He said that it would be quite easy for a blonde to become a redhead, and he thought it would look good on me. I resisted his request every time, until one day when I was in a “why not” mood and allowed him to experiment on my head.
I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had only lightened my hair, but had never changed my hair color. Even as a teenager in the ‘80s I remained a blonde, unless you count the one or two strips of hair that were occasionally sprayed a fluorescent pink or blue.
I pictured a strawberry blonde that might make me look smarter, or even more alluring. But when he swiveled my chair around and I looked at my auburn doppelganger staring back at me, I knew immediately it was a mistake. I looked 20 years older and more like a disciplinarian than a seductress, and all I wanted to do was put on a hat.
The biggest test would be when I saw my girlfriend, Katie Jo. Normally I would have consulted with her on such an important decision as changing my hair, but being in the dangerous position of indifference at a hair salon as I was that day, it forced me into the awkward moment of asking for forgiveness rather than permission. I warned her of what I did before she got home that night, but her efforts to mask the disappointment from her face when she saw me are to be commended.
When you change your hair the worst thing people can do is not say anything about it. My friends and co-workers did not mention it, I attended an event where no one acknowledged the change, and even Katie tried not to bring it up.
If I had gone along with everyone’s reaction I too might have forgotten I did anything. But the final straw came when I noticed Katie seemed unable to look me in the eye or initiate adult playtime, so by the end of the week I was back in my hairdresser’s chair to return to my semi-natural color.
I guess I have singer Cheryl Cole to thank for this uncomfortable experience. According to Marie Claire, sales of red hair dye increased 22 percent at one super market chain in 2009 when Cole changed her hair to red. This was about the same time my bad decision was made, and I wonder if there are statistics on how many of these new redheads went back to being a blonde or brunette.
Not everyone can pull off being a redhead. I wouldn’t have even turned my best friend’s head in a bar when I tried it.
Salons should incorporate a voting system, like you see on reality television, that would allow the general public to vote on whether you should proceed before you are able to have your hair permanently altered. That certainly would have helped my love life that week —and my pocketbook.
Melissa Carter is also a writer for Huffington Post. She broke ground as the first out lesbian radio personality on a major station in Atlanta and was one of the few out morning show personalities in the country. Follow her on Twitter @MelissaCarter