October 25, 2010
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Long Hair and Middle-Aged Women
I was reading an article about how more women are wearing their hair long again.
In the article, the author mentioned that once women hit a certain age they are expected to cut their hair short. You do not see most women with long hair once they get to middle age. Here is the link: Link
My wife and I have had this discussion and she has told me that once a woman hits 40, she should wear her hair shorter.
Do middle-aged women look silly with long hair?
Comments (109)
I plan on chopping all my hair off after I see the first bit of gray. I’m thinking GI Jane style. :P
I didn’t know there was an age limit to having long hair.
A woman should only have her hair short after 40 if she’s got a lot of grey showing. If she colors her hair, leave it long!!
No, I like it!
i’m appalled by the amount of people who think that women need to hide their gray, as though they should be ashamed or embarrassed of it. That’s incredibly shallow. People should wear their hair the way they’d like.
Most that I know have shorter hair but not all. The way most of them have it, regardless, suits them so I never really gave it much thought. Perhaps I would have if I ever expected that I might one day become a iddle-aged woman but the odds of that happening are not very good.
I like my wife’s hair no matter its length as long as it is next to my bald head.
this is a good thing. when I was like 15 I reaized that older woman tend to have shorter hair. almost all of our teachers wore it shrt. And when I was 18 some girls from my year ciut it short for’practica reasons’. that creeped me out. I am not making myself uglier just because I’m 40 (when I will be that age).
I have hair down past my ass and I’ll never cut it short.
When the time comes I bear my silver with pride.
Why be ashamed of age? I feel like grey shows definition, character, and experience. Why hide that? Woman should be seen as beautiful for what they are. Men are.
I’m seriously considering chopping mine. I think Demi looks great but as a whole it does look better short on gals my age. You just have to avoid “Mom hair”
@ANVRSADDAY - That’s what my husband says too, Frank! That’s a good thing!!
My 61-year-old mother has long hair. She looks great. I plan to keep my hair long forever if possible.
I’m probably going to make my hair a bit shorter when I’m older because I’ll just be plain sick of caring for it. =P
I intend to have my hair long for the rest of my life. I hope that when I reach middle age, it goes kinda silver rather than gray! I think it will be awesome. No need to cut your hair off! (Unless you want to.)
never noticed.
Depends on the woman and if she dies her hair. I’m 18 and I hate my hair long. It’s been shoulder length and shorter for at least 5 years.
I actually hate that all these older women have really short hair. I may not have ‘long’ hair when i hit my 40s & 50s, but i wont have a ‘bob’ or anything super short either. Probably shoulder length.
I never really noticed. Of course, as far as guys go, they’re lucky if they still have hair at 40…
No they don’t look silly.
I think it’s fine to have long hair when you’re older unless it’s severely thinned out and what not. If my hair doesn’t thin, I’ll probably keep it long.
i think i would keep it long for as long as i could maintain it
I have never colored my hair — and never will. Now that it’s quite gray, I don’t believe it makes a difference how long it is, as long as it’s well groomed at whatever length.
@bakersdozen2 - It is a very good thing. My wife comes back tomorrow. I am anxious to see her hair styling.
If it looks good, keep it. I think the shorter hair is done for convinience. Usually by that time a woman has settled down with a guy and doesn’t feel she needs to look as good to men. From a guy’s point of view, we like it, so keep it.
Then again, I haven’t changed my short hair since the Navy chopped it all off 28 years ago.
I think it ages them to have shorter hair. Once something becomes “stereotypical” of a certain age then having that associates you with that group. So is older women are expected to have shorter hair those women with shorter hair will be assumed to be older.
Uhhh no I don’t, and I bet your wife will sing a different tune when she gets to that age.
i’ve noticed this trend, but i don’t really see the point. if you want your hair long, wear it long!
although i’ve heard that your hair grows more slowly the older you get, maybe that’s why their hair is short…
I’ll wear it long as long as I want!
@acomfortingcolloquy - SO TRUE!
Many do look a bit silly, most especially in the work place, women like men lose hair when they get older and often it becomes witchy. But if a woman enjoys her long hair there are many ways to pin it up when working and let down at night. I wore my hair in one form of twist or another from the time I left high school.
Never heard of that. Then again, I always cut my hair when it gets past shoulder length. It’s just easier that way
It’s just hair. People should just wear it how they like. What’s the big deal? I don’t think anyone needs to be doing anything particular with it no matter what age they are…
*yawn*
whut. it’s late and i had to go to the bathroom.
