c/cosmetologists

The way I used to do root touch-ups vs. now with freehand painting

Back when I started out in 2019 at a salon in Austin, I always used foils for root touch-ups. It took forever and the lines always felt too harsh. Then I watched a class from a stylist named Jenna Rae about freehand painting with a tint brush, and I switched over about six months ago. My application time dropped from 45 minutes to maybe 20, and the blend is way softer. Have any of you made the jump away from foils for roots?

Why does nobody talk about using hair dryer on cool setting for setting curls?

I kept seeing all these influencers pushing those expensive diffusers and special products for keeping curls in place. Tried three different creams from Ulta last month and my hair still fell flat by lunch. Then my grandma told me to just blast my curls with the cool setting on my regular dryer for 30 seconds after curling. Worked better than anything I bought. Anyone else tried this or am I just lucky with my hair type?

Picked a Demi-permanent over Permanent for a color correction and it saved me

I had a client last Tuesday who came in with brassy blonde from a box dye. She wanted to go to a cool ash brown but her hair was fried from previous treatments. I was torn between a permanent color that would cover everything in one go and a demi-permanent that would be gentler but might fade faster. I went with the demi because her ends were snapping off when I tested a strand. Did a protein filler first, then the demi in a 6A. It came out even and she said her hair felt softer than when she walked in. Three washes later and it's holding fine, no brass yet. Anyone else find demi works better for damaged hair in these situations?

Bleached my own hair at home and it turned orange as heck

I figured after 12 years of doing other people's highlights I could handle my own roots. Grabbed a box of 30 volume developer and some lightener from the supply store. Slapped it on my regrowth last Saturday and left it for 35 minutes. When I rinsed it off the roots were bright orange like a pumpkin. Turns out my natural level 3 hair needs 40 volume to lift past that warm stage. Learned I should have done a strand test even though I felt cocky. Now I have to book with a coworker to fix it which is gonna cost me $90. Has anyone else messed up their own hair worse than a client's?

I finally chose between tape and glue for my lash extensions after 3 months of flip-flopping

Went with tape because my girl in Austin kept complaining glue irritated her eyes, and honestly it's been way faster for removal. Anyone else stick with tape over glue for sensitive clients?

TIL my go-to hairspray changed formula and ruined 3 updos before I figured it out

I grabbed my usual can of Firm Hold from the supply shelf last Wednesday during a bridal party. Same brand, same bottle, same color cap. But the first updo started falling apart after 20 minutes. I resprayed and it still drooped. By the third one I checked the label closer and saw "new and improved" in tiny print on the back. The hold feels way lighter now. I ended up using triple the amount and a ton of pins to get through the day. Has anyone else had a favorite product sneakily change on them like that? I'm gonna have to start testing new batches before big jobs I guess.

I finally tried that 'baby lights' technique on my own hair and ended up with a weird stripe effect.

I sectioned too thick and left the foils on 5 minutes too long, now I have a half-inch of chunky blonde that looks nothing like the seamless grow-out I was going for, has anyone else screwed up baby lights by overthinning the weave?

Pro tip: Mix a drop of purple toner into your clear gloss for ashy brunettes

I had a client last month who wanted a cool toned brown gloss but didn't want to buy a whole tube of a specific shade. I just squeezed out my usual clear gloss and added one single drop of purple toner, mixed it on the back of my hand, and applied it. The result was a subtle ashy finish without any brassiness. Has anyone else tried mixing toner into clear gloss instead of buying pre-colored ones?

I was dead wrong about cheap hair clippers until I spent $180 on a pair

For years I used those $40 clippers from the drugstore and thought they were fine. Then I grabbed a decent pair of Wahl clippers after a stylist friend told me I was being a fool. The difference was NIGHT and day. They cut cleaner, didn't pull hair, and the blades stayed sharp for months instead of weeks. I spent $180 total and it saved me from having to redo cuts all the time. Now my clients leave happier and I'm not fighting with the tool every second. Has anyone else had a similar wake up call with a tool they cheaped out on?

Dye disaster at 3am: How I accidentally turned my client's hair GREEN before her wedding

Last Saturday night I had a client come in for a last minute root touch-up before her Sunday wedding. I mixed what I THOUGHT was a Level 6 brown but turns out I grabbed a bowl with leftover toner from a previous job. Her whole head went this weird swamp green color. She freaked out, I freaked out, we both almost cried. Had to strip it twice and use a color remover at 4am. Somehow we got it to a nice caramel by 7am. She looked great but I was shaking the whole ceremony. Has anyone else had a mixing mix-up that nearly ruined a big day?

Realized I was overprocessing my highlights after 5 years in the chair

I was doing these aggressive foils with high volume developer for years thinking it gave the best lift. A client with baby fine hair came in crying last month because her hair was snapping off, and my coworker gently showed me how a lower volume with a longer processing time actually gives a cleaner result. Has anyone else had that moment where you found out your whole technique was just kinda wrong?

