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Summer is hard. Heat and humidity is hard. Keeping you hair tame during all of that nonsense? You know, sweating, doing and redoing pony tails and buns over and over again to keep those straggly strands off of your face? So. Freaking Hard. While you may be one of those badass babes who braves the heat and continues to wear your hair down during these sweltering months (we seriously commend you), not all of us have the time or the patience to tame the mess that the humidity has left our hair with. We rounded up a few hairstyles you can rock this summer that’ll turn heads AND save you the time and energy of dealing with heated hair tools. SPACE BUNS [caption...

We all know the struggle of constantly having to cover up roots. You don't get the exciting rush associated with change. There's no "big reveal". There's no invigorating reinvention. We cover our roots for one simple reason: to feel normal. It's more a chore than anything. But what If there was a way to make covering those baby hairs a bit more exciting than usual? Enter rainbow roots. This colorful trend is taking off in salon chairs across the globe. Perhaps because it's a break from the monotony of getting your roots done; perhaps because it's freakin' awesome. There is a very obvious downside to this trend: your roots are going to look very, very strange when they start growing out. After about a...

Women and comic books have had a long, strange relationship. For many years, we were unwelcome guests, forcing ourselves into a seat at the table. Still today, many readers  follow the antiquated sexist notion that comics are, for some reason, exclusively for men. Luckily, although the past few years have been tumultuous for everyone, we can look back and at least agree that women have finally been invited to the once-Boys Club of graphic novels. We have been consistently, increasingly thriving in the comic book world, both as characters and creators. The results of this can be seen on any local comic shop shelf; tons and tons of highly successful stories written, illustrated, created by, or featuring women can be...

Great Lengths Educators and Guest Artists are some of the best in the beauty game. We spoke with Danielle Keasling (@danielle.keasling), one of Great Length's Guest Artists as well as Matrix US Artistic Director and owner of Salon Karma in Bluffton, South Carolina, to get insight on what she does for Great Lengths, what inspired her to get into the hair business, and much more! Danielle Keasling via Instagram GL: Tell us a bit about yourself—how long have you been doing hair? DK: I’ve been doing hair for 17 years. I own a salon in Bluffton, South Carolina and I am an artistic director for Matrix. I work for CBC (Christopher Benson Collective) and I’m a guest artist for Great Lengths. GL:...

On my first day of junior high, I walked through the front doors of Boston Latin School.  I would walk through those same doors 180 days out of the year for the next six years.  On that first day of seventh grade, I remember all too clearly the outfit I had painstakingly chosen for such a momentous occasion.  I felt that however I looked that day would be how my high school peers would see me for our whole experience together. Sure, high school is all about growth, but in my thirteen-year-old brain, this first impression meant everything.   This be-all-end-all defining outfit ended up being denim shorts, slip on black and white checkered Vans, and a blue Ramones tank top...

According to a recent study conducted by science, winter is literally the worst. The freezing temperatures can ruin various aspects of your day, but they really go the extra mile on your hair. If you’re anything like me you tend to look like a cranky pile of trash all winter. Why? Because fixing your hair in the winter so often feels like a futile mission. A measly effort. Picture it: you spend an hour, from shower to straightener, fixing your hair to perfection for that Christmas party. You take all the extra steps to make it super cute, down to the tiniest strand. Then, after all your hard work, you throw on a huge sweater, then a coat, then a...

We grew up around women, and even men, who were always running to the salon (or the supermarket for box dye) at the sight of a grey hair. Even the most microscopic strand, nestled among a sea of non-greys, would get slathered in dye once it came out to say hi. Covering up grey roots or strands isn’t exactly the cheapest upkeep either. Even if times were tough, the hair maintenance cost seemed to take precedent. Forget about groceries or Christmas presents if your mom got a visit from the grey hair fairy, right? Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration—but it’s no joke when it comes to a woman or man wanting to keep their youth at bay. To most, grey...

She's a mother. She's an academic. She's got a head of hair that just never quits. That's right, I'm talking about my mom, Dr. Jody Giles. There are many things that my mother has done that I find massively inspiring. For example? That time she obtained a PhD in Psychology while raising three children on her own (yeah, she’s a badass). Or the way she always stands her ground when up against a bully. Or even the way she treats other humans with compassion and deep empathy, regardless of the situation. But today, I want to focus on a much more tangible source of respect and inspiration: her hair. All my life, her hair has looked like this. There have been variations...

Humans aren’t the only creatures on this planet with luscious, eye-catching locks. Even animals use their hair (or feathers) to show off or attract the attention of potential mates (or jealous spectators)—I mean, look at the Cowardly Lion from the Wizard of Oz. Okay, we know—he’s a fictional character and not actually a real lion at all. But we saw an opportunity to use this picture, and we took it. Anyway, as we were saying, plenty of Earth’s other inhabitants sport a variety of envious hairstyles too. These creatures aren’t looking great just for the hell of it, though. Like humans, the protective covering of an animal serves an actual purpose—aside from giving others something nice to look at. First and foremost,...

As a recent transplant to the South from the Northeast, I’m quickly learning that summer tends to hang on a little longer in different parts of the country.  With Halloween a week away and my thermostat reading 92 degrees, I can’t help but cling to summer a bit longer.  Don’t get me wrong, I love fall, but I’m not quite ready to give up the carefree feelings of summer just yet.  These last few days of hot weather hang heavy with denial.  I know soon enough I will wake up and smell in the crisp morning air; that cool September morning feeling of a high school student waking up to the first dreadful day of school, the cold faux leather...