The Salon Experience - R Salon & Spa

In my previous post, I mentioned my lack of salon experience and expertise.  I'm not ashamed of my lack of knowledge, but it does hurt me at times.  About seven months ago, I visited R Salon & Spa in Myrtle Beach, and I was very happy with my treatment.  A nice gentleman named Everett game me a nice hair cut and some beautiful color.  I had a stranger stop me in Disney to comment on my  hair.  Everett was also kind enough to give me some suggestions to help me style my hair a bit more, but they were simple enough that I could follow them.  He directed me to a product that would help keep my ends nice, but he didn't try to sell me on it.  He actually just used it, and I asked what it was.  It was a great experience which caused me to go back.  Unfortunately, my return visit didn't go so well.

Let me say up front that I got a nice haircut and a good color job when I returned.  What I didn't get was the same treatment I expected.  See, I made a last minute appointment, so I couldn't specify that I would have liked to see Everett.  This was completely my fault, but I expected the other people working there to be as talented as he was.  I was wrong.

They young lady who took care of me was very friendly, but she lacked certain skills one would expect from a hair stylist.  Some problems were beyond her control, while others may have been subject to her sway.  At no point in time did she make me feel stupid or silly, but she did cause me a bit of pain.

She began by discussing color with me, and I pretty much gave her free reign.  I knew I wanted a red, but I wasn't overly picky.  I let her know that a purple red wouldn't work for me, as I work in a bank.  Aside from that, I was pretty pliable.  She chose a color that she felt would compliment me and make my eyes pop.  I believe she did a good job picking the color.  While it is a bit darker than I am comfortable with, it does look nice.  I applaud her to encouraging me to try it.

The first problem arose when she was applying the color.  She kept pulling my hair something fierce.  I didn't complain, as I know how unruly my hair can be.  Besides, I know she's doing her best.  No one intentionally causes pain to a customer.  I did notice that she was very thorough when applying the color though, which made me feel better.

She had taken a client who gave even less notice than myself, and it was very nice of her to take care of that lady.  It made for a long wait for me though, as she had to wash the other girl's hair out and do her cut while my dye set.  I happened to be reading reddit on my phone, so I was paying attention to the time.  I sat about fifteen minutes extra.  As far as I know, that's not too bad for my hair, but it was boring.  I must say that the other girls color and cut looked great.

When it was my turn again, the stylist washed my hair to remove the excess dye then took me back to the chair to dry and cut my hair.  Now, I have incredibly fine hair.  I have had it all my life, so I've learned to deal with it.  After shampooing and conditioning my hair, I have to use a wide tooth comb to get the tangles out of my hair.  Mind you, I am very cautious when washing my hair, as I try to avoid causing tangles in the first place.  I cannot run a brush through my hair until it is dry.

For some reason, the stylist had no idea how to work with fine hair.  She immediately grabbed a brush and started trying to brush my wet hair.  I know it was pulling and breaking.  It was very, very uncomfortable.  It didn't hurt, as she was very good at gripping it and only brushing below where she had hold of it.  Unfortunately, it still wasn't the right way to deal with my hair.  I spent the whole time worrying about how bad it was for me.  At one point, she commented that her boyfriend has dreadlocks and that you sometimes just have to get in there and go for it.  I would like to think that my fine hair, while a pain to deal with when wet, is nothing like dreadlocks.

After getting past the nightmare of dealing with my wet tresses, the stylist moved on to cutting my hair.  She did an excellent job, putting me in more of a blunt cut, which makes my hair look thicker.  She kept some layers around my face, which I really like.  All in all, the cut is great, just like the color.

The final nail in the coffin for R Salon & Spa was when it came time to pay.  For reference, when Everett did my hair seven months ago, I tipped him 20% and bought the product he used on my hair.  I believe the product was around $15, but it could have been more.  My total, including a 20% tip and a product was $121.  I know because I looked it up.  My total with the young lady I most recently saw was $115 before tip.  I complained in my previous salon post that I hate not having prices listed.  It is shady, and it doesn't seem right.  Maybe it's my fault for not discussing it up front, but I didn't expect a huge jump in price for a stylist that seemed less experienced.

Now, I'm sure some of my comments illustrate just how little I know about salons and how they work.  I know in some salons that the stylist rent chairs and choose what they want to charge, but it seems so inappropriate to haggle price for services.  For a hair cut and all over color, I was charged $115.  At the time, I thought it a bit high, but I wasn't too bothered.  It wasn't until I looked up what I was charged last time that I began to be truly upset.  Upon retelling my tale to others, I was assured that the price I was charged was ridiculously high.  I know Gio's Hair Design II in State College, PA has been kind enough to do my hair twice.  Both times, it was much less than $115 dollars.  The one time, it was around a hundred for my cut and color and a haircut for Mark.  They staff there was amazing too.  I wish I could find a salon like that down here.

In the future, I will renew my search for a salon that I am comfortable in.  My first experience with R Salon & Spa was wonderful, but this last trip left a bad taste in my mouth.*  The stylist I had gave me a nice cut and some good color, but she didn't strike me as overly knowledgeable about dealing with different hair types.  couple that inexperience with a high price tag, and I'll be looking elsewhere for my salon services.

*Jokes about a bad taste in my mouth will not be tolerated.