Why is Short Hair Deemed “Unfeminine?”

There are a lot of questions going around about what defines femininity. Some people might think it’s whether you wear makeup or not, or what kind of clothes you wear, or the length of your hair. The misogynistic stereotype that women with short hair are lesbians is simply not true. There have been a lot of famous actresses who have, or have had short hair, and have rocked it (i.e. Charlize Theron, Jennifer Lawrence, Emma Watson, and even Millie Bobby Brown from the hit series Stranger Things).

When a woman takes something that society deems as “feminine” and then abandons it, it is very powerful. She isn’t going to please everyone, but she knows that, and is perfectly fine with it. More and more women are starting to cut their hair short, not because they want to make a statement (although that may be the case for some), but because they want to do it for themselves.

Styling your short hair plays a big factor in how feminine your hair is perceived. There are many ways to style all types of short hair, like really short pixie cuts or the longer bob style. All Things Hair is a website that has links to a bunch of articles and tutorials to help you find your style and ways to make your hair what you want it to be. Author and blogger Rita Arens said in a post on Blog Her entitled Hair and Femininity: I Cut My Hair and Opened My Eyes, “I do feel different since that first big cut. It's not less feminine or less sexy -- it might actually be more.” A lot of people have different opinions about short hair but there have been more trends popping up that have been convincing more women to do it.

One trend some women with short hair partake in is dyeing their hair bright colors, like blue, purple, or pink. There is also the “rainbow” hair trend, where the hair is dyed different colors in layers to create a blend of colors, and sometimes it’s even ombred. Guy Tang is a hairstylist who has a YouTube channel where he posts videos of his hair “creations” from his own studio, Salon West Republic Hollywood. He also has a line of metallic hair dyes through Kenra Professional. If you ever start to have thoughts about dyeing your hair crazy colors, his channel has some great examples for inspiration. He has a lot of videos where he dyes hair of all lengths different colors and has also experimented with undercutting on his models.

Undercutting is a trend that used to be popular among men, but more and more women have joined in on the fun. An undercut is when a part of the head is shaved or cut really close and then made into a pattern of some sort. There are a lot of options when it comes to undercuts, from a shaved side of the head to striped designs.

Whether or not you decide to cut your hair short, dye it a funky color, or get an undercut, make sure you’re doing it for you. You really aren’t going to please everyone but as long as you enjoy it, that’s all that matters. Remember, your femininity isn’t measured by the length of your hair.