Personally I think a lot of middle age women would look much better with longer hair.
The way I see it, you get busy in your life so you want less hassle, so most women assume shorter hair equals less hassle. Not true. My hair is about to my hips now, after getting it layered. I can do nothing, and I mean NOTHING to my hair and it looks awesome. I can spend 20 min fixing it and it looks awesome. I can throw it in a ponytail and it looks awesome. Only thing I really have to do ever is make sure my bangs are fixed, and that takes literally 10 seconds with a round brush and a blow dryer. My hair is a bit wavy so if I put it in a ballerina ball while it’s drying it emphasizes those waves so all I have to do is take it down, shake my head, and leave.
I spent more time fixing my short hair than I ever did my long hair, so I doubt I’ll be going the short route anytime soon. I kept it short from 5th grade until I had my 3rd child. 4 years I’ve been growing it out, and I LOVE it. (I’m 28)
No. Don’t think they look silly. My preference is for everyone having short(er) hair.
@acomfortingcolloquy - Agreed.
I guess I’m the odd ball out…I actually think it’s pretty when women with all gray/white hair have long hair!
No and I think have long grey hair is pretty
It totally depends on the person! Some people look and feel better with long hair while some look and feel better with short. Some look but don’t feel better with hair one way, so they should wear it the other.
What I don’t like is when a woman attaches her identity to her hair to the point that it’s the end of the world if it changes. The cool thing about hair is that it grows.
A woman’s glory is her hair. Or so it says in the Bible.
Nah! I like the long haired ladies!
why does it matter?? hair is just that. hair.
i think it depends some people look good with long hair when their midle aged and others don’t.
I see no reason to not keep your hair long. As long as you avoid looking like a schoolgirl. lol
My hair is short but thats simply because of the weather and because I wanted to try something new.
My mom has had super short hair since she was pregnant with me. She highlights it and styles it and it definately doesn’t look “old lady” or “frumpy”. I kept my hair short – think Drew Barrymore in Wedding Singer – for over two years. Age doesn’t make a difference when it comes to hair – its all about how much time and effort you want to put into making it look pretty.
But the 90+ year old women with more hair on their upper lip than their head might want to consider a short do.
What kind of dumbfuck rule is that? Jesus Christ
I have no plans on ever cutting my hair short. My grandmother had beautiful long hair until the moment she passed away. Age has nothing to do with it.
Ehh……. I dunno. I see alot of older women having super short hair, like a mans haircut. I know it’s easier…but I dunno if I’d ever want to do that. Demi looks great, but it all depends on the hair and if you actually take care of it. Maybe when I’m 70 I’ll be tired of straightening or trying to curl my hair all time and just cut it all off.
@Legendairy -
haha
Once I hit my 40′s the quality of my hair changed completely and it seems no matter what I do to it, it looks and feels coarse and dry. So while it used to look fabulous being long and curly and shinny, past my shoulders now and it just looks awful.
Not at all. As long as it looks good on the woman (and it can) and she is comfortable with it, then there is no law requiring a woman over 40 to have short hair. I think that’s an arbitrary cut off and by no means an obligatory one.
My wife is 60 and looks fine with long hair.But then she doesn’t look 60 either,but still,that doesn’t matter.Why do people get caught up in something so trivial as to how long a womans hair is at a certain age anyway…geeeeez
on some people, wearing their hair long makes them look older.
(something about “dragging down your features”, whereas short hair would be like a facelift). my mum wears her hair short because people tell her she looked so much younger like that.
demi looks old in that picture. i think she would look younger if she cut her hair to shoulder-length, straightened her locks, and dyed it a rich chestnut brown.
I suppose it depends on the woman.
Women, if the lusty long locks still look good, please fortheloveofgod keep it. I’m not usually partial to one hair length or the other, but if whatever you’re doing is working for you, there’s no reason to change unless you’re looking to simply cut down primp time.
Older women wear their hair short because they don’t remember how to put it up… the older face is softer and the verticality of long hair makes that more obvious. So, don’t cut – pin! At least if you love your hair long. (Spoken by a 37yo with waist length hair).
I think women should have their hair however THEY want, not what is ‘expected’ of them. My hair is already starting to turn gray and I’m not 40. Oh freaking well. I look stupid with short hair (as I discovered last year when I cut it for fun). I think the only thing that would make me consider a shorter hairstyle would be if it started to thin out. But both of my parents never had this problem, and neither did any of my grandparents, so I will continue to have shoulder-length or longer hair as long as I believe it suits me. To those who are shallow enough to tell women they must dye their hair to cover their age, kiss my ass. I plan to age gracefully thank you very much, and it has no bearing what YOU think of it.
