My overwrought, overweight hair dresser of the last several years has defected in that secretive, cloak and dagger manner that hair dressers do: No forwarding address, because the salon looks on that as a crime. Rumor has it that he couldn’t deal with working next to his awful, obnoxious ex any longer, and went back to his first love, teaching.
Good for him, if that’s the case, but he did leave me in a bit of a lurch. I mean, I admit that I was growing tired of his dramatics—you can only be amused by a man whose clients refer to him as Aunt Jonathan for so long before you get tired of seeing him toss his (Meatloaf-style) hair, mop his sweaty brow, and succumb to the vapors like some Miss Havisham gone wrong.
So Aunt J spared me the break-up, but . . . it looks like I’m on my way to becoming a salon slut, hopping from chair to chair. I was sure I’d fall in love with the new Aveda Concept Salon that’s been open for about a month. I’ve loved Aveda stuff for years because A.) its earth-friendliness appeals to my hippy sensibilities and B.) it smells like heaven. Heaven!
In the interest of winding up this long story, I’ll just tell you that I was disappointed despite the good smells, polished wood, bamboo plants, and surprisingly tasteful absence of Enya. Not that I didn’t got a perfectly good hair cut, mind you, but I think I paid too much to have to sit at a “station” that was peppered with flecks of hair—that weren’t mine! Yuck! And then, because this is a full-service salon/spa, fully half of the working portion of the space is dedicated to manicures and pedicures. Totally appropriate, yes? The thing that totally isn’t appropriate is that employees who aren’t busy utilize this area as their lounge: I spent the duration of my time in the chair listening to them GOSSIP ABOUT CUSTOMERS as if I weren't even there!
I’m going to call the manager and complain, and I never do that. And I think next time I’ll just go to SuperCuts.
9 comments:
I hate paying for haircuts, but I have learned that Supercuts is only good if you are a guy. There's this place (near to where I work, not near anyone else on this blog) in the North Hills called Bliss. I am usually very pleased (I didn't say they were perfect). One of the stylists has two librarian parents and if you get her started she gabs about books.
Thanks for the tip. I usually avoid the North Hills like the plague, but it might be worth checking out. Especially if I can slip in a visit to Half Price Books!
I haven't had my hair cut in 2 years. Everytime I go to get it cut, the stylist does not listen to the two things I just won't do with my hair: 1/ anything requiring work and 2/coming back in 6 weeks. They always think that I will do the work to maintain my hair even though I tell them up front that I won't. They also fall all in love with the curls they find underneath my hair and I always end up looking like a fat woman with a bad perm. There's a reason I hide those curls! I just want to be a fat woman without a bad perm.
The stylist did keep asking whether I wanted her to style my hair. I kept telling her she certainly could if she wanted to, but that I wouldn't ever do it myself. We compromised on her using the diffuser (I don't really know what it did, but she seemed satisfied), and I left with damp curls that smelled divine.
I've decided to work with the curls, because otherwise I have to get involved with "styling tools", and I'm just not willing. I'm all about clips and barettes; my goal is to get my hair to be long enough for the obligatory librarian's bun--that way I can forget about my hair entirely. :-)
my solution of choice is always to just cut it myself. Ask Gina - she has yet to view my Andrea Yates style bangs but she will, oh she will. I have also been known to whack off chunks of the back to get that layered-choppy look that can truly only be achieved with nail scissors. I don't style, I rarely blow dry, and I can *not* justify spending any amount of money, no matter how little, once every freaking six weeks to maintain any sort of style. I have books to buy with that cash, darn it.
I used to have the Mia Farrow sort of pixie boy hair that never needed any tending, but I realized that I had to spend way too much money to keep it looking as it should. (Aunt J said, "Remember: It's a SNAPSHOT, not a work in progress.") Sorry. Let it grow.
Gina: "Styling tools!" Argh! Those are things that I NEVER willing get involved with or even go near. "Product" either -- it's too much money and too much work.
A good hairdresser is so hard to find. Sometimes you find one who is good, but then you don't like her personality. Is the good haircut worth it, you wonder? I only go in every 6 months anyway, because forty dollars for a haircut, no matter how good, seems like a LOT of money. I can never get it to look the same anyway.
and here's another bitch - I don't WANT to chat with my hairdresser. I want her to shut the fuck up, massage my head nicely while shampooing, and let me doze in the chair. Does she not realize I "chat" from the moment I wake in the morning till i go to bed at night? I want peace, quiet, and extra conditioner!!
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