Salon Speak: How Do You Describe The Haircut You Want? The Color?

Are you good at speaking salon? As in: Are you successful at getting hairstylists to understand the haircut or hair color you’re going for?

It took me so long to get good at salon speak. The terms I used to use were just too general–namely “long layers” and “golden-blond highlights”. As a result, I usually ended up with layers that were too long, so my hair had little movement and basically looked one-length, and blond highlights that were too blond for my taste. Over time, I started to be way more specific. Now, I ask not for “long” layers, but for layers that provide lots of swingy movement and let me easily achieve bend and “flip” using a round brush–then I add that none of the layers should be shorter than my shoulders (to avoid frizz/pouf). For my color (when I’m blond–sometimes I go brunette), I request honey-colored highlights instead of golden; I find this better conveys the richer, deeper gold I am going for. But I’ll be honest: Sometimes I still manage to miscommunicate and end up with totally not the look I was going for.

Obviously, bringing photos of the haircut or hair color you want to the salon helps infinitely–but let’s discuss the part where you describe what you want. What do you ask for when you go in for a haircut? And what terms do you use when requesting your hair color? Have you found certain descriptions really helpful in getting the results you want?

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