It's not uncommon for teenagers to want to experiment with their hair colours and mix up their looks as they try to find a style that suits them. And as getting your hair dyed professionally can be expensive, it's also not unusual for these experiments to take place at home using box dyes.
But one mum has been left furious after she explicitly told her 16-year-old daughter not to dye her hair using cheap at-home colour - as she went behind her back and did it at her grandma's house instead.
The mum explained she has no contact with her mother-in-law, but she doesn't stop her husband or their children from visiting when they want to.
And when her daughter expressed a desire to dye her hair, the mum refused to buy box dyes for her, but did say she would take the teen to get her hair professionally cut and coloured later in the week.
While the teenager initially agreed to her mum's terms, she then went behind her back and went to her grandma's house where she was able to get the box dye she wanted.
In a post on Reddit, the mum fumed: "I'm no contact with MIL. My husband and kids still visit. [My 16-year-old daughter has] got light brown hair with blonde highlights. She wanted me to buy her dark box dyes. I said I wouldn't buy these, but I would take her to get a professional colour and cut this week. To which she agreed.
"But my MIL has gone over my head and bought cheap permanent dye, [and my daughter is] over at my MILs now getting it done.
"You know what? Whatever. Hair grows, but I'm furious nonetheless. Even though I choose not to partake in her crazy anymore, she's still desperately trying to p**s me off. I would never discourage my husband or kids from visiting, nor will I after this. But I'm so mad. She's done this when my husband is out of town on business as well."
The mum said she was livid with her mother-in-law for undermining her but was not angry at her teenage daughter for dying her hair behind her back.
Commenters on the post were on the mum's side, although many of them said the fiasco should teach her daughter an important lesson, as box dyes can fade quickly and don't always give the best results.
One person said: "I'd ask the 16-year-old what was so urgent that she had to go forward with this immediately rather than wait a week for someone to do a good job. Then, I'd ask the MIL why she thinks she has the authority to override me and bite her head off over it."
As another wrote: "This is an important lesson for the 16-year-old to learn: that instant gratification will leave you with bad results - and that MIL will use her as a pawn to hurt her mother if she allows herself to be one. 16 is old enough to start learning the nuances of adult family dynamics."
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