“The first day I met [Tracy Morgan], I had a small Afro, and he was like, ‘You know, if you want to get dreads, you should get your girl pregnant and put the placenta in your hair.’ And I was like, ‘What the f**k are you talking about?’ But from that point on, I thought, ‘Any brain that can make that up needs to be studied.’”

—Donald Glover, “Community” star and ex-writer for “30 Rock.” Did we mention he’s only 26? Wonder if he’s single ... [NYMag.com]

Okay, we’re not so naive that we think that using the hair products Dita von Teese is hawking on her website will make us look like the burlesque diva or anything, but we can be kind of excited about it as the perfect gift idea for girly fans. Little known fact: Dita’s mama is a hair dresser. Second little known fact: Dita consulted with her to create this line of shampoo, conditioner and hairspray, which is available as a holiday gift package that’s all wrapped up nice and pretty and includes, drumroll please ... a signed and kissed card by Dita herself. (Or, while we’re being realistic here, maybe an ample-lipped assistant?) Who cares—it’s a great gift idea, and at $49.95, dare we say, reasonable? Order it here. [BellaSugar]

Around seven years ago, photographer Jeff Mermelstein started taking photographs of women twirling their hair. Walking the city streets with camera in hand, Mermelstein found he wasn’t lacking for subjects. Over the years, he became an “expert” in female hair twirlers. Reportedly, women twirl their hair more in the summer, and women of all races and nationalities do it. Some women twirl a thin strand; other women twirl bigger chunks. So, why do women twirl their hair? “There’s an easy interpretation: reflective of anxiety and tension,” says Mermelstein. “And nervousness.” Now, he’s turned his preoccupation into a book, Twirl / Run, which also features his other preoccupation, photographs of people running. [NYTimes.com]

We’ve been ogling the Infinity dress lately, and everyone loves a scarf version, but this guy has really and truly committed to the trend. But what we really wanna know is how this guy’s GF feels about this hairdo. (Eh, would it be too much of a stretch to assume he’s single?) How to get the look you ask? You’ll need a lot of time on your hands and some seriously trusty trimming equipment. [BuzzFeed]

When I think of scrunchies, I remember that scene in “Sex and the City” where Carrie tries to convince Berger that the hair accessory is just so not a New York thing. It wasn’t then, and it hasn’t been for quite some time. But now Marc Jacobs has decided it’s time for the massive hair tie to come back into fashion, and along with his blessing comes the new, more chic title of “hair furniture.” No, it’s not furniture made of hair (which I originally imagined and cringed), but rather the idea that your head should be dressed up with massive adornments. Personally, I’m all about the understated glamour when it comes to hair and really not ready to travel back to the ‘90s via neon scrunchies. Are you? [Guardian]

Ugh. Winter is upon us. Global warming might be melting the ice caps, but it sure hasn’t made the northeastern United States any less crappy during the dark, cold month of November. Anyone else’s hair feel dry as a bale of hay? Yeah, it’s the pits. The dry air has been making my usually cute bob look terrible for weeks and I just couldn’t take it anymore! So, last weekend, while my guy attended to a manly Korean barbecue expedition someplace, I ransacked the kitchen cupboards so I could test my very first at-home olive oil hair mask.

The how-to and results, after the jump!

Love Heidi‘s new-ish short cut. .. L-O-V-E. A little while back I was inspired to chop off my hair to about the same length—I wanted a chic, modern ‘do and what I got was a total soccer-mom-inspired look. Ick. For some reason, I just couldn’t get my slightly-above-the-shoulder-length hair to look anything but ho-hum. Every single freaking day, I see loads of women on the street with these gorgeous, Heidi-esque bobs and they look uber-sophisticated—why the hell couldn’t I pull that off? Well, as I realized (as I started to furiously grow my hair back), chic short hair takes some work…

“New Moon” star Ashley Greene visited “The Late Show with David Letterman” yesterday wearing an awesome pinstripe suit and debuting a new haircut. Before, Ashley’s enviable mane was way past her shoulders. Hairstylist Ted Gibson shortened it so it hangs right below her shoulders, then he used a flatiron to make it sleek and added Tame It Lotion from his haircare line to smooth flyaways. Ashley’s new style reminds me of Dakota Fanning’s chic midi-bob. I wish my hair would hurry up and grow!

We have to wait until Dec. 1 to see the full insanity of the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, but this teaser is totally making us want to tune in. Seriously, who can say no to a bevy of insanely hot girls (one of whom brought her puppy!), the unprecedentedly minimalistic wings, and fancy underwear? Cheesy though it is, the VS show is a pretty fun tradition at this point, and we love seeing a little of the prep work that goes into it. From tables of hair extensions to mounds of body glitter, it’s hilarious how much it takes to make these models look “natural!” Our favorite part though? Makeup artist Tom Pecheux talking about his ultimate show goal: “I want the girls to be like ‘wow, those bitches look fabulous!’” Well, congratulations, Tom—those bitches DO look fabulous.

