No longer kids who get haircuts by mom, but not yet pre-teens who more convincingly ask for more skilled coiffeurs, tweens routinely struggle with parents and peers. Tween years are thought to begin at the tender age of seven or eight and lasting until about 12, and as their views of the world change, so does their take on independence and the development of their budding senses of self.
Hairstyles are but one of the avenues most traveled by tweens in this search yet with parents still not quite cognizant of the changes that are happening to their babies, and with incomes that are still measured in coinage rather than paper, affording trendy tween hairstyles is a precarious undertaking.
Fortunately, there are five trendy tween hairstyles that have the power to propel any pre-adolescent to the cutting edge of tween fashion without forcing her or him to break the piggy bank or lay a major guilt trip on mom or dad.
Boys, if you know Scooby Doo you know his sidekick Shaggy, and Shaggy is in! If you can talk mom or dad into letting you grow your hair longer, you’re in business! Compromise by cutting it at the collar (wear a low riding shirt and slump your shoulders at the hair dresser’s) and ask for a cut that will make your hair look fuller, more unruly. Sure, it’s embarrassing to try and explain to the stylist what you are after, but if you get through totally, you won’t have to do any upkeep at home! Most commonly this cut will involve having your tresses cut in layers to give it a fuller yet still wild look.
If mom or dad is having a cow when thinking of shaggy, go for another compromise: the razor cut! The idea behind the cut is the same as the “shaggy” but instead of your hair being longer it is short and off the collar (keeping your principal happy) while still offering that wild and wooly look of today’s trendy tween hairstyles! The longer layers are at the top and a razor is used to cut the different layers. This cut works on all styles, and if you want to really live it up, see if you can talk the parents into highlights! Have that done professionally – at least at first – and learn how to do these things at home yourself. Use mousse to make the hair look messy and if you are away from home, you might even shape it into a little Mohawk.
Girls, you don’t have to keep that long hair forever and a day. If you are sick of the pig tails – and what self respecting tween isn’t? – talk mom into a bob. Point out that this is a classic style (which will keep her happy) and make sure that the stylist cutting the hair knows to cut it above the shoulders, not at shoulder length. To get that great curve, the ends of the hair need to be layered. If you can commit to blow drying your hair with a round brush and applying some hair spray, you are ready for the bob!
If you’re not ready to cut your hair but at the same time have had enough of the endless ponytails and yearn for trendy tween hairstyles, add volume to your hair by asking a stylist to cut layers all around. This textures your hair and makes the bangs and sides wonderfully wispy. If your eyes are your best facial features, this is the cut for you! It adds softness to your face and will take you from little kid to aspiring preteen in nothing flat, but it requires a lot of maintenance, and unless you are willing to spend about 20 minutes each morning blow drying and shaping the hair with straightening balm, you might want to look for something that is more low maintenance.
Still undecided? How about a compromise between a shaggy cut and the classy cut of Meg Ryan in her heyday? It is not a difficult to maintain look and if you tell your stylist to think of Meg when she cuts your hair at above shoulder length (or shorter) and makes the layers jagged instead of neat, you are halfway there! See if you can talk mom into letting you have some highlights or streaks and you will be amazed how your look changes! Use mousse when blow drying and then use moulding-cream to create the messy mop that is a hallmark of this style that is one of the surefire trendy teen hairstyles.
