It has been almost two years since my hair has been its natural color. If a cross section was taken of my hairbrush, one would find layers of blond, pink, blue, and purple. This makes determining who’s hair is left in the shower drain much easier for my roommates. During winter of senior year, I bugged my mom constantly, asking her if I could dye my hair. I can’t remember why I wanted to do it so badly. Maybe it was because I had transferred to an arts school, and I wanted to show off my individuality in a sea of kids who wanted to show off their individuality. Maybe I wasn’t particularly happy with how I looked, and wanted to distract people from my acne. Maybe I had an early mid-life crisis. Who knows? But my mother finally agreed, and I ordered some hair bleach from Amazon.

Now, in my second year of college, my hair is dyed like a rainbow. The side is shaved. I get everything from excited complements to disapproving stares as I go about my day. By far, the most common comment I get is: I wish I could pull off [insert current wacky color] hair! If I had a drop of hair dye for every time a person said that in some fashion, I would never have to buy another bottle of dye for the rest of my life. For a long time, my response was a “thank you” and an awkward smile. It wasn’t long until I began examining myself closely in mirror, perplexed. How exactly was I qualified to pull off this look? As far as beauty standards in America go, I’m pretty average. Although I always enjoy admiring myself in the mirror, I wasn't finding the answers I needed. So, in search of clues, I braved my old Facebook pictures and looked at some high school photos when my hair was still brown.

In no way did I look like someone who would ever dye their hair and shave a chunk of it off. I was an exceedingly average, overweight teen who wouldn’t know fashion if it hit me in the face. So why were both strangers and friends, who were much more good looking than I, saying that they couldn’t pull off an unnatural hair color? The only reason I can come up with is something that you would find while scrolling through your Facebook feed, written in a cursive font laid over a photo of two teenage girls laughing. In order to pull something off, you have to put it on first. So no, hair dye doesn’t have any magical properties that will somehow give you unwavering confidence. It doesn’t make you instantly popular or get you more friends. But now, when people compliment my hair, or really anything malleable about my physical appearance, and then say that they couldn’t pull it off, I tell them that they most definitely can. When a friend is considering dyeing their hair, I always encourage them to do it and offer to help. They could find a color absolutely love which can work wonders for self love. The best part about hair is that it grows back. You can choose semi-permanent dyes, or the spray-in kind from drug stores. So please, explore. Go wild and get weird. Even if it’s only once, just try putting it on.