This business-in-the-front, party-in-the-back style has been around way before it was popularized by actors and rock stars in the 1980’s. According to some historians, the mullet has been around since at least Ancient Greece, where the style was as much for function as it was for fashion. Cropped hair around the face with longer locks in the back allowed for both visibility and a protective layer of hair for your neck. Homer even described a haircut that sounds eerily familiar in The Iliad: “their forelocks cropped, hair grown long at the backs.”The Greeks weren’t the only ones sporting the mullet, though. There is evidence that Neanderthals and our oldest ancestors would wear this ‘do, as well.

The relative ease of maintaining it makes it possible to keep up even without the existence of barbershops and hair salons, and the practicality makes it perhaps one of the oldest haircuts in human history.Some Native American tribes, both historically and more recently, have included the mullet with other traditional hairstyles. In many tribes, long hair is representative of a strong cultural identity. It is connected to values of family and community, and there are multiple rituals surrounding the upkeep of long hair. The preferred style for displaying long locks is most commonly braids – often two or three – but cuts closer the Mohawks and mullets have not been uncommon, either.

Mullets have been present in and out through our entire history as a species, in different parts of the world. It wasn’t until the 1970’s when the mullet starting rising to modern mainstream fame, though, reaching its peak in the 80’s when everyone from George Clooney to Metallica’s James Hetfield sported one. It tended to be popular with white dudes who played rock music or hockey, incredibly cool and trendy for a while. The hairstyle didn’t actually have the name “mullet” until 1994, though, when the Beastie Boys released a song called “Mullet Head.” Not long after the name mullet was christened, the hairdo was on its way out. 

By the time the Beastie Boys gave the style its name, it had begun to slide from the trendy mainstream position it had been sitting comfortably at to a more countercultural phenomenon.

The peak of mullets ended in the early 1990’s, but the style has never completely faded from relevance. Instead, it slipped from the good graces of the masses and became iconic in various subcultures: everyone from country music stars and lesbians, to hockey players and Native Americans. Jennifer Arnold even created a documentary about the haircut in 2002 titled American Mullet (which you can find on Amazon Prime if you’re curious). 

In more recent years, the mullet was actually banned in Iran, for being considered too much of a “western hairstyle”. No matter what you think of it, the mullet has become enough of a staple of the American aesthetic that it’s been placed in that categorization along with spiked hair, ponytails, and long hair in general. 
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Will the mullet ever rise once more the its former glory in the 80’s? Maybe not, but it has certainly cemented itself as an iconic haircut from the past, and an important style to this day for many groups of people. 

The Mullet in 2020

It’s 2020, and the question everyone must now ask is: is the mullet coming back in style? Some may argue that it was never in style, while others will insist that it never went out of style. Ask the general public or a hair stylist, though, and they will probably be inclined to tell you that yes, the mullet is coming back. In January this year, men’s fashion blogs across the internet all declared the same thing: 2020 would be the year for the mullet. Beginning as a counter-culture hair style that was just getting its footing in the world of fashion once again, this year has proved to be the perfect time for the resurgence of the mullet. 

With hair salons being closed for multiple months in the first half of 2020, many people took on the dreaded task of facing down a home-brewed haircut. For some this manifested in a mullet style: either out of appreciation for the cut, or, perhaps, out of necessity. Get the hair off your face without worrying about trimming the back of your head where you can’t see. Like our ancestors before us, we must acknowledge the mullet for what it truly is: a practical haircut. 

The sudden lack of access to salons isn’t the only reason mullets are coming back, though. There have been whispers of the style in the mainstream over the last few years, and this was simply the boil-over point. In the second half of the past decade, we’d seen a steady increase of mullet action once again amongst the most famous of us. Ironically, a lot of the most notable celebrities actively rocking mullets today are women. Female singers especially. Everyone from Kesha and Miley Cyrus to Billy Eilish and even Zendaya have been seen sporting the look. What may have been considered a trashy style by many even just a few years ago has become a chic look sported by those of us who have a tendency to look coolest. 

