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Members of a popular internet forum were stunned after one teenager recounted her soon-to-be sister-in-law's strange hair request.
In a viral Reddit post published on r/AmITheA**hole, Redditor u/dizzegy (otherwise referred to as the original poster, or OP) said her brother's fiancée has copied her natural hair color for years and revealed how that mimicry recently turned contentious.
Titled, "[Am I the a**hole] for refusing my future sister in law's request to dye my hair for my brother's wedding?" the post has received more than 18,000 votes and 3,500 comments in the last 10 hours.
Beginning with the disclaimer that her brother's fiancée "has turned into a bridezilla and is going to war with everyone," the original poster turned back the clocks and explained how her natural hair color first became a point of focus.
"My natural color is red. I love my hair," OP wrote. "[My sister-in-law] is a blonde but she loves to have red hair and in fact, ever since meeting me she's been dying her hair almost exactly my color."
"I think it's weird," OP added. "But I don't have a monopoly over this particular shade of red."
Despite her indifference towards the copycat hair dye, the original poster said that with a wedding on the horizon, the tables were dramatically turned.
"She [told] me this week that I should dye my hair to a different color because she wants her hair to be unique in her wedding," OP wrote. "She offered to cover all the costs as well [but] I just said no because it's my hair.
"I told my brother and he told me to do whatever I want because it's my hair," OP continued. "[My parents] say it's her special day and we need to be more accommodating and it's important for our future relationship that we get along.
"They told me I'm making this minor issue into a big problem and I should just do what she wants because it's her wedding," OP added.
Weddings, for better or worse, are a great opportunity for individuals outside of the marrying couple to steal the show.
But while some couples are forced to keep a watchful eye on limelight-thirsty attendees on the big day, others pull out all the stops far in advance to make sure 100 percent of the attention remains focused where it's supposed to be.
Recently, Newsweek has reported on numerous Reddit threads detailing these types of situations, including multiple dress color debates and one, particularly bizarre instance in which a bride requested her best friend and maid of honor remove her acrylic fingernails because she felt threatened.
In many cases, except for the fingernail debacle, internet users have been sympathetic towards brides and understanding that their special day should be just that: their own, and special.
When it comes to hair color, however, the conversation is entirely different.
Two years ago, a WeddingWire poll revealed that a majority of women would balk at a bride's request to change their hair color for a wedding, and that making such a request indicates a severe misunderstanding of boundaries and how much control getting married actually warrants.
"I would never change the color of my hair in order to be a bridesmaid," one WeddingWire user assured. "I also don't think a true friend would ask you to."
"I definitely wouldn't ask my bridesmaid to dye their hair nor would I dye my hair as a bridesmaid," another user added. "That's a bit much."
Throughout the comment section of the viral Reddit post, Redditors echoed this sentiment and called out the original poster's future sister-in-law for her attempt at monopolizing somebody else's natural hair color.
"Absolutely [not the a**hole]!" Redditor u/Madame_Corleone420 wrote in the post's top comment, which has received nearly 24,000 votes.
"Dying your hair + color correction to get back to your natural color + the amount of time it takes for your natural colored hair to grow out is a pain in the butt," they added.
Redditor u/Fainora, whose comment has received nearly 6,000 votes, offered a similar response.
"If she wants to have original hair color for her wedding maybe she should use her natural hair and not yours," they wrote. "It is absurd, rude and wrong to ask people in your wedding party to change their physical appearance for your wedding.
"There is no reason you should damage your hair for one day," they added.
"If this woman wanted unique hair, she should have picked a different color than the one naturally occurring in her future [sister-in-law]," Redditor u/William_Munny6 chimed in, receiving more than 2,000 votes.
About the writer
Taylor McCloud is a Newsweek staff writer based in California. His focus is reporting on trending and viral topics. Taylor ... Read more