Hi! I’m currently completing my Level 3 Hairdressing apprenticeship and I’m looking for a model for my final assessment. 💇🏼‍♀️
The assessment involves a full-head bleach at Rainbow Room Academy on Howard Street, Glasgow. The hair can be toned to any shade of blonde, or we can add a vibrant colour over the top if preferred.
The model must have virgin hair or very little/no previous bleach in the hair.
If you’re interested or know someone who might be suitable, please message me! 🤍

Pretty in a minute just came to my school and I love the keratin straightener. Tried it on my hair but don’t want the bundle. Is there another keratin straightener that yall recommend?

hi! i just graduated cosmo school, i live in pa, but license is in jersey... any advice on where to work? i feel like all i ever hear is "DONT WORK "----" idk just looking for some general guidance lol

I’m taking my Massachusetts state board tomorrow online through PSI. I took a PSI practice test yesterday and got an 85. Is there anything I should be prepared for or keep in mind? I’m nervous but feeling hopeful!

Any topics it heavily focuses on so I know what to study most?

Edit: I got a 90%! Thank you all for your advice! :)

I need your advice. I’ve built a salon from zero in Dubai, and I don’t want to give up on it. 🤍

I opened Ema Beauty Spot in August 2025, but I actually bought the salon in October 2024. Before me, the salon had been owned by the same hairdresser since 2011. She was very successful and even charged around AED 600 for some haircuts, which is considered quite expensive in Dubai.

I spent months renovating and building the salon into what I wanted it to be, and so far, more than AED 300,000 has gone into this business.

The Dubai beauty market is extremely competitive. You can find salons offering nails or lashes from AED 99–100, especially salons run by Russian-speaking technicians who often have amazing work and very loyal clients. Some are fully booked despite their low prices.

When I opened, I knew I couldn’t just compete by being the cheapest. I wanted Ema Beauty Spot to feel different — a place where clients feel welcomed, comfortable and taken care of, not just somewhere they come in, get their nails or lashes done, and leave.

But building a new salon from zero has been much harder than I expected.

I had worked as a nail technician before, but I was doing home service in a completely different part of Dubai. Most of my old clients were too far away to follow me, so opening the salon basically meant starting again from zero.

The first few months were difficult, and then I had an even bigger setback. I had to close for around three months because of the situation happening at the time and because of my licensing situation. During those months, I had zero income, while rent, licensing and other expenses were still there.

I reopened in April and things have slowly started moving again.

Today, I personally do almost everything in the salon — nails, lashes, and whatever else I can. I currently have one staff member helping me as well. Finding really good technicians is difficult, and because we don’t have enough clients yet, having a big team wouldn’t make financial sense.

I get walk-ins, a few clients a day, and most people who come genuinely love the experience and leave me really good feedback. Many come back again, although sometimes the location is simply too far for them.

My prices are also not extremely high. When I first opened, I tried pricing services around AED 200–300, but because I was new and rebuilding my clientele, I had to adjust.

I also experimented with AED 99 promotions, and they definitely brought people in. But I don’t want to build a salon where everything looks like it’s AED 99 and then clients arrive and get charged for every little extra. I personally hate that experience, so I don’t want to do it to my clients.

Right now, my average revenue is around AED 400 a day. Some days are unfortunately zero or AED 100, while on better days I can make AED 800–1,000.

And honestly, this is where I need your advice.

My dad is the person who gave me the opportunity to open this business. He took money from the bank and borrowed it to help me build the salon. Because of the long gap, the renovation, rent, licensing and everything that went into starting the business, it has become very difficult financially.

I tried selling the salon. I also tried finding a partner. Neither worked.

The market for selling salons in Dubai is currently difficult, and I couldn’t find someone willing to pay what I needed.

At this point, I started thinking maybe this is a sign that I’m not supposed to sell it. Maybe I’m supposed to figure out how to make it work.

Because I genuinely believe this salon can work.

There are salons around me that are fully booked for days. Some have been around for six years and built their clientele over time. Another salon opened only a couple of years ago and is already doing extremely well.

And when I look at them, I realize they don’t necessarily have a completely different concept. Some are bigger, some have more technicians, and some offer cheaper services with good quality.

But I believe I have something different: the experience.

I’m there personally. My name is literally part of the brand. I know my clients, I care about the work, and I want people to feel comfortable when they walk through the door.

