The Haircut Experience

Why do you get your haircut? The obvious answer is you need to. It helps keep you well groomed for work and makes your life easier. How many times a day do you do something you 'have to do'? Too many to count for most of us. Why not make it a little better? Not a lot mind you, we can't go turn the world upside down, but a little goes a long way, right?

If your experience getting your haircut is a spray bottle of water showering you in mist and a comb running through your not-so-wet-not-so-dry hair then finishing off with a blow out that feels (and looks) a lot like what you do yourself every morning, then why, oh-why, are you handing the person treating you like that money? A stylist is responsible for the quality of her/his work. You are wearing their work everyday for the next 4-6 weeks. Shouldn't they care a little more about what it looks like? Your current/former stylist should be consulting, shampooing, professionally cutting, and styling your hair at every appointment.

When you return to a salon or it is your first visit, it does not matter in the first two minutes of your time. You should ALWAYS have a consultation done. Even if you haven't changed your hair since 1982, your stylist needs to know if;

• Anything has changed since your last visit: medical issues, medication, extreme weight gain/loss, unusual damage such as chlorine or salt water on your hair, and if the last visit was satisfactory.
• Your hair has 'given you fits' since the last cut
• You were doing great until this last week-(you may need to come in a week earlier or have your stylist take more off)
• Your interested in other hair services or solutions

Before cutting, unless your stylist is doing a dry cut, you should receive a shampoo. This allows for the following;

• Clean your hair of any residue caused by products
• Your stylist can inspect your hair and scalp for damage or any problems
• Even saturation of the hair allows for even pulling when it's combed. Easily translated this means that your hair will be cut even because all hairs will be saturated at the same level.

It may be hard to tell the difference between professional cutting and non-professional cutting. Professional cutting will usually NOT have;

• Your stylist talking on the phone while cutting your hair
• Your stylist forgetting where she was on your head because she is not concentrating
• Your stylist stopping in the middle of your haircut to ask you 'what is it you wanted again?'
• The constant drama and chatter of your stylist communicating more with her co-workers than you

• The feeling you are hearing things that should not be discussed.

If you are worried your stylist has not gotten the idea that you wanted, i.e. you think she is cutting too short, SPEAK UP! She may be able to hide the shorter parts under longer ones or change the design to blend but she cannot do anything if the whole head is too short.

When it is time to check the haircut, you should be asked and informed of any products used on your hair to aid in styling. The blow out should be done in a gentle and easy way. If your stylist has achieved a level of volume you though impossible, ask how it was done. They should be more than happy to show you so you can duplicate it at home.

Every person's hair needs are different and every stylist is different in meeting those needs. Find a stylist and salon that works for you. Remember he/she may have a great personality, you may be caught up in their love drama they like to dish about, but if they cannot do a professional job with concern for you and your hair, you may need to consider being friends on Facebook instead of allowing them to work on you.