BSL+ ladies: Who Does Hair Themself & Who Goes to Salon?

[deejoy]

My hair is fine and I'm going to start self relaxing again tomorrow. That was pretty much the only reason I went to the salon so I may only go for rare occasions. I retained a lot of thickness the last time I self relaxed and stopped going to salons.

 

[Divine Inspiration]

You make such compelling arguments, DI!!!! I was nodding all hard as i read thru this post. You are right tho......... i think im gonna have to just start pumping iron and get my arms ready to do my rollersets on the regular. Because as u said, my hair is just going to get longer, and im only going to feel more and more frustrated as time goes on.

Yep. Have you considered pincurls to get you over the learning hump? It's a wonderful alternative to rollersetting that will give you body and curls that resemble a rollerset. Also, it can be done on airdried hair.

I really like the look of rollersets on my hair, but I seriously do not have the patience to do it with any consistency. Plus, the last time I tried rollersetting, my hair was too long for my arms to pull the hair tight around the roller...it was super uncomfortable to be trying to Stretch Armstrong myself to get it just right...and that was just one roller!

So I guess I'm just reminding you that there are plenty of things for you to experiment with at home.

 

[KiniKakes]

Yep. Have you considered pincurls to get you over the learning hump? It's a wonderful alternative to rollersetting that will give you body and curls that resemble a rollerset. Also, it can be done on airdried hair.

I really like the look of rollersets on my hair, but I seriously do not have the patience to do it with any consistency. Plus, the last time I tried rollersetting, my hair was too long for my arms to pull the hair tight around the roller...it was super uncomfortable to be trying to Stretch Armstrong myself to get it just right...and that was just one roller!

So I guess I'm just reminding you that there are plenty of things for you to experiment with at home.

Hmm,well i pincurl at night now sometimes to maintain my rollersets.

But how do you propose drying it after a wash? Do you dry with pincurls? Or, you mean airdry in a ponytail.... then pincurl to get the fullness/body?

 

[sareca]

I'm not BSL. Actually, I'm not even APL anymore, but I still don't trust anybody to be gentle with my hair. The one person that was moderately gentle used way to much setting lotion and I had a lot of breakage anyway.

ETA: I actually think it's more important the shorter your hair. If you've got BSL and they tear off an inch or so your hair is still long. At SL it can be devasting!

 

[KiniKakes]

Last December when I took down my minibraids I hated having people help me because they were so rough in getting through any knots and tangles in my hair.

Omg, i hear that girl!!!! When i take out my braids, as looooong and time-consuming a task, i just suck it up and do it alone....... because i cant afford to lose all that hair on the account of some rough, careless girlfriends!!!! Thats one reason why i just dont get the tiny braids anymore. So not worth it!

 

[Angelicus]

I want to go to a salon but they don't do anything right. If my hair comes out looking a mess, I want to be the reason for it.

 

[LocksOfLuV]

Err, uhhh, ummm..... weeeelllll......

Once upon a time, in college (when my hair was about shoulder length), i did manage to do a few shoddy rollersets, because i couldnt afford to go to the salon. But we're talking about 10 years ago now. *sigh* So...... lets just say its been a while!!!! Im gonna straight be stalking Macherieamour, and other's, Foktis to get myself ready for this. *smh*

So who has good roller setting tutorials in their Fokti? Could ya'all throw out some names for a sista?!!

I haven't seen any good guides to help me, but Lonei has good concise pics of her rollers which helped me. Then Sareca posted this (http://www.texastandi.unt.edu/curriculum/lessons/cosmetology/roller_place/roller_place.pdf) and it is the bomb for me lol.

 

[LocksOfLuV]

Okay Kini. You got all of those good advice and you can DO IT!

I know you can.

I wish we had dominicans in Cincinnati. Anyways, I am not gonna lie to you, when I did a rollerset it was so beasty! Girl my arms were so tired and I was rough handling my hair.erplexed A mess.

