Hair Lessons We Learned From Our Mums

Long before we looked to celebrities or social media for our next source of hair inspiration, our mums were our hair role models. From the beauty rituals passed down through the generations to the time she told you not to dye your hair because you’d regret it (but you did it anyway), our mums have always known what’s best.

So, In the spirit of Mother’s Day, the All Things Hair team are sharing the hair lessons and traditions they’ve inherited from their mums.

“My mum taught me that it’s important not to strip your hair of natural oils so don’t wash it too often.

Another memory is me telling her I wanted sleek hair ‘like the girls in my class’ and nothing worked bar Vaseline, which slicked down the baby hair, and a tonne of hair clips. This wasn’t sustainable though, so my mum looked into curly hair products in the black hair shops and taught me to embrace my natural curls.” Elise Augustin-Gill, Global Senior Producer

“My mom has inspired me to always do what you want in life, and that relates to your hair and style too. Looking back at photos of my mom in our crates of photo albums back home, she went from a long thick perm, to shaved to the skull and bleached, to short and spikey, long bob, short bob, long and straight and all the different styles in between. She’s taught me to be fearless in life and in hairstyles.” Bianca Dodds, Senior Digital Designer

“It sounds a bit shallow but my mum always told me to marry a guy with great hair to ensure your kids had good hair! I think it was because she was never a huge fan of her own hair even though I think she’s beautiful, obviously.

She also told me never to dye my hair and to leave it it’s natural colour – obviously never listened to that piece of advice as I was bleached blonde for 5 years in my teens!” Ciara Heslam, Global Social Media Manager

“When we discovered I had wavy hair, my mum began to incorporate hair serum into my routine. She’d put it on every morning before school to treat any knots from sleeping and make it all glossy. I also remember when I was younger I’d moan that I wanted straight hair, or how it used to take me 40 mins to straighten my thick hair. She’d tell me that I was lucky to have wavy hair and look at how many people want wavy hair. Now I LOVE my hair and rarely want it straight.” Saby Salvatierra, Global Influencer Outreach Manager

“My mum has always been super spontaneous when it comes to her hair and when I was growing up whenever she would go to the hairdressers it was always a surprise to see what she’d walk through the door with. The most memorable (which we still talk about to this day), was the time she came home with a pixie cut that my younger sister and I donned ‘the raisin cut’, because, for some reason, we thought it looked like a raisin (don’t ask, I’m not sure either).

She is also the queen of French braiding, a skill which I’m very happy to have inherited!” Beth Strong, Senior Editor

“My mum has always been experimental with her hair and I think, no I know, I’ve been inspired by her when it comes to trying out new cuts, colours and styles. She always encourages me, even when I doubt myself, “what’s the worst that’ll happen? It’ll grow back or we can just colour it again” she’d say. Oh, and yes, my mum has been colouring my hair on and off for many years and would often cut my hair growing up. Has she had questionable hairstyles over the years? Of course, but Farrah Fawcett hair isn’t for everyone. Still, I love looking back at pictures of her hair through the years and thinking wow, my mum was so cool! Pixie cuts, corkscrew perms, baby blue ombre on blonde hair (that’s her current look FYI), you name it, she’s tried it!” Leona English, Editorial Producer

“If there’s anything I’ve learnt from my mum about hair, it’s that it is a powerful form of expression. My mother is constantly changing her hair when she feels like it and uses her hair to express herself and her positive personality. So, I’ve adopted this lesson and change my hair to match my mood – when I want to feel empowered, I’ll get box braids. When I want to feel creative and unique, I’ll wear my afro. When I want to feel like a girl boss, I’ll wear a wig. Thanks to her, I’m not afraid to try new things and love having that freedom.” Amra Markic, Global Deputy Editor