Planning a visit to your hairdresser? Here's how to prep your hair for it

Yay! Hair salons all over the UK are officially open as of the 4th of July. Many of us have been waiting for this day, with our overgrown hair, messed up DIY haircuts and colouring attempts, to get back to our hairdressers and ask them to rescue us from this hair-hell.

But now with Covid-19 safety precautions enforced, expect your hair-salon visit to be like a soothing picnic on a day off like the time of yore. Instead, with more and more people calling salons for an appointment, it is ideal to prepare yourself and your hair to ensure both you and your hairdresser spend minimum time in close proximity to each other and get done with your haircut as soon as possible. Here are some tips on how to prep your hair before your salon visit.

Remember getting a calming lather and rinse every time before your hair cut/treatment? Well, not anymore. With several people awaiting their turn and lesser salon operating hours, the last thing your hairdresser wants to do is run his/her hands through your dirty tresses. If you’re getting your hair cut, wash your hair with a nice deep cleansing shampoo, before visiting the salon for a hair cut.

While regularly applying oil to your hair, or using some hair growth or nourishment serum is fine, make sure you haven’t used them on your hair at least 2 to 3 days before your salon visit. Because during the consultation process, your hairdresser wants to feel the original texture of your hair and assess the damage it has gone through. The oil on your hair makes it difficult, and some salons may not offer a hair-wash.

Make your hairstylist’s job easier and the hair cutting/treatment process less painful by ensuring your hair is manageable and dry. Untangling your locks wastes a lot of time, which could be utilized well in styling, cutting adnd getting the hairdo you desire. And it isn’t much work either. Simply run a clean hairbrush through your tresses gently to get rid of the tangles formed on your hair BEFORE visiting the hairdresser.

Another time-wasting exercise at the salons are the long discussions during consultations. This happens when you are not sure about what kind of hairdo or colour you want. But now salons may not want to spend a lot of time with the hairdresser “discussing” your style. It might be a lifesaver if you could just decide beforehand on what kind of haircut you want, before you visit your hairdressed. (yes, yes pun intended).

Most of us, if not all, have tried cutting, colouring or bleaching our hair during the last few months of pandemic isolating and quarantining. And we might even feel ashamed of facing our hairdresser with the botched up hairdo, and so we try to fix our hair a little more before heading to the salon. This is a terrible terrible idea as you’ll only end up ruining your hair and making your hairstylist’s life even more difficult. Be honest about your hair misadventures and trust your hairdresser to rescue you.

Feel better? Feel ready? So pick up the phone, take the nearest appointment for hair cut and style. And do do prep your hair before you step out!