When it comes to Gilmore Girls, fashion has always made important, memorable statements in the show. Personally, I will forever remember all the snazzy chic outfits that were worn by Lorelai and Rory. But what about the memorable Gilmore Girls hair moments we all know and love?
If you're a die-hard Gilmore Girls fan like me, then you've probably been watching (and re-watching) this show since it first aired back in 2000, when the full series was released on DVD in 2007, and again more recently via Netflix. It really doesn't matter how long the show has been in your life, though. Whether you're a shiny newcomer to the Gilmore Girls fan club, or you're an old loyalist like myself, one thing remains the same. And that's our love for the show.
Gilmore Girls has enriched so many lives with its beloved characters, functional-dysfunctional family values, its portrayal of friendship, love, and relationships, those lush sets filled with colorful flowers (and tons of food), its fascination with coffee, and its use of fashion and beauty. But as someone who has always obsessed over hair (and who has watched the show 20 times over), I can't help but also notice all the times when the characters' manes made a statement. So without further up-do, let's look at the 21 most memorable Gilmore Girls hair moments.
1. Sookie's Pigtails
Let's face it: Pigtails aren't an easy style to pull off. Yet no one makes them look more adorable than Sookie St. James, who adopted pigtails as one of her signature hairstyles in the show.
2. Luke's Hair Sans Baseball Cap
Ah Luke: So loyal; so dependable; so... predictable. Rarely is Luke encountered without a backwards baseball cap on his head, so when we first see him all dressed-up (where's the flannel?!) and sans his traditional ball cap, it's quite the memorable (not to mention dashing) moment.
3. Lorelai's Renaissance Curls
When Luke takes Lorelai as his date to Liz and TJ's Renaissance-themed wedding, she rules the realm when it comes to hair. With her dark locks done in beautiful, big, bouncy curls and topped with a pretty pink flower crown, she truly played the part of a fair maiden.
4. Rory's Short Bob
When Rory finally went off to college at Yale, she shed her previously long locks of youth for a short, more mature-looking style fit for any serious and studious college student.
5. Lane's Purple (In The Name Of Punk) Hair
In order to rebel against her conservative mother, Lane gets Rory to help her dye her hair purple (how very punk rock). Although she dyes it back to her natural hue almost immediately afterwards, she keeps a photo of herself with her purple punk rock 'do as a reminder of her rebellion.
6. Emily Gilmore's Hair Do(n't)
Emily Gilmore is always completely put together to the point of perfection. So when you see her sitting in a robe with her hair in a shower cap at the salon, it's quite the moment. It might just be the only time we see Emily without her mane looking perfectly coiffed throughout the entire show.
7. Dance-A-Thon Hair
When Lorelai and Rory attend the Stars Hollow 24th Annual Dance Marathon, they really get into the spirit with some fabulous '50s-inspired 'dos.
8. Sookie's Date Night Up-Do
When Sookie goes on her very first date with Jackson, Lorelai helps put her hair up in a pretty intricate, dramatic up-do. Although she ends up taking her locks out before the date ends ("letting her hair down" as the saying goes), she still looked absolutely stunning with it up like this.
9. Paris' "Puffed" Bed Head
When Rory and Paris get initiated into "The Puffs," a secret sorority at Chilton, they get woken up in the middle of the night and taken from their beds in order to attend a surprise initiation abduction. Rory, having a little heads-up about said "abduction," looks fresh and put together. Unfortunately, Paris wasn't lucky enough to get a warning, and ends up attending The Puffs' initiation with some pretty fierce bed-head.
10. Rachel's Ombré
Rachel, Luke's artsy, photographer ex-girlfriend, actually had her massive, amazing set of curls dyed ombré (which was pretty ahead of its time).
11. Painted Portrait Hair
When Rory takes part in the "Festival Of Living Art," part of her costume as the "Portrait Of A Young Girl Named Anthea" painting quite literally involves the painting of her hair. Rory hits the nail on the head when she comments, "I feel very paint-y."
12. Lane's Rock Stage Hair
Everyone knows that Lane Kim is totally rock and roll. So when Lane and her band Hep Alien get the chance to play a showcase for a record label, she makes sure that her hair matches her attitude. Her rock star mane ends up being, according to Rory, "intimidatingly cool."
13. Lorelai's "I Need A Haircut" Hair
When she was so busy opening up her new inn, The Dragonfly, Lorelai couldn't seem to find the time to get a haircut, and her locks remained a frizzy and messy "theme" for an entire episode. At one exasperated point, Lorelai asks Sookie, "What do you think of my hair?" to which Sookie replies, "Too much product?"
14. Ex Blonde Ambition
Then there was that awkward moment when the former partners of Lorelai's former partners (Christopher and Luke) both went blonde. Christopher's ex Sherry used to have light brown hair, whereas Luke's ex Nicole was a redhead.
15. Rory's Bangs
After quitting Yale and moving in to live with her grandparents, Rory joins the DAR (Daughters Of The American Revolution) and gets a new haircut to bring in this new stage of her life: a fresh fringe. Since this is the first time Rory has ever had bangs, it's quite the memorable moment.
16. Paris' Harvard Rejection Hair
After finding out that she wasn't accepted into Harvard, Paris goes a little off the deep end, taking her usual brushed, shiny, perfectly-polished hair with her.
17. The DAR 'Do
Rory hosts a World War II themed event for the DAR, and sports the most amazing '40s-style hairdo for the occasion.
18. Lane's Mane Obsession
That time when Lane was obsessed with Rich Bloomenfeld's hair, and (as if in a hair-induced trance) ran her hand right through it.
19. Girl Band Hair
When Rory makes some new friends (Lucy and Olivia) at Yale, she takes them to her home in Stars Hollow for the weekend, where they dye their hair in colorful streaks of green, purple, and pink in order to look like a girl band.
20. Lorelai's Longer Locks
For a little while, Lorelai's character tries out a longer hairstyle with subtle, light streaks highlighted throughout it.
21. Taylor's Toupee
I think it speaks for itself. In the words of Kirk, "I find your hair very believable." Sure, Kirk. Sure.
No matter why you love Gilmore Girls, one thing's for sure: It never fails to provide us with some pretty awesome hairspiration.
Want more hair tips? Check out the video below, and be sure to subscribe to Bustle's YouTube page for more hacks and tricks!
Images: Warner Bros. Television (21)
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