By: Blonde Two
I take my role as a Get Outside champion very seriously. So much so that when I recently had a ‘more serious than usual’ hair cut, I had to do a bit of testing to make sure my new style would be suitable for all my outdoor activities.
Alongside Blonde One I have been a ‘Blonde’ now for nearly eight years. Confession time. She is also a real blonde, I am not. Originally the title came about because we both seemed to be such an odd combination of eminently sensible and unavoidably silly, and would entertain ourselves on walks with long discussions about who was the most ‘Blonde’. It was also a very useful disguise at a time when we wanted to keep our online identity secret. Who would have thought that a dark-haired brunette was, in fact, Blonde Two?
Except that even back then I wasn’t even a real brunette. I had been secretly and slowly going grey since the age of 16. I have coloured my hair all my adult life to the extent that Mr B2, whom I have known for over 30 years, claims to have never seen me with entirely natural hair colour.
Being blonde (and Blonde) has perhaps been my favourite hair phase but, when lockdown came along and Justin my hairdresser didn’t, the grey started to appear and I decided I quite liked it. Since then I have stuck to my grow-it-out guns and now have about five inches of silver atop my golden locks. They look odd but I like them. It is nice after all these years to be accepting my natural self and enjoying the looks mother nature has given me. Grey hair, as it turns out suits me and brings out the blue in my eyes.
However, growing a whole head of long blonde hair out was going to take ages so I opted for the chop, said goodbye to my lengthy blonde locks, and now have a ratio of about one-third silver to two-thirds gold. Not a bad combination if you are keen on monetary wealth. I am enjoying my new, shorter hair, not least because it dries far more quickly after swimming, but I felt it was important for all of my outdoor personas to feel equally happy. So, on the day of the cut, I did a quick hat test. Here are the results.
Walking on a sunny day – headband and sunglasses
Shorter hair can be tricky to tie back. Mouthfuls of hair when you are trying to navigate can be annoying. The good news is I can still rock a headband (and Mr B2’s sunglasses).
Swimming on a Friday – glamorous retro swimming cap
Outdoor swimming isn’t a glamorous sport and I have cap hair most days but on I Friday I like to posh things up and wear my flowery swimming cap. The result is not attractive but it makes me smile.
Winter wild camping – snug warm hat
It doesn’t matter what the hat you choose to sleep in when camping (yes you do need one in the winter) looks like but it does need to stay on your head throughout a whole night of tossing and turning. I’m quite pleased with the result here although my long hair was nice and warm.
I’ll let you know how I get on with the less-hair look. The outdoors isn’t known for its salon coiffeur abilities. I always laugh when Justin asks, ‘What are you doing today’ after I’ve had my hair done because it is usually something that will undo all his good work. Wind, rain and sea don’t always make for great hair but they do make a girl feel good about herself.
Bravo. Are those photos a little self consciously small? Let’s have a full sizer. By far the most important thing is that your jolly smile remains as always. I well remember the days of secrecy and certain subterfuges that had to be employed – ’twas all good fun. Our meeting and my trek across your wild Dartmoor were never to be forgotten highlights of my backpacking escapades.
I have decided that with all of my different hair styles and colours, I would make a very good spy! Watch out, she’s behind you!
What exciting times your hair has – mine has lived an unbelievably dull life, for which I apologise to it – it went from brown to brindle and is now mostly grey.