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Hair thread trifecta: finding a stylist for curly hair

Kate of LokysKate of Lokys Registered User regular
edited January 2009 in Help / Advice Forum
My hair is... special.

It is extremely curly, extremely thick, and I have enough of it to carpet a small house. When I was in grade school, my nickname was 'Fro. In high school, from the beginning of October through November 1, complete strangers would stop me on the street to compliment me on my Cher costume. If I ever shaved my head for cancer fundraising, there would be enough densely fibrous material on the barbershop floor to provide full, luxurious wigs to an even dozen chemotherapy patients.

For long months now - years, more like - my hair and I have regarded each other with the watchful distrust of enemy nations in a position of mutually assured destruction. I don't fuck with my hair, and it doesn't fuck with me, because if either of us started anything, shit would get ugly real fast. I just toss it back in a ponytail every day (or maybe I twist it up into a bun, if I'm feeling fancy), and in return, it refrains from going all wild-and-frizzy-afro on me. Getting it cut has historically been traumatic for everyone involved - I had some really bad haircuts when I was a kid - so even now that I'm an adult, I find it just about impossible to trust anyone to do a good job on it.

But in defense of my paranoia, it's pretty much impossible to find anyone capable of doing a good job on it in the first place. As I said, it's special. It is not the typical wavy dark curl that might be expected from my English/Scottish ancestry. Nor, however, is it, well, African-Canadian in nature - it does not respond at all well to any of the various "For Women of Colour!" products I have tried in curiosity or desperation over the years. If anything, I would say it most closely resembles the hair of my old Jewish Eastern European neighbour in type and texture.

Now, to the point of my ramble: I need a goddamned haircut. It is just too thick to manage right now. I can't wear it down, because as soon as it dries, it fluffs out into attack mode like the fur on a scared cat's tail. I also have neither the time nor the inclination to get into advanced tactics like running a straightening iron over it for an hour every morning. I want to find a good hair stylist, somebody who knows their way around a Jewfro, and I want them to clear out the dense undergrowth and trim off the split ends and generally leave me with something I can run some light product through after stepping out of the shower, then leave the hell alone for the rest of the day.

The stylist will be able to make specific suggestions about the cut, once she sees my hair. The question is, how the hell do I find a good stylist? I just moved to this town in September, so I've only really gotten to know a few of my classmates. And none of the people I've gotten to know have thick, curly hair, so I can't really ask them for recommendations. Are there any tips to finding a good stylist? Do they have, I don't know, portfolios or anything ridiculous like that? Should I try to find one who has curly hair herself? Should I wander the streets asking random ringletted passers-by for advice? Would I be better off seeking somebody who specializes in ethnic hair, or would that be ridiculous? Help me, H/A!

Kate of Lokys on

Posts

  • ThylacineThylacine Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    You know...in this case I would recommend the stop a stranger and ask route. Just keep an eye out. Because if there's one thing all of us people with curly hair have in common(besides the horrible nick names...mine was Afropuff for awhile in middle school) it's having had bad hair cuts.

    My hair isn't as curly as yours, but I still have difficulty finding someone good to cut it. I got mine from a recommendation from a co-worker after I was in the same situation as you. I wanted to get it cut, and it was getting to be too much hair. I was refusing to cut it because I'd gone to J.C. Penny and they'd done an alright job on a friend's haircut...but I specifically asked if they had someone with experience with curly hair. They reassured me they did and I got handed off to some woman who did no more than hack my hair off at chin length and didn't put any layers in it at all(my hair needs layers very badly when it's shorter) and then charged me $30.

    For $30-$35 plus a tip I can go to a private salon, which is what I do now and the woman is great. Male friends are all like "WTF go to super cuts it's only $11, you're wasting your money"...but at least my husband understands.

    Anyway...round about way of saying, if you see someone with curly hair that you like...especially if it's someone with hair similar to yours, just ask. We all know how it is, and would be happy to help. ;)

    Thylacine on
  • The CatThe Cat Registered User, ClubPA regular
    edited January 2009
    Honestly, the 'ethnic hair' idea is probably pretty sensible. At least you have that option where you live :P but screw the straightening options unless you're playing around for a special occasion; they were invented to try and help people look 'white enough to pass', and fuck that. Hell, the ads for those products still frequently state outright that non-white women will be lonely and unemployed unless they try to look like Ann Coulter by buying their shit.

    One of my friends has hair that defaults to full-on ringlets (she can't actually get past a salesperson or stand in one place for more than ten minutes before hearing "OMFG is it real? can I touch it!?"*) and she actually found it easier to manage when she avoided washing it as long as possible, FWIW. You may get some mileage out of a really heavy conditioner or similar post-wash product if you can't stand trying that - itchy scalp can be a bitch.

    *the answer is "No".

    The Cat on
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  • WillethWilleth Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    The Cat wrote: »
    One of my friends has hair that defaults to full-on ringlets (she can't actually get past a salesperson or stand in one place for more than ten minutes before hearing "OMFG is it real? can I touch it!?"*) and she actually found it easier to manage when she avoided washing it as long as possible, FWIW.

    The only problem with that is that when people do want to touch it, it's unwashed hair.

