There’s nothing like the feeling of walking out of the salon feeling 10lbs. lighter and full of sass!  I’ve been itching for a haircut for several weeks now, and just haven’t found the time to go out and do it… until this morning.  Ryan worked from home this morning since he’ll be gone all day at a recruiting event.  So it was the perfect opportunity for me to leave Ryder at home and go get pampered.

I’ve found, however, that pampering comes at a price when you’re new in town.  I’ve had the same stylist in CA for 20 years… that’s right people… since I was 9 years old.  So needless to say, when I visit my beloved Trisha, I don’t have to say a whole lot and she knows the perfect cut for me.  My first haircut in IL was also my first haircut since having Ryder.  The salon was small, the stylist was nice, and the haircut was decent enough.

But a few months later, I was ready for another cut and decided to shop around a bit.  I contacted another unfamiliar salon and set an appointment with a brand-new stylist.  And when I say new, I mean right out of beauty school new.  So I knew there was a chance she could really screw it up, but I’m not a super-trendy person, and my style is by no means tricky to execute.  What could go wrong, right?

WRONG!!!  I could practically feel my blood pressure rising as I’m watching her chop at my hair.  In the end, it could be easily camouflaged… but it was SO uneven and choppy, I was really embarrassed.  Not being one for confrontation, I thanked her, paid and left.  I knew I’d be going back to CA in a week, and figured I’d have Trisha come to my rescue.  Unfortunately, I totally forgot to schedule an appointment with her, and she couldn’t squeeze me in.  However, two weeks later, I went to a spa party at Soleil Day Spa in Naperville.  For $20, we got appetizers, drinks, and two services (mini-mani, mini-pedi, massage, facial, tanning, haircut).  I didn’t know they were doing haircuts, and came prepared to just have a mani/pedi.  Lucky for me Natasha swooped in and saved the day… and my hair!  I could see by the horrified look on her face as I explained my plight that I wasn’t just imagining my bad hair.  And I was SO relieved to have her make it all better.  And to top it all off, we get a $20 “gift card” to come back and have something else done!  (So if you’re keeping track of the math, I got a mini-mani and an awesome rescue haircut for FREE!)

It’s been about 5 months now, and I was hurtin’ for a haircut in a major way.  I’ve just been having so much trouble trying to work out the timing that it wasn’t getting done.  So last night, Ryan tells me he’ll be working from home all morning.  I declared then that I would call the salon in the morning (to take advantage of my $20 credit) and see if they could squeeze me in.  If not, I was going to march my hairy self into MasterCuts (or some other similar establishment) and get my hair cut regardless of my hesitations.  To my surprise, Soleil had room for me!  Natasha wasn’t there, but Michelle was very nice, and very competent.

In the end, it wasn’t exactly what I asked for.  But it’s definitely different than it was when I walked in (which is what I wanted), and it’s healthier too.  After I’ve had the chance to style it myself tomorrow, I’ll be able to hand down the final verdict.  But it grows quickly, so I’m not to worried.

Oh!  And while I’m sitting in the chair, another gal came up and gave me a “complimentary hand massage” and explained that they were offering a $10 manicure today.  She gave me a few minutes to contemplate the idea… and of course I had to accept!  So now I have fun new hair, and crazy purple nails.  All in all a good day 🙂