Long hair

Long hair is going to be in. And I mean really long hair. Think Lady Godiva. Think Rapunzel.

Actually, those women’s stories are quite relevant to the trend. In both tales, a woman’s long hair simultaneously symbolizes chastity and sexuality; I believe that when a long hair trend occurs in the future, it will be associated with a similar set of semi-contradictory attitudes toward women.

Women are going to become both more and “less” sexual in the coming years. They’re going to be more sexual in the sense that they will become more informed about, comfortable with, and outgoing about their sexuality. I think women are going to be more sexually aggressive with men than they are now. But at the same time, I they will be more picky, and the hook-up culture will decline as women get better at enjoying sex for its own sake. (Yes, it’s just like with the hippies and their hair—only I think it’ll go further this time. If you think about it in terms of the “waves” model of social change, the sixties were a little wave of hair and sex, and we are now approaching another, bigger one.) Long hair will be only part of fashion’s response to women’s increased sexual sophistication, which will be manifested in a generally more organic, soft, tactile femininity.

Let’s look at where we’re starting from. The most recent hair trends have been the Jean Seberg/Rosemary’s Baby pixie cut and the bangs phenomenon. Both of those are little-girl looks, which went well with all the little-girl fashions of the past year and a half. They are also both very specifically centered on the cut, not the styling, of the hair.

I see the long-hair trend as a continuation of those styles. First of all, the little girl will become the pubescent girl. The women in our culture who are most likely to have long hair, currently, are tweens and teenagers, and therefore women who wear their hair long will be identifying with adolescence and sexual maturation. Secondly, the turn away from aggressive styling will persist and deepen in the long-hair trend, which will be actively anti-style. Instead, long hair will be worn loose. And I don’t think it will be kept fussily combed, either, but will be a little tangled and thicket-like (sexual symbolism again). Cory Kennedy has been an important innovator in this regard.

The anti-style element brings me to the other important precursor of long hair, the no-shampoo/Devachan movement. That haircare style, with its focus on working with hair’s natural texture and oils, is a step in the direction of a kind of hair-worship that will be part of the long hair style. I think that women will begin to re-identify with their hair, and what is now an often antagonistic relationship between women and their hair will become one of nurturing and enjoyment. Women’s healthy, natural hair will symbolize their healthy individuality and confident sexuality.

Sorry, straight-hairs, but curls will fashionable this time (opposite of in the sixties). Also: the Afro is on its way back.