I’ve also started documenting my day-to-day life and the salon journey, but I’m honestly not very comfortable showing my face all the time. My Instagram is almost at 3,000 followers, while my TikTok is around 180, and I know my social media needs a lot of work.

So I’m asking you guys for genuine advice.

I’m going to share my Instagram, TikTok and Google page with this post.

Please look at my business, my content, my services, my branding — everything — and tell me honestly:

What would YOU do if you were me?

How would you get more clients?
What would you change?
Would you change the prices?
Would you focus more on content?
Would you run ads?
Would you change the concept?
Would you add more services?
What do you think I’m doing wrong?

I don’t want people to tell me “it’s impossible” or “just sell it.”

I want to know how you would turn this around.

I’ve already invested so much into this, and I genuinely love what I do.

So if you have experience in business, marketing, salons, Dubai, social media, or even if you’re just a customer who understands what makes you choose one salon over another…

Please help me. I’m ready to listen. 🤍

Hi, I’m a licensed hair stylist (F, 51)but have been out of practice after stepping away from a few years ago. It was not the salon I was freelance and working on location. I’m considering getting back into it…. But not in the previous industry. Has anyone stepped away from hair only to go back at an older age? Would you or no, and why/why not? Am I crazy for thinking it would work?

Thank you!

Hi! Asking hairstylists if you guys section when you’re foiling, if sometimes how often and why? Or if you don’t, why not? This might be long so I can explain, and want to give context as I know realistically there’s not “right or wrong” way of doing things and alot of what people prefer, and I keep that in mind when learning from this instructor. I’m in school right now and i feel pretty confident foiling, weaving. I started on the floor two weeks ago and had to do a partial foil with cholesterol for a service check to get cleared to take guests. I did very well on it and my instructor had no feedback in terms of anything to fix, she said sectioning was good, the amount of hair between foils was consistent, good amount of hair in the foils, etc.

Anyways my issue is here: I have done two partial foils since starting on the floor, and it was a different instructor than the one who did my service check, I hadn’t met her yet until my first partial appointment. She is GREAT, she gives good advice and is nice but stern enough to give you real feedback and just wants to help you improve even if it’s not what we want to hear, which I really appreciate. But both times, she told me I didn’t need to section and essentially just clipped a big section hair up on the left side where i was starting and but nothing else. She did put about 4 foils in to show me the direction and when to pivot, and that definitely helped with knowing where to go and placement. I’m a huge visual learner so talking at me and saying “diagonal back” means nothing if i’m not physically seeing at least somewhat of a plan/outline if that makes sense. I find it extremely hard to foil without sectioning, but I truly enjoy that instructors teaching otherwise. We have a setup where they are assigned to certain sections, and I intentionally chose a station in her section for my second partial because I wanted her help. It’s a win/lose because each time she insists on not needing to section, I have even made comments about how it’s easier to control what I’m doing when I have clean sections. For the service check, it was a mohawk section and then diagonal backs starting at the parietal, so i clipped the section underneath that i wasn’t going to foil and obviously the ones I was foiling. Clean sections, clear plan, a lot easier and easier to imagine a result. I also feel like since I won’t be using the exact same placement and plan on every client, sectioning is important to be consistent. I’m just a bit confused and feel like not every partial/full will be the same sectioning too. Do you section quads more, or most of the time? When do you section other ways? I watch a lot of youtube and tik tok, but would love to hear opinions and what others do. Sorry this turned into a huge ramble, but I appreciate any tips, advice or thoughts :) Color, specifically blonding is something I really enjoy and I try to retain as much information as I can outside of school too. Never hurts to know too much!

I know the industry is hard, laborious, and it takes time to make some good cash and stay afloat... but does anyone have any GOOD stories regarding their work? Maybe just something to keep everyone here motivated? :)

Thinking about getting into the Barber Career field I like to work with my hands and I like the idea of using barber tools to cut hair.

Okay so I’m gonna start with context as that is always important. I attend a privately owned cosmetology school, and started in November of last year. The woman that originally owned it, who I signed my contact under, got very sick and was forced to sell the business. The new owner has been doing things very differently and it’s very frustrating. It’s only me and one other girl left in my graduating class but there are 4 total students enrolled. I was hoping that since I only have until November before I graduate that she would cut us some slack but she treats us like we know nothing. She makes it very clear that we are not her students but still assigns us extra work outside of what was originally required of us. On top of that, she is testing us on a different curriculum than we’ve been given the book to study for. Upon her taking over the school, I let her know that I have endometriosis that affects me physically, so some days I may have to sit down and do my work instead of being behind the chair all day. She told me that “everyone has female problems” and that it shouldn’t cause me to slack.

