I want My Little Pony hair!

For the first time in 13 years, I’m planning to dye my hair pink: the whole lot of it.

I’m not going to do it in one go for the simple fact that it could well terrify my daughter who is only two and isn’t accustomed to seeing her mama with dramatic hairstyles. The same applies to my son, although at twelve, I’d hope he can be a little more rational about it.

It started when I helped my cousin re-do her pink streaks, and then, soon enough after that to lodge in my memory, I read about someone else having pink hair. I thought that following the trend might be a little too predictable, so I bought some blue dye. It didn’t take, but even before the take/no take had revealed itself I was online looking at amazing photos of women with fantastic pink hair. My mind was made up.

(The blue dye didn't work out so well. It barely took and where it did, my grey just looked even greyer.)

Every now and again I get a hair style or colour into my head and then have to have it. Typically, the dream hair is impossibly high maintenance and I quit within months. This happened with the Fimo beaded fringe inspired by a lesser known indie act of the 1990s, the pillarbox red short shaggy bob, the curls inspired by the Greek girl who sat in front of me in my statistics class, the blonde lifted directly from Elle Woods and the razor sharp straight Clara Bow look. I guess I am a bit of a hair whore, especially as there are times when even so much as covering my grey roots (there are a lot) is far too much like hard work.

I have no reason to suppose that going Atomic Pink will be any different. In fact it could well be worse.

As a raven headed beauty (well, that’s what I tell myself) anything that results in increased visibility of my face is hard work. Like many of my dark-haired sisters across the world, the beautiful dark hair’s evil twin is the painfully obvious facial hair: brows, lip and chin. Yes it’s true, I’m going to be the scary bearded granny my grandchildren have to kiss goodbye. But in the short term the pink hair’s going to mean I’ll need a regular babysitter for me to get my eyebrows done, as well as vast quantities of hot wax soothingly smoothed on before being ripped off, taking a whole crop of unsightly dark hairs which would take hours to tweeze and leaving horried white pimples which shine through make up. (The make-up which, of course, shouldn't be applied for at least a day after waxing...)

The other thing that wears me out about my fantasy must-have hair styles is the totality of the look. As with the fight against facial hair, the outfit must be equally eye catching and retro/sharp/dramatic. The fact of it is that as an at-home mama, there are lots of times when I just want to loaf around in distinctly un-edgy jeans and jumpers. I just don’t always have the energy.

Yet I’m doing it again. I’m entering a new phase with open eyes, going for it on the hair front, even if it’s temporary. I’ll just enjoy the ride and hold on tightly to my own My Little Pony mane.