Who Got a Haircut?

I did! Actually, my new 'do was a week old already but I did not get a chance to take some pictures and upload here, sorry!

Since I moved to the Sunshine state, I did not find a place that gave me good haircuts at an affordable price. When I was in Maryland, we had this hair place that was near my place and this lady gave me a really good haircut. Plus she listened to what I wanted and delivered. Since I'm a wash and go kind of girl, a good haircut means a lot to me: it saves time to style and money to spend on hair styling products.

Now my really straight Asian hair is not hard to cut but to make it look va-va-voom is another issue. Most stylists either use lots of hair styling products to fluff it up or does not give it enough layers. So yeah, I suffered from bad haircut days for a while.

But not anymore because I found the best place to get a good haircut in town: Aveda Institute, home of the 12 dollar haircut!

The front of Aveda Institute

They even advertise it very proudly!

A friend of mine came there first and got a royal treatment which prompted me to go there as well. Aveda Institute is a beauty school that trains students to become beauticians, hair stylists, estheticians, and spa/salon managers based on the Aveda concepts. Students are supervised by instructors and don't worry, you are in good hand.

Before I came to get a haircut, my hair was like this:

Overgrown bang and layers, I need a haircut!

To get a haircut, it's better to call ahead for an appointment to guarantee an opening for you. Of course you can walk in but it does not warrant you a spot as the Aveda Institute is pretty busy. With that price tag, I would be surprised if it does not!

Once you get in, a student will ask you what you want to do: haircut, color, styling, etc and then he/she will give you a scalp and neck massage using Aveda massage oil that's very soothing. I really enjoy this part very much. Then you are taken to the wash station where your hair is washed and conditioned. If the student is generous, he/she will throw in some special conditioner cocktail to your hair that makes it smooth and luscious. After that is the cut which is pretty standard. The one thing I noticed is Aveda students tend to be more detail oriented and that makes a big difference in the quality of the cut.

I asked for a shorter bang and since my layers were overgrown, I asked her to trim them up as well. In the end, I looked like this:

I got about 1/2 inch chopped off, a much shorter bang, and healthier looking hair thanks to Aveda products. The picture was taken after I washed and air dried my hair at home. I did not use any styling products on my hair and it looks fine.

Besides the famous $12 haircut, Aveda Institute also offers other services such as facials, massages, manicure/pedicure, and waxing. They actually make facials quite affordable:

Facial for 30 bucks?! Holy cow!

If you think, "The price is so cheap, they must be using dollar store stuff on me!", you're wrong! Since it's an Aveda school, all products used are from Aveda. Plus students pay money to go there to learn so the price is offset a bit from that as well. As the students need to earn points for their license, they are willing to make you happy and I like that part...a lot!

If you want to locate an Aveda Institute near you, go here for more information. Not only you're getting a good haircut, you also help a student earning his/her license as well. I know $12 is the price they set in my hood but it should not be higher than $20 USD. New York Aveda Institute charges $18 per haircut I think. And they have one in Australia as well!

Ciao for now, bellas!

Love,
Your makeup blogger

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