We’re not saying whether or not we’re wild about Lily Allen‘s new ‘do (we’ll leave that up to you), but she is definitely a Hair Model Citizen for busting out something, well, interesting. So she’s got the rock star platinum thing going on: really choppy, thick bangs and plenty of chunks of black. Now the only way to get this look—if you’re interested, that is—is to be prepared to do some serious damage to your hair. You’d have to bleach the whole thing and then separately dye the black, unless you already have black hair and you could just not dye a few strands. On second thought, we’d recommend leaving this look to Lily Allen. [Manchester, 11/17/09]

I go to two separate hairdressers for my cut and color, yet often I like to schedule both appointments within a few days of each other to take care of my hair as quick as I can. Perhaps you also have stylists you stay loyal to, or you’re pressed for time and need to make two different visits—which do you do first, the cut or the color?

Film and beauty icon Sophia Loren won’t go changin’: She’s currently promoting a new film, “Nine,” and stepped out looking fabulous today. We were most struck that despite the fact that she has not changed her hairstyle in a few decades, it’s still totally working out for her. Huh. To get the look, you’ll need to find a hairdresser who still knows what a “curl and set” means. (Good luck with that one.) Basically, it’s the practice of rolling up your entire head of hair in curlers and either sitting under a huge industrial-sized hairdryer or just sleeping in them (ouch!). We suspect it involves a lot of hairspray, too. Sounds like a job for L’Oreal Elnett! [NYC, 11/16/09]

Lately, it seems, we’ve been inundated with red carpet high buns—Charlize Theron loves ‘em, Rachel Bilson went high and tight recently, and SJP has sported the high bun for years. Mostly I shy away from the style because I think they look a bit too ballerina and also just too sweet on me—until now. I happened upon this high bun, above, and instantly fell in love. Maybe it’s the French feeling of the style or the casual, just-swept-up look, but how cool would it be paired with, well, anything in your closet? Adore. Plus, I love that there are how-to photo instructions—because nothing says “this is how you do it!” like photos! Check ‘em out after the jump.

Hey, we all have our off-days, which may be the only explanation for this NY Times Style section piece about how women are like, really, really into “Gossip Girl” star Blake Lively‘s hair.

“In the 1990s, there was the ‘Rachel,’ named after Jennifer Aniston’s character on the TV show ‘Friends.’ Before the Rachel it was the ‘Farrah’ — the flipped out, flouncy hairstyle worn by Farrah Fawcett. Now, it’s Ms. Lively ... whose tresses are coveted: extra long, ultra-shiny blond with a mussed-up tussle frolicking through the ends.”

Really? That’s quite a statement, guys. Here’s another quote on the subject for you, from our own Lily Q: “People need to calm down.” After all, there’s nothing more to the look than really long, slightly wavy, unbrushed hair, and I’m not jealous because that’s what I’ve got and most days it goes in a bun. Their proof that women are just dying to copy this hairstyle? Well, there’s the hard cold fact that a Google search of “Blake Lively Hair” produces 713,000 results (at their press time). Wow! At our press time “Angelina Jolie Hair” was at 5,160,000, Jennifer Aniston at 2,290,000 and Blake Lively’s own costar Leighton Meester beat her at 839,000. Just sayin’. The other “evidence” of this phenomenon is that Blake HERSELF admits that stylish women like “Vogue staffers” routinely approach her and compliment her hair. Honey, we know Vogue staffers, and that definitely doesn’t sound like any of them, unless they were being facetious and mocking you behind your back. Of course, the Style section could have just run an article about how women will always want princessy blond hair. That might have made more sense, no? [NY Times]

The air is becoming cold and dry and that’s messing with your hair, right? From flyaway strands to dry scalp-induced dandruff, the war is officially on. Tackle the dried-out rat’s nest you used to call your hair with these tricks and products:

• If you’re starting to look legitimately dried out, a weekly or bi-weekly deep conditioner is a good idea. We like this “hair smoothie” by Carol’s Daughter.
• Once a month, whip out a hot oil treatment for immediate silky smoothness.

In Hollywood, a bob is a bob is a bob, which is why Dakota Fanning‘s ‘do in the new Teen Vogue gives us pause. Sure, we feel a little weird fawning over a teenager’s haircut, but this is a look that would work for any age. The key lies in the layers. There are none, see? It’s as if your typical blunt bob was grown out with just a hint of flip at the ends, and it looks sophisticated without being too precious. To get the look, print this pic out and take it to your hairstylist. Or just ask them to keep it mid-length, go easy on the layers, and blow it all out. For DIY-ers, apply Paul Mitchell Super Skinny Serum to damp hair. This cuts down on drying time, smooths, conditions and shines. [Teen Vogue]

Have you ever gotten your cut or color done at a beauty school or through a salon training program? You hear such mixed things about this. If you happen to get in with a fancy salon during a hair model day, you can walk away with a magazine-worthy ‘do ... or a disastrous look. Try out your local beauty school and maybe the cut is just as good but one quarter the price of what you normally pay.

Here’s a story that really made us think twice about going the student route. One woman on the blog Brokelyn posted a story about how she decided to try out a $10 haircut at her neighborhood beauty school. She brought a photo with her, which showed a basic bob. Things didn’t go well from the get-go.