The Middy Thread

[rue]

I gave myself a modified Middy last night. I'm growing it out from a Louise Brooks bob, so the back doesn't make a strong U shape yet. My hair doesn't take a hot roller set very well, but the Middy has improved this basic hot roller set greatly. I will take more pictures once I do a proper wet set.

Gorgeous! You've just inspired me to grow out my short bangs and I'm taking your picture to the hairdressers Do you have a picture of the back?

 

[kamikat]

Here is the middy with my usual fingerwaves and pincurls. I think the longer length and the middy combined actually look better in the hot roller set.

 

[Tatum]

Kamikat, your hair looks adorable as always!

 

[Marla]

I'd just like to reiterate how amazing C-dot's Middy tutorial is! I used it recently to cut my long Middy into a shorter one, and was pleasantly surprised by how well the cut turned out. In the past I've only trimmed my hair myself, but with the help of this tutorial I cut off almost 4 inches. It makes for just the right amount of layers. And it's definitely much easier than trying to explain the middy to a clueless hairstylist.

(The tutorial can be found on page 10, post #93 in this thread)

 

[Miloko]

A Soon-to-be-Middy

There are some gorgeous examples of Middy cuts in this thread! I've been planning my approach to the hairdressers for when I get my own Middy cut at the end of this week. I'll definitely ask for one of the senior stylists and I've compiled a file with diagrams for cutting a Middy and some pictures of the Middy style once cut correctly. I'll take that in to the stylist a couple of days beforehand. Hopefully that will be enough for me to get the result I'd like.

I have a regular place I go and I've asked for some very outlandish cuts before, which have always turned out brilliantly, so hopefully this one will turn out as great as the others I've had done.

 

[lightistoobright]

another new middy!

I made an account here just to say that I followed the tutorial earlier in this thread and my middy "extra long" turned out great! I cut it to about 8" at the longest point, with bangs coming just below my lips.

I have never cut my own hair before (except for short bang maintenence, when I had them) and I was surprised by how easy it was! After I cut off the first back ponytail, I thought "well this isn't so bad"... But then as I began to grab the second back ponytail I got really worried... I thought there was no way in the WORLD I would be able to cut it at the same angle and same length as I had done the first one, since I am not ambidextrous and my hands were at a *completely* different angle on that side.

But at that point I knew I couldn't really turn back, so I forged ahead, doing the best I could and discovered that, hey, actually this haircut is pretty hard to mess up too horribly!

I slapped in some half-ass pincurls (wow, so much easier to do with shorter hair!) and my hair looks better today than it has in months. My previously bra-strap length hair had been so unmanageable I had all but given up on it.

So, THANK YOU, c-dot, and thank you to everyone who posted about their success and gave me the courage to do this myself! Maybe I will put up a picture if I can get a decent one.

-Amy

 

[Isis]

I had my hair cut in a 4 inch middy in December. Before that I had been to the hairdresser twice in ten years and always ended up disappointed. So my hair was in an uniform BSL and I got my darling to chop of an inch or so when it got too frizzy. My hair is thick and rather wavy and I found it quite a hassle to do vintage styles with it. Armed with a cutting diagram for a middy I went to my darling's hairdresser, feeling that as they manage to cut his hair in a 1940's style, they probably had some understanding for my need. And they had! I'm so pleased with it, more pleased than I have ever been! As my hair was quite damaged the middy got a bit shorter than I really like my hair to be, but hair grow after all. I find it an extremely versatile hairstyle. It work if I just let it dry naturally and it works beautifully to curl. I pin-curl my hair and for me that works very well.

I have since found out that there is a vintage hair stylist in Stockholm, so I plan a visit to there soon. They have courses in hairstyling, which sounds extremely tempting.

http://www.retroella.se/

 

[BoPeep]

Would love to see some photos of your new style, Isis! I have tried a 4 1/2" middy and found it to be too short for my usual pincurl set. Happier now that it's grown out a bit. And definitely take those styling courses. That would be great fun!

 

[I Adore Film Noir]

Here is the middy with my usual fingerwaves and pincurls. I think the longer length and the middy combined actually look better in the hot roller set.

I like it this way, too, but the roller set does give you more waves.

 

[Isis]

Would love to see some photos of your new style, Isis!

