Miscelaney

I’m getting some overdue highlights today.

It’s been approximately 9 weeks. Not bad for me (I like to postpone these sort of things as long as possible). But since it’s summer and hair grows fast in the heat, not to mention my aging follicles produce a lackluster product these days, it’s definitely time to brighten the blah and cover emerging greys. Keeping in mind the whole job situation, or lack there of, I’ve been waiting for my credit card cycle to end to got get an inspired pop of summer shine.

Clearly not the only one who’s stretching her beauty regimen right now, I’ve noticed salons are offering “happy hour” hair cuts (half price cuts at certain hours of the day). There are also incentives to bring in new faces, like offering 20% off services to first-time clients. Since I’ve just moved to the eastside, it’s easy for me to justify picking a new salon and ditching any shred of loyalty I may have once had to tried and true hairstylists across the bridge. The savings are attractive enough, certainly covers the tip. And a half-price hair cut, sounds grand. Collectively, I’d save around $50 bones. A good way to save some coin, right?

Could be, but learn from my mistakes (note: it is now two days after the actual service). I picked a reputable salon, however was going in cold with a new stylist. I brought a picture to illustrate what I wanted, thinking this was a solid idea. Well for whatever reason, we didn’t communicate nearly enough. She was gone in a flash and was quickly painting and foiling my locks like a madwoman before I really even realized we were at the end of our discussion of what I actually wanted done. I was not happy with the end result. Although disappointed, I smiled and thanked her, then went home and moped around for twenty-four hours and complained to my friends (lucky them). I did end up calling the salon the next day, going against my “pleaser” persona. I’m going in today for a re-touch, with the same hairstylist. I’m not looking forward to telling her I’m not satisfied with the work and don’t feel it looks professional enough, but the fact of the matter is I should be happy with her services, 20% savings or not.

In the end, was the savings worth the time I invested and the extra damage to my hair? Doubtful. But keep in mind businesses need our patronage. Check out your own salon for specials. If they don’t offer any, look around at other salons. If you love your stylist and would never leave, but are faced with the hard reality of cutting costs, ask them to match another salon’s discount  in order to keep you. Why not? 80% of something is far better than 80% of nothing. Just be smart about your choices and if you do opt to try a new stylist, over-communicate what you want, even if you think you are being a pain in the ass.