Haircut Help

[trapthavok]

Alright so I've got a haircut appointment set for wednesday... I need help deciding on what type of style I should get.

I've never gotten my hair cut shorter than maybe eye length...and I'm going to go extremely short this time. I want something as low maintenance as possible. This is going to be a temporary cut I guess, until my relaxer (hair straightener) eventually wears out. Because my hair is pretty straight right now, I can do almost any type of male hairdo, and with my hair it only needs to be washed once a week minimum.

What type of cut should I get? If you know the name, or have a picture/example more power to you. I'd love to have something to show the stylist.

My vote right now is a caesar cut. The shortest I want my hair is 1 - 2 inches from my scalp. I know shaving it all off is a lot less maintenance, but I've heard a female's head shape is different from a male's so it's not recommended for an FTM.

Here's an old picture of me if it helps, but I look pretty much the same (hairwise and such).

[Princess]

do you have coily hair without using a relaxer?

[trapthavok]

do you have coily hair without using a relaxer?

No, I'm pretty sure it's coarse, thick and slightly wavy. Rough guess, since I've been doing relaxers for close to 9 years.

[Elwood]

That's really honestly up to you, brother. I mean, what style are you after?  Something classic? Something hip? Something fabulous?

[JonasCarminis]

lol i cant really imagine trapt with a "fabulous" 'doo.

http://www.nappturality.com/modules/myalbum/photos/784.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j286/ExpatJane/smileys/July%202007/bombhead_monsters_hair_works_08333.jpg

maybe?

[trapthavok]

That's really honestly up to you, brother. I mean, what style are you after?  Something classic? Something hip? Something fabulous?

I mean, I was asking for help because I don't know much about men's hairstyles. My hair is still pretty much straight so I can pull off a "white male" hairdo for a while if you know what I'm saying, no offense or anything. I've seen my cousin's haircuts and I like them, but my hair isn't natural enough for that yet, I have to wait for the chemicals to eventually wear out, so to speak.

Thanks though, I'll probably just get the caesar and be done with it.

lol i cant really imagine trapt with a "fabulous" 'doo.

http://www.nappturality.com/modules/myalbum/photos/784.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j286/ExpatJane/smileys/July%202007/bombhead_monsters_hair_works_08333.jpg

maybe?

Haha neither can I. Thanks for trying though Chett. I hate afros (I think I'm just gonna get a fade when my hair is natural again). I thought about getting a fauxhawk for a while, but it's too much work. I just want something I can roll out of bed with, brush a couple of times and be on my way. I wear hats a lot too anyway, it's just annoying trying to stuff/hide all my hair under the hat, I'm not very good at it.

[Elwood]

Oh! Now I see what you mean.

Well, I'm almost constantly shooting for a 70's look... wispy sexy hair that looks like it's been in the wind for hours. LOL.

Haha. Funny. I sort of like the fauxhawk look. But I wouldn't do it for the same reason you won't; it's tedious.

[trapthavok]

Haha what nice imagery you use to describe yourself.

I actually like the mohawk look better, but my hair would never grow back fast enough to look halfway decent in a cap and gown. I'm going to be wearing a shirt and tie for graduation in May, but as one last sacrifice to my parents I figure, hey I'll try to keep some of my hair so they can have nice graduation pictures/momentos It's important to them

[Elwood]

LOL. My hair doesn't do that... YET! It's too short right now. I've got a refined 80's look.

Ah, I wore a shirt and tie under my gown for my graduation... You might have seen this pic already:



My mom wasn't too upset about me looking so guyish since all the boys are so much taller than me that me being a girl looked pretty obvious... I'm the short one with the sunglasses. To my right is my best friend of 10 years... she's the first person I came out to.

[trapthavok]

LOL at your mom, whatever makes her feel better I suppose.

Your hair goes with your look though I think it looks nice, but if you're going for the mohawk eventually then go for it dude

[Elwood]

Thanks.

