In a familiar story coming out of Madison, WI, 28-year-old painter Claire O’Neil has reluctantly accepted her role as the hairdresser of her friend group.
“She’s the artsy one of the group!” Claire’s friend Alyssa told reporters. “Granted, she usually works with paint and a brush, but she’s got an artist’s eye and that’s all that matters.”
Claire says that this has been coming on slowly for years.
“You cut one person’s hair, and then everyone else wants you to do theirs, too,” Claire told reporters. “I’ve always been resistant to it because, you know, I have other things I’d like to be doing. Namely, my art. But times are pretty tough right now, so I’ve accepted that this is just how I need to be there for my friends.”
Claire adds that her reluctance to accept this role in the past also stems from the fact that cutting hair is not even remotely within her skillset.
“I’m a painter and I dabble in film photography, what makes people think that that translates to cutting and styling hair?” she explained. “People just see that you are skilled in one artistic field and just assume you’d be able to apply that artistic sensibility to some other aesthetic-centric pursuit.”
Claire’s roommate Lydia confirmed this statement, saying, “She takes amazing landscape photos, so I’m confident she’ll be able to cut curtain bangs.”
Claire adds that while she can kind of visualize what hairstyle might look interesting on someone,that doesn’t mean she actually possesses the capability to use scissors to achieve it.
“It took me years to get good at painting,” Claire said. “While I’m willing to cut all my friends’ hair for the foreseeable future, I just hope they’re equally willing to endure bad haircuts for that same amount of time.”
“I trust her vision,” Lydia told reporters.
Alyssa agreed, saying, “As long as my hair gets shorter, I’m not complaining. Well, as long as she gives me a full rinse and blowout as well.”
Claire says her friends’ open mindedness has helped her to actually start to enjoy cutting hair.
“I don’t even need painting anymore,” she said. “It’s really rewarding to try and create a surrealistic effect using just the hairs on my friends’ heads.”
As of press time, Claire had accidentally given six friends micro fringes, hadn’t gotten any closer to understanding how to cut curtain bangs, and was feeling more creatively fulfilled than ever.