Purchased By Me
This year had one heck of a rocky start. It only got worse as the months flew by. Seriously, wasn’t it just January yesterday? After getting over the flu I was drained. I was still dealing with a cough and feeling pretty crappy. Even when sick I will push through and get stuff done, but it took a lot out of me. Just when I was trying to gain my strength back I learned that my aunt had passed away. Honestly, we sort of lost touch after I moved here so we weren’t as close as we used to be. But when I was living back home she was a big part of my life. Her and my father were inseparable for so long. And I was always with my father. My aunt was probably the only person from my father’s side of the family who treated me like I was family. She was there for me during one of the most difficult times in my life. She was there when no one else was. So when I found out she had passed it hit me like a ton of bricks. It hurts. It really really hurts. And that’s about all I am willing to share on that subject.
A day after my aunt’s passing I had my hair appointment at Hollywood Hair Shiloh. The very last thing I wanted to do was sit in a salon for hours getting my hair dyed. But the salon was closed on Monday and that would mean I’d have to call a few hours before my appointment to cancel. I couldn’t do that. Plus I figured the distraction might be good for me. As you might remember from my initial review my experience was a positive one. It was a bit pricier than I had expected and my hair was cut shorter than I wanted, but overall I was pleased with how my hair turned out. I really love my photos from that day.
A few days later I went to wash my hair and something strange happened. It dried up and most of the color had washed out. I’m used to frizzy hair, but my frizzy hair was still soft and manageable. Now my hair is… crunchy? There was nothing I could do to fix it. I frantically messaged one of my long time friends for help. She suggested a hot oil treatment. That did soften my hair a bit more, but it was still bad. Very bad. And now my hair was orange! I was really close to just shaving my head. I honestly didn’t know where to go from there. I had messaged the stylist who did my hair (Joshua) and his response was basically ‘Hey I told you that you needed that product I tried to sell you.’ Then he went on to say that since I can’t use keratin based products I will have a difficult time holding onto fashion colors since color holds onto protein.
A little back story. A while back my SIL did my hair. She went a little too crazy with this keratin based product and pretty much drenched my hair, the back of my neck, and ears in the stuff. After sitting for a few days I developed a rash. Now I don’t mean a tiny annoying, but itchy rash. It was insanely itchy and I was scratching it even in my sleep and would wake up covered in blood. Yeah. Not fun. I developed a type of dermatitis and was told to not use keratin based products. So I stay away. Now I replenish with other proteins and while they may not be the best, my hair never looked and felt crunchy. So there’s that. By the way, I’m sure my SIL meant well. I don’t think any of us expected that to happen. But it did and now I have to watch what I use on my hair. I always and I do mean always explain this to any stylist before they touch my hair. I hate to march into a place with a list of demands, but I’m not trying to have a repeat of that fresh hell I suffered years ago. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. Not even Joshua.
That being said, if he knew from the beginning that the fashion color I chose wouldn’t last because of my choice to not use a keratin based treatment, why didn’t he tell me this during our big chat before he got started? In fact he even went as far as to suggest we use a lift because of the boxed dye I had been using. Another thing I disclosed. He scared me into going this route by telling me I didn’t have to go with the lift, but he’d seen hair literally melt from the chemicals left behind from boxed dyes. I didn’t know any better so I just told him to do whatever he felt was necessary. Not once did he tell me that my hair would turn into this hot mess anyway. I mean what was the point? To make another sale I suppose.
Listen, I don’t have unrealistic expectations. If he had told me that we should ease into things to achieve the look I wanted I would have been ok with that. I don’t see why I would have to though considering my husband used these so called fashion colors on my hair for YEARS and not once did we have to lift or bleach my hair for the color to show up. I also went about my usual less is more approach with hair care. A good shampoo, conditioner, hair masque, and a few oils. My hair may not have been considered healthy due to the use of chemicals and heat, but it never looked like this.
Hair color done by my husband.
I also had my hair bleached once and while my hair ended up pretty dry afterward, I didn’t walk around looking like I stuck my finger in an electrical outlet. So I’m really at a loss as to what happened. I’m told by a professional that he was rather aggressive in his approach and that I didn’t even need to be lightened. I guess at the end of the day it was all about making a few extra bucks. Sadly it cost me my hair and them my business.
Lightened a few years back. Not a good look, but not crunchy.
After spending a few nights moping around my husband suggested I go back and demand they fix it. The very last place I wanted to go was the place that did this to me in the first place. Especially not after the response I had received. So I went to my old spot. It’s a localish spot that I would go to get my hair styled before doing a look for the blog. I’d be in and out within minutes and my hair always looked amazing! When I decided to step away from the boxed dyes and go the professional route I had reached out to them on Instagram. When they didn’t respond I just assumed they weren’t up to the task. Like I said before, most places refuse to touch my hair. As much as it pained me, I moved on. My husband told me to visit the salon in person, but I told him I didn’t want to push the issue. Turns out they just don’t keep up with social media as much and overlooked my message. My husband was right and I should have listened. All of this could have been avoided.
Styled by J&L’s Salon.
Thankfully they fixed me up right quick and I walked out looking like me again. I was so happy I could have cried. And I’m not an overly emotional person. But with everything going wrong lately the very last thing I needed was issues with my hair. I mean come on. I went to the professionals because they know more than I do. Or at least they should! So while I thought this place was pretty great at first and was happy that they gave me that Instagram hair. I very quickly learned that just like with Instagram everything isn’t always as it seems. Talk about smoke and mirrors.
This isn’t the best photo. I took it in my SIL’s car with my iPhone. I just wanted to show that my hair looks much better now. Thank you so much to J&L’s Salon for helping me. These guys are amazing!
I don’t usually review salons, but after my experience I was so excited and couldn’t wait to share it with you all. With skin care I usually wait a few weeks to a month before sharing my thoughts. For the most part I know if I like a makeup product right away. Sometimes I change my mind and I always make note of that. With hair I guess I should wait more than a day before sharing my thoughts. I really got ahead of myself and I apologize for that. But in all of my experiences good and bad, my hair never turned into this hot mess after just one wash. This truly has been a traumatic experience. In the past I have always had a whatever kind of approach. It’s just hair. It will grow back. Now I get why people are afraid to take risks. It won’t stop me though. I like what I like. But I will learn to go with my gut from now on.
If you look back through my posts you will see how much my hair has changed through the years. I’ve definitely had my fair share of ups and downs. Mostly because it’s so difficult to find a place that I’m truly comfortable with. I’ve mentioned before how most places don’t like dealing with my hair. I have a lot of hair! It’s naturally wavy and very frizzy. I’ve had people roll their eyes and loudly sigh before getting started. I’ve had people continuously tell me how much hair I have while making their best Jim Halpert face. I’ve even had a stylist quit on my hair just after the cut. She apparently couldn’t be bothered to dry my hair. I had to leave with soaking wet hair! I always end up feeling like a burden. A year and a half ago I thought I found the perfect spot. My color turned out amazing! It wasn’t exactly how I wanted it, but I did love it. But even she couldn’t be bothered to style my hair after. And considering how much I was being charged (and the price always changes with these places, no consistency whatsoever) you’d think I’d get exactly what I asked for. I don’t think I’m asking for a lot.
If you made it this far, thank you. The last thing I wanted to do was take a break. Especially from something I love. I’m going to try my best to push through this. Even though I’m feeling a little defeated these days. Please bear with me.
