What is a wet cut at the hairdresser?

[Lilyamna]

I’ve been silly and asked for a wet cut but realised I don’t know what that is! Am I supposed to turn up with wet hair? Or will I leave with wet hair? I feel so dumb!!

When I’ve had a wet cut, they’ve just washed it and cut it. I have thick hair which takes a long time to dry, so they usually offer to give it a quick blast with the drier before I leave so that it’s not literally dripping. The main difference from a cut and blow dry is that they don’t do any straightening/styling.

The best haircut I ever had was many many years ago in Cambridge. I’d been to a gig the night before and crashed at a friends house. I had time to kill in the morning before my train home, so impulsively went into a salon where my wavy below-shoulder-length hair was restyled into a choppy graduated bob.

Alas, I didn’t have enough time for a blow dry before having to leave to catch the train. But the hairdresser was so skilled, it was like she had somehow sculpted the perfect haircut from my wayward hair. It didn’t need blow-drying to make it look good, all the skill was in the cutting.

Wet cut is when the wash but don't dry your hair before they cut it. They dry it afterwards.

Dry cur is when they wash, dry and then cut.

Wash or dampen, cut hair, possibly rough blow dry but without the styling (eg straightening hair etc) and products of a cut and blow dry. If hair is short, might not blow dry.

Btw, I meant to add that the OP should just tell her hairdresser that she wants it washed first, but not to blow dry it, because she’s going swimming later.

Just call them back and ask. You presumably know what you want in terms of a blow dry or none, so check if you're on the same page as them. No shame or embarassment needed.

I have in the past asked hairdressers to leave my hair wet or unsettled. I used to have long, thick hair and some hairdressers would take forever and a day blow drying it straight and then straightening it - I found it unpleasant and a waste of time and I couldn't get them to understand "just blast dry then use straighteners so I left with wet hair a few times.

Love my current hairdresser, she is so much quicker and less faffy about it.

At the salon I go to you dry your own hair if you aren’t having a cut and blow- so if you’re just having a colour or something- using their hairdryer, straighteners etc. Fine by me, you can see why they don’t want to do it for free when it’s about £30 as part of a cut and blow. I think it’s probably because they don’t have any juniors or Saturday girls, as other salons I’ve been to you always get passed to a junior for drying and styling.

Ha ha, great thread everyone

I can’t imagine what they’ll do at the hairdresser if you turn up with dry hair and they need it to be wet OP. If only there was some way they could make it wet while you’re there - no, can’t think of a solution.

For anyone not wanting to pay for a blow dry - a rough dry is cheaper - useful if you're going back to work for a few hours and then going to the gym and washing it again afterwards!

A dry cut is where they don't wash your hair.

A wet cut is where they wash cut and blowdry.

I don't think any hairdresser would let a client walk out with wet hair. The people who are saying they'll wash it and cut it and not dry it - have you actually had this done?

A wet cut is where they wash cut and blowdry

That's a cut and blow dry where I am, not a wet cut

IME I end up paying for a cut and blow dry even though i have short curly hair and I never want it dried.

I've explicitly asked if a wet cut (no blow dry) is cheaper and all the hairdressers around here dont do them. They just say we only do a CBD and if you dont want it dried tough luck - not in those words of course.

Dry cut - Cutting the hair without washing it first. Usually dampening with a spray to make it easier to cut.

Wet cut - washing the hair, cutting without blow-drying. Maybe a quick blast with the hairdryer if your hair is really wet, but no styling.

Cut and blow-dry - washing the hair, cutting, blow-drying into a style.

I don't think any hairdresser would let a client walk out with wet hair. The people who are saying they'll wash it and cut it and not dry it - have you actually had this done?

Yes, often. A quick towel dry and I'm on my way. How is the hairdresser actually going to force you to have it dried, tie you to the chair?

I'm baffled by all the 'leave with wet hair' posts. I have wet cuts every few weeks and none of the salons I've ever been to would be happy with me leaving with wet hair (I'm old, so quite a few salons). As I understand, the drying bit is just a rough dry with a hair dryer - so no styling with brushes etc as the hair is being dried. I wouldn't be impressed at having to leave with wet hair, particularly in the winter, and I don't think salons would consider it a particularly good advert for their services.

@TellMeWhoTheVilliansAre

I worked in three different salons in different parts of the country and had several ‘wet’ cuts myself, by the time they cut is finished the hair is usually nearly dry on most people anyway.

Dry cut, spray with water and cut, leave with it very slightly damp from the spray. Cheap and happy.

Wet cut, washed at the salon, cut wet and then either roughly dried or left damp. Go home happy.

Cut and blow dry, washed at salon, cut then dried to look like you’d never achieve at home, all big and bouffant. You have no idea if it’s going to look good normally. You thank them while feeling like crying. You go home, wash it immediately and dry it yourself so you look like you again. Expensive waste of money.

Sound about right?

As I said in most salons it’s standard to give you a rough dry with a hair dryer and their hands but a wet cut is specifically a cut not including a blow dry and finish.

When I go to my hairdresser for a wet cut she washes it and trims it, then she'll give it a quick blast with the hairdryer (my hair is waist length so drying it properly takes ages anyway). I normally schedule my haircuts on days I'm not working anyway so I just drive straight home and dry it fully myself.

I have seen people leave the hairdresser with wet hair before and I thought it was bizarre. Clearly it is a thing. I still think it is super odd.

I don’t care if my hair isn’t finished. I have Aspergers and adhd, not that I should have to justify myself, so have sensory issues. I hate having my hair cut. I do it twice I year usually when it gets too long and I can’t file with it any more.

I’m not a ‘girly’ girl and don’t do the whole hair, nails, makeup thing so don’t care how it looks. I Have to have my hair covered at work so it’s up in a bun and covered constantly anyway lol. Not allowed nails for infection control either (I work in operating theatres).

File - deal ffs

Wet cut was always a wash and cut when I worked as a hairdresser. We’d generally rough dry the hair so it wasn’t soaking when the client left. Although some people can’t believe we’d allow it, as this thread proves some people don’t want a blow dry!

We used to do dry cuts but people kept coming in with such minging hair we stopped it. So you either had a wet cut, or cut and blow dry.

I've never left with wet hair, that sounds really strange.

There is a difference between drying your hair with a hairdryer and roughly styling it (takes about 10 mins tops in total) and a proper browdry with a brush and potentially styling with straighteners too (takes much longer, at least 20-40 mins). When it's a cheaper cut it's usually the former, if you book a cut & blow dry then it costs more and is the latter, longer one.