Divas & Dudes

Took my 3 year old daughter for her first haircut. Stylist (Becky) worked very efficiently and age appropriate with my child. Her hair was very well cut and looks great. Went early and it wasn’t crazy yet, but they get crazy with parties Becky said.

Have been taking my son here for haircuts for the last couple of years– everyone we have interacted with has been fantastic. Anytime I have experimented with going somewhere else I am never as happy. Highly recommend!

Sigh.
I am about to the point of giving my sons buzz cuts at home and being totally finished with the «hair stylist» gamble with toddlers. What is with these kids’ salons? It is a TOTAL crapshoot every time you go, if you’re going to get someone who is amazing, friendly, and great with kids, or someone who seemingly just walked off the street and was handed a pair of scissors. There are people in every profession who really like kids; why is it so hard to staff a small salon with a few of them who can cut hair?
This morning I took a 3– and 1-​year old to get haircuts. We’ve done this before, no big deal. But we’re new to Brentwood so we tried out this place. We got there right at opening and I was pleased that there was no wait. My younger toddler got in the chair and the employee gave him a toy car to play with. She wasn’t outwardly super friendly, but whatever. It’s 5 minutes. She cut his hair and all was good. Older toddler gets in the chair; she suggests doing trimmers first because he’s afraid of them, and I agreed, but when she got them close to his head he started to freak out. She kept putting them near him and I just said, «You know, skip the trimmers. The benefit isn’t worth a ruined day.» But the damage was done; he was horribly upset — crying and screaming through the rest of what felt like a two-​hour haircut. I was embarrassed — let’s face it, nobody wants to be the parent with the screaming kid in public — whether or not it’s justified. My one-​star rating flies in right here: My 3-​year-​old was screaming, crying, very upset. She continued to kindof berate him: «If you don’t look down, I can’t cut your hair.» «I can get done faster if you will do what I say.» Just. I don’t know, no compassion. No kindness. No encouragement. I was holding his hand under the cape and I felt helpless. I was blushing from the stares from adults and kids alike and nothing I could say or do was bringing him back from this precipice. My younger was still playing with the toy car she gave him; he tossed it haphazardly onto the floor. She said, «Oh, he’s just throwing things, huh.» That was it. I went from embarrassed to wanting to beat her you-​know-​what right there in front of a bunch of children. Who is a freaking snarky jerk in this type of situation? She continued with little snide comments about one or the other’s behavior until the haircut was finished and he was out of the seat. I couldn’t rush to the door fast enough.
So here’s a clue to people who are going to get a job at a KIDS’ salon: KIDS are going to get their hair cut there. You will likely encounter tears, yells, and tantrums at least once a day. If this does not sound like something you can handle, you do not need to apply to a kids’ salon.
Here are some helpful phrases for those who are still interested in applying:
«It’s ok! You’re doing great.»
«Hang on! We’re almost done.»
«I’m sorry he’s having such a hard time!»
«Just hold his hand. I’m almost finished.»
«I know it’s hard. My [insert random, even imaginary, child in your family here] freaks out just like this too.»
Nobody wants to be that parent with the crazy freaking child. Diffuse the situation. Help her! Encourage her. Encourage the child. Do SOMETHING other than be a jerk to both.
I was still feeling so ashamed of my toddler’s tantrum that I gave the snotty hairdresser a freaking tip. She needed a tip, all right — a tip about how to treat customers. You know, I am NOT picky — the haircut in and of itself is honestly not too important. As long as my kids don’t look like little orphans with no one to cut their hair, I’m cool. And I’ll even give you a nice tip for dealing with whatever disaster we bring with us. I’m not on the hunt for an amazing salon experience with the perfect ‘do. I’m just looking for a decent person who will teat me and my kids like human beings while we’re PAYING THEM to do a service. That’s it. Going to get haircuts is not a big deal, but it has become one of the most stressful events of parenting for me because of this total crapshoot of children’s salons, where you walk in not knowing if you’ll get a kind, gentle person who’s great with your child or a jerk who makes snarky comments right in front of you. I understand that everyone has a bad day, but to be honest I’m fed up with the gamble, and I will never darken the doors again of a «children’s salon» that can’t figure out if the person they’re hiring is going to be a friendly person with children or a you-​know-​what-​hole to people and turn them off from your business for-​ev-​er. It’s not hard to figure out, and quite frankly I pay way too much money, and there is too much competition for it, for owners to make this employment mistake.
I will be a loyal customer until Jesus comes back to the right person at the right place. I’ll even spend money on crap that we don’t really need in the retail area. But you’ve got to be respectful of me and my children. Period.

Great with my two little boys. Disney/​Pixar movie on tv for every chair. The gals that work there act professional and attentive.

I’ve been cutting my son’s hair since it was long enough to need cutting, but it just recently got to a thickness that I think I am no longer qualified to make look nice.
I was a little unsure what I wanted but had some pictures of ideas. When I got there, we were taken back right away without an appointment. We talked through the ideas quickly and the cut was done fast.
It was my son’s first time with the buzzers, and he seemed to barely notice. It was a great experience, and the girl who cut his hair was great with my active toddler boy. It was inexpensive, a great atmosphere, and I will definitely return.

This place is a lifesaver! It is like performing an exorcism to get my 2 year old son’s haircut, but the stylists here are so professional and fully equipped to handle difficult toddlers. They cut his hair in 5 minutes and it looks great!

Took my daughter here for her first haircut, thought it was a cute concept. The girl that cut my daughter’s hair was great; she clearly works with a lot of toddlers and worked very quickly and did exactly what I asked. I wish I could remember her name to give her kudos. However, the lower rating is for the general look of the place, it was very cluttered, seemed a bit unkept and the lighting was dark, which I found odd. Someone had left out a half eaten apple with some napkins, perhaps they need a break room? My daughter loved the little boutique and Frozen was playing so they pretty much won her over.