My mom was actually pretty mad about me wearing the button down shirt. I told her if it was anything else we'd only see my skin.

[Ms Jessica]

I'd suggest a google image search for men's haircuts.  Find something you like, print it out, and take it with you.

Now if you really want a "real man's" hair cut, you can do what I did for years-- find yourself one of those old barber shops with the pole out front, they'll charge you like $5 or something like that (price has probably gone up since I went last), and cut your hair.  You don't get to choose much of anything about it.  You ask for a trim, it's almost the same as asking for a crew cut.  Depends on how old (read:deaf) the barber is.  They might ask you how you want it in the back (boxed, which means squared and straight across, or sometimes they'll get fancy and angle in a little from your ears) and they'll bust out the clippers to shave the little bit of fine hair at the base of your neck. 

Good luck!

[trapthavok]

I'd suggest a google image search for men's haircuts.  Find something you like, print it out, and take it with you.

Now if you really want a "real man's" hair cut, you can do what I did for years-- find yourself one of those old barber shops with the pole out front, they'll charge you like $5 or something like that (price has probably gone up since I went last), and cut your hair.  You don't get to choose much of anything about it.  You ask for a trim, it's almost the same as asking for a crew cut.  Depends on how old (read:deaf) the barber is.  They might ask you how you want it in the back (boxed, which means squared and straight across, or sometimes they'll get fancy and angle in a little from your ears) and they'll bust out the clippers to shave the little bit of fine hair at the base of your neck. 

Good luck!

I do, but I still have a full head of hair as you can see I want to present as male and everything my first time in a barbershop. Plus barbershops would be a helluva lot cheaper than where I'm going. Leave it to personal hang ups...

[Aiden]

<-- I'm the one in black in my avetar picture of course with the chainmail sash.   I tend to go for the jug head look, or least simular to it.  Sometimes it comes out looking more just like a fuzz all over head.  Usually go for a 2 on top and a 1 on sides (clipper length sizes)  But that's just me, I like my hair really short and I don;t look to bad with it except for some noticeable dandruff at times and thin hair.  (find the short hair helps with the dandruff problem to)

Considering buying some clippers to do it myself and save money in long run.  lol   Anyways, there are dark skinned men and women around where I live who cut their hair extra short and not look bad.  Though don't know if it would make you look more male or not lol

[trapthavok]

<-- I'm the one in black in my avetar picture of course with the chainmail sash.   I tend to go for the jug head look, or least simular to it.  Sometimes it comes out looking more just like a fuzz all over head.  Usually go for a 2 on top and a 1 on sides (clipper length sizes)  But that's just me, I like my hair really short and I don;t look to bad with it except for some noticeable dandruff at times and thin hair.  (find the short hair helps with the dandruff problem to)

Considering buying some clippers to do it myself and save money in long run.  lol   Anyways, there are dark skinned men and women around where I live who cut their hair extra short and not look bad.  Though don't know if it would make you look more male or not lol

Ah well, part of the reason I want to cut it is to look more male. The other part is I really hate taking care of my hair and would just rather chop it all off I know I look too much like a girl so "passing" isn't the entire reason I want the cut.

I'd take my dad's clippers and do it myself, but like I said, I have graduation coming up and my hair doesn't grow back fast enough. My parents will know sooner or later and if it comforts them to have one last picture of me with at least a tiny bit of hair, then so be it.

[joannatsf]

When I'm looking for a new look I check out magazines and hair style books at salons.  There's a book called Body & Soul: The Black Male Book (I googled black male fashion) you might take a look at.  More important, who are you?  That will make it a lot easier to decide.

----------------
Now playing: Joni Mitchell - The Three Great Stimulants
via FoxyTunes

[Ms Jessica]

I do, but I still have a full head of hair as you can see I want to present as male and everything my first time in a barbershop. Plus barbershops would be a helluva lot cheaper than where I'm going. Leave it to personal hang ups...

