You know, it’s funny. Getting someone who does a good job on your hair doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with price. You can go to one of these high end salons and have one of these young, flashy girls do a crappy job. I have paid $75 in Manhattan Beach to have a woman spend 5 minutes cutting my hair (very mediocre). I have gone to high end salons to have them turn my hair white, platinum blonde, dark brown, and red (the goal is always light brown with blonde highlights). I’ve paid $200 for a perm that fell out within two weeks.
For the past several years I’ve frequented a salon where a haircut and a partial foil costs about $125. But the haircut was never great, and it looked like my roots were showing even when I walked out the door. Too much red, she never could get it right. I finally just swung by my little neighborhood shop for a $14 haircut. Hmm, nice job. Started going there for my haircuts, and one day the lady said, “I really don’t like your color. I don’t think they do a very good job, I know I can do better”. I wasn’t sure whether to trust her, it is a hole in the wall beauty shop, but one day I let her do it. Best color I’ve ever had, she gives me a full foil every time for $65. Blends it in so well I don’t have to get it colored every two months, but every 5-6. I wonder why nobody else could ever get it right.
Sometimes your regular hairdresser takes you for granted, and they don’t expend the effort to listen to you or do a careful job. Then it’s time to take a chance and move on, but the more money you pay does not guarantee success.
In the SF bay area…I pay $185 including tip for partial foils and cut. I’ve been going to the same person for many years. Without the foils it’s $125. She will throw in a tube of glaze, special conditioner or other product to maintain the look for as long as possible. I go about every 8-10 weeks and need the foils every other time. So far - not much great - just trying to keep the natural mousy brown a bit more interesting.
Go back to your stylist. Tell her the truth, you stopped going years ago because it didn’t fit the budget. There’s not much more noticeable to me than hair! It doesn’t matter what we pay, can you afford the higher price? Is she worth that price to you? I wouldn’t not pay the mortgage or buy food to pay for your hair to be done, but if it’s easily affordable to you, than you need to decide if it’s worth it to you to have nicer hair?
My haircut is $60. Color touch-up is $60 . I ovcasionally get highlights or lowlights-- and when I get both, with everything else I think its close to $200 But I also get occasional strainghtener in my hair, so might be mixing up the pricing
I just this week paid $100 for a single process color, cut and blow dry in a cute little place in Sandy Hook CT. I get foils as needed … probably full head every 6 months, and partials every other month. I think the full foil was $100 and partials maybe $35-60. When my stylist left the shop I’d been going to in town, I went to the very trendy high end place that everyone goes to. The salon owner was one of my customers – and I should have been happy at his place – but after 6 months I was only happy with the expensive color and the cuts were just … bizarre. Found where my old stylist had gone and I am happy again and paying a lot less.
I do tip … and my tip amount is $10-20, not a percentage.
I have maybe 10 grey hairs, so color is not in the picture yet. I go to a stylist who has been cutting my hair for 10 years now ( Wow) at a Gene Juarez salon. She has recently became a Premier Designer or something like that, so her base rate for a full shampoo/cut is $70 (started at $35!). I leave her a $15 tip, so the total is $85 which I spend every 2-3 months. Compared to some rates here, it is a bargain!!!
I live in Dallas and have been going to the same stylist since January of 1989! He was 19 when I started going to him and he is now the owner of his own salon and father of two girls in middle school, lol.
He charges me $60 for a haircut and blow dry, $60 for color (one tone). It’s more for highlights, though.
I’ve been going to the same stylist (following her to three salons) over the last 12 years or so. She charges $125 for cut and single process color. This is in the DC suburbs. I tip about $20 plus for the shampoo. I’m only maybe 1/4 gray and I’m not ready for it to be all streaky, so I color it. However, I only get the salon color two or three times a year. I do root touch ups at home with the Clairol kit every six weeks or so.
Will have to try that. I tried another product and it worked okay for covering the roots, but then if I brush it, my hair starts to look greasy, like I haven’t shampooed it in a couple of days.
I have to say that I “survived” my stylist’s two pregnancies by getting a cut by some other designer at Gene Juarez. They were excellent, but I like my stylist. Luckily for me, she always returned to work because as much as she likes being a mom, she needs a break from that duty! GJ has their own training school, and their salons are known for consistent quality, so I highly recommend them if you are in Seattle area.
