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sweater: Urban outfitters. Skirt: tobi.com. Sneakers: Topshop. Bracelets: J. Crew, Giles & Brother by Phillip Crangi, random Soho street vendor. watch: Michael Kors.

I cut my hair yesterday and instantly felt like myself again (something I hadn’t been feeling in a while, not in a tragic way but in a “something’s a little off” way). For some people confidence is about the shoes but for me it’s all about the hair. I feel like a short funky haircut necessitates and justifies edgier wardrobe choices. Very “of course she’s wearing that! You see her hair?” As opposed to “Where this girl with this bob feel she going in that outfit.”

But of course the bane of short hair – Maintenance. I got rid of all my short hair accoutrements some time in 2011 but I’m about to go stock up on my go to’s like:

Aveda Brilliant Anti Humectant Pomade

A light styling balm that instantly adds lightweight control and super shine to bring out the true versatility of a short precision haircut. It’s also supposed to be perfect for humid environments (read: Trinidad)

A teeny tiny but INTENSE flat iron

I think it’s finally time for me to invest in a CHI flat iron, one of the clear leaders in ceramic straightening technology. The CHI Air Black Compact Ceramic 0.75-inch Mini Flat Iron is a great size for travel (plus) and at $68.03 on overstock.com (or o.com or whatever they calling themselves now) is a perfectly priced entree for my student budget. I can always upgrade later. (My dad probably read those last two sentences like, “EXCUSE ME?! SIXTY WHO?!” But I think after his experience in the beauty industry he shouldn’t be too surprised.)

Jet Set Black Styling Gel

Don’t hate. For real.

Sometimes the simplest of products can work wonders on the most complex of coifs and anyone who’s had the sides of a super short haircut start growing out knows the importance of a good gel to make that mess lie FLAT.

Fake Lashes

You might be wondering what fake lashes have to do with short hair maintenance. To be honest there are some days I wake up and think, “yo, you kinda look like a dude today.” Sometimes you just need a little something to up the femininity quotient and fake lashes definitely do the trick. For every day wear soft feathery lashes are great. But for an event I like to go with long doll-like lashes. My next beauty experiment is to try to apply individuals on my own. One of my magazines claims that they’re easier than strips. Which I find hard to believe.