Fair enough.  If you're going to a proper salon, a good hairdresser should be able to give you some suggestions.  I think you could probably ask for a boy cut and get something reasonably close.  The only potential problem here would be that your hairdresser might assume that you don't want to *look* male and make it a little feminine.  Think of the difference between a girl's "pixie" cut and a guy with similar length short hair.  A woman's cut tends to be layered a little more, with better blending between the lengths, while a man's cut is basically the same length all over.
If you don't want to be at the whim of your hairdresser, I revert back to my original suggestion-- google image search.  Find something you like, even if it's the cover of a CD.  Print it, bring it with you, say, I want my hair to look like that.  Any hairdresser worth their cosmetologist's license can copy a picture. 

<-- I'm the one in black in my avatar picture of course with the chainmail sash.   I tend to go for the jug head look, or least similar to it.  Sometimes it comes out looking more just like a fuzz all over head.  Usually go for a 2 on top and a 1 on sides (clipper length sizes)  But that's just me, I like my hair really short and I don;t look to bad with it except for some noticeable dandruff at times and thin hair.  (find the short hair helps with the dandruff problem to)

Considering buying some clippers to do it myself and save money in long run.  lol   Anyways, there are dark skinned men and women around where I live who cut their hair extra short and not look bad.  Though don't know if it would make you look more male or not lol

Clippers are a fine way to take length off.  I have a pair that I used to use to shave my head with.  I used them for several years and never had a problem.  If you're going short, there's no reason not to do it yourself.  The only difficulty here is that you MUST have someone straighten out the back for you.  The fine little bit of fluffy hair on the back of the neck is okay for girls to have, but not guys (at least not sterotypically).  The fluffies must go, but you have to have someone help you with that, or else you'll be all crooked in the back.  I used to have a roommate help me with the back.  He shaved his head, too, so we would watch out for one another like that. 
One other caveat about clippers-- if you're going for a longer look (i.e. longer than a 2), you might want someone to do it for you.  It's very easy to angle the clippers in such a way that one spot is shorter than all the rest giving you something that looks suspiciously like a bald spot. 

[Aiden]

<-- I'm the one in black in my avatar picture of course with the chainmail sash.   I tend to go for the jug head look, or least similar to it.  Sometimes it comes out looking more just like a fuzz all over head.  Usually go for a 2 on top and a 1 on sides (clipper length sizes)  But that's just me, I like my hair really short and I don;t look to bad with it except for some noticeable dandruff at times and thin hair.  (find the short hair helps with the dandruff problem to)

Considering buying some clippers to do it myself and save money in long run.  lol   Anyways, there are dark skinned men and women around where I live who cut their hair extra short and not look bad.  Though don't know if it would make you look more male or not lol

Clippers are a fine way to take length off.  I have a pair that I used to use to shave my head with.  I used them for several years and never had a problem.  If you're going short, there's no reason not to do it yourself.  The only difficulty here is that you MUST have someone straighten out the back for you.  The fine little bit of fluffy hair on the back of the neck is okay for girls to have, but not guys (at least not sterotypically).  The fluffies must go, but you have to have someone help you with that, or else you'll be all crooked in the back.  I used to have a roommate help me with the back.  He shaved his head, too, so we would watch out for one another like that. 
One other caveat about clippers-- if you're going for a longer look (i.e. longer than a 2), you might want someone to do it for you.  It's very easy to angle the clippers in such a way that one spot is shorter than all the rest giving you something that looks suspiciously like a bald spot. 
[/quote]


Meh, I don't like my hair longer than 2 inches, drives me nuts

[Elwood]

I really like my shorter hair. When I was younger, I'd let it grow past shoulders, than cut it to just below the ears every year. It was I think... 2 years ago? A year or two ago I decided to cut it short. I said, "Screw it, it's too hot, and Jamie Lee Curtis has short hair so maybe no one will think it's weird." So I did it. Well, my mom thought it was cute-- until I started cross dressing... 

