Odds and Ends: What, like you're not vain? » Dramabeans Korean drama recaps

96 July 26, 2014July 26, 2014

Odds and Ends: What, like you’re not vain?

by javabeans

girlfriday: I don’t know if it’s the heat wave, but I’m suddenly DESPERATE for a haircut.

javabeans: It’s not the heat wave, because I am equally desperate and it’s way cooler up in these parts. I… just have a really unfortunate habit of waiting till I look like a scraggly homeless person before I get my hair cut.

girlfriday: It can’t possibly be longer than my holdout period. You’ve seen my hair. It sometimes reaches my waist.

javabeans: My hairstylists have forgotten who I am! It’s so weird when I’m all happy to see them and they’re so polite, all, “How may I help you, agasshi?”

girlfriday: Wah waaaah. I don’t have that problem because I’m a chronic salon-hopper. I can’t commit to a stylist.

javabeans: When I left LA, I was maybe the most sad about giving up my hairstylist, whom I had finally found after years of salon-hopping. You know, you go in, give ’em a picture of Han Ye-seul or Jeon Ji-hyun or whatever, and walk out vaguely dissatisfied that you are still not Han Ye-seul or Jeon Ji-hyun.

girlfriday: Yeah, Han Ga-in and Ha Ji-won aren’t any better, I’m afraid.

javabeans: Dream-crushing bitches.

girlfriday: You’d think that after a lifetime spent of being disappointed that you don’t walk out of the salon looking like Song Hye-gyo, you’d just stop bringing in celebrity pictures.

javabeans: And yet, hope springs eternal. You’d think I learned, because I did figure out pretty early on to not bring in any more photos of white chicks. The Rachel? Not for me.

girlfriday: There’s definitely a learning curve when you’re a teenager and the standard of beauty around you is so not compatible with your Korean face.

javabeans: But even Koreanness can betray you!

girlfriday: Yes, beauty is universally cruel that way.

javabeans: The thing is, even when your stylist is awesome and delivers exactly what you asked for? …sadly, the realization you’re left with is: But my face is not Lee Yeon-hee’s face. And then you leave feeling sad (and poor), with only ice cream to comfort you.

girlfriday: Ain’t it the truth. On the upside though, a lifetime of this actually DOES lead to some lessons learned. Once you figure out that no matter what you do to your hair, your face remains your face, well… you just have to accept that your face is your face.

javabeans: It’s simultaneously empowering and deflating. Although I guess one day you do wake up and embrace yourself. It’s just, you gotta stop taking in those Kim Tae-hee photos to the salon.

girlfriday: I’ve always wanted to find that one perfect stylist to go to every time, but why is that so hard to do?

javabeans: I’m pretty sure that’s one of life’s perversities. You know, mocking you with its challenge and never delivering.

girlfriday: Like Moby Dick, but different.

javabeans: It’s like fashion’s big meaning-of-life quest. And lemme tell ya, finding a Korean hairstylist in a new city is a surprisingly stressful endeavor. ‘Cause Korean people don’t really advertise on Yelp—it’s all word of mouth, except you don’t know the secret password so they won’t tell you. I swear, there was a time when I was so at a loss that I contemplated walking into the Korean market and asking the ajumma ringing up my groceries which salon she went to.

girlfriday: But then you risk walking out with ajumma hair. This is lesson number two of Korean salons: You can’t go to your momma’s stylist.

javabeans: So what it ends up being is a lifetime of salon-hopping. And when you find your holy grail, you cling to it like manna, and also, don’t tell anybody about it so they can’t horn in on your big secret.

girlfriday: Thanks for being part of the problem.

javabeans: Well duh, you can’t just give it away.

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Tags: conversation post, Odds and Ends

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51 Enz

July 27, 2014 at 6:27 PM

Funny the topic should be this when imhave just lobbed off most of my hair and it will be AAAAGGGGEEES before i can have any hair to cut off..

I am like JB when it comes to waiting till i cant stand it any more and any hair cut will be better than what is on my head and i am like GF in being promiscuous with hair stylist. It cant be helped coz my need-to-cut hair attacks comes in an instant and then the stylists i like or know may not be available and i JUDT CANNOT WAIT. And that folks, is how you end up with rat chewed bangs.

Omg.. My hair grows really slowly and i am going to look bad for soooo long. *sobbbs***

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52 Chuck

July 27, 2014 at 6:58 PM

I remember reading that when Jim Morrison went to a stylist, he brought in a picture of Alexander the Great.

I'm not sure what the moral of this story is . . .

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53 mary ann

July 27, 2014 at 9:58 PM

In my country, the haircut fee is only like $1 for the standard cut (as per the current exchange rate) so if you really want a trim or a cut every other week, this is totally affordable (i hear its not the same in other countries, like its super expensive for a regular cut).

also, the in thing now here is for rebonded hair - long and straight and not a strand out of place. Its also affordable too - around $40-45 to the very high end salons and even cheaper in neighborhood salons. almost every girl is sporting this here.

not me though, i don't like applying any chemicals to my hair. also, if i have my hair rebonded, i'd have to maintain it every six months or every year. i'm kind of stingy so i don't like that either.

so i get this dread every time i have to go the salon for a haircut since the first thing the stylist will suggest is to have my hair rebonded since it's dry and frizzy (which by the way they say to almost everyone).

this is a fun post beanies! hair stuff problems and tips for kdrama lovers from across the globe.

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54 minathens

July 28, 2014 at 6:16 AM

One hot boring night a few weeks ago I decided to do the ponytail chop. Like, when you put it up in a ponytail on top of your head and then cut it off into an it's-sort-of-a-shaggy-bob kinda thing. Like when you're on the run from the law. I did use haircutting scissors, though, not a knife like in the dramas. I kinda love it. Not the best haircut I've ever had, but not the worst. I've had friends cut my hair before, but it's the first time I did it by myself. My hair was halfway down my back and driving me crazy, but I'm too broke to pay somebody who knows what s/he's doing to chop it all off. Disclaimer-- I'm not recommending this unless you are totally ok with it being a disaster. I have wavy hair, so it's very forgiving. That said, I think I'll probably keep doing this for a while, because it's pretty fun.

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55 soprection

July 28, 2014 at 8:18 AM

If it makes you feel any better, when I moved to Paris (temporarily, unfortunately), my mother actually asked a bakery attendant where she got her hair done because it looked great and we were the same ethnicity. So it happens! I was mortified but she very nicely told me. So hey, if you see a girl with great hair and you want to find out where she gets it done, don't be afraid to ask. She'll probably just tell you and be flattered that you were so impressed with her do.

On the flip side, I have done this. I cut my hair short like one of the girls from Kara (I also took 4 pictures to my hairdresser - different angles) and was devastated when my hair didn't look as flawless as hers always did. I felt a bit bitter every time I saw her with that awesome hairstyle after that. It probably didn't help that I am not Korean. So it's a trap many of us fall into.

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soprection

July 28, 2014 at 8:20 AM

Also I should probably clarify that my hair takes foreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeever to grow so that whole cutting it in a bob to look like SeungYeon thing was just a terrible idea in so many ways. I'm still growing it out. T___T

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56 shinmirae

July 28, 2014 at 8:12 PM

I already found my holy grail of korean salon. I love my stylist eonnie. When I bring a picture of korean celebrity, she tells me frankly if it will not work based on the shape of my face or hair texture. I once asked her to cut my hair short ala kim sun ah's ji-an in I do I do. We argued over it and I insisted.... lesson learned for me. I listen to her now. She has miracle hands. Lets say our salon sessions generally end up with me saying "eonnie daebak!!!"...

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