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Original poster

Is it worth paying for an expensive haircut?

28 replies

bingisthebest · 13/03/2017 10:59

I have a very boring cut as I like a slightly messy look. Think French long bob. Well that's what I wish for. However at the moment it just looks shit. One side sticks out. I go fur mud priced salon. If I pay for senior stylist in a better salon will it make much of a difference? Is it worth it? Thinking that at nearly 40 yrs of age I need to have a decent look!! Thanks

OP posts:
JoJoSM2 · 13/03/2017 11:11

How often do you get it cut? And do you style your hair after every wash?

Original poster
bingisthebest · 13/03/2017 11:13

I get it cut infrequently. And kind of style it after washing but my styling involves messing it up with salt spray or sometimes putting some waves through.

OP posts:
notMarlene · 13/03/2017 11:15

Bobs are very hard work. They aren't an easy cut to do well and will always require styling. It's be worth seeing a good hairdresser even as a one off, I'd say.

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 13/03/2017 11:19

I've had good/bad in high price/low price.

One of the main bugbears I have is the disco level music. So I choose a quiet time.

I had a T&G visit where they made me stand the whole time (my hair was belt length) , they could've put the seat right up and sat on a lower chair (which is what the salons did when my DD had very long hair. She didn't get T&G though)

The ££ might give you more time to discuss your hair issues. Yes they can style in but its what you do at home day-to-day that you need to be happy with.

FinallyHere · 13/03/2017 11:24

It is definitely worth finding someone who understands both your hair and what you are trying to do with it, and then sticking with that person. I literally do nothing to my hair day to day, if its lucky it gets brushed once a day, after washing i just leave it. Brilliant hairdresser lowlights and cuts it every four weeks and that is all it needs. Even complete strangers have been known to compliment me on my hair.

Before I found her, I have had cuts which when i woke up in the morning , stuck up at all angles from my head. I think it is a mixture of finding someone who understands what you want and being realistic about what you want them to achieve,for example choosing between colour and perms, one or the other, not both.

Sadly, I have found no correlation between a hairdressers suitability and their cost. I have been lucky to find some one early on in their career (when they were v v reasonable) and have stuck with them ever since. I tend to find really hot shots in a salon tend to have a 'look' they are known for, and turn out everyone looking like that. They can be good if you are going for their style.

Hope you find what you are looking for

notMarlene · 13/03/2017 11:24

T&G is almost invariably worth avoiding TBH

Judydreamsofhorses · 13/03/2017 12:38

I think it's worth finding a hairdresser who you like and who does your hair in the way you want, because you wear your hair every single day. This may not necessarily be a senior or expensive person, but could take some trial and error to find. I have a short, blunt bob, and go every five or six weeks and pay just over £60 each time - it's a lot of money, but I have cut back on other things to make sure I can afford it because my hairdresser does a really excellent job.

Floisme · 13/03/2017 12:40

I think it's the only style/beauty treatment that is worth paying for. It's a very skilled job.

Original poster
bingisthebest · 13/03/2017 14:00

Thankyou for the replies. Think I'm gonna have to try and find a decent one. Maybe I need some recs.

OP posts:
Bubbinsmakesthree · 13/03/2017 14:09

Broadly speaking I've found a correlation between ££ and quality when it comes to haircuts - the best cuts I have had have been with senior people at high-end salons and they have been brilliant. I've also been lucky finding someone mid-price who was really good with my hair and I stuck with her for ages. But a lot of the cheaper and mid-price cuts I've had have been pretty mediocre.

Sadik · 13/03/2017 16:40

Yes, I will always pay for a good haircut / colourist, and I'm the scruffiest person in the world. Once you find a good person then be very very nice to them and pray they don't decide to emigrate . . .

I'd definitely ask for recommendations, and also be prepared to try several people to find someone who suits you (also look for recommendations from someone with the sort of haircut you want)

CoolCarrie · 13/03/2017 19:28

You wear your hair every day as it were, so it is worth paying more for a decent cut and style.

Original poster
bingisthebest · 13/03/2017 21:06

The thing is I've tried lots in the past haven't found anyone that listens to me. They all ramble on. That's why I think I need a senior stylist. Think I'm gonna go for it next time.

