Refinery 29: The Long & The Short Of It

5 Women On Their Hair Histories by Sarah Raphael Incidentally, four out of the five women in this series shaved all their hair off in their 20s and 30s. Sharon, now 54, shaved hers on a whim and loved it so much she kept the style for a few years. "It commanded attention without sexualising or feminising me," she says. Scarlett, 55, pictured above with her lovely dog Maude, had a shaved head with a cross-shaped black fringe, designed by the '80s hair genius Ross Cannon. "I was completely fearless," she says of the iconic cut, "I couldn’t work out why I hadn’t shaved my hair before." People mistook actor Olwen, now 64, for a man when she shaved hers at 30 because she fancied a radically different, more punk look. The primary reason we approached the women in this shoot is because now, in their 50s and 60s, they have long hair, which is the thing that’s unusual. Instead of opting for highlights and a bob, or a short do, as the majority of women in this age group do, they wear their hair long and free, in plaits or locs, grey or dyed pink. The shaved head trend emerged from the interviews, but it’s interesting because it proves they didn’t conform to convention then either. Another thing these women have in common is that they are creatives, enjoying impressive and varied careers in fashion, beauty, art, theatre, film and television. They also all advocate washing your hair infrequently if you want to keep the condition good long-term... Read the full article here: https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/long-hair-over-50