The Mullet: Not Just For Uncle Billy Bob

I know it gets a bad rap and has redneck associations (a 3-year-old boy won a mullet contest in Minnesota, yesterday), but ‘business in the front, party in the back’ has taken on a new fashionable form—and it’s totally hip and Euro.

The modern mullet is a more soft and texturized version of the traditional mullet (see model to the right). It elongates the neck and is great for people with rounder faces or for someone who wants to accentuate the eyes or cheekbones. When I was living in Italy a couple years back, I remember seeing a lot of girls with this cut and I thought it looked so fashion-forward and chic. In case you’re not familiar with The Fashion Mullet, here’s its definition on Urban Dictionary:

A shaggy, highly stylized update of the early 80s hair disaster, the fashion mullet is generally worn by hipster females who are also prone to wear cowboy boots, diesel jeans, black shirts, and have interesting tattoos.
EX: ‘Even though she wasn't a Gucci model, Juliette knew she was hip enough to pull off the fashion mullet.’

Because I’m not only a surfer poser, but also a Euro wannabe, I decided to take the plunge and get mullified. I sat down in my hairstylist’s chair and told him that I wanted ‘a mullet, but not a mullet’. He understood completely. The result was a bit of fringe in front, short, choppy layers on top, and long, razored-shaggy locks in the back. When I was paying, the receptionist was like, “I love your cut, it’s so cool. It reminds me of something, but I can’t put my finger on it…”

Sometimes, if I’m really feeling my Ambnam (refer above), I use volume spray and a blow dryer to pump up the volume on top, while running styling wax through the bottom to create some extra texture and piece-y separation. When I amp it up like this (and especially if I pair it with my motorcycle boots), I feel pretty rock star. Which is great, because I wish I was that, too—a European, surfing rock star.
—Jennifer Appenrodt

Photo courtesy of hairfinder.com