Seven tips for finding a new hair stylist
The move required a new hair stylist. (Eventually, a dentist and family doc, but first things first.)
In the neighbourhood adjacent to mine, I rented a temporary apartment for the moving week (via Airbnb, a great resource) and found my stylist, Laurie of LocalB, by peering through its large window daily and noting how good everyone looked, both in the chair and holding scissors.If you're thinking of switching hairdressers, here are my ideas, and please, those of you who've done it, please add your own:
1. Go to a neighbourhood that echoes your style.
if you want classic, coiffed hair, check your business district; if you want something casual yet polished, cruise the upscale neighbourhoods, and if you want edgy, asked the tatted-up girl in funky bar where she goes. This is a good screen, because salons attract a certain clientele.
Not 100% reliable, though: my Parisienne friend Daniele got a knockout classic bob–every hair cut with microscopic precision– at Toronto's Coupe Bizarre, from a girl with a half-shaved head and barbell studs in her face.
2. Sit in a nearby coffee shop and see a few heads, before and after. Notice whether a woman leaves with that "looking gooood" bounce in her step. Maybe book a manicure there and take a good look around. If they're turning the chairs in 20 minutes you are likely not going to get personal attention and a precise cut.
3. Be wary about online reviews; there is a good deal of shilling and slagging in the gossipy, competitive hair world.
4. The time-honoured advice of finding someone with a great cut and asking who did it? Meh.
The stylist who's great for one may be only mediocre for you. Some stylists have biases, so everybody gets layered bangs. Others stylists can be inconsistent or simply lose interest in their work; some rest on their reputations. I prefer someone up and coming, not yet a star, who still has juice for the job.
Similarly, portfolios on the salon's web site are not perfect predictors either, or the creator may be long departed.
5. Make sure you see the stylist first, rather than booking by phone. If he or she has an unflattering cut or crummy colour, make any excuse to get out of there. Women with curls: if the stylist picks up thinning shears, run.
Some salons offer an initial consultation for a minimal fee; the cut is not done then, but you can discuss ideas and let your radar sweep over the place.
6. Pay attention to the product lines they sell. The better the products on offer, the more likely the salon benefits from regular seminars offered by these companies.
7. Finally, resist loading the stylist with too much baggage. It's OK to mention that you abhor short bangs or don't want your ears showing, but a good stylist is an artist first. Let him or her have some creative freedom; it's hair, not cosmetic surgery. As my stylist friend Ingrid said, "We've seen thousands of heads, you've seen one."
Isn't that what we all want: a great cut we can manage ourselves, rain or shine?
Comments
If their cut looks good after a workout I know it's been cut well. If they're regulars at the "Y" they most likely live in my neighborhood and are less likely to be shelling out more than I'm willing to spend. I know that hair is important but I'm not going to spend over XX amount for a cut.
Since everybody is all sweaty and in workout wear it doesn't seem to personal to ask where they have their hair done.
On the reverse, if you're a person who loves her stylist, tell your friends. I've got a stack of my stylist's cards that I hand out (judiciously).
I tend to switch stylists when I feel they're starting to "phone it in" or stop giving input. I hate it when a stylist says "what do you want?" and expects you to tell them *exactly* how you want your hair cut, without offering any opinions or suggestions. I feel that part of what I'm paying for is expertise and a knowledge of what will work with my hair and be flattering.
My current colorist/stylist is a freelancer, and we've worked out a deal where he comes to the house on a weekend or evening. That way le monsieur can also get his hair cut while my color processes, and we don't have to factor in drive time or find babysitters.
Where I come from, we don't have that many options: a few renown salons who really do take the effort to continually invest in their hairdressers' education and a lot of local shops who still practice what they learned decades ago. As a child and a teen these were the only places I knew and they didn't have the first idea on how to tackle my thick wavy hair. For the past 10 years I've been going to one of the top salons in the country and it's not cheap by Slovene standards but it's worth every cent. My hairdresser is a young girl and I believe I was one of her first clients. She and I have build a solid relationship over the years and I have absolute confidence in her.
I was lucky enough, in the first few weeks after we moved here many years ago, to read a local paper's article about a young hairstylist, just out of school, who'd won a National Award. He's since gone on to win many of them, throughout the years when he was my stylist. Eventually, he got so busy that I switched to another stylist in his studio, and then I followed her to her own. The idea of having to do this all again is not pleasant, but you set out some very helpful approaches. Good to hear how well you're settling in to your new home.
Rubi: I had one of the worst cuts of my life at a much-lauded salon devoted to curlies- YMMV.
une femme: That is so true (for me, anyway)- the "Gran Goggles" I wrote of earlier go on. Sometimes there are other reasons, they just hit a slump. That old school salon sounds like a real experience!
coffeeaddict: When you find THE One, hang on to her! But sometimes one moves.
materfamilias: That's a great principle and I had not thought of it: follow a noble lineage. Great stylists can spot talent in others ; they hire them or can refer you.
Susan Tiner: Please read the second sentence of the post. I *have* found her.
I think that tip about asking people with hair styles that you like is a good one.
Was it difficult finding a new doctor?
A stylist will be one of my top priorities when I move. Loosing my long-time stylist is one of the things I will miss when I move, and it has been over 25 years since I have had to find a new stylist.
Actually I said that asking people with hair styles you like is *not a foolproof idea*. ("Meh" indicates skepticism, not endorsement.)
I have not yet found a doctor; everyone I ask either has one who is not taking new patients or has none at all. But we have a family member who can help.
Not familiar with this term. Is that a foreign language or an East Coast convention?
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