Have you been having trouble seeing the board lately? Is there a large protruding bump that appears to block your vision? Oh wait, it’s just the hair of the girl that sits in front of you… The bump is becoming an increasingly popular trend in female hairstyles. Some girls love it, and other girls are embarrassed by the mere suggestion of it. The traditional way of getting a bump is to tease the hair, poof it up with bobby pins, and then blast and secure with hairspray. Now, however, thanks to Kelley Fitzpatrick, inventor of “Bumpits”, girls can go from “flat to fabulous in seconds!” “I wish I had a hair Bumpit.” senior Michelle Gibson said. “My hair is always flat and needs some oomph and va-va-voom.” Bumpits are plastic volumizing leave-in inserts that come in blonde, light brown, and dark brown/black colors. They became popular recently through a spurt of TV infomercials, and can be found in the “as seen on TV” sections of Target and Walgreens. Once inserted properly, Bumpits are supposed to give hair a natural and smooth looking bump. Some Ames High students, however, feel negatively about using artificial inserts to “do the bump”. “It’s an unnatural way of doing something to your hair that’s already unnatural.” senior Hannah Van Every said. Junior Andrea Tate likes the hair bump, but thought “if you can do [the bump] by yourself in 5 minutes, then I don’t think [Bumpits] are worth it.” Many Ames High girls, myself included, are guilty of occasionally doing the bump. This WEB reporter set out to find out whether Bumpits were really as ridiculous as some seem to claim, or a solid long-term investment in good hair. My search for Bumpits started in the hair care aisle of Wal-mart, and ended with a slightly embarrassed checkout at Target. $9.99 for three pieces of plastic and a comb? The bump didn’t come cheap. According to the “helpful hints” in the Bumpits style guide, I “must tease hair to prevent teeth from showing through.” I followed instructions, but after placing the Bumpits insert “firmly on the scalp behind a part line,” I could still see a row of plastic teeth glaring back at me in the mirror. The bump that now existed in my hair was smooth, and maybe even a little natural looking, but probably not worth ten dollars and the creeping sense of shame I felt while purchasing them. If there are ladies or gentlemen out there that wish to do the hair bump, they can do it without Bumpits.