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Taming Cowlicks

By: Real Salon Products In case you are not exactly sure what it is, a cowlick is a little tuft of hair that tends to be unruly and will tend to pop up anywhere. If you have one, you know exactly what it is and probably have waged your own hair wars with the dreaded wild hair.

Alfalfa from the famous Our Gang hit comedy series of the 1930s and 1940s was made famous for his cowlick.

Usually Alfalfa had one persistent cowlick that would stand straight up at the back of his crown.

While Alfafa's hair was part of an enduring characterization, most people hate any sort of hair anomolies that are difficult to deal with.

What Is A Cowlick? Cowlicks occur when hair forms a pivot that sends the hair from a specific point around in all different directions.

For some heads the hair recedes at the temple hairline causing a type of erratic hair pattern.

Cowlicks are most often found in or around the crown area but they may also be found along the front of the hairline around the face and the nape areas.

Most people are born with their cowlicks. People that suffer hair loss from chemotherapy or other illness may be horrified to discover that a new cowlick pattern will emerge along with their regrowth of their hair.

No one is exempt from the dreaded cowlick. Many famous people have cowlicks. Famous beauty, super model Claudia Schiffer, is reported to have not one but two cowlicks at the front of her hairline.

Claudia has commented that she deals with her problem hair by wearing it longer and having it styled to compliment, rather than highlight, the erratic little hair tufts.

Knowledge Is Power Over Cowlicks A thorough understanding of all the available styling techniques and hair care options for cowlicks should help you make confident decisions about how to deal with them.

A cowlick can definitely be managed. There are many options for dealing with the dreaded crazy hair. While some of the drastic options include plastic surgery, electrolysis and waxing, other options include corrective hair styling and use of styling aides to help tame the wild hair.

There are many circumstances that should guide your selection of the appropriate option for dealing with your cowlick. If your image is integral to your career, you may want to consider drastic measures.

If your cowlick can be tamed with the right hairstyle, styling tools or hair accessories, consider these as good options including minimal hassle.

Once the dynamics of your own particular cowlick is understood you can select a treatment option that will suite your needs and allow you to adjust to the ongoing challenges of your hair.

You Can't Get Rid Of A Cowlick - Or Can You? Depending on where it is located, your cowlick can be easy or difficult to deal with. Luckily the hair care industry has provided some techniques for dealing with cowlicks in the 2000s.

Some famous movie stars and celebrities have secretly resorted to hair waxing electrolysis or plastic surgery when their cowlicks caused them too much trouble or threatened their images.

There are a couple of options for permanent removal of cowlicks. If you are definitely hell bent on permanently altering or eliminating your cowlick, you can try hair waxing, electrolysis, or plastic surgery.

Will these drastic measures work? There are many documented cases where waxing, electrolysis and surgical techniques have successfully managed the hair line in way as to effectively control heinous hair patterns.

While hair waxing is never permanent, repeated waxing may soften the hair significantly so that the cowlick is easier to style. Electrolysis may or may not be permanent. Some of the hair from the cowlick may grow back over time and required additional electrolysis treatments.

Plastic surgery is the riskiest of the three mentioned, but also the most guaranteed in terms of permanent changes to the hairline and the cowlick.

There are other drawbacks to all three of these options. Although waxing, electrolysis and/or plastic surgery might successfully work keep in mind that the costs can be high, you may have to go for several visits and it may be somewhat painful.

In some cases, all or part of the dreaded cowlick might return.

A Good Stylist Can Help You Tame The Wild Hairs If waxing, electrolysis or surgery doesn't appeal to you (or your wallet). There are still several other options you can consider.

If your cowlick is well placed on your head all that is you may need is a good haircut to work with the direction of the hair or add weight from hair above to hold the cowlick down.

A great stylist can custom design a haircut that can camouflage your cowlick by working it with and into your overall style and look.

Thick, wavy and curly hair can be managed with well placed short layers that include the cowlick or other unruly sections into the overall style.

Some chemical treatments such as perms or relaxing treatments can also help tame cowlicks.

Products That Help Tame Cowlicks Temporarily - Another option for cowlicks is to use styling aides to alter the hair's appearance.

Most hair creams, greases or pomades with a good hold can work wonders on most stubborn hair tufts.

Apply the styling product of choice to the root area around the cowlick and then use your fingers or a pick to redirect the cowlick. The styling product will help to hold the cowlick in place. Always remember, a little bit goes a very long way.

Cowlicks At The Nape Of The Neck - Hair irregularities or cowlicks may often occur at the nape of the neck where the hair sometimes grows in towards the center or out towards the sides. The hair may also grow up from the nape, colliding with the hair growth from the crown. This results in a cowlick that sticks out from the back of the head.

To eliminate the pesky cowlick you should try to wear your hair either much shorter or much longer at the nape.

Longer hair will add weight and eliminate the current cowlick. If you grow your hair longer you can also wear a ponytail that is styled to weigh down the cowlick.

Another solution would be for you to get the cowlick area cut very short so that it can lay flat against the nape of the neck. If you went with the shorter hair option, you could conquer her cowlick with the use of a proper hair styling products. ( such as straightening gels, mousse or styling creams)

When styling a shorter cowlick, you need to point the nozzle of the blow dryer down to smooth the hair cuticle and coach it to lay flat.