new thread
To begin, I'll say today's visit to the salon (in 4 years) was nothing short of a complete success and an absolute blast!
I left the house an hour before the appointment to give myself enough time to get lost in downtown KC and find the place, arriving right on schedule (grin). Interestingly enough, the place has changed quite a bit since they first started advertising 6 years ago. When they started back then, they had more business than they knew what to do with. I'd never been there before today, so I never had a chance to experience what they were like back then. Oh, well...
Today, the salon is in -- get this -- a HOUSE! That's right. The salon moved from the traditional very salon-like setting in a leased part of a strip mall and is now in an old, 3-story white house in the heart of Westport (a very eclectic area of downtown KCMO), complete with a large porch and a driveway with grass parking space in back. Their staff has also changed quite a bit. Only the owner is there now, hence the name change from Salon Designz (not a typo) to Suzie's Salon Designz (but still the LONG hair specialists).
Upon entering, I was greeted by the very welcome aroma of incense cool sounds of Prog Rock from the 70's/80's. I was instantly comfortable. Very personal, very homey. What used to be the living room is the lounge/customer service counter (the desk is on the right), the dining room is the main salon, the kitchen is still the kitchen, and the sink (only one) is in the bathroom (she had the original sink replaced with one designed for salons), and the other rooms are whatever they are (wasn't any reason to enter them). I was greeted by Suzie (also the owner, VERY nice woman) who said she'd be with me in a little bit and asked if I'd like some coffee while I waited. I declined, thanking her for the offer, and took a seat in the sofa to the left of the entrance.
During my wait for her other customer to finish, another man came in who made me wish to the gods I'd had a camera with me. He was very tall (at least 6 ft), and had a head of some of the most gorgious hair I have ever seen in person on any man. It was exceptionally long, all one length (just a few inches past his waist), straight as a bone, and dark brown. I found out his name was Nick when Suzie greeted him. Otherwise, we didn't actually talk ( He didn't look to be in the mood for conversation). He would've made a fantastic addition to this site's gallery.
Roughly 20 minutes had past and it was my turn. We went into the bathroom where she gave my hair a very soothing washing (there really is something to be said for the feel of someone else's hands in your hair, especially when they're washing it). We introduced ourselves at this point, and hit it off big. She finished washing, then directed me into the main salon and picked out a chair for me (for some reason, she has 5 chairs, but she's the only staff there (everyone else has either left for other careers or she fired them for drug abuse)).
As we continued talking, she fastened my hair up with barretts and shaved the back of my neck (an added bonus for cuts). I inquired about the history of the place since I'd never been there before and was expecting it to look like it did in their first commercials, and she shared the tale of its somewhat scarred history with wonderfully funny anecdotes and a wickedly smart whit (she's got a GREAT sense of humor).
After the preliminary cleanup, she took my hair down and began the task of trimming it up, giving me some very useful advice on how to keep it neat, clean, and healthy. I also found out that the perm I got when my hair was still shoulder-length has already grown out, which means the curls near the lower half of my hair are NATURAL! YES! This is SUCH a trip to know for me, because the really cool "wild" look they give my hair are there to STAY! YEAH!!!
In about 20 minutes she was finished,
let me inspect the results, and I must say they are OUSTANDING! She did EXACTLY what I told her to do, and made me a VERY satisfied and soon-to-be repeat customer. I paid for the job and bought some the shampoo and condioner she'd used to wash my hair. When I asked her how often I should visit with my length, and she suggested once every four months. She also advised me to only wash two or three times/per week, otherwise I risk stripping it of its natural oils and increasing the likelyhood of breakage. I then thanked her for a top rate job and left, looking very forward to returning again four months from now (and not getting lost. ;) ).
Oddly enough, I didn't feel the least bit uneasy about the visit. Then again, my desire to have healthier, neater looking hair overshadowed any hesitation I might've had to follow through with the trim. I was more excited about getting rid of the damage than I was paranoid of the possibility of a botched hair cut. She truely is a LONG hair specialist.
The shampoo and conditioner she used are:
Brand: KMS Haircare
Nefa Shampoo - Nutrient-Enriched For Chemically-Treated Hair.
Siler Reconstructor - Detangler For All Hair Types
Total for the pair: $28.
Both are highly concentrated, and for hair lengths similar to mine she suggests only about the size of a quarter full to start, applied to every inch of hair.
Until next time!
I'm really looking forward to seeing the outcome. I'm glad it went well. Sorry I can't see it in person.
I hope to see more hair salons that specialize in men's long hair. I miss the enjoyment of having a woman washing and doing things with my hair at a hair salon.
I quit going to regular salons for men and women because the pleasure of having my hair handled had too many side effects. The major problem was my hair wasn't getting longer. A minor problem was I couldn't figure out how much of a tip was reasonable. Many years ago I tried a perm. Having my hair permed was very enjoyable, especially when she would wash, brush, gently pull my hair, separate it into small strands and put in on rods or curlers. But the side effects of the perm made my hair dry and brittle.
I hope to see more hair care places that specialize in keeping long hair long and healthy. Then I may try professional hair care again.