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Seriously. It’s awful.
From having to make an appointment to walking in when your hair still looks pretty terrible and you can tell they’re all judging you, to having an dreadful shampoo person who either has no idea how to actually wash hair, or another whose head massages are so torturous that they might as well be classified as Bond villains!
And don’t get me started on the actual stylists! Mine is one of the most judgemental people I have ever met. He actually purses his lips and gives me this look that just says “Oh gits. It’s this one again” while he deigns to look at my unruly mane.
My thick, (un)naturally curly, sometimes a bit too dry, recovering from chemical damage, hair. It takes someone special to manage it, and while I absolutely abhor getting “my hair did”, I will admit the man does magic with my hair and I will go back faithfully every two months for my wash, cut and blow.
At first, I thought I was the only one. I thought a childhood of being forced under a hood dryer while crying snot en trane because the aunty doing your hair just klapped you around the head with the back of her brush “by accident” (read: on bloody purpose. The cow) while all you want is to go home and play with your fire truck probably ruined hairdressers for me for life.
But then, I found out, I’m not the only one! Nearly every person I’ve asked hates it too! I’M NOT ALONE!
Trudy, our intern, doesn’t go for three reasons; time, money and judgement (looks like I’m not alone there either).
Lauren, my lovely fellow curly haired friend who writes for News24, can hardly find a stylist who can actually handle her hair. She says: “I don’t see it as a necessity so I only go about twice a year, if that. There was a time I didn’t go for about two years and had friends cut my hair or cut it myself. But if it’s done right, I do feel terribly glamorous when coming out of the salon.”
Tammy, our resident bibliophile and misanthrope, surprisingly actually doesn’t mind popping into the salon. “I think it all depends on how full it is and which stylist is available, because we all have that one stylist that just knows how to handle your tresses.” True that.
Marisa, our Fashion and Beauty ed, needs to maintain her blonde locks every month and isn’t exactly fond of it. “I can think of hundreds of better things to do on a Saturday, seriously,” she says. Her ideal salon? “Where the conversation is slow and the coffee strong.”
Annzra, another one of our interns, and Jean-Marie and Leandra from our sister site Channel24 all actually really love going to the hairdresser though. Annzra finds it relaxing and blissful. Jean-Marie doesn’t go often, but likes the experience (especially the head massages), but prefers her stylist not to be too chatty. Leandra is probably the luckiest of all though. She and her hairdresser are really good friends and she’s been going to her for SEVEN YEARS. That’s quite impressive.
And then I wondered what some people do when they’re not satisfied with whatever their stylist has done. Do they shout? Scream? Faint in horror? Or just smile?
Lili actually says she’d never show her unhappiness. “I swear, even if a stylist butchers my hair and dyes it green I will still smile through the lump in my throat and even tip them.” This came as quite a surprise as she’s not exactly timid, but maybe it’s that very polite streak that a lot of Afrikaans people have.
So, while I am not alone in my hatred, not everyone minds being tortured with a hair-dryer as much as I do.
How do you feel about having your hair done? Do you hate it? Love it? Do you have a really funny story involving your hair turning a funny colour or your fringe being cut far too short? Please share and you could win a really cool hair product and a Women24 t-shirt.
