Hairdressers Don’t Know How to Cut!!

Did she cut your hair while its wet or dry?

I would suggest that u go to this site, and there are a few others on how to cut curly hair  http://www.curve-salon.com/solutions1.htm, it says to blow dry it straight and then cut so u can get a more accurate cut, so when it goes back to curly it should look great and layered.

Make sure your stylist has experience with cutting curly hair.

Curly hair is often the most challenging for hairdressers to deal with for a number of reasons.  One key reason is that a hairdresser without naturally curly or one that has not worked a lot with curly hair will not understand how curly hair behaves and how best to trim/cut/style it.

I have actually met Lorraine, who wrote the Curly Girl, book and watched her work with curly hair.  She has incredible hair of her own.  Perfect ringlets that shimmer and bounce and look fabulously healthy. She practices what she preaches in her book and does have a salon in New York where she works on curly hair.

I have also talked with Ouidad more than once on the phone:  http://www.hairboutique.com/tips/tip032.htm who also is known as the Queen of Curly Hair as well as with Antonio Soddu who started Curl Friends. I have a good friend, Barbara Lhotan who works at the Elie Elie salon outside of DC as a special guest stylist.  Elie himself took the Ouidad classes to learn her system to cut hair and his salon his certified to work with curly hair the Ouidad way.

Ouidad teaches a "carving & slicing method" which prevents the pyramid shape that layering creates. With the technique the stylist carefully pulls out selected strands of curly hair with minimum tension and slices them out to allow the remaining curls to nestle into each other in an orderly way. The cutting process is adjusted according to how curly the hair is that is being sculpted.

While Ouidad has her "carving & slicing method" other "curl experts" have similar methods that they give different names to because Ouidad's name for her method is basically copy protected.  Some call their systems similar names like random curl slicing, funnel cutting, culr compression....the outcome is basically the same.  The goal is to avoid the wedge look that curls can take on if they are cut improperly or layered.

Ouidad, as do many curly hair experts, recommend "keeping hair fairly long because the extra length and weight make the curl easier to control."

The carving slicing technique is very different from thinning techniques which involve chopping uniformly into the hair to eliminate volume. Thinning techniques on curly hair promotes even more frizz because the upper layers are removed.

Ouidad's website lists the salons and stylists that have been certified in her "slicing and carving" techniques.  Check out: http://www.ouidad.com/salon_locator/idx_salon.asp

Bottom line....many of the curly hair experts from Ouidad to Lorraine (Curly Girl) to Antonio Soddu to other "curl experts" have created systems for cutting curly hair with a focus on retaining the natural shape of the curls.

Tips For Finding A "Curl Friendly" hairdresser:

You can find a "curl friendly" hairdresser by asking others you see where you life with great curls...who does their hair.  My former hairdresser...who moved to another state...had naturally curly hair that was fantastic.  She advised that people with curly hair look for hairdressers who have naturally curly hair because they  understand what to do with curly hair.

Visit hair focused messageboards that discuss curly hair and see what others are saying about their hairdressers and who does a great job with curls.

Remember that finding a great hairdresser is like finding a great doctor or other professional.  Take your time, arrange for a paid consultation BEFORE you let a new stylist touch your hair and if you don't like what you are hearing then don't book an appointment.  Although some hair experts say that initial consultations should be free.  I personally do not agree.  Hairdressers make their living for their time.  If they give you a free consultation it is my opinion that they will apply more pressure to get you to do a followup service with you.  In essence they are taking their unpaid time to "sell you on their services".  If you pay for their time, there is less pressure to go to them for treatment, which allows you to follow your little voice about whether you feel they can work with your hair they way you want them to.

Also, even if you have gone to the same hairstylist for many years, also do a reality check with them before each visit to make sure that you are both still on the same page about your hair.  Believe it not, many people email me with haircut horror stories that they received from hairdressers that they had been going to for some time.  This is because of eventual communication breakdowns that may occur for a number of reasons.