Ask hairdressers what makes a client difficult and almost none of them say demanding. They say vague. The gap between what a client pictures and what she describes is where bad haircuts are made, and it is closed with a small amount of vocabulary and one good photograph.
The words that mean something
- Length is measured from where it will end, not how much comes off. Say collarbone, chin, jaw, mid-back. Never say a couple of centimetres, which means five different things to five stylists.
- Layers add movement and remove weight. Long layers keep density and add swing. Short layers around the crown add volume and cannot be undone for a year. If you are unsure, ask for fewer.
- Texturising or point cutting thins the ends. On fine hair it can leave wispy ends that never look thick again; on very thick hair it is what makes a style wearable.
- Weight line is where the hair holds its density. Moving it up creates volume, moving it down creates a heavier, sleeker line. This is the single most useful phrase to learn.
- Face framing means the shortest pieces at the front. Specify where they start: cheekbone, jaw, chin.
A stylist cannot see the haircut in your head. Everything that goes wrong afterwards began in the ninety seconds before the gown went on.
The photograph rule
Bring three photographs, not one, and bring one of what you do not want. Choose images of hair with a similar texture and density to yours, since a cut that works on straight fine hair behaves completely differently on thick waves. Then say out loud which part of each photograph you are pointing at: the length in the first, the fringe in the second, the volume at the root in the third. Stylists are visual people working from an ambiguous brief; three images with commentary is a specification.
Four questions before the scissors
- How will this look on day three, unwashed? A cut that requires a blow-dry to make sense is a cut you will dislike four days a week.
- How long before it needs cutting again? A precise bob needs six weeks; long layers can run to four months. This is a budget decision as much as an aesthetic one.
- What will it do as it grows out? Good cuts have a pleasant intermediate stage. Ask what the awkward phase looks like.
- What do I need at home? If the answer is more than two products and one tool, ask for a version that needs less.
Colour, briefly and honestly
Two things determine whether colour looks expensive: how close the tone sits to your natural depth, and how the regrowth is handled. Colour within two shades of your own grows out gracefully and costs less over a year. Colour four shades away commits you to a salon appointment every five to six weeks, permanently, which for most people is 800 to 1,600 euro a year. Neither choice is wrong; only one of them is usually explained.
On grey, the honest position is that it is a preference rather than a problem. Growing it out takes twelve to eighteen months and is considerably easier with a shorter cut and a demi-permanent gloss in between. Covering it is a commitment renewed every month. Choose on how you want to spend your Saturdays.
Finding the right person
Look at the stylist’s own social feed for hair like yours, in texture and thickness rather than in style. Book a consultation before a cut if you are changing something significant; most good salons offer fifteen minutes free. And when you find someone who listens, tell them what worked and what did not at the next appointment. Hairdressing is a relationship, and the second cut from a good stylist is always better than the first.
Questions we get asked
How often should hair be cut?
Every six weeks for a precise short shape, eight to twelve for a mid-length cut, and up to sixteen for long hair where you only want the ends kept honest.
Does trimming make hair grow faster?
No. It grows at about one centimetre a month regardless. Trimming prevents splits from travelling up the shaft, which is why untrimmed long hair stops gaining length.
Is an expensive salon worth it?
For a significant change or for colour, frequently. For a maintenance trim on a shape that works, rarely. Many people are best served by an expensive cut twice a year and a competent local trim in between.