@k_cakes - Do you really think Demi looks ‘older’? Older than what? Do you know how old she really is? She certainly doesn’t look her age and I think she’s drop-dead gorgeous with her long, beautiful, healthy looking hair. It’s very natural looking and that is extremely refreshing in the world of Hollywood. I can only hope to look half as radiant and youthful at her age when I get there, as she does.
I agree with the first poster. It should be mandatory that women over 40 shave their heads that way we can identify them. I am kind of sad that I only have 4 years of hair wearing left, but I wouldn’t want to harm society with my middle aged womanish ways.
Not at all. I think it makes them look kind of mystical. I plan on keeping my hair long my whole life.
I always thought it was job/effenciency related… long hair requires more maintenance. And often people are taken more seriously in business if they have neat short haircuts. I’m hoping I’ll land a job where I can keep my hopefully then Rapunzel hair.
No, they look normal to me. I never thought of this….
I don’t see why anyone would think a woman should cut her hair after a certain age. if she wants to, she can, and if she doesn’t, so what? older ladies can look good with long hair, too.
No, I don’t. I know a woman who has compltely gray hair and it’s long and beautiful!
I will wear my hair any dang way I please. If you want to follow the masses and cut your hair short, fine, but I refuse to do that.
I’m middle aged and my hair’s not really long but it’s not short either. If I look silly, no one’s saying!
I wont be cutting mine
Such archaic thinking! Wow! I am the same age as Demi Moore, and I will wear my hair long for as long as I want to. It’s ridiculous to think that we would cut our hair just because of our age, just to fit in a category. Same with mini-skirts and bikini’s. I’ll wear them for as long as I want!
I plan on wearing my hair long and never dying it. I guess that makes me a real radical in the hair world
Long hair is great on middle aged, or even elderly women, it’s up to personal preference.
It really depends on the woman. I’m approaching the 40′s and I won’t cut my hair short only because I have a gigantic head and short hair looks horrible on me!
Do middle-aged women look silly with long hair?
Not when they look like Demi.
I’ve never heard that. That older women are meant to cut their hair short. Let them do whatever. It’s their hair and fuck what society expects them to do.
I think that there are a lot of 40 year old+ women who don’t take very good care of their hair. It’s been dyed, permed, and it’s dried out and yucky looking. I think unfortunately there are too many in that crowd that where it longer that make other women in that group feel the need to have shorter hair. Personally I think that if someone has healthy hair, no matter the age, if they want to and are able to grow it out they should. Long hair is beautiful.
I look fabulous! And never call me “middle aged!” (look at Madonna. She looks terrific at 52 and has long hair…like everything else, you just have to take care of it!)
Age should have nothing to do with it, it’s all personal preference.
My mom is 51 and wears her hair long. She’s been wearing it like that for years, since I told her I liked her hair better long. It looks very nice on her.
demi looks beautiful.
only some women her age can pull it off.
as long as the hair is in good shape, women should wear it any length they want. Nothing worse than scraggly hair…..no matter how old (or young) you are.
Demi looks really good, I must say.
It depends. Some women are convinced that long hair = pretty hair. I’ve seen many middle aged women with long, ratty hair… and it doesn’t look pretty… it looks disgusting. Split ends aren’t cute, get a trim.
When I was younger I always wondered why older women had their hair short, and I decided that I would keep my long. But who knows maybe I won’t.
Long or short, though my preference is long when initially looking, I have no qualms over it. If it looks good it looks good.
no.
My mom has always insisted that people over 30 look gross with long hair and should cut it off, and should never, ever be seen with it in a ponytail. She thinks this is the ultimate sin.
Most older Asian moms keep their hair short, I think.
I’ve had my hair short for a long time so it’s not a big deal to me. I don’t like the upkeep of long hair, I don’t think it suits my face shape either (plus I’m short).
I do find it rather silly when older ladies try their hardest to look/dress young though… Lots of makeup + long dyed hair + clothes that young people wear = might be slightly unflattering *shifty eyes*
Long hair on women is great!
I don’t care, as long as I have hair, it’ll be long.
I will always keep my hair long. Short hair isn’t for me.
What? this is retarded…..how is there an age limit to long hair?
