new thread
Hey there.
I am a strait guy, and I have been growing out my curly hair for about a year and a half now... and am still in the akward stage of hair being too short for pony tail, but long enough to bother the face (bangs are chin length when pulled strait, cheek length when left to curl).
I find it hard to say it, but I'm finding myself envying the freedom every girl has to do whatever she wants with her hair, and use whatever hair tool is out there. For instance: the culturally accepted tools a guy with long hair can use are rubber bands, styling gel, and hair spray. After beginning to study how girls work with their hair at my college (it's the wierdest thing to me to be fascinated about how hair is styled), I find that hair pins and other small devices are used to control unruly hair... things I greatly hesitated to use myself.
Yet, after some practice with a secret stash of hair pins, and much advice from close friends who are girls at school, I have grown to love the things. I think my favorite thing to do with my hair in private is an updo. Maybe it's just because I find those the most attractive on women. I think, morso, though is that my hair is once again off my neck and out of my face, and it's staying that way without the assistance of a sweaty ball cap.
I am simply curious what both girls and guys opinions would be regarding walking through the mall and noticing the guy walking past you was using hair pins--even if it was to simply hold his bangs back out of his face. I know that parts of the men's fashion world is venturing out toward the some classy styles previously found only in women's attire. Do you think the average long-haired guy might one day be able wear hair pins without remorse? Or... to venture even further... in an updo????
P. S. I'll post my early progress pics up here, along with a recent pic soon...
The use of certain hair assessories such as hairpins, barettes, ribbons, etc. have nothing to do with being masculine or feminine... it has to do with the fact that your hair is now longer. Women didn't decide to use these things because it made them feel more feminine... they found that they aided them in making their longer hair do what they wanted it to do. During the early 1970s, when men first began growing their hair long for the first time during the 20the Century, the male use of the hairdryer and hairspray were received with the same anxiety. But more and more men realized they were necessary styling aids now that they were sporting longer hair.
Don't worry about your hairpins. They are obviously helping you with a style you find flattering. I use them every day to hold my hair in place in the back. And hairpins are usually placed so that they are hidden within the hair.
Remember... hair accessories that are designed to help you achieve a certain look have nothing to do with being masculine or feminine... they only have to do with your now having longer hair.
Good luck!
Why does it matter if you are gay or straight in terms of how you wear your hair?
I guess it matters because straight guys want to appear straight. Is that so bad? I don't think it implies any comment against anyone who is gay. There are some great blokes on here who are gay.
Of course, it is not necessarily as simple as it appears to answer what looks gay or straight, or for that matter masculine or feminine.
I might want to avoid cropped hair combined with a big mustache, an earring in the right ear and a hankerchief in the back pocket, for instance!
Or a tight fitting T-shirt and a chiwawa under your arm. But how many people do you know that fit such a stereotype?
My nieghbors a few doors down. Eeesh.
Lol! I knew someone must know a classic stereotype somewhere, and it had to be Marc... It just had to be!
Sterotypes rush to me. I know a dumb Pollock, I know those nieghbors, I know a greasy Italian, I know many the angry German and one Communist Russian. Oh, and one Ukranian who is angry and kinda' shabby. Name a sterotype, I've met them.
None.
In NoVA I've been acquainted with at least 10 or so gays and a lesbian or two, mostly from the very gay-friendly place where I used to work (so a lot of them were "out") and you couldn't nail it down based on any characteristic other than what they displayed to let people know (lambda keychain, etc.)
The one lesbian who sticks out in my mind had to *tell* me. Otherwise I'd never have guessed. Long blonde hair and totally good looking. Oh well...
Is the NoVA shorthand for Northern Virginia or Nova Scotia?
Northern Virginia.
There was me thinking it might be spanish...
Well not really... but it leads to a funny story:
Vauxhall had to completely rebrand a car they named the "Nova" for the Spanish & Latin American Marketplaces, cos literally translated it meant "Won't Go" or "Doesn't Go."
*grin*
None, actually
Gender identity and sexual orientation are two different aspects of a person's unique traits. What I believe you were trying to say is that you want to look "male". Nothing wrong with that. If you are a genetic male then it is very likely you will have no problem wearing hair accessories and still appearing masculine. Contrary to a popular myth, wearing traditionally female items won't "turn you into a girl". In fact it is *very difficult* to make most males appear female because *most* males have strongly male faces that can withstand a *lot* of traditionally feminine accessories. Think about the last time you saw a man in drag. Even in a dress, a wig, and a lot of makeup most males still look masculine. The protruding brow, the flat forehead, the square jaw, the male hairline all send a very powerful message.
Furthermore, hair accessories don't have a gender. A slide is just a device to hold the hair. It is only considered 'feminine' because it is traditionally worn by females. As more and more long-haired males start wearing these things you will find stores offering styles that appeal more to men (right now it is easier to find a pink slide with yellow butterflies than a black slide with silver rivets but keep looking). I say give anything you want a try. For you it may take some getting used to when you look in the mirror but I'll bet that if you live in a big city you won't get a second glance. Good luck and let us know what you try.