And your hair is longer than mines, so prepare to do it, on a day that you have free time and you aren't tired. Really sit down and take your time. Next time you go to the salon, just watch them and their technique.

 

[Summer_Rain]

Now there are entirely TOO MANY resources on these boards for any of this to ever be a problem! Ya'll NY ladies need to get together every other weekend and have a roller-setting party. Rotate on who brings the snacks, who brings the supplies, and who's playing hostess!!! lol

 

[bablou00]

I am no where near BSL but I have learned the hard way to start taking care of my own hair. There is one stylist that I will go to but she is in my hometown KC. She is great and she takes her time and listens. When I go to people here in the ville....all hell breaks lose or let me say my HAIR!! They comb your hair like your some rag doll. Yeah you might have more NG then most but can you take an extra 5mins w/ my hair and can u not use the smallest comb you own....dang!!! I know its more time consuming when we do our own hair but I will suffer to keep my hair on my head.

 

[IntoMyhair]

I have been doing my own hair for about 4 years. I'm coming up on my first year of taking care of it though.

 

[brickhouse]

I am bsl and the only time I go to my stylist is for a touchup. I have learned how to do rollersets but I just don't feel like doing them anymore. My arms are long but they get tired. I don't think I am even doing properly because I cannot get my roots straight. I think I am just going to start going to a vocational school and let them rollerset. I don't have a problem with a stylist handling my hair rough. I bring my own detangling combs and I will speak up if I have to. I am trying to get to waist length so I will just probably be doing protective styles anyway for a while.

 

[alexstin]

After, I moved I said I was gonna start doing my hair myself(relaxers). When we moved into our apartment I realized the water pressure was too low and so I went to one of the salons recommended on here because I was about 18 weeks post. It was an awful experience! I lost a lot of hair and I think my hair is still suffering the effects almost a year later. Never again! If my hair is gonna be messed up, I'm not going to pay someone to do it.erplexed So now my DH does my relaxer. We do it in two sections. We're still learning how much to smooth and what not. We've gone 2 relaxers and the last one came out better than the first. I won't go back to the salon. They(for the most part) do not care about hair health. I could care less about that salon fresh look. Whatever! I'm so over that.

I definitely know what you're talking abou, Kini. My old stylist started becoming alot rougher as my hair got longer. They are so lazy!!!

ETA: Please ignore the the title of this thread......... i am opening this up to ANYONE who has dealt with rough stylists and, thus, considered doing their hair at home.

Ladies, I want to know how many of you do your own hair at home...... and how many of you still go to a salon for your roller sets?

Im wondering because, the longer my hair gets, the more i dread going in for a wash/set. It seems that VERY few stylists have the patience and know-how to detangle and rollerset long hair (esp. hair that is fine/thin like mine!) I just cringe sometimes at how rough the stylists are...... and how much hair comes out in the process. Of course, there's going to be natural shedding...... but i know that if they were just a bit more gentle/patient, i wouldnt lose all the hair that i do.

For a long time, ive been resisting doing my own rollersets at home. 1) Because im so lazy, and rollersetting my own hair tires me out and 2) Its sooo cheap to just zip down the street to the Dominicans ($15)

But as I hit MBL and approach WL, I am wondering if i should just stop being lazy and wash/rollerset on my own. (I do have a free-standing dryer at home). I just dont want to keep losing so much hair at the hands of others, when i really am capable of doing my own wash/rollersets. I hate the idea of giving up my weekly salon visits............ but if it means losing less hair, and eventually gaining thicker hair in the long run, than i gotta do what i gotta do!

So I was just wondering........ what do other long-haired ladies do?

 

[spiceykitten]

Kinki:

I do my own hair. I am midback length. I do miss the fact that a stylist can get my hair extremely straight in 45 minutes but there is too much drama at the hair salons for me.

It took me 4 years to learn how to flat iron but guess what I rather have spent 4 years trying then have no hair on my head. Now if I can learn to do my flat ironing fastererplexed

 

[planodiva]

I am reaching armpit length so I'm still trying to keep up with all of you ladies. However, I love my stylist and it is such a treat visiting her and letting her care for my hair. My hair has actually flourished under her care. I say just keep looking for a great stylist and not a Dominican salon.

