I’m guest posting today over at the Krazy Coupon Lady!
Below is an excerpt from my article and go here to read the whole thing.
It’s Worth a Try: One Simple Way to Save on Hair & Beauty Treatments!
We’ve all been there. Bangs growing out, split ends, color fading, and an empty wallet. What’s a fabulous broke gal to do?
Get a free haircut! Yes, it’s entirely realistic to get free or deeply discounted haircuts AND beauty treatments. You just have to know where to look.
A few years ago I had a regular stylist at a mid-range salon that I was quite happy with. One day, I called to make an appointment and she was no longer working there. So I booked an appointment with another stylist. Unfortunately, I wasn’t terribly excited about that cut and started on a relentless hunt for a new stylist.
Along the way, I had way too many bad haircuts. I even booked an appointment at an expensive salon thinking that a higher price meant a better cut. To my horror, the stylist gave me a mullet. It was awful! To make matters worse, I was broke after shelling out all that money for a cut that I really couldn’t afford.
As I grumbled to myself about that bad experience, I drove by a beauty school and it dawned on me: Salons and cosmetology schools all around the country offer free or discounted services to clients who are willing to work with their newest employees or students. It sounded scary, but it was worth a try!
I had been so impoverished by expensive yet disappointing salons that I threw up my hands in defeat and walked into the beauty school for my next haircut. And you know what? I loved my haircut! I only paid $12 at my local Paul Mitchell school and got a great cut!
I did some research and found that there were many beauty schools in my area that offered deeply discounted services. I even learned that my regular salon offered FREE haircuts on Sundays with stylists who were going through the salon’s training program. Some of these stylists had been cutting hair for a few years and were just new to the salon, so I could get great cuts and only pay the tip!
Read more here…
So where do I go for my free haircuts?
PR@Partners offers free haircuts on Sundays at their Tenleytown location. Just call and ask to book an appointment for “Tenley Studio” on a Sunday. They don’t advertise it on their webpage but they have a sign up at the location, which is how I found out about it. This is usually where I go for my free cuts. I tip the stylist based on the full amount of the cut (about $40) and expect to be there around an hour. The stylists are new to the company though some have been cutting hair for a few years.
Paul Mitchell has schools in Tyson’s Corner and in Rockville which offer discounted cuts by students. I’ve been to the Rockville location and had a good experience there as well.
You can check out Aveda Institutes in Chinatown for discounted haircuts, beauty treatments, and massages.
And for more discounted massages you can go to Potomac Massage Training Institute on Wisconsin Avenue in DC.