Hair! Shmair!

I have high maintenance hair.  I'm not afraid to admit it.  I was voted 'Best Hair' in Mrs. Stewarts' 5th grade class and I am still proud of that!  I'm also not afraid to admit that one of my very first thoughts about moving to Germany was: "Who will take care of my hair now?!"

When Isabelle was just a toddler I had a disastrous experience with an at-home box color....I'll save you the details because it's a really long story, but I very literally fried parts of my hair off.  It took a professional many, many, many hours over a period of months to repair the severe damage I had caused.  She lovingly brought my hair back from the dead, but not without bunches of deep breaths and forearm swipes across beads of sweat on her brow.  I haven't touched my hair since, and I never will.  This is why, when I meet a stylist that I like, I have a very hard time letting go.  It is also why I put a lot of money into the hair products I use.  So to tell y'all that I was nervous to make an appointment for a cut & color in a foreign country is putting it kindly. 

I was dreading it.  

I was losing sleep over it.  

But when my hair got too long and too heavy to put in a messy bun anymore, it was time to make an appointment.  Whether I was ready or not.  

I went to a German hair stylist for the first time this weekend.  The gals I work with directed me to a salon owned by a British lady who has been in Germany for more than 20 years.  They speak fluent English and take VAT forms (Value Added Tax forms take Germany's 19% tax off whatever it is us military/military dependents are buying.  Not all stores will accept them, and since we have to buy the forms, they're only worth it when spending over a certain amount of Euro).

The lady that did my hair was amazing!  I knew right away that I liked her and trusted her.  I wanted to go a little darker for fall & winter so she opted for "caramel blonde" highlights.  She seemed to know exactly what she was talking about, so I started to relax.  I wanted to cut 4-5 inches off but not go anywhere near my shoulders.  She said that going near the shoulders is too difficult a length and "flips easily" so she understood what I wanted.  But she also talked about more personal things that had nothing to do with hair and I related to her very much!  I really started to relax after that. 

I'm at the "new" point right now where I'm still trying to figure out how to style it with 4 less inches to deal with, but these crummy iPhone pictures taken suuuper early in the morning before work gives you an idea.  

The most valuable advice, validation, and encouragement I have gotten has come from other military families that have been stationed over here for a little while.  With their advice I am getting more comfortable, braver, and less self-conscious about being a foreigner.  And now, I've got all my bases covered:  a) a great gal to do my nails, b) a hair salon that I really loved, c) trendy clothing stores minutes from my apartment, d) and friends to help me navigate all of Germany's little quirks.