Tuesday, I got a haircut.
I grew my hair out for the wedding, though it still was long only by my own standards, not most people's. I had gotten it cut since then, but I went to what shall remain a nameless salon's school and wasn't super happy with it, even from the day I got it cut.
Now, don't get me wrong, I love the concept of the salon school. A pretty good haircut for an inexpensive price? Sign me up! But in practice, I have now gotten two haircuts there and been frustrated both times. First of all, it takes a looong time. The stylists don't have as much confidence as a seasoned stylist, so they do everything very meticulously, which is good for my hair but bad for my patience. Also, they have to have everything checked by a supervisor, who may or may not be readily accessible when she is needed. That lack of confidence (for which I really can't blame them) is even apparent in the way their fingers feel on my head. For example: I LOVE having my hair washed. It is my favorite part of a haircut. I love when they sort of massage your head as they lather the shampoo up. But the stylists at the school do it so softly it hardly even feels good. :-(
A final frustration with the salon school is that they charge extra if you have your hair styled, meaning that if they so much as touch it with a flat iron, it nearly doubles the price. They'll blow it dry, but if you have ever seen my hair after a blowdry, you know that this does not do much for my looks. At that moment, I could be a member of an 80s hair band. So when I leave from getting a haircut at the school, I have big hair. And having big hair makes me grouchy. So not only have I sat in a chair, sweating under the haircut robe, for close to two hours, but I also have puffy hair. Therefore, I decided to try to find a real salon for this haircut. I was way tired of the wedding length.
I found a salon online that had been voted best salon in Huntsville by a news channel's viewer poll. My cut only took about half an hour, and the shampoo was LOVELY. I had missed those fingers digging into my scalp. It was reasonably priced, and I left with a normal looking head of hair, rather than an Axel Rose 'do. It was a much more enjoyable experience, even though it wasn't, like, the BEST haircut I've ever gotten. I'll give it another shot. But either way, it has corroborated my decision that the salon school is not for me. I'm not knockin' it, and I may go again if I ever need or want to save the money, but for now, I'm enjoying my "real" salon cut.
Has anyone else had a similar experience? What's your favorite part of getting a haircut?