I haven't managed to get any good pictures of it, this one doesn't really show up the hair, but perhaps the gist of it. I didn't try for any particular vintage styling here and the curls are three days from new. It's the layers that are 4 inches, the bottom layer is a bit longer.

 

[Penny Dreadful]

I knew a middy would cut down on curling time but WOW I had no idea how much. It used to take me an hour and I thought it was just because of my inexperience, but now I'm easily down to 10-15 minutes. Drying time has also gone from about five hours to one. It's so not a big deal now that I haven't worn it straight since the day I got it! I'll even do it 3 times in a day sometimes for the sake of practice. I want to be able to get it perfect on the first try every try. I still don't know if I'm any closer yet though lol

 

[TheSwingingBee]

Kamikat, you've inspired me to grow mine back out, it's just the in between lengths that bother me, but I'm thinking about wigs for that, we'll see.

 

[crwritt]

I found this article on what to tell your stylist when going for a middy cut. I thought you all might find it helpful.
http://dmoran227.wordpress.com/2010/10/08/how-to-get-a-good-middy-haircut-or-baby-or-any-you-wish/

 

[Clabbergirl]

Thanks for posting this, crwritt. I took the Tierney book to my stylist. She's about 25 but she used the diagrams with no problem. She said that's how instructions are given out for hair industry shows and such when being told to demonstrate a particular cut or style. One unexpected thing I've discovered about the layering it gives you is that if you have 3b/3c curly hair like me, your hair will look even better when you don't set it. I'm loving my hair air-dried now also. No more triangle problem. All my life I've had stylists tell me I have fine hair and need to keep it all one length to look fuller, but with curls and a LOT of hair, layering is the way to go.

 

[crwritt]

Thanks for posting this, crwritt. I took the Tierney book to my stylist. She's about 25 but she used the diagrams with no problem. She said that's how instructions are given out for hair industry shows and such when being told to demonstrate a particular cut or style. One unexpected thing I've discovered about the layering it gives you is that if you have 3b/3c curly hair like me, your hair will look even better when you don't set it. I'm loving my hair air-dried now also. No more triangle problem. All my life I've had stylists tell me I have fine hair and need to keep it all one length to look fuller, but with curls and a LOT of hair, layering is the way to go.

You are welcome. How wonderful to have wash and go hair! I think that should be the ultimate goal for anyone. Life is complicated enough!

 

[Honey Bee]

Great timing!
I made an appointment for Friday and was looking for pictures to explain how I want my haircut and, VOILA!, there are instructions to bring!
My stylist is great and if she doesn't already know this cut, I'd be surprised, but I will at least go in informed!

 

[zombi]

Penny Dreadful, I don't know if you already said, but how many inches long is your middy? I'm strongly considering this and your long middy looks most like what I'd like.

 

[Penny Dreadful]

Penny Dreadful, I don't know if you already said, but how many inches long is your middy? I'm strongly considering this and your long middy looks most like what I'd like.

I would say about 14-15 inches. It falls right to the bra band at the longest point. It looks very long when it's straight but it can curl up to shoulder height with the most successful sets before they fall, and then it's just a bit past the shoulders.

 

[wahine]

Does any of you ladies have a printable diagram or picture where it is to be seen how to cut a middy / middy plus / femme fatale cut? I'm not talking of the regular diagram that only shows the back of the head and a sketch of the "hair shape", but a picture that shows the act of cutting itself, where you can see how to hold the hair and scissors and such.
Like this (unfortunately too small to print, and not really a middy):

I want to give it another try with my hairdresser. I'm getting closer to a "real" middy, but not quite there yet...

 

[Late to the Party]

My new cut

I have curly/wavy hair. I had a generic layered cut, and thanks to post #313 in this thread, I went to the hairdresser's today armed with cosmetology-friendly instructions.
I asked for a 5 or 6 (we went with 5) inch uniform layer cut, with no blending except around the bottom, and horizontal layers.
I went to the hairdresser's with this

and came home with this

and it fluffed out to this.

Yikes! I look like a startled frog!

I think I'll try organizing the curls some as they dry next time. Then I will experiment with pincurls (they should help impose organization).
The horizontal layers made a noticeable difference from the generic cut I usually get.