Hit 500 clients in my chair this month and it got me thinking about volume vs. quality

I've been doing hair for about 7 years now and I just passed 500 different clients in my book. That number surprised me because I always thought I kept a smaller, loyal group. But when I counted them up, it was way more than I expected. The thing is, about half of those people are one-time visitors. Walk-ins, bridal parties, people just passing through town. The other half are regulars who book every 6 weeks like clockwork. I'm curious how other stylists balance this. Do you focus on building deep relationships with fewer clients or do you take anyone who walks in the door and just deal with the churn? Has anyone else looked at their numbers and felt conflicted about the kind of business they're running?

Switched from razor cutting to shears for fine hair after a friend dared me to try it

Had the worst client day of my career last Tuesday

I had three back to back meltdowns - one client cried because I suggested bangs, another accused me of thinning her hair when I was just layering, and the third asked for a refund on a balayage she approved in the mirror 20 minutes earlier. Is this just a bad luck thing or does anyone else have days where nothing goes right?

Dropped into that new salon in Portland last week and walked out confused about their color matching

I was visiting my sister in Portland and she wanted to check out this trendy new salon called Bloom & Blade. The space was gorgeous all white marble and plants. But I watched three stylists mixing color and not one of them pulled a swatch book or did a strand test. They all just eyeballed it from a phone photo. One girl spent 20 minutes trying to match a level 6 copper and the result was not close at all. My sister watched her own stylist mix a demi color straight from the bottle without any developer math. I get being fast and confident but is everyone just skipping the basics now? Has anyone else noticed newer stylists ditching the old color formulas?

A client's one comment made me switch my entire shampoo line

I had this lady named Brenda come in last month, she's been coming to me for like 2 years. She said my shampoo made her scalp feel all tingly but not in a good way... more like burning. I brushed it off at first but then I googled the ingredients and sure enough there's sulfate in there that can irritate sensitive skin. Now I only use sulfate-free on everyone and nobody's complained since. Anybody else had a client's complaint change their whole routine?

Spent $300 on a new brand of color remover and it wrecked my client's hair

I had a client come in wanting to go from a dark box dye to a light blonde, so I ordered this new professional color remover I saw online for about $300. The ads made it look gentle and effective. I followed the steps exactly, but instead of lifting the color, it turned her hair this weird orange and green mess, and the texture felt like straw. It took me two extra appointments and a ton of deep conditioning to even get it to a place where we could start over. I'm out the product cost and had to discount the corrective work. I feel like these companies just push new stuff without real testing. Has anyone else had a color remover completely fail and damage hair? What's your go-to brand now?

That one week where every client wanted a drastic color change

So last week at the salon was just wild. I had five people in a row book appointments for major color shifts, like going from dark brown to platinum or adding full rainbow panels. One woman brought in a picture from a magazine and said, 'Make me look like this,' and it was a model with bright pink hair. The thing that made it stand out was the timing, because we had a heat wave in Phoenix and the AC in my station kept cutting out. I was mixing color with sweat dripping down my back, trying to keep everything precise. My coworker joked that we should charge extra for 'extreme conditions.' By Friday, my arms were sore from all the foiling and my brain was fried from the constant calculations. Has anyone else had a run of big color jobs that just wiped you out?

Appreciation post: Remembering the old school perm rods from my aunt's shop in Tacoma

I was cleaning out my kit and found a box of those gray plastic perm rods from the early 2000s, the ones with the rubber bands you had to hook on. Compared to the modern thermal rods I use now, the curl pattern was so much tighter and less natural looking. It makes you realize how much the goal shifted from just getting curl to creating movement and texture. Anyone else have a tool from back in the day that feels like a relic now?

I had to choose between a classic bob or a textured shag for a client in Chicago who couldn't decide. I went with the shag and she loved the movement.

Vent: A bride's mom insisted on a super tight updo for her daughter's wedding in 90-degree heat.

Honestly, the bride was sweating it out before the ceremony and two pins popped right out during the first dance. Anyone else had a style request that just fought the weather the whole time?

Question about using a razor for texturizing fine hair

I was in a class in Portland and the instructor pointed out I was holding the blade at a 90 degree angle, which was just cutting it blunt. I've been doing it that way for two years. Does anyone have a better angle or technique for this?

Update: I tried a 'cold perm' on a client with fine hair in Dallas and it actually gave her incredible volume that lasted for 8 weeks.

I learned that the traditional 'warm' processing time was frying her hair type, so I cut the solution time down to just 12 minutes and got a much better, bouncier result-has anyone else had success tweaking chemical service times for fine hair?

My aunt insisted I stop using a razor on dry hair for a quick trim.

She said it would cause split ends and uneven layers, but I kept doing it for speed until a client in Portland pointed out the exact damage she predicted. What's the fastest way you've found to clean up a neckline without causing problems later?

Appreciation post: I switched from a traditional razor to a straight razor for men's neck shaves

I had a client last month who always got razor burn with our standard cartridge. I offered him two choices: stick with the usual and use a heavier pre-shave oil, or let me try a straight razor I'd been practicing with. I picked the straight razor, and it went great. The single blade gave a cleaner cut with less irritation, and he booked his next appointment on the spot. It took me about three weeks of practicing on oranges to feel confident enough to try it on a client. Has anyone else made a similar switch for specific skin types?