Advice on reducing hairdresser cost please

[Merryclaire]

I’m due to go on maternity leave in a couple of months and not sure I’ll be able to sustain my current hairdresser cost - which is currently close to £100 for each appointment (usually every 5 weeks).

This consists of a tint and wet cut.

I have quite difficult big, thick wavy hair that is completely grey underneath my hair dye. Cutting my own hair doesn’t feel like an option as I have so much unruly hair.

I previously used to dye my own hair but it looked quite lacklustre whereas now the colour is fantastic.

I feel miserable for those last two weeks when my roots start to look bad, and not ready to embrace the grey at this stage in life.

If I were to colour my own hair, the brand the salon uses isn’t sold to the public and I wouldn’t even know where to start with choosing something new.

Any advice on what I can do to still have good hair for less money?

I don’t want to leave my hairdresser as she’s great, but not sure I can afford this anymore.

You could try a training college, or look for someone who does the same for less. But you say you don’t want to leave her, so I don’t know the answer.

I know you say that you don't want to leave her, but maybe look into a mobile hairdresser? Mine is much, much cheaper than one at a salon but still does a great job. And it might actually be more convenient to have your hair done at home when you have a small baby?

I think that's really expensive. Find a cheaper hairdresser.

Either find a cheaper hairdresser or could you go longer between appointments and use some root touch up spray to cover the grey?

Do you really need a cut every 5 weeks? If the colour will be a struggle to recreate then I’d prioritise keeping that but drop the cut to every to every 2-3 appointments (10-15 weeks). Also, leave with wet hair to save on finishing costs.

Ask if your hairdresser do any special offers. Mine have 10% off on Mondays and sends out text messages if they have cancellations and if they are filled they only charge 50%. For them it's better than losing money but you have to be available short notice.

I do use root touch up for the last 2 weeks at the moment but it looks dreadful in the last week - Really I need it coloured every 4 weeks but don’t due to the cost.

My hair was naturally dark before the grey and this shows in my skin colouring and eyebrows so the contrast between dark and grey looks quite stark.

I cut my own hair and I'm happily going grey. So I don't think that's much help to you!

You either have to change your hairdresser, change your hairstyle, or accept you can't change the cost.

As you don't want to change your hairdresser I suggest you tell them you need to cut down on how much you spend and get their advice on a hairstyle that is either cheaper for them to do, or lasts longer in between visits so you don't need as many appointments.

I would talk to the hairdresser about it and see if she comes up with a suggestion to make it easier to go longer between appointments.

For me it was to stop having tints and now I have highlights that blend in with the grey as it's more flattering as I've got older.

You probably won't have the time apart from anything else to spend that much time at the hairdresser's.

5 weeks is very often for a haircut, could you not ask your hairdresser about a colour option that may last longer? My hairdresser uses only toner on every other appointment for me as it is cheaper, and i have a root smudge done with the toner so whrn my rots tart coming through it still kind of looks like my style, may nog work with greys, but hairdresser is best person to ask

I have thick unruly hair as well and wouldn't want to lose my hairdresser either. If I were you I would look at my budget for maternity leave and work out how much I can afford for my hair, then make a plan with the hairdresser as to what would be best within your budget.

I had wondered that - my hair gets very big and bulky but it’s the roots that bother me most.

Ask her if she does homers

Thanks - yes I am worried about taking the time out (several hours) when the baby is here. They said I can bring the baby to the salon but it doesn’t sound ideal.

A mobile hairdresser sounds like it could be a good option if I struggle to get to the salon.

I realise cheapest thing would be to colour my own hair - I am just clueless about what product to use/how to colour match etc.

Dark hair with rapidly greying roots here too. Is your hair long enough to put up? That might hide the roots better for the last couple of weeks. Tbh i spent my maternity leave with it scraped back anyway!

I’d drop the cuts to every 3 visits and try and find a way of covering the roots or putting my hair up to space the appointments to every 6 weeks, I think.

Thanks - I will chat to her when I next go. Feel bad though as she’s struggling to stay afloat post-Covid with rising energy costs.

But then I have to be realistic about what I can afford for the next year.

Find a better box dye. I colour mine a coppery shade about every two or three months, use a colour tint shampoo, and it gets cut about every 6 months if I remember.

Hair is only as high maintenance as you want it to be.

Infuse My. Colour Copper Shampoo 250ml amzn.eu/d/6dAPJAk - they do shampoo in all sorts of colours.

Thanks for responding. My hair is long enough to be put up but I don’t like to wear it that way. I currently do that for the final week though.

I think the answer is to reduce the number of cuts - even though my hair will go quite big.

I wish I knew what product I could use to recreate a similar colour at home. the L’Oréal one I used previously wasn’t a patch on the salon one.

Thanks all - any tips for a good home hair colour also appreciated. Bearing in mind my hair is very grey and thick and doesn’t take colour as easily as many people’s. I go quite dark for the coverage ( and because that’s also what I was before).

I think there is no way you can bring the baby to the salon for hours.

I’d ask for a different cut that will last you longer. If you need a cut every 5 weeks for it to look good then that’s a needlessly high maintenance choice of style. The hairdresser should be able to suggest alternatives that won’t result in your hair looking big and bulky (totally my hair type so I get it) as it grows out.

I have really thick,bulky hair too and I understand the pain but my hairdresser cuts it so it grows out well so I go every 10-12 weeks and have it coloured 3x a year.

Every five weeks is extremely high maintenance. I’d be honest with her: you really value her time and expertise but need to figure out a cut and colour than will last 10-12 weeks. Different style, balayage, whatever. And then you have to be prepared to throw it up in a bun for the last few weeks too.

Can you go a really striking grey, a la Meryl Streep in The Devil Wears Prada?

That's patronising. My hair is really really easy to manage. My mother's is not. If she did what i do she'd have a bird's nest.