Jen Russum

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Hair.

I went through a lazy year of my life somewhere between college and marriage where I wore my hair “curly” every single day. My method for curly is this: shower at night; when you get out of the shower put mousse in your hair and pile it on top of your head in a big messy bun; spray this bun with a little bit of hairspray; sleep on messy bun; take down messy bun in morning; spray ‘curls’ with hairspray; leave for work. It’s pretty much the best hair method ever.

I couldn’t resist. This is me mid-lazy year. This is exactly how I wore my hair for an entire school year. In this picture, it is dyed brown. Also in this picture, I am wearing a puffer, glasses with no lenses, pink sweat pants and galoshes. It was a snow day. This flat tire was the result of a quick trip to Starbucks for a tasty bev with friends on a day off. I am a freak… 

Here is my curly hair again, but close to my natural color. In this picture, I am helping my best friend pick a new hair color. I like to think Camille is praying over the decision in this photo, although I am pretty sure she was just blinking.

But there are two downfalls to this style: A) it requires a lot of product and it doesn’t really hold up well for two days, so you have to wash your hair pretty much every night and B) Micah hates it.

Now, I don’t feel pressured to always do my hair according to my husband’s wishes, but wearing a hairstyle that he finds unattractive day in and day out is probably not the best wife move. So ever since getting married I rarely wear my hair curly. {When I do I get raving comments from females who wish their hair would scrunch, even though it’s not the most attractive hair style. If you want scruched hair, try my method above. It will probably work unless you have absolutely no wave or volume in your hair.}

Micah likes my hair straight. And the truth of the matter is, so do I. I feel like it looks best when it is dried and straightened, and my hair is not oily, so I can easily get two days out of it if I don’t work out.

But the other problem is that I do workout a lot. And I sweat. And I wash  my hair almost every day, even though I know you are not supposed to.

So here is my conundrum. I feel best when I have straight hair, but I don’t like going through the process {even though my straight hair process is pretty easy too… wait until it’s almost dry, use the blow dryer for two minutes max because I hate the sound of it, and then run the straightener through it 10-20 times…. I like to keep things simple}. I work out and wash my hair way too often to always wear it straight, but I always feel ugly when I go out with it wet, wear it naturally wavy {aka frizzy and awkward}, or wear a ponytail. I’ve decided pony tails are not for me – except for maybe side ponies.

This is way I like my hair. Straight. With some highlights. Or some lowlights, depending on the season. In this picture I am siting in the backseat of my own car trying to finish our book club book while my best friends are driving us to Canada. This was the week of my wedding. Who doesn’t go to Canada and host a book club the week of their wedding?

So what’s a girl to do? I am always inspired by Sydney, who wears a big, fun messy bun right on top of her head all the time and it looks great. I also love Casey, who is constantly rocking cute headbands. Maybe I just need to invest in some better hair accessories to get over my fear of wearing messy hair.

 These are my recent attempts to do something different with my hair. In this picture, I am bringing back corn rows. But only on one side on my head. Micah liked it.
Here I am trying to delight in wearing my hair in a wet bun with a big flower to hide the grossness. {Inside, I am cringing…}

This is simply me writing about my stupid need to always have straight hair, because it makes me feel better and motivates me to get over it. BUT if you have any ideas for fun hair styles or know how to create the perfect messy bun or can fill me in on who makes the best/most affordable accessories, please let me know! I am overwhelmed by the headband options on etsy, so help a girl out! XOXO!

Comments

  1. I have zero volume in my hair and have always wanted more curly/wavy hair! We always want someone else's hair don't we?! I love your hair straight too 🙂

  2. we have the same routine! LOL. my hair is naturally curly. i feel best when its straight because i feel "finished" but to straighten is like a 2 day process. i have to wash it then let it airdry (which usually happens over night in a loose low ponytail to keep the curls from coming) and then the next day it takes about an hour with a straightener. too much work LOL. i even thought about getting a long black wig but looked silly. so my hair is usually wild and curly or pulled back. yours looks beautiful both ways!!!

  3. My hair is super thick and wavy too, and I am sooo lazy with it. My routine is similar to yours, except that I braid mine until it's dry. It's just way too much trouble to straighten, or even blow-dry!

    I love the cornrows and the side bun! I'm gonna have to try it now!

  4. i do that shower, bun on the top of your head, sleep, wake up and take it out method quite a bit, too, and i think it looks mah-vel-ous!

    BUTTTT….

    there is something so great about sleek straight hair. and also defined curls….

    i lovvveeee your hair in those last couple of pics. the color is just making your eyes POP!

    you are stunning, girl 🙂 xo

  6. I feel exactly the same way about my hair!!! It has natural wave/curls and it is so much easier to shower, scrunch and go. BUT- I feel like I am more put together when my hair is straight too. It is so think and now long that I have to let it air dry for a bit (not too long or it gets frizzy), blow dry it out until almost dry, use a big round brush to help smooth it out. I used to use my flat iron to get it straight but it takes so long with my thick hair and I felt like I was killing my hair. Now I just throw it up in some hot rollers. It smoothes it out and I love the look I get. I am in a bit of a hair rut too. I just died it brown and not sure if I like it. I may just go back blonde because that is more me and my natural color. I want to try all these cute hair braids I see on pintrest but I just haven't had the time to try them out. Some great products for "messy hair" are Redken Fresh Curls line and I use John Fredia spray curls (not sure the exact name). Let me know what you find out. I don't think I can pull of head bands. :/

  7. um this is so me! i have naturally curly hair. and not pretty curly, like crappy curly. i straighten my hair every day. i maybe only wash it every 2-3 days, i use dry shampoo in between. life saver!!

    i wish i had a way to wear my hair naturally curly, or even maybe wavy, and it look cute. 🙂

  8. Cute!! I love the cornrows haha. My hair is wavy like yours and I'm a big fan of the curly hair days too. I feel much better when I actually do it, but not doing it and not thinking about it is nice too. haha

  9. I don't have any hair advice. You know I know nothing about fixing hair. I'm just pumped that I think I took 3 of these pictures. And I always love to remember snow day, flat tire and all. Love you!

  10. I completely understand! I wash, blow dry, and straighten my hair almost every day. I feel gross if I don't shower every morning. I describe my hair as being "wavy frizz" if I don't straighten it. And I'm not a fan of ponytails either. I always wish I knew how to style my hair differently.