Part 2: Next Time, I'm Going to GreatClips
Sometimes, I wonder what makes the fancy, expensive salons so special. Are they really any better than the $10 haircut down the street? Are the skills of their stylists that much more superior?
Last weekend, I went to solve this mystery for myself. With my discount gift certificate in hand, I showed up for my second appointment at the spa. This time, for a haircut, and... shocker... some color.
Ok, so I didn't dye my hair. Well, not completely anyway. For one thing, it's REALLY expensive. The lady next to me was fixing her all-over highlights and that alone cost $85! Plus I'm just not ready to take that step yet. Maybe eventually, but not now. But I did get some highlights. Mainly because I've never done it before and wanted to try it, for fun.
I wasn't really sure what color to get and the stylist told me most people get blonde. I just thought... blonde? no way. That would look stupid. I suggested red because I thought that would look good but she talked me out of it. She told me she'd have to bleach my hair and then put the color in (this kind of makes me think she was just lazy and didn't want to spend the time on a discount coupon customer) and that it would be dry and also fade faster than other colors. So I figured all right, whatever, but I still didn't want blonde. So she suggested a caramel color instead. This I could live with.
I think it turned out pretty nice. Matt really likes it as well, and in the end, it's really mainly for him to look at, so if he's happy I'm happy.
The haircut itself was ok. It was definitely not my worst haircut, by a long shot. But I do wish she would have gone a little shorter. And as far as haircuts go, it really wasn't anything spectacular that the less expensive salons wouldn't do. At the place I used to go to in Ann Arbor, the ladies/girls would always ask me what I thought. This lady did not do that. She just finished what she was doing and then ran off to mix up the color. The only times she really talked to me was to tell me about this or that product she was using at the moment.
Is it just me, or does every trip to the hairstylist seem more like an infomercial than a haircut? From the moment I sat down in the chair, I was inundated in product placement. I truly believe that in addition to all their beauty courses, hairstylists/cosmetologists are also trained in the fine art of advertising and marketing. They know what they're doing. It's really hard to turn someone down when they're the ones holding the scissors.
In the end, out of all the 50 million products she showed me, I ended up being suckered into one. It's a shampoo called Be Curly. Supposedly it makes curly hair seem less dry. As she explained it to me, people with curly hair think it is more dry than it actually is because the oils and stuff have to spend a lot of time moving down the curls. I guess this shampoo does something to fix that, so I figured I'd give it a try. I'm not really sure I notice a difference but when I told Matt about it, he said he thought my hair did actually look less dry. So maybe it's working.
Oh no no no. That's totally unacceptable! I can't believe she didn't even ask if you liked it. I don't do the frou frou salons and until last week I'd gone to the same guy for 8 years, but with the economy the way it is you think they'd be smarter about trying to create repeat clients instead of selling a $20 bottle of shampoo and some smooth down!
I'm appalled. Can you tell?
I like the highlights, though! And agree that blonde would have been too much.
I hate when hair stylists don't listen to what you, the customer, want. I hate it even more when they try to tell you what you want. Most of the time I really appreciate their thoughts and opinions because I don't know what would look good on me. But sometimes, they just will not get over what they think, even if I don't want it. For example, twice since moving to DC I have gone to have some color done and both times, AFTER I said that I didn't want to go lighter blond, the hair stylists have insisted on making me a lighter blond. (And not a good lighter, a bleach blond lighter). I don't get it. Needless to say, I'm still getting my hair done by the same person who has done it for like 15 years in Ann Arbor. I'm not letting anyone else touch it.
As for color, for you. I like the highlights (I seriously hope that the stylist you had was't recommending blond highlights for you - that's way too much with your dark hair). I think you should start with a glaze or a demi-color. They don't last very long, but you can kind of get a feel for what you like. I like doing a glaze because it just kind of enhances your natural color (and you can get the glaze to be more red or more caramel, depending on what you want). It's a lot less dramatic than a full out dye job.
I gotta say, I'm a big advocate for Great Clips. I rarely ever spend more than $10 for a haircut. We found this girl at a Great Clips a couple exit away who is Fabulous. If she ever leaves I'll be crushed. She is the only person my son likes to do his hair (and he is a little fussy in the hair dept) - so it is win win!! Your highlights look great...And I guess I should mention that although my cut costs $10 - I did just splurge on a $35 hair product about an hour ago at Sephora :D
I think the highlights look great. I would have been interested to see the red ones, too, though (mostly because I've been wanting to try them for myself). Maybe another time you can get a stylist who actually cares about your opinion, and then we can all see RED! (Your hair looks really shiny and luscious in that picture, BTW!)
I like the little change. ~ And like you said.. I guess it's just Matt's opinion that matters.. but still highlights are nice.
I used to be just an average "great clips" girl.. but I had a BAD experience.. and after that.. I go to an "high end" salon/spa. It is my cousin doing the hair magic.. so does that count?
Man.. I love to chat.. and that would be so weird to sit in silence for most of the time.
My Cousin has NEVER tried to sell me a product.. and she works at an AVEDA salon.
Maybe I'm just lucky.
Anyhow.. Thanks as always for pooping in and leaving a few comments every now and then.. it's always nice to hear from you!
Hope you have a great week! :)
Ha-ha.. Pooping?? LOL!!!
That;s what I get for typing too fast! LOL
I meant to say "popping"!! Ha-ha.. Oh boy is that a funny mistake!! LOL
The caramel color looks nice!
I'm way overdue for a haircut. My hair is past my waist and I have about 2 inches of icky split ends. One of my mom's friends runs a hair business, and I usually go there, but I am almost never in town anymore.
I use suave shampoo, conditioner, and gel, but I also have a salon product that detangles anything, and it's worth the money.
I have taken to using the walk in method of getting my hair cut. I just can't justify spending the kind of money I used to.
I'm just stopping by from SITS to say hello & welcome!
Hey, you look great! Love those highlights!!
I also hate those salons, btw... They ignore me!
HI there!! the color she picked looks great!!glad i stopped by.. be back soon..