Your WORST haircut/color/perm

[Canice]

The "hair length" thread begs this question. Won't you tell us your worst-ever cut/color/perm experience?

When I was in about the 9th grade (1980?) I had hair down the middle of my back and decided I'd look very glamorous with soft curls, a la Jacklyn Smith (it might have been wise to cite that example to the loon behind the chair). She gave me a "stack" perm - giant knitting-needle things poking out of my head - and I ended up with this huge, frizzy Christmas tree shaped thing from the ears down, and TOTALLY FLAT throughout the crown. I looked like the marketing woman in Dilbert, only weirder on account of the flat/frizzy combo. It was so big it looked like it wouldn't make it through the doorway! It lasted several years until I got my hair chopped short.

[LaraW]

My worst hair cut didn't really look that bad, it was just not what I wanted.

I was about 15 and had spent the whole summer growing out my hair. It was long and it looked really nice. I wanted a trim to sort of clean it up before school started.

I went to my usual person and told her that I wanted a TRIM. I got 2 1/2 inches cut off!!!!! :eek: :eek: :eek:

I was so mad - I left in tears and did not pay her. My mom, I am sure, went back later and paid her. I never went back to her ever again.

Geez, that was 14 years ago - and I am still mad about it!!! :rolleyes:

[wallycat]

I think I was 17 when I decided (no thanks to my sister, who talked me into it) dye my hair blonde. Mind you, I am a deep brunette...at least I was at 16 :D .
Two applications of the "frost & tip" kit and EXTRA time for processing--plus lots of hair pulled so that I may as well have spakled the stuff straight onto my head.....and I was a horror. Did I mention my eyebrows were very dark brown too???
yikes....even the mailman had to make a comment.
So......I did what any 17 year old would do...
I went out and bought a bottle of dark brown hair color. THREE applications later....I was a hideous copper color...and I was told I was lucky I still had hair and a scalp and just let the stuff grow out.
Maybe that's why I'm so partial to my graying now :D :o :o :o

[lorilei]

Shall I share my story about dying my lovely light blonde hair "habiscus" and turning out with a neon pink glow-in-the dark 'do?

Oh, wait... I did that myself :(

[AndreaU]

Never had a bad haircut (knock on wood) and I've never been permed.

HOWEVER... as for coloring... in 8th grade, my friend and I decided we'd go as punk rockers for Halloween (yes, during the 80s). Cool, I thought. We came up with this brilliant :rolleyes: plan to color our hair- with food coloring! Well, how were we to know the stuff didn't come out!! Actually, most of it did except for the red on my bangs. I washed and washed but it stayed for at least 2 months... I guess I'm lucky, it could have been green or blue hair!

[ebobbitt]

When I was in college the style that was in was short on the sides (above the ears) & top; long in the back. Oh, I just had to have it. To begin with, it looked horrid because I have a round face. And the top was so short I had to use a little, pencil size curling iron to do it. I could get it to look semi-normal after curling but oh, on the days it rained--my hair is so straight all it would do is stand straight up. My friends thought it was way cool and I just wanted to put a paper bag on my head.

[BlueMoose]

Probably my worst time at a salon was a perm that I got when I was probably a senior in high school. The owner of the place did it and she left it on too long because she was so busy yakking, and it turned out huge and frizzy.

As for coloring...I used to color my own hair and all was fine and dandy until I started being allergic to the coloring. One time I tried it and I ended up with my scalp all swollen and squishy and hot and itchy, oh and it HURT and was really sore, too. I had to go to the doctor:rolleyes: .

[JHolcomb]

Originally posted by AndreaU
I guess I'm lucky, it could have been green or blue hair!

DH has had blue hair, green hair, bluegreen hair, purple hair, and something called "Deadly Nightshade"(a deep fuscia color). On purpose. He goes all natural now, thank goodness. Our best friend once decided that he wanted a mohawk, but his hair was too fine and too thin to get it to stand up straight and he didn't have the proper styling products to manipulate it, so he ended up shaving off all of his hair except for one long patch in the middle of his forehead. He died it blue. We called it the forelock. It was the only time I have ever pretended not to know someone in public.

