Hair cut and colour now exceeds what I earn in a day. Absolutely fed up.

[Burntout01]

Obviously everything is going up and up. Just went to book hairdressers- I don’t go often , maybe every four months since I went grey ( used to box dye it for 30 years before that). Its my one bit of self care.
Cost has jumped from £120 to over £170 since I last had it done in September. For full head highlights for chin length bobbed hair plus wash and rough blow dry.
It’s not that I don’t believe its worth that price and I am not knocking my hairdresser, its not about that. But I am a senior NHS nurse with 30 years experience. My job has taken a lot from me and my family. I take home £150 a day. The hair appt is 2.5 hours.
I just cannot justify the expense for myself any more.

Maybe they may do gift vouchers or money off codes or promotions, what with the festive period coming up? Maybe check local paper or notice boards if there is one, offering discounts Maybe? (I know it can vary depending on where u live etc) Thought if someone worked in caring profession they got special discounts apologies if these are silly suggestions
The cost of living is woefully just getting worst and worst

This is it though, to look "groomed" you have to spend hundreds on hair, then the same on nails/facials/pedicure/eyebrows/lashes/botox etc etc. I don't know anyone who has a spare £500+ per month.

I'd much rather spend 45 minutes at home letting the dye do it's job and watching tv or be on the computer than stuck in some hair dresser place sitting in a chair unable to move or do anything - that would send me homocidal. Why do women do that? Do they really want to sit in a chair in a hairdressers for what like one hour to 2 hours when you can put it on yourself (and it's sooooo easy to do and I have had compliments on my hair colour) and have a glass of wine and watch tv at home while it's setting? Why sit for an hour in a hairdressers when you can be at home watching tv while it's setting? I think some people have more money than sense.

I'm not being nasty! And I don't think sitting a chair for 1 to 2 hours in a room is 'relaxing'. I walk around at home, do the dishwasher, have a cigarette, a wine, watch tv. I'd be nuts if I had to sit still in a chair in a hairdresser room for that long. It sounds like torture. Not relaxing at all. I watch tv and eat ice cream and walk around while my dye is doing it's job. Sitting still in chair for that long would be torture and drive me out of my mind of boredom.

2.5 hours for something that takes 1 hour, 1.5 hours tops? A fool and their money are soon parted...

That's you though, we're all different, some people do find it relaxing.

Because I want it to look good. If I did it myself, it would look ok at best.

Yes its a huge amount of money! I have started seeing apprentices only at my local salon. They charge £25 for a full colour covering greys.

For a cut i go to headmasters where you can phone for a standby appointment for £40 for a cut and blow-dry. You never know which stylist you get but quite often I get a top stylist for cheap! Headmasters have a VIP club too where you get a discount.

I can tell you, you wouldn't look any different if you did it yourself with the same products that you pay someone else to do it for you.

The average woman can’t achieve the effects that a very good professional can.

Absolutely not. It depends on what kind of colour you are getting too. No way could your average, untrained woman do highlights for example themselves at home and I wouldn’t recommend it either. Leave it to the pros.

It has become crazily expensive, I used someone that’s turned a room in her house to a salon so she doesn’t have rent to pay as such. A full head, toner, cut and blow dry is £150. Salons round near me are £50-£100 more.

Agree OP. The way I’m getting around it is I’ve found a hair stylist who works from home, and she charges less than salons. You could get it done less, or I’ve started using Glaze in between hair colours. I used to colour my hair a lot but I stick to once or twice per year now.

I’ve found this thread absolutely fascinating as a hairdresser , and apologise to the poster who thought I was being bitchy about other stylists , that wasn’t my intention at all and I’m sorry .

What is clear as day is that rising prices for everything are affecting a lot of people , who are pretty miffed that what they see as an everyday expense has somehow turned into a treat that some can’t afford .

All is was trying to do was explain and show the expenses of running a very small salon business , so you don’t feel cross with your hairdresser , or think they are being greedy .
So many are utterly ignorant of the associated costs
I hope my post showed transparency regarding the expenses .

one poster admitted to being grumpy when faced with a paltry £ 2 increase on an £18 cut 😲
Thats wild to me that you’re grumpy about a fellow woman earning a whole £2 more …
I was gobsmacked at that actually .

Lets all focus on the bigger picture, and not blame each other because it’s not helpful

Hairdressers are not driving round in Ferraris…

Im very aware of my clients finances.

I have a few clients that I’ve not increased the price due to job losses ect , who still come every 5 weeks for a colour which I find incredible
I never tell them I do it cheaper
I’m very grateful they stIll come .

I will say though that there are many folk with plenty of money, and not everyone is struggling .

There are clearly 2 camps of you

The ones who do it at home and are happy with that, and see the salon as a waste of time and money , and the ones who absolutely love coming for the whole experience and prioritise it over other stuff

Neither is right , just different
I cater for camp number two

Have you thought about a mobile hairdresser? I have had the same hairdresser for years (she is a friend of mine). She is the manager of a fairly exclusive salon part-time and I pay less than 1/3 of what I would pay if I had her in her salon. You obviously don’t get the experience of being in a salon but it is so much cheaper

I have highlights, a colour cut and BD for £70 (£80 with tip). I could never get anything like her results with box dye! Ever.

I use a mobile hairdresser which really keeps costs down and she does my kids inbetween mine so makes more in the time she’s here. I’m in the SE.
Yoi need to consider that hairdressers are trained professionals and the cost of running a salon has shot up enormously if you want that experience it will cost more.

I totally understand where you're coming from, Op. The cost is extortionate these days! And the pressure to tip only makes it worse (you're a nurse, I'm a teacher; valuable jobs with no culture of tipping!)
You really shouldn't give up feeling good about yourself. Do look into a mobile hairdresser. It's so much cheaper! The end result is just as good, though it is a pain in the arse having to wash it out yourself twice (foils then toner)

Ask around for a hairdresser who comes to your home? My hairdresser is wonderful. Since having kids she just does home visits. It’s £65 for half-head but my hair is waist length.

Try going for the grey. Hard to cope with the growing out, but you may like it in the end. Hair in better condition - at least mine is. You can always revert back if you hate it. Was actually a hairdresser who suggested I do it. While I would prefer my original dark brown, I do rather like the silver sass.

I have a mobile hairdresser. Full colour, cut and blow dry approximately £50, West Midlands. How about asking on your local social media if anyone can recommend a local mobile hairdresser for you? It’s not the same experience as going to a salon, but a whole lot cheaper .

That seems very high. Can you see if others are more reasonable? I don’t think I could justify such a lot of money.

I have a full head of highlight, cut and blow dry and it’s £95. My hair is long and it takes nearly 3 hours. My take home pay is less than yours and I think it’s expensive, but worth it for me.

I live in the south east (ie one of the most expensive parts of the country) and I pay £115 for colour, cut and blow dry with a senior designer. She’s amazing at her job and I get lots of compliments on my colour so I am not going cheap and cheerful. Maybe you need to shop around a bit. I also get a blue light discount on top of that so that might be worth looking at.

It isn’t easy for everyone. I used home colours when I was in my early 20s. They were awful on my hair. I could never match it and the colour was one dimensional, like lego hair. As for the re growth 🤦‍♀️

Are you able to use natural colourants or is your scalp too sensitive? My hair is very thin, fine and delicate but I find Logona natural hair colour creams very good. You need to experiment a bit to get the shade you like.

This really isn't true. Yes, you can dye it yourself at home and it will look totally fine, but if you want dimensional colour, with two or three different shades, a professional doing highlights or balayage is going to look much, much better.