I have thick fast growing hair that I color every four weeks for $50. Every other month I get it cut as well for a total of $100. Each session includes a fabulous blowout which takes forever with my hair. I always tip 20%. I’ve been going to the same stylist for about ten years, reading about some of the other prices here, I’m grateful to have her!
I used to go to a privately owned salon and pay about $25 for cut and tip. I now have someone come to our home. We pay $20 per head-mine and H’s. If D’s home, hers as well. The woman does an amazing job and we save on gas! We don’t do coloring. She is a professional and cuts a lot of others as well.
I get my hair colored every 6-7 weeks. If I had gray like the models in the link upthread, I would go gray. Truth is my hair is ugly gray–I also have thick, course hair so that makes the color even uglier.
I go to a salon on Newbury St in Boston and I pay $250 for cut, color and balayage (fancy high lights). We spend 5 months of the year at our vacation place and I pay $175 for cut, color, and highlights (and I don’t have to pay for parking here).
I was paying ~$100 for cut/single process color at my old stylist. (She was employed by Gene Juarez and had been an instructor & senior designer before she went out on her own.) Unfortunately, repetitive stress took its toll on her hands and she’s not doing hair anymore.
Finding someone new is time consuming and expensive. If the old stylist is taking in new clients and you know she’ll do a good job, go for it.
I’ve already decided that 6 weeks before I retire I will get my last color. Immediately following my last day at work, I will get my hair cut really short and let the gray grow out. What’s coming in now is mostly gray, but at 55 I can’t let it go. Only 3 more years.
$130 plus tip for a partial highlight every 6 -7 weeks. I like her and I have followed her to several studios. We chat sometimes, but she is also fine if I just veg out and read a magazine.
True confessions time, however - I have the most basic of hair cuts - shoulder length, light bangs - and I will go to Great Clips (etc) and trim my bangs myself in between. I might do a “real cut” at a salon maybe once or twice a year. I just don’t see any real difference. Slinking away in shame …
My hairdresser charges 200 for new customers. My girls and I have gone to him since my youngest was 2. We followed him to his new place. I pay 225 for the works haircut, base and highlights. He does go out of town periodically for press junkets and/or special jobs. So we are flexible. And in a three hour block oftime…he does well.
Go to your old hairdresser and throw yourself at his mercy (or her). Good hairdressers are hard to find. That is why they are expensive.
@Pizzagirl, no need to slink away in shame for finding an economical way to keep your hair looking great. We all have different spending priorities.
I would probably shock and maybe horrify many posters. After recurring medical issues interfered with routine hair upkeep, I got it cut very short at a pricey (for this area) salon. (FWIW - that means $85 - $100 + tip for a cut.)The first cut was great. The second was so-so and the third was dreadful (all by the same stylist.) In frustration, I bought a Wahl clipper set and their #12 guard (1.5".) I ran the clipper over all of my hair using the #12, then dh did the lower part of the back of my head with the #10 guard. A tiny dollop of a leave-in conditioner tamed the few wild grey hairs. You might picture Dame Judi Dench but with salt-and-pepper hair instead of silver. Now I can manage the whole process by myself and never have to use a hair dryer after showering.
I rarely get my hair cut but I religiously get my hair colored every 4 weeks.
Hair cut with blow dry $65 plus tip
Hair color depends on what we do. the price can range from 85 for just a root touch up to $185 if she does 2 color with foil. Usually it is $135 which is partial high lights /no cut. She will sometimes thin the hair for free in between cuts. My hair is basically long and straight with no bangs. Hair is also healthy so when I do cut it I do it because it is starting to get knots at the nap of my neck because of the length.
I have used the same stylist for over 10 years. Her prices have gone up. I used to be able to call when my color reached that “I need it done today” point and get in. Now I have to make my next appointment before I leave the salon.
With my skin tone and the color my gray comes in I look bald if I don’t color.
My D goes to another salon in our area. She pays over $200 for the balayge type of highlights plus a trim.
GJ has their own training school, and their salons are known for consistent quality, so I highly recommend them if you are in Seattle area.