Don't fool yourselves and go to Supercuts or MasterCuts or your local Filipino beauty salon. Just don't do it. Instead, make an appointment at a local cosmetology school.
Oh, me?! Well, now that you've asked, I've been going to
Marinello. (If you click the link, it'll take you to their locations page.) Nonetheless,
why a cosmetology school?
As a brokeback college student, I want to spend money as minimal as possible. Tuition, room and board, blah, blah, blah. Not only do I already get to pick and choose what I eat (and it doesn't hurt to have a boyfriend and his family to be with!), I already save a lot, so why not save more? Cosmetology schools offer cheap prices, for one thing. I got my hair cut and a blow out for $16, including tip. And it doesn't stop at hair cuts. Some cosmetology schools may offer services from hair dying, styling, face make up, manis and medis, and even waxing. Because the services offered are provided by learning and working students, their prices are
much cheaper and well worth your cheap pennies.
Here are more benefits:
- From my own experiences, getting a cheap haircut (<$20ish) doesn't require or motivate my hair stylist to talk to me, let alone be calm and open minded to the point where they would care about what I have to say about cats or the weather outside. I don't know if it's the idea of remorse if student hair stylists are trying to butter me up in case they fuck up, but I love a decent conversation, even if we're just talking about how they wanted to pursue cosmetology.
- Cosmetology students are in tune with the latest styles. Forgive me for going to a local Filipino salon for my prom hair and makeup. I wish I took a picture that afternoon to show you the disaster. Over hairsprayed (it might as well have been gelled) "chignon" and with a face as white as my blog, I rushed to Marinello, knowing a friend that attended there at the time. Not only did they take care of me right away and know exactly what I wanted, they knew how to keep the look updated and kept me lookin' like the youngin' I am.
- They strive for greatness. I know. Corny. No, but really, the students ask you for what you want and make sure through the process, that you get exactly what you want. Every step they take (usually with a supervisor checking in from time to time), they'll double and even triple check that what they're about to do is what you want. As far as I'm concerned, they're students, and they want to do the best they possibly can to satisfy their clients and their supervisors to stay in school.
- Lastly, yous a guinea pig!! Not only do you leave with a great new 'do, you help their students learn and practice and become the professionals you overpay in the world, but for much cheaper. Plus, if you meet a student that does a great job, keeping in touch may help you get even better cuts in the future after they graduate.
However, these benefits do need to be taken with caution. Remember. These are students. Here are just some tips to survive your cosmo' experience.
- Your service will take longer than done professionally. If you schedule an appointment, I'd advise you to have a good few hours of time cushioning, depending on how "complex" you want your look to be. It took about nearly three hours for me to get my hair shampooed and conditioned, cut, and styled—athough, this can be a benefit to you and the student. You obviously don't want the student to rush and give you a less than perfect job (to say the least).
- You need to be clear, assertive, and picture-ready. Be transparent about what you want! If you don't and you leave the student guessing, it could be a hit or miss about the results you get. Assertion is necessary. Creativity doesn't hurt—in fact, it's amazing. But remember your initial vision and be strong about you want. Lastly, bring a picture. It doesn't hurt to print a picture of the look you want to achieve—moreover, it's helpful. Not only does it give you a peace of mind that your subdued verbal skills can be relieved, but it gives the student an better idea of what you want and how they can make it work for you.
- Lastly, take all of this with a grain of salt.
I'm not a beauty guru let alone a guru anything, but it's good to know there are options out there to looking expensive for a cheap price. Good luck!
