Barber Shops and Salons

As a small child, a barber shop. Later it was more the unisex salons. Supercuts not so much, except that at one a dancer from a local club worked there, and then I got friendly with another girl.

SJG

tuscl.net

I just shave my head now, fuck it. It's over. That money goes to LD's.

It’s crazy, I figured in my life I’ve had over 700 haircuts and all of them except for about 10 were done by the same guy. A barber (which is a rare thing these days) who works in a shop by himself. In my teens he had other people rent space in his shop but for the past 20+ years he’s been by himself. He “retired” in 2019 but luckily he cuts hair one day a week for a few customers for some extra pocket money. When he finally hangs it up for good I’m screwed! BTW he’s in his late 70s.

He had a reallly old school coke machine in his place too until the late 90s.

I go into some chain like Supercuts or Rio or whatever early in the day on a weekday once every 4-8 months when I remember.

Probably overdue to do that pretty soon

^^^^ 4 to 8 months. Women can do that because they were their hair so long. As I child I always resented that.

SJG

When I want to look particularly good, I go to a neighborhood place. Two guys, four women. Usually when I go there are two older Korean women and two guys working. The two guys smoke but the women don’t. Since I can’t stand the smell of cigarettes, I always wait for one of the Korean ladies. $25 including tip.

Other times, I step into my dry bathtub, slap the #2 guard onto my Wahl electric clippers and mow it all down. Came in handy during the shutdown.

Some barbers charge way too much. $100 to $250. Nothing they do merits that much. I'd rather let a friend cut it

I’ve always cut my hair w/ women – I tend to cut it short then let it grow out min 4-months and sometimes up to 6-months – I usually find a female hair-stylist and stick w/ her for years – typically pay $20 but my last cut a couple of weeks ago was $25.

My longtime barber finally retired about 4-5 years ago, he was the only person that ever cut my hair from the time I was 3 until he retired. He was definitely an old school barber that had been in the same one chair shop for more than 50 years and was an Army barber before that. He only had 5 hair cuts that he did and they were listed on a piece of paper that had been thumbtacked to the wall next to the mirror for so long the paper had turned yellow from age.

"Basic Haircut" - short on the sides and back with it a little longer on top and parted on one side.

"Summer Buzz Cut" - a basic military style buzz cut.

"Winter Buzz Cut" - a buzz cut with the guide set slightly longer.

"The Greaser" - slicked back with old fashioned pomade

"The Hippie" - shoulder length straight cut

He would always give anyone that wanted a greaser or hippie style a little grief and tell them it was time to act like a real man and get a real haircut. ​If anyone new ever came in and tried to tell him about a different style that they wanted he would tell them about the types of haircuts he did and that there was a women's hair salon (owned by his wife and then his daughter) down the road if they wanted anything else.

Up until about 2010 he always charged $5 per cut but he finally raised his price to $10 towards the end with a hot shave being an extra $5 and was always cash only. I usually gave him $20 for just a cut or $30 for a cut and a shave which he always tried to turn down saying it was too much. One nice thing that he always did was whenever a local service member was back in town he would give them a free cut and shave when they got home and before they left to go back and would always bump them straight to the front of the line because he said they need to spend every minute enjoying their time back home instead of waiting around for a haircut.

The only downside was it was a little hard to get a haircut for a few weeks each spring and fall because he was also a farmer and had to help his sons during planting and harvesting seasons. He would also close for a week or so during deer season until he had bagged his limit.

When he retired he referred all of his regulars to a good barbershop about 20 miles away. They are a little fancier and a little more expensive ($17/cut) but they are still mostly old fashioned and the shop has been around more than 50 years and each of the barbers that work there (not sure if it is currently 2 or 3 guys) has been a barber for at least 20 years. I do miss getting a traditional shave every now and then but I can't bring myself to pay the extra $30 they charge for a shave. At that point with a haircut ($17) shave ($30) and tip (usually $15) it would be over $60 and that is just more than my ugly head is worth.

