The Black Hair Salon has been one of the mainstays in the Black community since the beginning...it's the place where you find out who's doing what in the church, down the street, and even in the next city...it's the place where you go not only JUST to get your hair done, but also to enjoy lively conversation with the cackling beautician...
I went to go get my hair straightened at a place locally and had mixed feelings about the place...yes, all the traditional elements were there, but I think sometimes we forget that there are some elements that need to go!! If I make an appointment for 1:30...I kinda expect you to be ready to do my hair at....(drumroll please) 1:30. Not sitting in the waiting area for about 20 minutes while I wait for you to get back from getting lunch. Not cool at all. I only tried this place at the recommendation of a friend of a friend because she said the hairdresser "specialized" in natural hair. Maybe she does normally specialize in natural hair. All I know is, my hair was roughly washed and detangled from the roots (a definite no-no; this only makes tangles worse). On the other hand, I normally "baby" my hair...if I'm frustrated, I will not detangle my hair because I know I'll end up ripping out a section. My mother has baby pictures of a two- y/o me holding a cornrow I had ripped out of my head! lol Then she plaited my hair and sat me under the dryer (use of heat #1) for about 30 minutes; after my 30 minutes, I waited until she finished taking the rollers out of 1 of the 3 clients in the small shop...and then waited again as she put a relaxer in a girl's head with one hand and ate chicken fingers with the other. By this point, I was furiously texting one of my girls while almost holding myself down in the chair to keep from bolting out the shop, Ms. Seely plaits and all! However, I swallowed hard and politely asked..."Ms. ***, What time do you expect to be done with my hair?" "HMMMM, *pause* about 4:30." At least she was pretty accurate with the time. Once she got me in the chair, she blow-dried (heat use #2), pressed (heat use #3), and flat-ironed (heat use #4) my hair....I rarely use heat on my head so I was incredibly concerned about heat damage... I got out from an appointment at 1:30 at 4:45 in the end...
So, my conclusion is that, even though I do want to support the black business and the end result was good (I will post pictures)....I will not be back for several reasons: disregard for my appointment time (yes, I understand they need to eat), overbooking clients (yes, I understand they need to hustle), too much heat (I'm paranoid), and too much time wasted. Beauty shops, if you want good, faithful clients, please be respectful of their time and schedules...I'll be taking my business elsewhere.
One last thing!! Getting my hair straightened revealed some DREADFUL ends!!! I will be bumping my trimmings up from every 4 months to every 3 months... :) Until next time!! :)
Please post comments and thoughts! :) I'd love to read them! :)
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