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A woman in my chair last year said something about her first perm that I still think about | Cosmetologists - Vivisector

jason_davis•6mo ago

A woman in my chair last year said something about her first perm that I still think about

She was maybe in her late 60s, and I was doing a color correction for her in my salon in Boise. We got to talking about old styles, and she told me about getting her first perm in 1974. She said, 'My mom saved up for six months to pay that $15. It wasn't just hair, it was her whole hope for me to feel pretty.' She described the smell of the solution and the pink rods, but it was the weight of that saved money that hit me. It made me see how much trust people put in our hands, and how a simple service can mean so much more than we know. Has anyone else had a client share a memory that changed how you saw a routine service?

4 comments

4 Comments

matthewwilson6mo ago

My grandma told me she saved green stamps to get her hair set before her wedding. It really shows how these appointments are tied to big life moments, not just upkeep. That story always reminds me to treat every client like their visit matters.

shane_scott6mo ago

My friend's dad told me he got his hair cut at a barbershop on 5th Street before his college graduation. The barber gave him a free straight razor neck shave and said "for the big day." He still talks about that shave forty years later.

charles7066mo ago

Heard a similar story from my buddy who cuts hair. His client, an older guy, talked about getting his first real barber shave before shipping out for Korea. Said his dad took him, paid with a silver dollar he'd been keeping in his pocket for years. Makes you realize a simple shave was this huge send-off, this last bit of care from home. Changes how you see the towel and the razor, you know? It's never just about the hair.

shanec615mo ago

Honestly, stories like that make you stop and look at the whole shop differently. Tbh, it reminds me of what @shane_scott said about the free shave for that graduation. Ngl, my own uncle had a thing about his first proper haircut before his first job interview, said the barber used some bay rum stuff that made him feel like a grown man. It really wasn't about the cut, it was about someone helping him feel ready. You realize people carry these moments for life, and we're just walking into the middle of them without knowing. Changes how you pick up the clippers for sure.