OP posts:
MaQueen · 13/03/2017 21:16

Yes. Yes. Yes.

I pay £55 for a cut at T&G. My stylist is excellent, and knows exactly how I want my hair. Like you OP, I like something slightly tousled and un-structured, but still looks flattering.

My hair is cut like this. I also pay a lot for subtle, ash blonde high lights. I have tried little local salons, and always ended up with yellow hair, not ash blonde.

Is it worth paying for an expensive haircut?
kormachameleon · 13/03/2017 22:00

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MsGameandWatch · 13/03/2017 22:02

I'd say so. I pay a lot for my highlights and cut but only go about three times a year, it's usually enough.

I keep it pretty long. I'm over forty and I know the party line is cut it short as you get older but I am afraid I'd end up looking like Denise Welch or Pat Butcher if I went too short and choppy 😊

LookAtTheFlowersKerry · 13/03/2017 22:07

I've never had a good cut in a Toni and Guy. I went in for highlights once and came out looking like Ken Dodd.

When I was working I used a local independent and paid £120 for a cut and highlights and it was always lovely, I went there for two years.

Now I'm a slacker SAHM my hair is long and usually in a ponytail, but I went to the 'everything £11' hairdresser the other day and she did a truly fab job.

I think it's more to do with finding the right stylist than paying through the nose.

SecretNutellaFix · 13/03/2017 22:07

OP, if your hair has a tendency to stick out one side, I'd be tempted to either grow it longer, so the weight makes it less obvious or cut very short.

I once also had a bob. I also had the one side flick in the wrong direction. I grew mine out and since then I've never let it be shorter than just below shoulder level.

See how it goes with a more senior stylist, but even they can only do so much.

KenDoddHairdo · 13/03/2017 22:08

I think you have to be ever so careful with these choppy mom cuts. One gust of wind and you're Ken Dodd's doppelganger. And unless you're very, very pretty/petite, you run the risk of looking like a Sherman tank wearing Elton John's toupee.

Is it worth paying for an expensive haircut?
KeemaNaan · 13/03/2017 22:23

I use the £11 for everything hairdresser too. Never had a duff cut or colour there once.

Last time I forked out for a proper stylist and colour as a treat, I looked like a Spanish waiter as they went too dark and short. Ole!

Still, better Manuel than Mr. Dodd

TartsKnickers · 13/03/2017 22:24

Is T&G still a thing then? I last visited approximately 20 years ago and came out looking like an over coiffed peach, standard poodle having spent hours (which felt like days) having suffered the "trendy" self-absorbed natterings of the various staff who appeared to think that to work for T&G somehow made them quite special and interesting.

Oh how I loved the little back street hairdresser who undid their "do" at less than half the money.....never again

MaQueen · 13/03/2017 22:25

I think it's a combination of getting the right cut for your type of hair + the correct product. I have fallen in love with Toni & Guys Texturising Spray, and it smells gorgeous too.

It's not all about the price though. I once had my hair cut at a Sassoon salon. Technically, it was a brilliant cut...except it made me look like a 30s public school boy Hmm

helenfagain · 13/03/2017 22:26

I used to pay over £100 for a cut and highlights. I now pay £40 for cut, colour and toner and they lady does a much better job of my hair. It's about getting someone who understands your hair.

BroomstickOfLove · 13/03/2017 22:31

I would love a hair cut that would make me look like a 1930s public schoolboy, if only I had the lithe figure for it. I generally aim for 1930s lesbian.

dollybird · 13/03/2017 22:33

I pay £15 for a wet cut and £25 for a colour at a local hairdresser who runs her own salon from her home. Always happy with her cut, and love having my hair coloured for me. My hair can look a bit wild at times as it's curly, and I'm too lazy to style it myself, but when I have it straightened it always looks awesome, and then I can really see the haircut iyswim. All hairdressers are obsessed with my curly hair (it's not that curly or special) and scrunch it to death, that just makes it go huge, so I only ever have it blow dried if I'm having it straightened too.

She also cuts my teenage kids hair, and theirs always looks good, and lasts well (v jealous of DD's straight hair Envy )