I usually just used to go into a chain like Supercuts once / month, wherever I was. But March 2020 when those things closed because people were sneezing, I bought a $60 Wahl on Amazon. Been trimming it myself every week or so since; it might not be the most even fade or blend or whatever the hell you want to call it, but it's close enough. Chicks don't dig bad haircuts...so apparently my work has gotten the seal of approval - I've been laid by a few over the last year-ish. Success!

The Flowbee, if it's good enough for George Clooney it's good enough for me

I usually just go to a barber. Living in CA during the pandemic and traveling a lot, I got used to an any port in a storm haircut. That is any barber in a state that didn't kill their barber's by shutting them down like CA did. I got a few haircuts in FL and AZ and enjoyed the fact that they shaved the sides and the back like my barber did as a kid.

Of all the places I've been, I don't think I've paid more than $25 with tip on the high end. Usually, it's $20 with tip. It's always a barber that I look for. Could be man or woman. I don't look for a haircut with extras.

I used to get my hair cut by the same barber for 25 years. Even after I moved 10 miles away. He charged $18.00 and I always tipped him $5. He died unexpectantly 3 years ago and I didn't care for the other 2 barbers in his shop. So I decided to shop for a new barber that was closer. I settled on a chain called Great Clips that is about 7 minutes from my house. Senior price for a haircut is $14 and I again tip $5. The hair cuts that I get now are not as good as my old barber but I'm starting to lose a lot of hair. So I'm not going to look any further.

I went to a barber all the way through college. After college, I moved and went to a Great Clips and had a lady with big tits cut my hair and other than a short period going to Sport Clips, its been Great Clips ever since.

I like the Hair Saloon. They give you beer and good head massage. Not the “head” massage I get from my favorite AMPs, but it is still relaxing in a different kind of way. All for about $23. I will then tip about $25.

I was consistently going to this smoking hot brunette at Great Clips for years prior to COVID.

The shops shut down; she got a better job elsewhere.... now I have a new stylist.

First name Flo..... last name Bee... the fuckin thing is amazing. Perfect haircut every time.

flowbee.com

This post brought back some interesting, long forgotten memories. I remember when I was a kid and first started getting haircuts, the price was under 50 cents. The price I seem to recall was 35 cents. I pay $22, plus tip, now.

I have gone to independents my whole life, unless you count the Army exchange service, which runs a worldwide chain of barber shops. In overseas locations, they contract with local nationals for barbers. I remember one somewhat austere location where an active insurgency was still going on. The local barber came in once a week to provide haircuts. We had electricity, but he used all manual tools, including manual hair clippers, if you’ve ever seen those. He did his final touchups with a straight razor that he sharpened on a leather strap. Every time he pulled out that straight razor, I wondered how well he had been vetted.

From my youth until graduating college - I went to my neighborhood barber. He was a true NJ Italian - very well connected - and a good guy. No appointment was needed - the wait was not an issue - as he kept the waiting area stocked with Penthouse and Hustler magazines! He loved Corvettes - and he would get a new one every few years - and I was lucky enough to get a ride in several.

After college he retired - and I started trying those clips places - and they are fine. Sadly, they don’t offer the magazine selection that I had become used to.

Since the pandemic I’ve been using my Wahl trimmer - that I got at Costco. It’s not bad - but it’s not a professional cut by any means.

I go to an old fashioned barber shop with an Arab barber. He cuts my hair and trims my beard. I like the job he does. There are never any other customers when I'm there, although sometimes another Arab will come in and chat with him in Arabic. I suspect he's running some illegal business out of his shop.

We do have some old fashioned looking barber shops, but they do serve women and they do employ some women.

SJG

Honeyybunn tuscl.net

I have always thought that a topless salon would be a great business. You could get a haircut and a few lap dances.

I’ve never heard of such a business but if there is one somewhere, this group would know.