When it comes to less famous women wearing the look, just as many have been sporting the ‘do as the pop stars and celebrities of the world. Especially amongst women in the LGBT+ community, the mullet is becoming as big of a fashion statement as it is amongst guys. Combine this cut with absurdly large earrings and colorful pants, and you’re ready to tell the world “Hello ladies! I, too, am gay.” 
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Is the mullet resurging in popularity along with 80’s nostalgia-themed media, like It and Stranger Things? Perhaps. Like media and clothing, hair styles tend to move in cycles. Men’s hairstyles have been typically short-on-the-sides, longer-on-top for a while, now, and maybe the mullet is a shift out of those restrictions. Recent women’s fashion has involved a lot of things that were at one point, not long ago, considered tacky (looking at you, mom jeans and scrunchies). Maybe the mullet is the next step in this resurgence, allowing men to embrace the tackier sides of our previous societal fashion faux pas, as well. 

Back when the pandemic started heating up in the United States several months ago and local shelter-in-place orders were instituted which closed down barbershops, I decided I’d let my hair grow out for the indefinite future. Instead of seeing the shutdown as an inconvenience, I reframed it as an opportunity to achieve some sweet, sweet, 1980s Sam Elliott hair. I had tried to achieve this worthy goal before, gotten close, but abandoned the idea when it didn’t seem to be coming together. I wanted to give the idea another go round; maybe it would somehow work out better this time. 

I was optimistic about the project, but by the middle of July, I’d reached my head-mop breaking point. Just as I had concluded on my first attempt, my hair is just too thick, wavy, and vertically-oriented in its growth to pull off the 80s flow. Instead of looking like Sam Elliott in Mask, I looked like Edna Turnblad in Hairspray. What’s more, all that hair on top of my head was making me overheat during the hot and humid Oklahoma summer.

So I had my mother-in-law buzz it off (she buzzes my father-in-law’s head each week, so she’s a seasoned pro). I officially joined the pandemic buzz cut club. 

The clippings lumped together on the floor looked like the pelt of a dead varmint. My head felt a few pounds lighter and a lot cooler. I’m enjoying my buzz cut. It’s a breeze to maintain. Washing my hair takes significantly less time and there’s no need to style or even comb it.

But I plan on returning to my typical side-part hairstyle for the fall, which presents a minor issue: a buzz cut can look a little awkward — fuzzy and round — while it grows out. The last time I grew out a summer buzz cut a few years ago, I remember I looked vaguely like a Chia-Head. 

To avoid looking like a potted indoor novelty plant, I reached out to Thad Forrester, barber and co-owner of Hudson / Hawk Barber & Shop for his advice on growing out a buzz cut.

If you can visit a barber . . . keep the back and sides short, and let the hair grow out on top.

“I like the strategy of keeping the sides and back short until the top starts to get longer,” Thad told me. It helps push more visual strength into the top of your head and “prevents the Chia Pet look from happening.”

Ask your barber for a taper at the temple and neck. If you don’t mind showing some skin as the hair gets closer to the hairline on the sides and neck, you can also ask for a medium fade along the sides and back. This will give your hair some dimension, making it look more like an actual haircut and less like a uniformly round tennis ball. Continue to let the hair on top grow out, until it too is in need of a trim. 

If you’re wanting to eventually grow the sides and back of your hair out rather than keeping them trimmed close to the head with a taper or fade, start this process once the hair on top of your head is long enough to comb. 

You’ll need to visit your barber a little more often — perhaps every two weeks — to keep your style looking sharp during this grow-out period. 

If you can’t/don’t want to visit a barber . . . let your buzz grow while keeping your hairline trimmed.

If you don’t think you’ll be visiting a barbershop anytime soon, you can of course keep buzzing your head. If you don’t have a mother-in-law handy, here’s a guide on how to do it yourself.

