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6 “Outdated” Hair Tips We're Leaving Behind In 2024
Put down the boxed dye.

By Kaitlyn Yarborough Published on November 26, 2024
In This Article
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Coloring Hair At Home
Skipping Trims To “Make Hair Grow Faster”
Going Heavy On The Hair Spray
Not Using Heat Protectant
Running Away From The Gray
Outdated Hair Tips
PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES/DEBROCKE/CLASSICSTOCK/CONTRIBUTOR
It’s easy to look at our role models through rose-colored glasses, especially when it comes to our memories. There’s a reason that many of us tend to keep some of the same opinions and techniques of our Southern mothers, grandmothers, aunts, and other leading figures who have spent decades gathering experience, especially when it comes to our beauty routines. We watched them, listened to them, and idolized them. How could we find a better signature lipstick shade? Or something more reliable than velcro hot rollers? However, even the most time-honored, passed-down beauty inspirations can prove to be mistaken over time. For all of the Old-School Southern Beauty Tricks That Still Work, there are just as many that don’t.

Coloring Hair At Home
Often dubbed as a cost-savvy quick fix, we’ve learned that the potential negatives of dyeing hair at home certainly outweigh the benefits. You might have watched your elders bring home boxed dye from the drugstore, but it’s best to leave it to the professionals. Firstly, the color can tend to turn out differently than what is shown on the box. Secondly, it can damage your hair. Thirdly, it’s hard to fix at the hair salon. And yes, your stylist can tell if you’ve used boxed dye, even if you fib about it. Surprised?

5 Mistakes Not To Make Before A Hair Appointment, According To A Stylist

Skipping Trims To “Make Hair Grow Faster”
It’s as if this myth was told by Rapunzel herself, with how seriously some people took it for many years. We admit that in our youth we’d believe anything that promised long, luscious, Farrah Fawcett locks. However, skipping regular haircuts does not foster faster growth. In fact, it might make your hair grow slower, since split ends are left unattended to move further up your strands, which inhibits hair health and growth.

15 Expert Hair Care Tips For Growing Long, Healthy Hair
GETTY IMAGES
Going Heavy On The Hair Spray
Considering how nostalgic the smell of Aqua Net and Elnett is for many folks due to years of watching our mother figures spritz it on liberally after setting their curls, this mistake is hard to hear. In truth, using too much hair spray does not mean your style is guaranteed to stay on a hot, sweaty summer day in the South. Also, it can be harmful to your hair with daily use, as well as contribute to product buildup that will leave your hair flatter and duller than a butter knife.

Not Using Heat Protectant
With all of the hot rollers, crimped curls, and other decades-old hair trends that our mothers and grandmothers have lived through, we shiver to think that there was a time when heat protectant wasn’t widely used, or even known about. While it’s not something we might have seen on their vanity, it surely belongs on our vanities.

5 Anti-Humidity Tips Southern Women Swear By For Preventing Frizz
Running Away From The Gray
There’s long been a misconception that gray hair must be treated like the worst case scenario, while it’s actually just about how you ease into it and maintain it. Going gray can be done gracefully, with the help of these handy gray hair tips. Imagine the time and money saved once the outdated outlook on gray hair is reconsidered. Why not show your wisdom?

Anything To Do With A Perm
Need we say more? Southern women love their hair volume, but there's a good reason that this chemically-curled technique has gone out of style, even if it was your mom's signature look for a time. Steer clear!

6 Hair Rules Our Southern Mothers Taught Us That We Still Follow
Think twice before leaving the house with wet hair.

It’s always been a joke that people end up like their mothers, but for many Southern women, there is no higher compliment. Whether through teaching us how to make favorite family recipes or showing us how to take on life with confidence and savvy, we are influenced by those who raise us, and that also goes for things as fanciful and fun as our hair.

On the mane front, Southern women have been known for big hair, lots of hair spray, and constantly defying the hot, humid environment around them. Just like Dolly, our mothers often stay true to their style, no matter how much time passes. Unsurprisingly, some of their tips, lessons, and secrets stick with us and stand up to the test of new trends and decades passed.

These are the favorite things that our Southern mothers taught us about hair, according to Southern Living editors. Hint: Think twice before leaving the house with wet hair.

Embrace your natural texture, and you'll thank yourself later.
"I am forever thankful that my mom deterred me from following the crowd and getting highlights or dyeing my entire head of hair from a box when I was younger. At almost 28, I have never colored my hair and couldn’t be happier that I’ve saved my hair’s texture (and my bank account!) from dye for this long." —Digital Editor Mary Shannon Wells

"I spent all of middle school and high school waking up early to religiously straighten my hair—much to my mom's (who has naturally straight hair) dismay. Now that I've grown up and embraced my curls, I regret the damage and realize that Mama knew best." —Senior Travel & Culture Editor Tara Massouleh McCay

GETTY IMAGES/MARTIN MILLS / CONTRIBUTOR
You can outsmart frizz, at least a little bit.
"Similar to never leaving the house without lipstick, my mom always thought it was important to never leave the house without spritzing some hairspray on your flyaways. She also always has a miniature of her go-to brand in her purse, just in case!" —Senior Digital Editor Jenna Sims

"I have always been a part of the frizzy-hair club, and for whatever reason, a silk pillowcase helps tame my fly-aways. My mom gave me my first one for Valentine's Day a few years ago, and I am a forever fan! It's one of the kindest things I have done for my hair." —Former Editorial Fellow Mary Alice Russell

There's no shame in the styling game, even in public.
"There’s no such thing as owning too many claw clips. Keep one in the car to pull off a last-ditch, Hail Mary volume boost on the way to wherever you’re headed. Just don’t forget to take it out when you arrive." —Senior Homes Editor Betsy Watson

"My grandmother never left the house with a miniature hair spray and teasing comb in her purse, so that she could always touch up wherever she went, even if it was the bathroom at the Cracker Barrel." —Digital Editor Kaitlyn Sadik

J2 COMMUNICATIONS/FATHOM EVENTS
Nothing beats old-school hair rollers.
"My mom is big on volume. She always used hot rollers, and now I do too. If I want soft curls, I use big fat rollers. I'm not coordinated enough for curling irons!" —Senior News Editor Rebecca Angel Baer

When you find your soulmate stylist, stay loyal.
"My mother used to drive three hours just to get her hair color done in Atlanta, because she swore no one else could touch her hair than her beloved stylist there. She continued to do it for years until that stylist moved out of state." —Digital Editor Kaitlyn Sadik

For goodness' sake, don't leave the house with wet hair.
“My mom and grandmother would always tell me I was going to catch a cold if I left the house with wet hair—even though we lived in Mobile, Alabama, where the chances of that based on temperature are highly unlikely.” —Social Media Editor Mary Shannon Hodes

The main takeaway: Southern women have their own set of rules, but the rules can certainly be broken. As long as you remember to take off your hot rollers before walking into the party.

Magenta hair color.

Easy summer braid idea!

Butterfly cut and highlights!

Color and cut!