More Women Taking a Shine to Going Bald

(July 20) -- Women who want to go bald as a fashion statement may find the process smoother than ever.

Some fashion experts believe female baldness is getting its most positive fashion exposure since singer Sinead O'Connor hit it big in 1990. Although Britney Spears went bald a few years back, it was viewed as a cry for help, not a fashion statement.

Part of the reason why baldness is in is because of the positive press given to Miss America finalist Kayla Martell, who suffers from "alopecia areata" -- an autoimmune disease that led to complete hair loss when she was a child.

Instead of covering up her cue ball, Martell is letting it -- and her personality -- shine through.

In addition, German fashion designer Patrick Mohr recently aroused worldwide attention during Berlin's Fashion Week by having his female models wear skinhead wigs and beards.

Although Mohr's use of chrome-dome cuties was a baldfaced publicity stunt if there ever was one, both bits of baldness suggest a trend, according to fashion experts like Toni Love, a Los Angeles-based cosmetologist and certified barber.

"Yes, going bald is the latest fashion trend," Love told AOL News, adding that celebrities like Rhianna, Demi Moore and Solange Knowles have all been seen with shaved scalps. "They are either shaving the complete head or one side of the head, as we have seen with Jada Pinkett-Smith -- even her preteen daughter is rocking the trend!"

Love believes Mohr's fashion show -- as controversial as it was for its use of fake beards -- also sends a message for "those who have not gotten the 'Bald Is Back' memo."

It's also one of the more inclusive trends to make a comeback, she suggests.

"For some, going bald is for fashion, and for others it is medical," she said. "Many people lose their hair due to chemotherapy, radiation and other medical conditions, so there is an advantage to these patients who are suffering because, with this new trend, they fit in, not being self-conscious of their looks."

If baldness isn't back, it's at least "making headway," according to John Capps III, who runs BALD USA, a pro-baldness organization headquartered in Morehead City, N.C. -- no joke.

He thinks Martell is a great role model not only for women who are losing their hair but also for the green movement.
"She's going to help a lot of young women with alopecia," Capps said. "She's putting a face to the disease and voice to the idea that inner beauty -- her confidence at being comfortable with herself -- is what makes a person beautiful.

"[Martell] is also at the forefront of being 'green,'" he added. "She doesn't pollute the environment by using shampoo or hair rinse."

Capps does think Mohr's hair-raising fashion show may also inspire some fashionistas to think about baldness, but doesn't think it will have the long-term effects that Martell might.

"She's taking who she is and sharing it with the world," he said. "The other guy is just trying to attract attention. Now, I thought the makeup artist did a great job, but I kept wondering what the models would look like without the facial hair."

Still, anything that encourages baldness is fine by him. "Either way, it promotes the beauty of being natural," he said.

But not everyone thinks baldness is the new trend. Celebrity stylist Mary Alice Stephenson says it's actually just a subset of a bigger trend.

"It is individuality that has made a return, not baldness," Stephenson said by e-mail. "This new generation of young people don't want to look like everybody else. It's not cool to look like the most popular kid in school or a celebrity that everybody is talking about.

"They want to look special and one of a kind. So if being bald makes them feel and look that way, then they embrace it," she said.

In addition, Stephenson doesn't think Mohr's use of bald models is anything new, either. "Designers such as John Galliano, Alexander McQueen and Jean-Paul Gaultier have all had bald models on their runways."

Still, she admits that just because it's been done doesn't mean it's not provocative.

"There is still a shock value when women go bald," she said. "If nothing else, it makes you look, and that's the essence of what fashion is all about."

One woman who has an inside understanding of the smooth-scalped trend is fashion model Sharon Blynn, who has been bald for nine years since being treated for ovarian cancer.

Since then, she's decided she likes the "visual aspects" and has created www.baldisbeautiful.org to promote her cause.

"I think every woman should shave their head at least once in their life," she said. "It will put you more in touch with who you are. It's very liberating."

Like Stephenson, she sees the choice to go bald not as a trend in and of itself, but as part of a larger cultural shift.

"The trends I do see are programs about embracing and expanding the ideas of what makes us beautiful, such as the Dove campaign and the new ABC Family Channel show 'Huge.'"

However, if there are any women who are taking a shine to going bald, Blynn does have some advice.

"Make sure you use lots of sunscreen," she warned. "If you've never had the head shaved, the skin on your scalp will be extra-sensitive. Also, go bold with the earrings -- because you can."