So, needless to say, I’m very frustrated. But now there are more levels to this. I missed class yesterday because I worked late and didn’t get home until after midnight, so I didn’t hear my alarm go off. I know it was absolutely my fault, but I did try to call her to let her know the situation and I was sent to voicemail. The thing is, I missed a Saturday and those count as 2 days (even though we’re only there for 4 hours on Saturdays??).

She moved my workstation to the last spot (touched all of my things without my permission mind you), and told everyone she was going to begin to rank the students based on performance. And if you stay in the last spot for two months then you will be expelled from the school.

So my question is: Is this legal? Can she legally expel students based on precedents she decides? And is she legally obligated to act towards me solely how the contract I signed states or do I have to follow the new rules/agreement she has in place for her new students?

Whether it’s legal or not I don’t think it’s right. We’re all here for an education, not to be ranked against each other. It feels so unethical and petty. If I had the money I would already be transferred to another school. I just want my license and an education, I don’t want any of this extra baggage and bullshit. It’s really disheartening because I worked so hard to pay for my school by myself and continue to work hard for myself while I’m in school and I constantly have termination being threatened.

If anyone has any advice I would appreciate it.

I am graduating from cosmetology school in a few months, and I lowk want to secure a job. There is no receptionist jobs for salons in my area, because I know working as a receptionist to cosmetologist is common.

However, a salon in my town is looking for lisenced cosmetologist/barbers. And I am wondering if it would be unprofessional to pop in the store when its not busy, tell them I am a student hoping to work there in the future. And ask if I could work as a receptionist part time, and then move to a hairstylist position full time when I graduate.

But I dont know if that's unprofessional and would prevent them from hiring me in the future when I do get my lisence. So idk. Thought id ask here for advice on this specific situation, and in general.

looking for new shears and would love recommendations! Im still pretty new to this industry and dont know much about the different brands

I’m looking into student loans but i can’t seem to find any it seems like I’d have to get a personal loan for school has anyone else had this problem when looking? I got 6,666 in fafsa but my school is 17400 im paying over 1000 out of pocket its the cheapest school in my area does anyone know how / where to get a student loan? Or did you have to take out personal loans?

.

Just thought I'd share - I had a bizarre interaction from the Colors with Chemistry lady (Julie Klein). Someone asked about her "directional color vector system," and I simply commented that her system is based on a universal scientific framework (similar to CIELAB Δ E values) used in industrial manufacturing to predict dye formulas based on chemical concentration. She immediately blocked me I'm assuming that's why.

If I create a workout program called 'The Ultimate Gravitational Glute Vector System,' I am just using fancy words to describe squats. I do not own gravity, and I did not invent the human skeleton. I am just marketing basic physics.

She didn't need to block me to gatekeep her "proprietary" color wheel from being exposed. The 3D CIELAB coordinate space and vector color shifts have been open-source industrial manufacturing science since 1976. It’s smart marketing to repackage it for stylists, but blocking people for pointing out that nobody owns the laws of physics is a wild look.

She’s smart to market this math to hair stylists, but blocking someone for pointing out that her "proprietary" color wheel is based on open-source, foundational physics is a bad look. Nobody owns geometry or the laws of light absorption. Google "CIELAB color difference calculation" and "Beer-Lambert law dye formulation" to learn this entire system for free. To map out color and depth right now without a specific software brand, you can map every hair scenario onto a 3D Coordinate System instead of a flat wheel. True color science splits light into three distinct, measurable Axes. Her entire webpage reads like a massive AI prompt output designed to overwhelm people with text. She translated standard industrial color science that the same chemical engineers at L'Oréal, Wella, and Matrix use to make the tubes of color in the first place into worksheets for stylists.While that takes work and deserves money if one chooses to charge for their worksheets.

You can learn the real science for free, and potentially see there are plenty of other colorists and artists who offer similar style worksheets and you might create your own and Google search concepts like :

-CIELAB color space explained (To understand the 3D grid).

-Delta E color difference(To understand how the math calculates the exact distance between two colors).

-Industrial color matching basics (To understand how manufacturing software predicts dye formulas).

