h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My dear daughter came home sobbing today.

She had texted me that her hair had split ends, and we agreed that she book an appointment, but not the most expensive salon. Which she internpreted as "find a cheap salon", bless her.

So she went to book a time, and was almost kidnapped, sat down and a dude from the back room was called out. She pointed at a picture, said "like that but not as short". And indicated less than an inch with her fingers, to only trim the ends.

The young man lopped off chunks, and about four inches (not one). She said "not shorter" but apparently he spoke next to none Swedish, and my daughter could not understand him. She tried to stop him, but he just said "same, same" and kept cutting.

And being young and intimidated she didn't dare protest, but paid, left and came home. It was a style that might have suited a frumpy public service woman of fifty, not a sixteen-year-old. Uneven, chunky, not cute in any way. And she had wanted to let her hair get long. She was so sad, and me too.

As soon as she had calmed down, I said "let's go and at least get the money back". But they had closed for the night. We went to a shopping center where there is a salon open til eight, but they had no openings tonight.

So I've spent about an hour and a half, smoothing out the unevenness, cutting back the chunkiest part, and even trimming the back of her head really short.

In the end, she found my efforts accptable, she even said she felt pretty again (after three hours of feeling very ugly). It feels better for me too, but she still wanted long hair. Poor one.

What a horrible experience, I feel for your daughter.

You should try to sue them. It's Körperverletzung (bodily harm).

Awww, it'll grow out again - give her a from me.

Bad haircuts are a nightmare - had my hair cut *very* short once, which wasn't at all what I had planned. And this was done by a hair dresser who *did* speak and understand Swedish!

Really short hair doesn't suit me at all, since it's thin and flat and absolutely straight.

Actually, what I did to create some volume might w*rk for your daughter too (depending on which effect she's looking for):

While your hair is still wet after washing it, rub hair jelly between your fingers, bend over so that your hair is hanging down and pull your fingers through your hair, all the way from the roots (that's the volume creating part) to the tops.

Allow to self-dry before messing with it.

It's pretty now, just not growing long as she had planned
Thanks all! She is just now typing up a blog entry about it...
And she likes the style now, and is happy again

You did a good job then.

I did exactly the same when I was a teenager. I had no idea what I was doing so I just let the hairdresser do whatever they wanted. Ah well, we all live and learn. Well done for turning a disaster into a success.

All the advice I can give is "the right boys will love her no matter what"

Believe me, I used to be a boy!

Glad things are OK now.

Rather than dwelling on my own experience of hatchet-jobs at the hands of the profession; I offer what I hope you may find to be a humorous David Mitchell video on the subject.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWEa5__ROJg

Pierce, she said just that last night, it's just the girls that care about hair, the boys just don't see hairstyles. Their focus is a little lower. Chest height or so.

Stealth, that bloke is spot on. For me too! It must be a year since I had it trimmed... half a year? And they always ask.

Reminds me of when I were a lad and went to the local village for a haircut. There was a new barber there, foreign (turned out to be Spanish)

I told hiim what stylev I wanted ('college bot' front; Boston back)... and came away with a crew cut!!!

I was extremely upset and came home in tears. My Dad took me back to make a complaint. Barber couldn't understand what all the fuss was about, "In Spain all boys have crew cuts!"

re 9:

Don't overestimate the fact that looks mean more to males than they do to females. Which I believe is essentially true. *Initially*!

I truly believe it is a myth that all males are overly fascinated with for instance chests and the sizes thereof.

Guys may talk a lot about them, but in the end your average sensible guy will go for something completely different.

Sure, a nice figure will catch your eyes at first, but a nice face, a smile, a certain charm is what really counts.

Many are the times when i met the perfect woman - until she opened her mouth and said things that instantly made me lose any interest whatsoever!

Don't worry, Pierce, we know what you mean.

Follow up:

The next day, we went back to the salon, to complain, to say that it's not ok when the stylist can't communicate with the customer (didn't speak swedish at all), when trim turns in to whack. And mainly to let them know we're not happy.

But the owner came, and basically yelled at *us* for being wrong, not able to say what she wanted, for her changing her mind (well, if it's too short already wouldn't you want a pretty but short cut rather than ugly and short? Not that it was pretty anyway...) and claiming that they cut it like on the picture she indicated. No way in h*ll was it anywhere near that picture when she came home...

So. If you're in Lund, don't go to Delals salon, between Åhléns and Botulfsplatsen.

Okay

Mainly to your first line of course