[trapthavok]

I do, but I still have a full head of hair as you can see I want to present as male and everything my first time in a barbershop. Plus barbershops would be a helluva lot cheaper than where I'm going. Leave it to personal hang ups...

Fair enough.  If you're going to a proper salon, a good hairdresser should be able to give you some suggestions.  I think you could probably ask for a boy cut and get something reasonably close.  The only potential problem here would be that your hairdresser might assume that you don't want to *look* male and make it a little feminine.  Think of the difference between a girl's "pixie" cut and a guy with similar length short hair.  A woman's cut tends to be layered a little more, with better blending between the lengths, while a man's cut is basically the same length all over.
If you don't want to be at the whim of your hairdresser, I revert back to my original suggestion-- google image search.  Find something you like, even if it's the cover of a CD.  Print it, bring it with you, say, I want my hair to look like that.  Any hairdresser worth their cosmetologist's license can copy a picture. 

Closest picture I can find looks like a crewcut but I'm going to tell her I want it caesar style and just want the hairs pointing forward like the picture and shaped like the picture. I was going to get it tapered in the back...I have fuzz back there AND on the sides/sideburn area. I'm going to try and make it clear to her that I want a MALE cut, caesar, same length all around (except the back). Maybe lie to her and tell her I need it for a commercial or something that we're making at my univ class. Thanks for the advice

<-- I'm the one in black in my avatar picture of course with the chainmail sash.   I tend to go for the jug head look, or least similar to it.  Sometimes it comes out looking more just like a fuzz all over head.  Usually go for a 2 on top and a 1 on sides (clipper length sizes)  But that's just me, I like my hair really short and I don;t look to bad with it except for some noticeable dandruff at times and thin hair.  (find the short hair helps with the dandruff problem to)

Considering buying some clippers to do it myself and save money in long run.  lol   Anyways, there are dark skinned men and women around where I live who cut their hair extra short and not look bad.  Though don't know if it would make you look more male or not lol

Clippers are a fine way to take length off.  I have a pair that I used to use to shave my head with.  I used them for several years and never had a problem.  If you're going short, there's no reason not to do it yourself.  The only difficulty here is that you MUST have someone straighten out the back for you.  The fine little bit of fluffy hair on the back of the neck is okay for girls to have, but not guys (at least not sterotypically).  The fluffies must go, but you have to have someone help you with that, or else you'll be all crooked in the back.  I used to have a roommate help me with the back.  He shaved his head, too, so we would watch out for one another like that. 
One other caveat about clippers-- if you're going for a longer look (i.e. longer than a 2), you might want someone to do it for you.  It's very easy to angle the clippers in such a way that one spot is shorter than all the rest giving you something that looks suspiciously like a bald spot. 

Yeah my dad shaves his head with clippers, has been doing it for years. He even does my younger cousins sometimes too. I'd shave my head too (I love wind on my scalp) except I've read a lot about FtMs getting advice NOT to shave completely because of the shape of our heads, it's harder to pass or something. I know that would probably apply to me since I'm one of the small ones, with the "perfect" feminine body unfortunately...Barely any hair on my arms and legs, feminine face....egh. So I'm going to pass on the clippers, I don't want to look like  a girl at all.

I really like my shorter hair. When I was younger, I'd let it grow past shoulders, than cut it to just below the ears every year. It was I think... 2 years ago? A year or two ago I decided to cut it short. I said, "Screw it, it's too hot, and Jamie Lee Curtis has short hair so maybe no one will think it's weird." So I did it. Well, my mom thought it was cute-- until I started cross dressing... 

LOL at your mom, sorry to hear that dude. Yeah, I grew it out when I was younger too, and in the last couple of years I've been cutting it as short as the picture in my first post, and my mom thought I looked "pretty." I used to love having it long enough to do cornrows in elementary school/high school, especially when I had the thick braid type that guys wore, and had the wind running through my scalp in between the braids ah that was great