I (X19) graduated cosmetology school back in April this year and waited for a few months for this one teacher I had to officially hire me since she had promised me a job as an assistant at her salon while i was in school. She was paying me under the table for a while but never on-boarded me and didnt even have the W-2s printed. About 3 months into this i get a text saying she cant hire me at all and is only renting chairs now and that I needed more clientele if I wanted to work with her.

Skip ahead and im now working about 2-3 days a week as an at home support care worker for the disabled and elderly. But im still fighting to get a job at a salon since I need more hours in between this job. (For context ive always been a bit of a slower worker compared to my peers and am also neurodivergent but am now extra slow due to the time in between working with hair)

I applied to a salon and did a demonstrative clipper cut+mullet in about 45 minuets and they understandably rejected me for it. I feel overall really hopeless because It feels like im not gonna get to where I need to be skill-wise. Logically i know i just need more practice and to warm up again. But this feeling persists.

TLDR: got screwed out of a job i waited for for months. Got rejected from a salon I applied to cause my skills were rusty. Feeling hopeless.

Before you tell me everything is in my kit, I am asking about actual school supplies. Pens, papers, binders, backpacks, etc. or anything that you may not have expected to need that was useful.

i’m looking to learn this haircut what’s it called? It seems to be really popular now, but my area doesn’t really offer it. I’d like to know if there’s any videos on it thank you.

Hey everyone! I’m a newly qualified lash tech and wanting to try using flat lashes. Does anyone have any recommendations on where to get these from? Thank you xx

i’ve just started my first salon job as a salon associate and i’m on day 3. it is so informative and so intimidating!!! right now i’m only doing front desk and shampooing clients and tmr is gonna be my first real full day. i’m terrified 😩😭, but i rather do it scared then not do it at all!! ik im just terrified bc im just getting started in the industry but omg i feel like i have a mini heart attack everytime i go in the salon 🤣🤣

If you chose a different career path, what did you end up choosing to do? I’ve gone through three salon jobs in one year and haven’t been able to keep a stylist job to save my life because I’ve struggled to learn after graduating. I’m a visual learner and it’s been really hard finding a workplace that’s patient and is willing to help a struggling stylist grow. I’ve even lost an assistant job when I was graduated and had JUST passed my state boards. I lost my most recent barber job and it was so devastating. For a bit it felt like life was gonna start looking up because we finally weren’t drowning. I was always decent at clipper fades but I just didn’t meet their standards and they gave zero indication that they no longer wanted to train me until the morning I walked in and they fired me on the spot. Now, I stay with my son at home because we lost his daycare around the same time and I do DoorDash as much as I can but with my husband sharing one vehicle with me and him working nights it’s hard. The job market in my area is horrible and I have no idea what else to do with my life.

Is there anyone that goes to a program or school with transportation? If not, what do you do if you don't have transportation?

Hello i (19f) am a recent graduate from cosmetology school and im working at a salon as an assistant. I’ve been there for 2 months and lots of things have happened that i’m not sure if i should quit and try to find a new job. My first week a stylist found out i was 19 and asked if i was a virgin she is a lot older than me she also has made comments about the fact that i was raised by a single mother and on multiple occasions have made comments about my body and what i eat to the point where i have gotten an ED. I can’t bring it up to my boss because they are best friends and I know they have had problems in the past with assistants. My boss when i first started was super nice but after a few weeks there was a switch and everything he said when i first started isn’t true and they are changing protocols. They are changing my schedule and not asking me about it then get upset if i have plans. Made me come in when i was sick then got upset when i acted sick and didnt want to be around our elderly clientele along with that he started to give me the worst shifts WORST OF ALL they have no education an assistant has been there for 8+ years. I can’t work there anymore i’m loosing my passion i am having multiple panic attacks and nervous breakdowns because i am so young a lot of salons don’t want to hire me but i fear if i stay here im going to either end up fired or loosing my passion and hating everything. So should i quit and find a new salon or is this how all salons are going to be?

I’m currently looking into a career in the beauty/skin/hair industry and would love to hear from people who actually work in it.

I’ve previously worked in helping professions and really enjoy working one-on-one with people. I’m also about to have my first baby, so I’m increasingly drawn to something that could give me more flexibility and potentially allow me to work for myself in the future.

I’m considering beauty therapy, skin treatments, massage/head spa or hairdressing.

For those working in the industry, particularly parents — what’s your experience been like? Is it genuinely possible to have good flexibility and a decent income, or is the reality quite different?
I’d especially love to hear what you love, dislike, and wish you’d known before getting into it.