Weekly visits to the salon are like therapy.

 

[SweetCaramel1]

i'm a do-it-yourselfer! i have been tainted by the salons as well. one year a stylist left bleach on my hair for 45 minutes! and i was a regular (every 2-3 weeks). i swore up and down since then i would never let anyone touch my hair again. i've recovered somewhat and have been to the salon 7 times since then (in 5 years). 3 times were to get hairstyles for my wedding

i really do need a good trim though and i can never get it even. i have a baby shower coming up and i want my hair to look good but i am so worried about the stylist cutting off 2-3 inches off because my hair "needs" it . i'm just really noid right now. i guess i'll go on wednesday and get my ends trimmed and pray they don't go butcher on me

oh and kini $15 bucks is sooooooooooooooooo cheap. if i could find that around here i would be so tempted to go all the time i know how to do different styles for my hair but its a luxury to have someone else do it for you. but i'm so sure you can master the rollerset and other techniques given on the board. i've been doing my hair since i was a teen. all it takes is a little time and patience. besides no one will care about your hair like you do. looking forward to seeing your new styles.

 

[~*~ShopAholic~*~]

I do my hair at home. But I think if you still would like to go to the salon just do your own detangling w/your own combs and you should be fine, hopefully they won't mind.

When I did take a trip to a friends salon that's what I did because she was just a little too quick and rough on others strands for my taste, so I told her I would do it myself. They laughed and looked at me weird but hey, it's my hair and nobody cares about it or for it like I would.

 

[miss coco]

I used to go to the dominican salons religiously every week until I had a cousin of mine who told me she washed and rollerset her own hair. That inspired me to pay closer attention to the way my hair stylist rollerset my hair and the hair of other clients. There were even times when I saw my hair dresser rollerset her own hair when she had some free time.
It's going to take a lot of trial and error. The first time I tried to do it at home I nearly cried because I was not used to handling rollers. The second time I tried it still took me a while to finish but I was more familiar with what I was doing. By the third time, I was a pro. I still go to the hair dresser for touch-ups every two months but it feels wonderful knowing that I'm not dependent on her to wash my hair.
My advice to you is to not give up. You may not get it right on the first try but it takes practice. Like you I have very fine hair so I feel that only I can handle my hair the way it should be handled. Good luck!

 

[Proudpiscean]

I rarely go to salons for this very reason! They are entirely too rough.....and I am currently nursing a dime-size bald spot right near the front of my hairline from a stylist getting too rough with a brush and blowdryer-right after relaxing me last month; luckily the hair is filling back in quickly!
I am taking charge and learning to relax & style my own hair. I'm gonna be stalking fotki's to learn how to rollerset

 

[prettypuff1]

In general, I do it myself. I was going to a salon monday, but i think i can do a good job at home. I havent found anyone yet who is light with the comb and i am afraid to go to a BS and lose my length...

 

[camellia]

I've had my hair done in a salon only a handful of times. Most stylists want to cut my hair or simply don't want to deal with the length. Besides, I wear buns most the time anyway and I can put my hair up in a bun for free and in less than 2 minutes.

Rollersets are another matter though. I can NOT rollerset my own hair. I love the way big bouncy curls look but all of my roller setting attempts ended in disaster, with my arms aching and my hair half undone. I wonder how much it would cost to have my hair rollerset in a salon...

 

[RubyWoo]

I do my hair myself and I love it! I had to teach myself to rollerset but after numerous attempts, I finally got it. I'm finding that the more that I do it, the easier it is. I found macherieamour's journal helpful in addition to numerous threads in this forum and DLewis's fotki. It takes time and patience but you can do it! I also finally learned to wrap thanks to those expertvillage videos that were posted here..whew. So I was able to do a rollerwrap and it came out so nice. Anyhoo, the benefits of doing my hair at home is that I can do my hair in the comfort of my home, convenience, save money and do what I want with my hair and treat it the way I want it to be treated. I've never had a negative experience at the salon. However, the amount of time it takes to get my hair done in there...lol..heck naw...tooo long and I can get pretty irritated if I'm kept waiting. I'd rather not deal with that and do my own hair on my time.

