I had a woman come in wanting to go from box dye black to a honey blonde. She said her friend told her it would be a one session thing. I warned her it would take multiple appointments but she insisted I try. 9 hours later I had her at a warm caramel with some banding I need to fix next week. My back is killing me and I only charged her for a full highlight plus $50 extra because I felt bad. How do you guys price these nightmare transformations without scaring people off?
The cutting action was so smooth I actually caught myself smiling at the mirror and it felt like the blades were doing all the work, has anyone else had a moment where a tool just clicked for you?
Had a client waiting yesterday and my favorite 1 inch flat iron started making this weird dragging noise. Took the whole thing apart, cleaned the plates, checked the cord, even dug out my backup iron. Turns out there was just a layer of hairspray gunk and a stray piece of cotton from a makeup wipe stuck on the hinge. Rolled a lint roller over it and it worked perfectly. Anyone else waste way too much time before trying the dumb simple fix first?
I was so tired of my vivid reds fading after like 2 weeks no matter what conditioner I used. Tried that whole cold water rinse thing and it barely helped. Then a stylist in Denver told me to rinse with diluted apple cider vinegar after my shower. I did 1 tablespoon per cup of water and just let it sit for a minute before my normal conditioner. Been 3 weeks now and my color is still bright. Has anyone else tried this or got another weird trick that actually works?
All my coworkers swear by the Dyson Supersonic, so I finally caved and bought one back in April. Ran it side by side against my old $40 Conair for a solid month, and honestly I couldn't tell enough difference to justify the $430 price tag. Maybe my hair is just too thick and short for it to matter, but I'm thinking of returning it. Did anyone else feel the hype was overblown or am I missing something?
I've been struggling for months with getting a seamless root shadow on clients with dark brown hair. The usual method I learned in school just left this harsh line no matter how careful I was. Last week I tried applying the color in a zigzag pattern instead of straight sections and it blended way better. I also started using a finer-tooth comb to tease the roots before applying the color. It took maybe 2 extra minutes but saved me 15 minutes of fixing mistakes. Has anyone else tried something different for root blending?
Had this woman come in last week, her hair was this weird orange-brown patch mess from a drugstore box. She expected me to just slap toner on it and call it good in 20 minutes. I told her straight up it would take at least 2 hours and cost $150 minimum to even it out. She huffed and said 'my cousin does it for $40 at home.' So why are you here? Has anyone else had someone argue about pricing after they already messed up their own hair?
She was a retired cosmetologist from the 80s, and I thought she was just being picky about my work on her daughter's balayage. Turns out my color stock had oxidized a bit over 3 months and she caught it right away. Has anyone else had a client's relative save them from ruining a formula without being rude about it?
I was doing a foil set for this lady Brenda last Tuesday, and she just casually mentioned she used to do her own hair with a cap and hook in the 80s. She said something like 'you gotta let the lighter pieces breathe, they tell you where they wanna sit.' It was so simple but I realized I'd been overthinking placement on every head after that. Anyone else had a client drop some weird wisdom on you that actually works?
I always thought hair masks would weigh down my fine strands and make them look greasy, so I avoided them for like 5 years. Then last month I grabbed a lightweight protein mask from the supply shop on 4th Street on a whim and tried it once a week. Now my hair holds curl way better and has actual volume - did anyone else have a product category they wrote off for no real reason?
I left a tube of Redken Shades EQ on a warm radiator for maybe 20 minutes while I answered the phone. When I came back, the consistency was off and it separated, so I tossed it. That was a full tube of 09V plus some 06N I had mixed in, probably $60 down the drain. Anyone else accidentally ruin product by leaving it in a weird spot?
Was shampooing a woman at my chair in Greenville last Tuesday and she casually mentioned she saves $45 per session by mixing drugstore color with developer from the beauty supply. I tried to explain the risks of uneven processing and breakage, but she shrugged it off. Has anyone else seen damage from these at-home concoctions come through your salon?
Saw someone at the IBS show last month using a paddle brush to section and cut hair at the same time, and I'm still mad I never thought of it myself how do you guys feel about unconventional tool hacks?
She let me do my first foil set on her back in 2021 and last week she actually paid me for a full balayage, feels like all those YouTube tutorials finally clicked.
This lady walked into my chair at Great Clips in Topeka last Tuesday with a dusty box of Splat. She wanted me to use it on her grays and I had to explain the formula was probably separated and dead. Anybody else have to talk a client down from old box dye disasters?
I have always done 6 sections for highlights, thought more sections meant better coverage. This client comes in with thick, straight hair and says her roots look patchy after her last color. So I tried a 4-section part on her crown area only, and the blend was way smoother. Made me realize I was over-complicating things for certain hair types. Anyone else find that less sections actually work better sometimes?
She said my foils looked like zebra stripes, which stung but she was right. Now I do thinner sections and weave way more, get much softer blends. Has anyone else changed their technique after a client called them out?
Met with a bride last Saturday who paid $450 for a trial run at another salon and they left her with orange toned highlights and split ends, and now I'm stuck trying to fix it in just 14 days, anyone else deal with last minute damage control like this?
I was at a friend's salon in Austin last month and saw one of the newer stylists drying a client's hair with a paper towel before a blowout. She said she learned it on YouTube. But in my experience with fine hair especially, the paper fibers just snag and cause more frizz than a regular microfiber towel. One of our older stylists even said it leaves lint behind. Has anyone else had issues with this or am I just being too picky?
A 74 year old lady came in last Tuesday for a quick trim and after I spent 10 minutes shaping her brows she started crying happy tears saying nobody had ever paid that much attention to her face before, has anyone else had a small service totally change how a client sees themselves?
I used to do the standard back-to-back foils too until my mentor in Denver showed me how off-center sectioning gives way softer blends, and now I can't unsee how blocky everyone else's work looks.
Was working on a client's thick curly hair last Tuesday and the ceramic coating literally cracked before my eyes. Should I stick with metal barrel brushes for durability or is there a brand that actually makes these things last more than 6 months?
I've been doing hair for about 4 years now. Started out in a small salon downtown. I never kept track of numbers until last week when I was checking my booking app. Turns out I had 102 people who came back to me at least twice this year. That feels huge. I still remember my first client who told me I cut her bangs crooked. Now I have a waiting list on Saturdays. Has anyone else hit a milestone that snuck up on them?
Finally gave up and bought a proper one after the third one started smoking mid-blowout on a client. Last one was a $40 drugstore brand. I was just trying to save money but it cost me more in the long run. Anyone else had a tool fail on them at the worst possible time?
Used that dead time to finally fix my foundation shade mixing system and now I'm blending perfect colors in 30 seconds instead of 5 minutes - has anyone else found that cancellations secretly help your technique?