I Just Want a Haircut!

Why is it so hard to find a good stylist around here? Everywhere I go I see salons and barbers and spas, but every one I try ends up being crap. Why can't I find a decent stylist that speaks fluent English and doesn't charge an arm and a leg?

What's the etiquette for walking into a salon and discovering your stylist doesn't speak English? Can you say, "Um, I changed my mind," and then leave? Is it rude to call and ask to get an appointment with someone that speaks fluent English? I thought bringing in the pictures of my haircut (from all angles) would bridge that gap, but it didn't.

I got the perfect cut in August last year (while I was home in Idaho). The stylist considered my weight, the shape of my face, my neck, my double chin, the texture of my hair. Everything. And guess how much a wash, cut and style cost? $14. FOURTEEN DOLLARS. I gave her a $20 and felt like I was robbing her.

I got back to Virginia and the first time I needed a cut I went to a fancy salon. For $55 she trimmed maybe a quarter of an inch (my hair had grown at least half an inch), didn't layer, and didn't even style it herself. It looked like crap, it needed to be cut again in 3 weeks.

Last weekend I went to a Hair Cuttery and got a stylist that barely spoke English, but she looked at my pictures, nodding, smiling, yes yes she can do that. After her first cut she showed me that she's taking off a quarter inch. Since I'd already been burned by that once, I told her to make it a tiny bit more. I was clear on this. "Tiny bit more - another quarter inch." Her next cut took off 2 inches. I swear. 2 inches. My hair didn't have 2 inches to spare. It's so short now that not only did my oblivious husband notice I got a cut, but all the guys at work noticed too. Short. Short AND crooked. My hair is doomed.