    Depending on how long it is and how it's cut you might want to consider Locks of Love.

    Willeth on
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  • supabeastsupabeast Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    I have curly hair that turns into ringlets. And I long ago realized that curly hair offers the following options (Carrot-top hair not included):
    – Grow it out LONG, use conditioner often, and let the weight pull it down. The downsides are having a hot lions mane in August and everyone assuming you’re a pothead who works at a record store.
    – Have it chemically relaxed. It’s my understanding that this works best with African hair, and anyone else has a good chance of his hair falling out or breaking off. I have red hair that dries out from being shampooed more than three times a week, so no stylist would even do this for me.
    – Get it cut often and spend 20-30 minutes getting it into place every day with whatever it takes. Does not work on humid days.
    – Cut it SHORT. I started cutting it short back in 2000 and can’t be happier. I get it cut with a #2 blade on the sides/back and trimmed short on top as often as every other week. Saves me plenty of time. And a caesar cut hasn’t gone out of style for over 2,000 years.

    supabeast on
  • wasted pixelswasted pixels Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    supabeast wrote: »
    – Cut it SHORT. I started cutting it short back in 2000 and can’t be happier. I get it cut with a #2 blade on the sides/back and trimmed short on top as often as every other week. Saves me plenty of time. And a caesar cut hasn’t gone out of style for over 2,000 years.

    I... I do not think Kate of Lokys would look good with a Caesar. >_>

    wasted pixels on
  • ElrosstElrosst Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Honestly, it wouldn't hurt to start calling around to a few more "reputable" places in town (not supercuts) and ask if they have anyone experienced with cutting your specific type of hair. I had reaaaally curly hair when I was younger, and i've kept it long since I was about 16 to get the curls to relax a bit from the weight of the hair. By long, I mean almost shoulder length, and I'm a dude. I get alot of comments about being a hippie, or looking like a pothead, but whatever.

    Keep in mind, to get someone really good to cut your hair, you might pay some serious money. It's worth it. Ive always paid 50ish bucks w/o tip, but my hair is ridiculously easy to cut, and I only have to get it done every few months. And I've been dating the girl that cuts my hair, so lately, they've been free ;)

    Elrosst on
  • supabeastsupabeast Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    supabeast wrote: »
    – Cut it SHORT. I started cutting it short back in 2000 and can’t be happier. I get it cut with a #2 blade on the sides/back and trimmed short on top as often as every other week. Saves me plenty of time. And a caesar cut hasn’t gone out of style for over 2,000 years.

    I... I do not think Kate of Lokys would look good with a Caesar. >_>

    Yeah, not with a Caesar. But a pixie cut with some waves might work.

    supabeast on
  • EggyToastEggyToast Jersey CityRegistered User regular
    edited January 2009
    My wife's hair is pretty frizzy, but her sister's hair sounds exactly like yours -- frizz, kinked, poofy and difficult to manage to the point where she just keeps it long and tries to ignore it as best she can.

    Still, if you want some actual advice on styles or products, you should probably post a picture of the offending hair. If you're just looking for emotional support, then you need to simply ask around or track down a good stylist.

    EggyToast on
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  • DeathPrawnDeathPrawn Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    I too have exceedingly curly hair. I'd second the recommendations of asking whatever friends/random people you meet who have curly hair who they go to, as well as possibly just going into a quality private salon and inquiring about who has experience with curly hair. At the salon I go to, I just sort of bounced around from hairstylist to hairstylist until I found one who was able to give me a haircut I'm consistently happy with.

    DeathPrawn on
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  • VisionOfClarityVisionOfClarity Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    supabeast wrote: »
    – Cut it SHORT. I started cutting it short back in 2000 and can’t be happier. I get it cut with a #2 blade on the sides/back and trimmed short on top as often as every other week. Saves me plenty of time. And a caesar cut hasn’t gone out of style for over 2,000 years.

    I... I do not think Kate of Lokys would look good with a Caesar. >_>

    I know lots of girls with very short hair, boy styles if you will, who look very good.

    VisionOfClarity on
  • ThylacineThylacine Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    supabeast wrote: »
    supabeast wrote: »
    – Cut it SHORT. I started cutting it short back in 2000 and can’t be happier. I get it cut with a #2 blade on the sides/back and trimmed short on top as often as every other week. Saves me plenty of time. And a caesar cut hasn’t gone out of style for over 2,000 years.

    I... I do not think Kate of Lokys would look good with a Caesar. >_>

    Yeah, not with a Caesar. But a pixie cut with some waves might work.

    Pixie doesn't work well with this kind of hair. Most pixie cuts are straight, or a little bit wavy or loose curls at most. Thick curly hair tends to just stick out everywhere rather than lay down in a style.

    Thylacine on
  • bowtiedsealbowtiedseal Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    You might try looking at this website to see if they have reviews of any salons in your area; the site also has a section that reviews products. Google no 'poo or no shampoo if you're interested in the method The Cat mentioned.

    http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlsalons

    bowtiedseal on
  • HK5HK5 Registered User regular
    edited January 2009
    Yelp reviews have never steered me wrong for stylists.

    HK5 on
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