What if you can’t visit a barbershop now, but think you will in a couple months or so, and want to start growing out your hair now? Giving yourself a taper isn’t impossible, but it’s pretty tricky. Even having someone else do it for you is iffy.

You’ll thus probably need to content yourself with letting your buzzed fuzz get puffy, but you can still keep it from looking too unruly by doing a DIY clean-up along your hairline. This means trimming your sideburns along with the two trails of hair that run down your neck. We’ve got a guide on how to take care of this job here.

How long will it take my buzz cut to grow out?

Genetics will influence how quickly your hair grows, but on average, humans grow about ½ inch of hair a month. Depending on how long your hair was pre-buzz cut, expect it to take 3 to 4 months to grow out to its original length.

There you go. How to grow out your buzz cut, and banish Mr. Chi-Chi-Chi-Chia Head to 1990s commercial breaks.

These grow out tips are from Art of Manliness

Given that we are housebound amid a global crisis, you may think that a short back and sides would be the last thing on anyone’s mind. But you would be wrong. Physical distancing has not stopped people around the world, from Phillip Schofield to Malala Yousafzai, reaching for the scissors – with varying degrees of success.

Since the temptation to give yourself, or your loved ones and housemates, a quick cut appears matched only by the desire to bake banana bread, here are a few points to consider.

Should you cut your own hair?
Hairdressers advise regular appointments to keep your hair in good condition and your cuts looking fresh, so it is little wonder that so many of us are keen to keep this up. But most stylists have one word of advice: don’t.

“I feel sorry for all the stylists who, after this, will be dealing with a lot of DIY disasters,” says Keri Daniel, the owner of Danique Hairdressing in Leicester. “If you really have to, then it’s worth investing in the right tools – even a professional would struggle to get a good result using the kitchen scissors. You can get cheap hairdressing scissors and cutting combs online – even razors – and they’ll give you a better finish.”

What about fringes?
Being poked in the eye by your own fringe is no fun. Many fringe-wearers will have already experimented with DIY trims, but, if you are new to this, the advice is to cut upwards, not across, using just the tips of the scissors. Daniel goes further: “I’d suggest using a wide-tooth comb, pulling the hair down to the eyebrows and then lifting it slightly [before cutting]. Any lifting of the fringe will give it a slight graduation and make it look softer. This way, even if you do make a mistake, it’s unlikely to look horrific.”

Should you just shave it all off?
With hairdressers and barbers closed, some people – Riz Ahmed and David Beckham among them – have opted to simply lop off the lot. It is quite the lockdown look, but it is not as simple as you might hope.

“You need to make sure that the guard you put on the clipper is secured properly – otherwise you can go from a grade four to a grade zero by accident, and there’s no fading that out,” says the salon owner and celebrity stylist Jamie Stevens. “You may think you can just do grade three all over, but the parietal bridge and the occipital bone [towards the back of the head] protrude slightly, and a few days later it will start to have a weird shape because these areas should be slightly tapered.”

Should you do it yourself or hand the scissors to someone you live with?
“Think about what’s best for your household, because you have to live with these people,” warns Daniel. Like most professionals, hairdressers have a knack of making their job look easier than it is.

“If you cut your own hair, you’ll need one mirror in front and one behind you,” says Stevens. “I’ve seen people using their phones, but it gets a bit tricky because you need to hold that, the comb, the scissors and the clippers. Get help if you can.”

How do you cut kids’ hair?
“The biggest challenge when cutting children’s hair is that they don’t like to sit still,” says Kelly V, the owner of Pixal-Rose Hair Design, a vegan salon in Swindon, who suggests keeping them occupied with a tablet or a book. For short hair, a simple cut with clippers is advised. For long hair, “brush the hair down, have the head tilted forward and cut the very, very ends off”, she says. “Don’t attempt anything too drastic.”

What about your roots?
This can be the biggest giveaway that you are overdue a trip to the salon, but there are better solutions than home-dyeing.