That sounds like kind of a pointless rule. People should wear their hair how they want. At least middle-aged women have hair!
I’ve noticed this as well, but I really don’t want to cut my hair short when I’m 40, lol.
A lot of women’s hair thins as they get older and it looks stringy long. I would MUCH prefer long hair (I’m 54) but it just doesn’t look as good as it did 25 years ago when it was much thicker.
@ANVRSADDAY - aw. that’s so sweet.
@PocketfulOfDreams - I totally agree. I cut my hair short once…and I swore never again.
I’ve noticed that and I don’t understand why. I think long hair suits a lot of women, as long as they maintain it. I got my hair cut but now am trying to get it to grow back super soon. I’m not middle aged, but I love long hair. =)
hello. u shouldnt be using demi moore’s photo for this blog. she maybe 40, but she’s so botoxed that she looks 30ish and this doesn’t apply to most middle-aged women!
but i guess generally women with short hair look younger. it’s a cheaper alternative than botox when they hit 40.
I’ve never heard such a thing before in my life. Maybe it’s an american thing. My family’s british so I’ve never heard of anything like that before.
Demi Moore can wear her hair however she wants man.
“I was reading an article about….”
You should count how many of your entries start like this.
Tiresome. But it gets you traffic! If you’re into that kinda thing. And you are. LOL
I think it makes women look really old when they have short hair, actually. I don’t like girls with short hair, unless they’re dykey, then it’s hot.
They should keep it long. I’m going to keep mine long. I’m also going to dress well. I don’t know why women dress frumpy when they’re old. Okay, so you’re not 20 anymore – that doesn’t mean you should dress like a homeless lady, geez.
I have gorgeous thick curly hair, not a gray hair yet, and I’m turning 50 the end of this month.
Why cut it short?
Pff. I think anybody can just wear their hair however they like, no matter what age they are. If I live to be seventy, I’m going to rock a purple and green ‘hawk…because I’m seventy. If I get to be older, then I’m just going to look however I please, just like I do now, and anyone who says different can just go ahead and shove it out their blowhole.
Yeah, FASHION ANARCHY!!!
fuck that, I love my hair. even if it turns gray, I will let it grow long and only trim it
old ladies with short hair is so typical…
I hope there is no such “rule”, because I certainly haven’t followed it. I wll most likely always have some version of my long hair, no matter what my age. I look ridiculous with short hair. It’s just not me. Plus, I like to put it up sometimes, and you can’t do that with short hair. I’m a ponytail and loose-bun kind of girl, at 50.
I’m 41, going gray and it’s probably a bit longer than it should be, but I’m comfortable with it. As long as I can still pull a comb through it and it looks clean, I’m good.
I think it depends on the woman and what she feels comfortable with.
I think it depends on the individual–my hair is half-way down my back but I like having the option of doing different things with it. My mom is in her 50s and recently went from shoulder-length to an even shorter style. While it’s becoming on her, I think I’d look odd with hair that short. The shortest I’ve ever gone is just below my chin.
My hair is down to my lower back and I love it, probably for the first time in my life it is a source of pride for me. I do hide my gray at this point I have very few, but as they multiply I will be happy to let them take over.
My grandmother told my mother a few years back that she needed to cut her hair short again, b/c it shows maturity. My mother looks beautiful with long hair, so I don’t know why she ever cuts it to please my grandmother. I had never heard of that until she said that. Of course, I don’t look any certain way for other people. However, I have said that I want to do a mohawk again before I’m 30, and that’s my cut off for a mohawk, but that’s my personal pref. I just think it won’t have the beauty it holds when I’m older b/c my face will show more wrinkles, and long hair will take away from that. I’ve never understood older women cutting their hair short. When you have short hair, you need to have strong facial features to balance it. (Well that’s what the stylists say anyway….)
I think that women, no matter their age, should wear their hair any damn way they want. I don’t live the way society supposedly dictates, I live the way that I want to live. When someone is stupid enough to come up to me on the street and start spouting what society dictates they usually go away miffed, being that I won’t stand there and take their crap like most other people would/do.
No. I think it looks better longer, at least on some people. Cutting it off just makes a lot of women look older…probably because we expect older women to have short hair.
If so, I guess I’m very silly looking! My hair is longer than that of the woman in your picture. I’m over 50. I like it long and my husband likes it long. That said, I do wear it in a prim and proper, old fashioned “bun” 90% of the time, but that’s mainly to keep it out of my face (and hands) when I’m trying to work.