the mullet-y look, nothing wrong with doing a few trims here and there, it's your hair, wear it how you want to wear it and what is most comfortable for you.


I disagree. You lose out hugely on the ability to put your hair in a ponytail sooner and keep it out of your face. You lose the look of length when putting it half up, and a year or two years from now you lost the 4-ish inches of growth in those layers.

Yes, you lose 4-ish inches of growth for the hair on the lower portion of your head, though what if a year or two from now the person wants a blunt hemline instead of a layered one? Really comes down to personal preference.

If the OP wants a blunt hemline, I would recommend waiting until the hair is a little bit longer, even shoulder before starting to do some microtrims, though.

[lazuliblue]

I didn't notice my awkward phase that much so I just went around with a mullet without realising! (Well, a mini mullet anyway, I had one trim.) It's a lot less painful trimming it when it is longer to even up the hem-line that trying to do it when you are just starting out. And your hair looks cute anyway!

[lapushka]

It looks perfectly fine to me, I'd let it grow. :)

Yes this. It almost looks like a layered bob, nothing mullet-y about it!

[snuflan]

molljo: Yeah it does feel like we're in a secret pixie club! :) Your message really got to me, with the whole "feeling-ugly-thing", and it feels good to be understood. And thank you for the mist tip, going to try that! :D

LauraLongLocks: I'm sorry you had that experience at the hairdressers.. And thank you for your advice :)

Thank you all again for making me feel better about myself, my hair and my journey. This place is the best! :)

[snuflan]

I think your hair is darling!
FWIW: I grew mine without trimming, and pinned up the front everyday for 6 or 8 months. It looked like a half-up, and no one knew how crazy it was under there! When I finally wore it down, a friend asked if I'd gotten extensions! LOL! You can camouflage the mullet if it bothers you, but I don't see anything to scare small children there. Yours looks better than mine ever did! :)

Hey, how did you do the half up, do you have any pictures? :)

[browneyedsusan]

I tried to share a link yesterday, but it wouldn't work!
Huh. It still won't. Stupid thing. :justy:
A workaround: Google "Cute Girls Hairstyles". It should produce a site with an adorable brunette mom and a couple of blonde girls. Open it in Youtube. Within the site, search "10 ways to style your bangs". It should bring up a tutorial from the short-haired mom, pinning back her bangs. I used variations of almost all of those. At first, I just pinned back my bangs--the sides were shaved and way to short! As it grew, I incorporated everything that would reach. Also, Oktobergoud, has a hair journal linked under her siggy. You'll have to scroll back a couple of years to where her hair was short, but she has a lot of ways to pin up the front. She and I were in the Super-shorties thread at the same time, and she shared her tricks! She's super nice. :)

Your hair looks adorable the way it sits. I don't think you'll have any problems growing it without trimming. :)

[Tini'sNewHair]

Its up to how you feel, if it bothers you to much then cut a bit off but I agree - it looks cute :)

[YamaMaya]

I say leave it, let it get to shoulder before you make any major improvements.

[snuflan]

browneyedsusan: The video was good and yes Oktobergoud really has some great inspiration pictures :)

Thanks again y'all. I will update you later how it looks when it's SL :)

[Sarahlabyrinth]

That looks so lovely, there's no way I would cut AT ALL :)

[bahoban]

what mullet?? your hair is perfectly fine

[SnowbirdRose]

What mullet? When people say mullet I see an image of Billy Ray Cyrus- Achy Breaky Heart-mullet flash before my eyes :couch:. There are no mullets here. After reading everyone's replies I'm going to do what most recommend and let my pixie continue to grow out for a few more months at least. The last trim I had was around December 2013 and my longest layers are almost collarbone length. I have a hair appointment in July and I think I'll call and cancel it tomorrow.

[jacqueline101]

I say let it grow your curls look great by the way.

[RavennaNight]

Your hair is adorable! No need to cut. For laughs, check out Wesley Willis - "Cut the Mullet." It's a cult favorite, not linking to it because it is NSFW so go at your own risk it is on YouTube.

[RockyLvsAdrian]

I concur that it looks adorable - let it grow. You can always trim to change shape as it gets longer. I must say I was sorely disappointed when I clicked on your thread as I wanted to see a real live mullet but that is definitely NOT one. :)

[Isilme]

I would trim a tiny bit now and then but keep it long enough for a ponytail, I think you'll be frustrated in the summer heat if you can't tie it back!