There are times where I would like to get a professional rollerset just to pamper myself. I plan to the salon to get a rollerwrap in the fall or on my birthday as a treat to myself. I'm just going to make sure I'm dealing with someone that understands my needs and will treat my hair with care.

 

[Maa Maa omo mti]

Had a bad experience last year which almost left me bald at one side of my hair. I vowed not to go back. I did try DS for a while and she was ok till her prices seems to be too much. In April I did try the DS again different salon and vowed never to go back. Since last year I've been doing my own hair except for the occassional visits. Because I took care of my hair since nov. I got my thickness back and it's very healthy.

Often times salon hair is not the healthiest we can all attest to that. It will initially be a challenge but you will get used to it, do your own hair.

 

[Lucia]

I don't trust stylist anymore, I really would have to audition a stylist before I'd let 1 touch my hair. I do it all myself, trimm, deep condition, flat iron. The only people I would even think to let touch my hair are those cheapie $12 haircut places and there would be a detailed convo and me physically showing them where on my body I want my hair cut before the scissors came out.

 

[Maestradiva77]

I am a DIY as well.

 

[macherieamour]

Hi Kini!!

I do it myself too! I dont like salons b/c:

1) They dont handle my hair as gently
2) They dont use the products I like
3) They dont set the way I like to set (i.e. using liquid leave-in to re-wet instead of water which is my preference)
4) Tell me to my face the way I set is wrong....Im like, a half hour ago you were telling my how healthy and well taken care of my hair was )
5) Time- I hate stressing about when I can fit in a hair appointment
6) If im done under the dryer, I HATE waiting for her to finish the other head she took while I was in the last 15 minutes of drying


I love doing my own hair because:
1) I can use my kooky conditioner combos
2) I can set my hair at 2am if I want
3) I invested in a professional dryer (pibbs 514, xmas present from the fam) and I can set the temperature. I sit under it at 50 degree which feels like a spa instead of the atomic temperatures they usually have on
4) My pibbs stands upright so I can study or read comfortably
5) I save THOUSANDS of dollars which I can put towards buying a house...or shoes,lol
6) NO one does my hair better than me
7) Because i do my hair myself, I have an excuse to be a pj

I can go on forever

 

[smuice]

I hear ya girl!!!!!!

You never said it better, some stylists just do not educate themselves to understand just how delicate Black hair types can be, I stopped going to the salon to get my weaves done when they attempted to comb my thick afro hair wit a fine tooth comb! My hair accused me of murder!!

I take my time doing my hair and just thank God I can now do my own weaves braids etc!

 

[RZILYNT]

I do everything myself, except relax/retouch. The stylist does not "finish" my hair. I leave with it wet so that I can continue with my regimen at home.

RZ~

 

[Cleve_gryl]

I rarely go to salons for this very reason! They are entirely too rough.....and I am currently nursing a dime-size bald spot right near the front of my hairline from a stylist getting too rough with a brush and blowdryer-right after relaxing me last month; luckily the hair is filling back in quickly!
I am taking charge and learning to relax & style my own hair. I'm gonna be stalking fotki's to learn how to rollerset

This is the same reason I stopped going to my salon . After I got home and saw I was bald on my temple from the blowdry after my touch up, I said NO MORE (and I paid $105) and decided to take matters into my own hands...I'm soooo much happier now.

 

[bauderlady]

I've been DIY since I came to this board. There's no way a stylist could be as patient and gentle with my hair as I can. I learned how to rollerset, and I doubt I'll ever need to go back to the salon for anything!

Oh my goodness! I am gonna stalk your fotki like crazy! Your hair is simply incredible!