Modern etiquette: tipping hairdressers??

[london]

I have always tipped hairdressers but slowly realised that no-one else at my hairdressers seemed to now (difficult to be sure because of stylists liking you to sit still an' all, rather than gawp round salon. But definitely tracked this woman tonight from getting up from seat to door and she didn't tip. Perhaps she was just mean though?!). Also noticed the stylists often looked surprised when I tipped - I put this down to politeness on their part, but had someone different recently and she looked positively shocked! (But perhaps I didn't tip enough...cue neurotic worry). Since then have run out w/o tipping but feel very guilty! If no-one does tip anymore - then have hairdressers' basic wages gone up hugely so they don't need tips (seems unlikely) , and also how did everyone know - did they announce it on the telly, in the papers? I feel adrift in 21st century! Please help!

i always tip, i dont care if anybody else does or not, my hairdresser turns me from a walking disaster into something resembling human, she deserves a tip!

I tip my hairdresser. I have a colour and cut every 8-10 weeks. I usually pay about £60 quid or so and I tip her £5 cos she always does a fab job. Recently the junior has had greater involvement so I split the tip between them roughly pro rata.

But.. I also have my nails done at the same salon every two weeks and never tip the nail technician because he owns the place! I just take him cake and gossip. Tipping him just wouldn't be right. You don't tip the owner!

Do whatever you feel comfortable with. Most of the customers where I go seem to tip. I'm in Yorkshire but don't know what is done elsewhere!

try a search

ther are millions of thread on this.

I do; two pounds. Not much on top of a £50.00 har cut but it always HURTS.

SuperMario, there are threads on everything if you want to do a search. Maybe OP just wants a live chat about it.

I only do at Christmas

I tip £3.50-£5, whatever change I have. On the few occasions I didn't have any cash I bought some choccies on the card in the nearest newsagent and took them back to the hairdresser. I've never had a "regular" hairdresser but still think I ought to do this.

I stopped tipping when I was a gauche 16 year old and, after counting out a reasonable amount in tip, thinking this was the grown up thing to do, dropped the coins and had to scrabble round the (good-looking, blond, male) hairdresser's feet to pick them up - then jangle the pile into his hands while looking at his totally disgusted face.

Since then I don't care whether it's right to tip or not - I go back to that day every time I'm at the hairdressers and can't risk it happening again.

I tip if I have money on me, have not tipped before because only had my card

I used to go to a more expensive hairdressers and didn't tip there, could barely afford the cost of a cut! I wouldn't tip if I was paying more than £50 I think.

I don't have a regular hairdresser but when I do go if I like what they've done, I tip. If i look like a poodle or similar I just pay and skulk away.

I don't tip, never have done. I used to work in a low wage job (veterinary nurse) and never got tipped so don't see why I should tip others. (Loads of chocolates at Christmas tho!) The way I see it you go into a profession with your eyes open, knowing that the pay is rubbish so a top up is lovely but not to be expected because the service you offer should be top notch regardless.

My mum on the other hand tips everyone, waitresses, hairdressers, bin men, posties.... it's their job!!

I get my hair coloured by a young "technician" then cut and blowdryed by the owner. Obviously, I don't tip the owner but wouldn't mind tipping technician but she is upstairs and I'm "finished off" downstairs where I also pay. Should I tip when she's finished the foils? I've never seen anyone do that Also what about the girl who shampoos? I know I could leave the tips with the receptionist but then the girls wouldn't necessarily know it's from me. Then again I pay nearly £100 so why should I bother?

I paid £60 today for a cut and blow dry. No I don't tip. If they can't pay their staff properly out of that kind of revenue, it's not my fault!

(I do tip my hairdresser at Christmas, but i think that's different).

When I was a Beauty Therapist my tax code took into account that we got tips. Although it was a long time ago

No I don't tip, but I only have a wet trim and no washing or blowdrying once every 2 months. I will buy a bottle of wine or box of chocs at Christmas though. I always used to tip until I found that lots of other people don't.

Thanks for all your answers. I checked once or twice and there was only one answer (thanks Nancy75!) and then went away for the w/e and came back to find more responses. ( I haven't posted much before so am absurdly pleased to be talked back to . There doesn't seem to be a consensus - which is kinda reassuring but also leaves space for still more neurotic worrying!

I don't tip. Never have. My hairdresser is the same age as me, great girl, really intelligent etc and I can't imagine shoving cash into her hand as if she was a wee waitress.

I tried to tip her once and she refused it, leaving me in need of surgical toe-uncurling.

I agree with others who don't tip on principle.

London, I hate it - it is a minefield. Sometimes I tip if it comes to £45 and I pay £50, then I worry about not paying the shampooist anything. I always feel uncomfortable whatever I do. They don't seem to expect it in the current salon I go to though, you just usually pay by card.

I never tip for beauty treatments. Gawd knows they probably deserve it more for waxing fannies than cutting hair though. Hey ho.

I always tip and don't care whether others do or not. What's worse; to tip when it isn't expected or not tip when it is? I'd say the latter....

Oh....this is a bit of nightmare and a minefield. Once you tip, should you always tip, otherwise the stylist may feel that you are disappointed, even if that's not the case? I have left salons in the past over tipping angst (amongst other things). I now don't tip, mainly because I like to be consistent and cannot always guarantee that I will have the correct cash. And secondly, I feel the salon where I go probably pays a fair wage: the stylists hardly seem 'hard-up' iyswim.

I don't tip as now every time I go its £100+ for foils etc. I don't see many others tip in the salon and I get the impression that the prices charged assume that no need to tip.

However, I do tip at the barbers where I take ds as it's ludicrously cheap and I know the staff are paid next to nothing.

I always expect to give a tip at hairdressers/ beauty therapists. If they refuse, it's up to them.
However, if it's the salon manager, you don't tip as it's meant to be demeaning to them, but you can always give something to the shampoo girls.

You just have to make sure you have enough £1/50p coins before you get to the salon - how hard can that be?

Hmmm. Not sure it's a case of £1 or 50p coins though. I always thouyght it was a percentage - 10%? Therfore we could be talking notage not coinage (in some areas).

I always tip, and have also twigged from hairdressers and beauticians that they're surprised to be tipped.

I usually give around 10% if I can afford it, but today I gave my amazing eyebrow lady 33%! (Well, it only costs £3 to thread my brows so I reckon even I can afford an extra £1! ).

When I went to the USA, where service staff apparently get paid badly as a national strategy for increasing company profits it really enraged me that the companies were so tight-fisted.

I tend to tip as my way of saying 'thanks so much for transforming my barnet from a bird's nest into a thing of beauty'.