Is there a certain age at which women start cutting their hair short?
A now-viral TikTok has many people debating that question — and wondering why their mothers in the ’80s and ’90s chopped off their locks and kept their hair short for years.
TikTok creator Steph, based in Nashville, Tennessee, posted a clip asking, “Is 40 the new 30?” when it comes to embracing the ‘mom cut’.
Commenters shared their own theories, from women who wanted to keep up with the trends, to others who lost their hair as they got older, leading to similar shorter hairstyles.
TikTok creator Steph, based in Nashville, Tennessee, posted a clip asking, “Is 40 the new 30?” when it comes to embracing the ‘mom cut’
In a now-viral TikTok, women debate that question — and wonder why their mothers chopped off their locks and kept their hair short for years in the ’80s and ’90s
“Do you ever think about how strange it is that our mothers in the ’80s and ’90s simply agreed to cut their hair short when they turned 30?” Steph asked.
‘I’ll be 37 next month and my hair is incredibly long.’
“Is there a specific time one day when I’m going to cut my hair short?” Steph wondered, before joking, that she would say, “Well, everyone, it’s been fun – I’m officially middle-aged and it’s time for me to cut off all my hair and spend the rest of my life to stay in mother mode. ‘
Steph mentioned that her mother has had short hair since she was born and asked, “Don’t we do that anymore?”
The Nashville mom ended her video by asking, “Can I just have long hair until I’m 85?” and announced, “Because I’m kind of interested in that and I’d just like to know what the other moms are doing.”
Commenters were quick to share their own thoughts on why the “mom cut” became seemingly inescapable — and how millennials are now avoiding it.
One wrote: ‘No, I think when you’re old you end up doing what’s fashionable when you’re in your 30s and 40s,’ and joked: ‘One day I’ll see a nursing home full of millennials wearing leggings! ‘
Many commentators found the generational belief archaic, with one woman explaining: ‘One of my grandmothers preached to me that women can’t wear long hair after the age of forty. I’m 44 and I’ve been dying to rebel for a long time.’
Commenters shared their own theories, from women who wanted to keep up with trends to others who lost hair as they got older, leading to haircuts
“When I was 35, my mother told me it was time to cut my hair short,” one disgruntled woman revealed.
One commenter agreed: “I’m 47 and have always had long hair. My boomer mom hates it. We can do whatever we want and isn’t that wonderful?!’
‘I’m 53 and I remember my mother cutting her long hair. I can’t remember any women over 35 with long hair growing up. I’m 53 and have long hair,” another recalled.
Many celebrities over 30 seem to agree and have kept their luscious, long locks for years.
Whether it’s Jennifer Aniston, 54, who is famous for her ’90s-approved Friends layers, or Anne Hathaway, 41, who went short with a pixie before showing off her thick hair.
Jennifer Aniston, 54, is known for her ’90s-approved layers and her former Friends co-stars Lisa Kudrow, 60, and Courteney Cox, 59, both have equally long manes
Actress Charlize Theron, 48, is known for her structured and short blunt cut, as shown above
The Friends alum isn’t alone: Her former co-stars Lisa Kudrow, 60, and Courteney Cox, 59, both have equally long manes.
Kourtney Kardashian, 44, welcomed her fourth child with a blunt cut, while her sister, Khloé, embraces her long, wavy locks as a mother of two.
Demi Moore, 61, is also known for her super long locks, along with Christie Brinkley, 70.
However, some women are embracing bold, shorter styles — Ariana Madix, 38, recently showed off a fresh lob while rehearsing for Chicago.
Charlize Theron, 48, is also known for her structured shortcuts.
Some women thought the seemingly necessary haircut was due to postpartum hair loss, with one commenting: ‘As you get older, your hair often becomes thinner and more brittle and looks stringy as it grows longer.
“Mine is so thin now and I can’t even get it to grow.”
Kourtney Kardashian, 44, welcomed her fourth child with a blunt cut, while her sister, Khloé, embraces her long, wavy locks as a mother of two
Anne Hathaway, 41, who briefly had a pixie but now shows off her thick, long hair
Another wrote: ‘I’m starting to think it was from postpartum hair loss,’ to which the creator agreed: ‘Guess you’re right. That’s totally the origin of the mom cut.”
“I don’t know about the postpartum loss in my 30s, but the pre-menopausal thinning around my 40s has me on the verge of cutting off 18 inches,” one commenter added.
A few people found it offensive to call it the ‘mom cut’, with one commenter writing: ‘Short hair is chic though! Short hair is not the same as a mother’s cut.’
One woman believed the hairstyle had been replaced by a messy bun, as one woman said: ‘I’m 42 and have long hair that’s usually in the mom bun. I think the mom bun is the new short hair.”
“Or they just keep the exact same style from a specific era and never change it,” one commenter mused.
Demi Moore, 61, is also known for her super long, youthful hair that she doesn’t cut
Scarsdale, a New York-based celebrity hairstylist Julius Michaelwho collaborates with Bravo stars like Jill Zarin, 60, Sonja Morgan, 60, and Ramona Singer, 67.
Julius explained that there is no longer a specific age at which women start cutting their hair.
‘Years ago that was the case when women were in their 40s, but now you have women in their 50s getting extensions,” Julius told FEMAIL.
Julius also believes that it used to be easier to stick to one style for years because there was no social media to compare styles and discover new styles.
He has seen a shift in the types of cuts women are asking for, saying:It’s actually nice to see how much more comfortable women feel with their age and no longer go for what they once thought suited their age.’
However, he has seen women in their 40s cut their hair shorter if they were experiencing hair thinning.
If a woman is dealing with thinning hair, Julius recommends layers instead of a big cut.
“Just because your baby breaks down doesn’t necessarily mean you should cut your hair,” Julius advised.
Instead, he suggested going for a trendy cut, such as a modern shag with lots of layers that can accommodate hair loss or thinning hair, and adding permanent or clip-in hair extensions for more volume.
Supermodel Christie Brinkley, 70, is known for her long, luscious locks, which she regularly shows off on Instagram
Hair stylist Sophie Rose Guttermanbased in Los Angeles, California, told FEMAIL: ‘TThe majority of older women today do not request to cut their hair short.’
Instead, she said they are “looking for extensions and other ways to keep their hair healthy and long.”
Sophie thinks this is because these days there are more ways to ‘strengthen hair so it looks fuller and healthier’.
“It used to be harder to keep hair longer due to a lack of beauty products and supplements,” she said, adding that women can now order a wig from Amazon and find out how to apply it on YouTube.
“If you don’t want short hair, why should you have short hair?” Asked about women dealing with thinning hair, Sophie explained that she tells them to let their hair grow before cutting it off – because while it may be fine or uneven at first, it will grow back.
“There are so many options available to us these days that can serve as a way to still feel like yourself when you’re going through something with your health.
“Your hair can still be sexy and worn exactly the way you like to wear it.”