“A zigzag parting can help disguise that regrowth line and, depending on the colour of your hair, mascara can be a great way to cover up greys,” says Stevens. “Or just have a bit of fun – we put a luminous green feather in one parting. It looked like Billie Eilish’s green roots.”

Kelly V says the biggest problem with DIY dyeing is when those with blond hair switch to brunette to avoid root regrowth. “The trend is to go for ashy, cool, brunette colours, but this will simply leave your blond hair khaki,” she says. Instead, “you’ll need to select a dye that contains a lot of red tones [to get the colour you want]. Also, always do the patch test.”
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Daniel suggests visiting your salon’s website to find out which products they used and investing in those. “You may be able to buy them through the salon, which can be a great way to support them while they are closed,” she adds. “Dyes that you might buy in the supermarket are not professional products, and it can make it a lot harder when it comes to colouring in the future.”

How should you care for afro hair?
“An inch of growth in afro hair doesn’t make as much difference,” says Stevens, whose salon specialises in afro hair. “It’s easier to disguise that it’s overdue a cut. Relaxed hair will have curly roots, but I would never recommend using a home relaxant – you will get snappage. You could go through it with straightening irons, but it would be very time-consuming. I would suggest just wearing your hair up.”

What if you run out of shampoo and conditioner and can’t get to the shops?
Join the “no-poo” movement and break free from the shackles of commercial haircare! Well, it is one option – and the lockdown offers a chance to wait out the initial greasy period in relative privacy. Otherwise, shower gel can substitute for shampoo if you are desperate, according to Stevens, while mayonnaise, avocado or coconut oil can replace conditioner. “If you look at what branded products use in their ingredients, you can get an idea of the kitchen cupboard alternatives,” says Daniel. Of course, you are probably washing your hair far more than you need to anyway.

How often do you need to bother washing your hair when no one can see?
“Realistically, you don’t need to wash your hair more than once a week, unless you are doing a sport or have a job in a kitchen,” says Daniel. For those of us who like to wash our hair daily, this may seem like a big ask. But she assures me it is possible. “On the third day, you could spritz it with some water and blow-dry again to give it a bit of lift. Stay away from the straighteners if you can. On the fourth day, you can start to wear your hair up. Dry shampoo and texture sprays can also give unwashed hair a little bit more life. You’re with your family and loved ones, staying home – it’s the best chance to give your hair a rest.”
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What about body hair – is it time to grow it out?

Removal of body hair – particularly pubic hair – is often best left to the professionals. While shaving your own legs may be straightforward, waxing your bikini line is another matter. So, is it time to go au naturel? “We’ve had lots of inquiries from clients who are midway through laser hair removal courses asking what they should do,” says Dr Chloë Butler, the founder of the Chloë Edit clinic in Worcestershire. “We advise not attempting DIY waxing, as it can be quite tricky unless you have the right equipment and patience.” While trimming or shaving pubic hair may seem straightforward, Butler believes some people would be better off leaving well alone. You may even discover you prefer your new look.

“Make the right choice based on the type of skin and hair you have, not on whatever style is ‘trending’,” says Butler. “If you have a thicker hair follicle, you may be more prone to ingrown hairs or a shaving rash. If you’ve got oily skin, you may get blocked pores and irritation. Dry skin tends to be thinner and more likely to tear.” Ouch.

Is now a good time to experiment with hairstyles?
Rather than shaving your head, Stevens suggests men try growing their hair long or cultivating a beard. If you are tempted by a complete restyle, he suggests ordering a wig online: “Walk around the house and see how you feel. What kind of reaction do you get when you’re FaceTiming friends and family?”

Daniel believes that, aside from the buzzcut, other hair trends are likely to emerge after the lockdown. “It’s exciting from a hairdressing point of view. People who wanted to grow out their grey hair, or go from being very blond to a more natural colour, have an opportunity to do that.”

“Ultimately, chill out,” says Stevens. “Embrace your new hair and, if you’re really that bothered, put a hat or a scarf on.”

Shave it or Save it brought to you from The Guardian