Longer Hairstyles for Boys...

I don't have any advice to give -- I just wanted you to know your son made me laugh! "the ladies like my long hair". I am still smiling. = )

My 3rd grader (and all the 3rd grade boys) are pretty stubborn about the shaggy hair. I am calling it the Justin Bieber/Jonas Bros/Zac Ephron phenomenon. My son has the reverse problem tho -- Strtaight and fine hair that just lays there very pathetically. He loves when I have time in the morning to use product and a blow dryer to give it some texture.

The ladies like it, huh? ROFL. Well, I have a ten year old and he has had longish hair most of his life. We finally found a style we like, and while his hair is not curly (at least not now, but if he takes after me and his father, once he hits puberty - BAM! Megacurls!), it is very very thick and unruly. Luckily, I have similar textured hair, so I can help him out with the frizz and such. As far as those 'expensive' salon products, through a boatload of trial and error, I have found that there for every salon product, there is a product you can buy at your local walmart/drugstore that is equally as good but costs a LOT less. I have used the expensive stuff, and to be honest, with very few exceptions, it's not worth the money. Second agenda, How would he feel about just letting his hair 'do it's thing' and go curly? I know the curly look is making a big comeback right now, even with boys. That was what initially drew me to my husband...lol. I myself have very wavy/curly and frizzy hair, but I enjoy the curls now because I know how to manage them. I wish I had someone to help me when I was a preteen with styling issues, but my mom wasn't good with hair and always straightened hers and my dad went bald! I currently have my hair in mid-length layers and I love it (of course, I realize I am a girl, but still....). When I wake up in the morning, it does look kind of crazy, but with the right styling products, it lays down nicely and works well with the curls. The key is to not layer TOO much. I've noticed in the past with my hair that if the layers are cut too short or there is too much layering, it does end up looking kind of 'poofy' and unruly. With curly hair, if you want the curls to 'lay down' more, there has to be a bit of length...the weight of the hair is what causes the curls to not be so tight and kinky, and if there is no length, there is no weight to act against the curl - they just spring up and out all over the place!

If you like, I can recommend a few products that I love for the frizz issue or to help tame the curls. I like very light hold products that don't make your hair feel stiff or sticky, and I've found some good ones that keep your hair manageable and soft at the same time....I'm sure the 'ladies' would love that!

K.-
Out here on the West Coast it's surfer or skater hair. I was hoping to catch advice on how to get my boy to trim his hair so it will look better. I don't care if it's long (no ponytails, though...bleah!).

So funny, I put product in my hair to bring out the curl and there you are trying to get rid of it. I noticed if you put the hairdryer on high blow/high heat it will make your hair straighter than leaving any humidity in it.

Maybe there are some hairstylist mamas out there that can help?
S.

If you're dealing with wave or curl, you probably will never find a cut that lets him live without product.

My favorite products let me run fingers through my ringlets and have them bounce back (the holy grail for uber-curly hair)... but they cost a friggin fortune ($50 every 2 weeks)... and that's if I'm not going back and forth between curly & straight. The thing is though... if I'm willing to settle on slightly less for the holy grail, i can spend $6 every 2 weeks instead.

I would recommend finding out what TYPES of product she's using (mousse, gel, pomade being my top 3 guesses) and then going for cheaper grocery store alternatives. As someone else said... for every salon product, there's a waaaay cheaper option. SOME of the options are startling. No More Tangles works best for my son's long hair, BUT he has to saturate his hair with it. Doesn't work for mine, because he's got curl, but he doesn't have "every hair for itself" ringlets :) :) :)

Have her show him how to style it. The products may seem expensive, but they last a long time as long as he knows to use a small amount and she shows him how to style it.

My youngest has longer hair, and its the 'hockey' type hair, or 'surfer', and his is curly/wavy too, but with him only being 4, I don't put product in it because luckily it does its own thing well without my assistance. Thats not to say he doesn't wind up with a hat on his head some days though! LOL!

But really, she should be showing him, and you, how to style it the way she does, and you can always find a similar product in a different, cheaper, brand, but until he gets styling it down, or you do, purchase and do what she does.