How To Avoid a Mullet When Growing Your Hair Out

LuxeLuminous is reader supported. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission.

Maybe you’re growing out a pixie cut, or you chose a short bob that you want to grow longer. Getting your hair to grow without going through the 80s mullet look will take time and control from your side to be successful.

Even though mullets are starting to become popular again, many people don’t like the hairstyle. Business in the front, party in the back doesn’t appeal to everyone!

In this article, we are going to show you how to avoid a mullet whien growing your hair out. Luckily, there are several ways to grow your hair out and control it the right way so that you don’t look like you’re on your way to a Joan Jett concert.

If you are planning to grow your hair, you should first read this to see how to avoid a mullet while still looking great.


Contents

What is a Mullet Hairstyle?

This is a hairstyle where the hair at the back is left long while it is cut shorter on the top and sides. This hairstyle was quite popular in the 1980s when many actors, athletes, musicians, and other stars sported it for that unique look.

This is a hairstyle where the hair at the back is left long while it is cut shorter on the top and sides. This hairstyle was quite popular in the 1980s when many actors, athletes, musicians, and other stars sported it for that unique look.

It was an on-trend haircut among men and women, and many women used it as a way to express themselves. It had some punk-rock cred but wasn’t as wild as the mohawk. Joan Jett famously sported it as MTV was becoming popular, and away it went!

The song Mullet Head from the Beastie Boys included the memorable line “cut it number one on the side and don’t touch the back, number six on top and don’t cut it wack, Jack.”

And we all remember the popular show MacGyver, with Richard Dean Anderson, who sported a mullet haircut in the show during the 80s.


What You Want To Avoid When Growing Out Your Hair

When you want to grow your hair for a longer hairstyle, it’s easy to land on an accidental mullet as a transition. If you want don’t want your hair to be mullet-adjacent, you should avoid a few things.

You should first avoid letting the hair at the back grow longer than on the sides. This is the biggest key. Pony tails and top knots can be good solutions, depending on your needs.

You should first avoid letting the hair at the back grow longer than on the sides. This is the biggest key. Pony tails and top knots can be good solutions, depending on your needs.

If you trim it at the back, you may end up with a hockey mullet which you will have to keep until your hair grows. The best way to prevent that is to visit your hairstylist every four months to trim it at the back.

If you trim it at the back, you may end up with a hockey mullet which you will have to keep until your hair grows. 

The stage where your hair looks awkward and out of style is about five to eight months into the growing process. If you’re having trouble sculpting your hair in this interim time, you can use braids, ponytails, topknots, and the like to keep things even-keel.

The stage where your hair looks awkward and out of style is about five to eight months into the growing process. If you’re having trouble sculpting your hair in this interim time, you can use braids, ponytails, topknots, etc. to keep things even-keel.

You should not allow the hair at the back to grow longer than the side and fringe, so don’t trim those areas. At some stage, your hair will look uneven and messy. But you have to push on until the hair is much longer.


From Very Short To Long: How To Avoid a Mullet When Growing Your Hair Out

If you have a pixie style and decide to grow your hair longer, it’s gonna take some time. For people with a short haircut, this will be a test of will, where you will have to stay in control all the way from short to long.

Following are the stages and steps to help you grow your hair long, from a pixie style to a longer hairstyle without the mullet.

Stage 1: First Four Months

At this stage, you will need many hair products to help keep your hair in style and to keep your look on point. Because the hair will start to grow, it will look wilder and more relaxed, so you need your gels and mousse to stay in control.

With this stage, you can easily experiment with the wolf cut hairstyle, a long pixie cut, or quiff hairstyle for some control. You can still get away with this wild stage if your hair does not look too out of style.

It is a good idea to have the right styling products available to keep experimenting with the different styles. You can also use this stage to experiment with the many different textures to go with the flow of your hair.

Gel will be one of your best companions at this stage, where you use it to keep changing your style as the hair grows. Try gel at the roots for that wet look, or a ponytail can be used in different positions.

Texturing products applied at the nape of the neck will help to make your hair look more natural and not longer. This stage is also where the pixie style loses its shape, but getting through this stage is a great achievement.

Stage 2: Four Months Of Difficulty

After four months of experimenting, you may feel like giving up, but you need to keep on and stay positive. The difference in hair length will also be quite visible, with the back being a bit longer than the front and sides.

At this stage, the hair at the front is also starting to get longer, but this is the stage where your hair will get that mullet style. To avoid that, you need to take a closer look at your hair from all sides to know when to trim it.

The best solution at this stage is to trim the hair at the back just enough so it looks like a bob style. If you don’t want to cut the hair, you can always use bobby pins and lift the hair at the nape of the neck.

The best solution at this stage is to trim the hair at the back just enough so it looks like a bob style. If you don’t want to cut the hair, you can always use bobby pins and lift the hair at the nape of the neck.

Both these methods will help to avoid the mullet look, and you will be ready for the final stage.

Stage 3: The Final Four Months

At the beginning of this stage, your hair will be much longer, and you do not need to worry too much about the mullet look. If you follow the previous steps, you will see that your hair looks like a micro bob style.

What is left now is to visit your hairstylist to get your hair in the style you want. From here on, you only need to trim your hair now and then to keep it in style and at the preferred length.

This will also help to even out the hair at the back and prevent that mullet style you tried so hard to avoid.


Conclusion

Short can look great. Long can look great. Medium can look great! But sometimes going from short hair to long can look not so good, especially if you don’t like hockey or early 80s rock.

Follow the above steps, take advantage of accessories and ponytails, and keep regularly trimming your hair. You’ll avoid the mullet look!

And after about 8 months, your hair will be ready to rock a beautiful new hairstyle. Just… not 80s rock.

Written by Kayla Young

Kayla is the founder of LuxeLuminous. She has worked professionally in the tanning industry for years. She has been interested in esthetics since childhood, and has tried every hair, skin, and makeup product ever produced (more or less).