This is a series of two interviews a former website owner did with model Josie Nutter. Here's Part 1:
Sometime in September of 2001, I stumbled upon Josie Nutter's website. I was so floored by how amazing she looked after shaving her head that I proceeded to read every live journal entry she had posted. There I found a charming, witty intellegent woman. Her physical beauty brought me to her website. Her inner beauty keeps me visiting daily. Check out her site or her Yahoo! group, but don't be a dork and annoy her.
I was comepelled to write her to find out more about her and why she shaved her head so I could answer the questions many of you have. Click here to skip to Pt.. 2 (Feb. 2002).
My Oct. 23, 2001 interview with Josie follows:
Q: Who IS Josie Nutter
A: I'm a 23-yr. old professional web developer in Seattle. I live with my husband, Justin, and one ill-mannered creature of a cat we have yet to name. In my free time (what little of it there is), I read, watch movies visit friends and work out at the gym.
Q: By looking at your photos, you obviously enjoy changing your hairstyles--extensions, colors, etc. What prompted you to decide to shave your head?
A: A couple of things: 1) A friend of mine has recently undergone chemo treatments and was losing his hair, and 2) it would facilitate wig wearing more easily...whereby I could have a different hair style/color EVERY DAY. :)
Q: Were you wary of doing it?
A: Definitely. You never know what your skull looks like shaven until you do it. I bought a short black bob wig beforehand, just in case.
Q: The change was certainly dramatic. Why shave it all off at once, instead of gradually cutting it shorter?
A: If you're going to cut it short, why not go all the way? An inch of hair is not much different than no hair at all, especially for women.
Q: Who shaved your head and what were your thoughts/feelings as it was being shaved?
A: I got it done at a local salon, Scream. I only knew one person in the salon at the time, a friend of mine who was working reception. The woman who cut my hair knew what she was doing. Before I'd really had time to absorb the fact that my hair was being shaved if, it was over.
Q: Have you enjoyed being buzzed? Why or why not?
A: It's been an interesting experience; one that I'm glad I've had, but not something I feel the need to continue. The lack of sexual harrassment has been nice, but the lack of self-perceived femininity has been something of a problem.
Q: How does you husband like it?
A: He says he likes it (and is amused by those who assume he wouldn't), but prefers my hair long.
Q: What kinds of reactions have you gotten from friends/families/co-workers?
A: My friends and co-workers were all shocked and slightly intrigued at first.
Q: Any strange or negative comments from strangers?
A: Not much, actually. People tend to ignore me now. Towards the very beginning, a couple of young men on the bus yelled "we sell wigs!" as they were getting off, and just last weekend a guy rudely stopped me and asked if I was trying to be a man. He was very apologetic after I suggested how proud his mother must be of him, harassing a dying women, though. ;) People tend not to sit next to me of the bus if there are other seats available. Sometimes I feel like shouting, "It's not contagious!"
Q: On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being the best) how would you rate the experience of shaving your head?
A: I'd say that overall, the experince has been a 6--Nice, but not really my thing. I don't regret it though, not a bit.
Q: What's up next for your hair? Any plans to shave it again?
A: I'm growing it out. This time, no bleach or hair dye for me. I want a full head of healthy hair. If I'm feeling adventurous, that's where wigs and loose extensions come into play
Part 2:
Back when I last interviewed Josie in Oct. 2001, she indicated that she was going to grow her hair back out for a variety of reasons. However, as February '02 rolled around she was at it again, this time attempting to shave it completely smooth.
After hearing she shaved her head again, I conducted a follow-up interview to find out why she changed her mind.
My Feb. 13, 2002 interview is as follows:
Q.: When we last spoke, you said you were going to grow your hair back out--that you were tired of sporting the shaved look. What changed your mind? A: When I answered the question the last time, I was going through a bit of an identity crisis. Being bald made me feel completely non-feminine. However, I got over that and didn't think that being bald was such as bad thing after all.
Q: So you just thought it would be fun to shave your head again?
A: My hair was starting to get out of control. I'd decided to bleach it and that didn't work out well...I had about 3" of fried, straw-like fuzz on my head that needed to be shorn. But by that point I'd already decided that I was going to shave my head again, so I thought I'd have a little fun before I did. It was supposed to be white, but I guess bleach doesn't like virgin hair like mine. At least I didn't get scabs from it this time (ew).
Rayce had been wanting to do some bald photos again for a while, too, so it works out for everyone.
Q: What, if anything, did you miss about having a shaved head?
A: I missed the feeling of perpetual rebellion that being bald gives me. I like it because women aren't societally supposed to do it. I get a lot of satisfaction out of that for some reason. Also, wigs are easier to wear if you have no or very little hair.
Q: What were the circumstances for the haircut?
A: I bought clippers shortly after I shaved it the first time, and had my husband shave my head with them.
Q: Any strange reactions from friends/family/coworkers?
A: Nope. But, then again, my hair is Sinead O'Conner-length right now. We'll see when it's all the way shaved. My coworkers didn't even bat an eyelash the first day.
Q: Your husband, Justin, never really cared for the bald look...what did he think when you told him you wanted to shave your head again?
A: He teased me a few days about falling through on my promise to grow it out. Bah. It's my head, I'll do with it what I want to.
Q: When we last talked, you mentioned that being bald gave you you an identity crisis-- that you felt very non-feminine. Still feel the same way now that you're bald again?
A: No, not really...I mean, I know I look kind of butch when I dodn't have any makeup on, but it doesn't bother me. I think it's partially because I've started modelling so much more and I get a lot more positive reinforcement. I think it's pretty much just something you have to get used to, and once you do, it's not such a big deal anymore.
Q: What's next for Josie's hair?
A: I'll probably keep it bald or nearly bald for the next month or two. After that, I think I'll attempt to grow it out again. Once it's 2" long, I can get extensions in front.
Author: baldloverga. Regrettably Geocities was closed down, and with it so did the original site for the interviews.