The worst cut I ever had was the summer between 6th and 7th grade. I had naturally curly hair down to my butt and my mom decided that she was sick of me complaining about how hard it was to take care of it (I also have very thick, very fine hair so it tangles easily), so she made me go get it all chopped off. She also decided that it would be cut in the same style that hers was cut in, a mushroomed bob. But she has stick straight hair, so it looked pretty good on her. My hair was shaved all the way up my neck and there were maybe two or three inches left on top. I have very curly hair and a "Vannoy face"(grandma'a fam--round, high forehead, high cheekbones but chipmunk cheeks), so I looked like a freak. It was horrible. I got teased sooooo much. It took for darn ever to grow out. It finally got to a decent length my sophomore year in college. Ugh. Whenever I think of chopping off my hair, I think of that experience and write off ever, ever doing it (even when I'm an old lady! I'll wear it in a bun before I chop it off!).

[Marian]

I had a horrible problem recently. I went to a chain nail salon and got talked into getting an eyebrow was and an upper lip wax. I had never had either of these done before, and I rarely tweeze, but in a moment of weakness I decided to get it done.

I must have had an allergic reaction to the wax or it was too hot, but my upper lip and eyebrows got all blistered. They hurt for about 5 days and looked bad for about 7. I will never get a waxing done, ever again.

[BlueMoose]

Did the wax feel really hot? I get my eyebrows done, and I've never had that happen. Yikes!:eek:

[HRJ]

I've had a couple of bad perms, but the worst was one that not only looked bad, but STUNK! Literally.

It was 1986, and DH (then DB, I guess) and I had just started dating. I wanted a perm, but didn't make a lot of money, so I went to some el cheapo salon, and who knows what they used -- but my head reeked for days. The foul smell would just not wash out. I even ended up having to buy a new pillow and pillowcase, because the smell permeated them and would not go away.

DH kept asking me if I needed to apply for an "emissions permit" from the state DEP. :p

Helene

[Marian]

Originally posted by BlueMoose
Did the wax feel really hot?

Really it didn't feel that hot. It stung quite a bit when she RIPPED it off though. My eyes teared the rest of the day.

[Gail]

Something about my hair causes hairstylists to foam at the mouth. I guess they see it as wonderful raw material, never mind if the style doesn't suit me.

When I was 14, my mother sent me to an expensive salon to be "coiffed" for my sister's wedding. The stylist took one look at my long, thick tresses and the familiar glazed look came into his eyes. An hour or so later, a crowd had gathered around me to admire the cascading mass of artfully arranged ringlets which had turned me into a fountain of hair. (This was 1967, when hair was teased, sprayed and coaxed into all manner of frightening formations.) The problem was that the guy had completely forgotten I was 14-- not 25-- and I was one of those rare 14-year-olds not in the slightest hurry to BE 25.

Needless to say I took one look in that mirror and burst into tears. (and I DON'T cry easily) I refused to walk down the aisle till my mother had taken the whole mess down and brushed it into some semblance of normalcy (no easy task since it was so thick with shellac, she couldn't even get a brush through it.)

I still cringe when I look at those wedding pictures.

[Peggy]

My worst hair experience was a perm that didn't take. I was a Junior in high school and my hair was blond and very fine. I decided to get a perm to add some body to my limp hair. I went to the hairdresser and she wrapped it all up, put on the perming solution and let me "process". Twenty minutes passed... nothing. Another 20 minutes...nothing. Fifteen more minutes...still nothing. She finally neutralized my hair because she was afraid she wold fry it if she left the rods in any longer. My hair was perfectly straight!! She was so upset. She had me come in a few weeks later to try again (free) thinking she did something wrong. The exact same thing happened! Poor lady was so frustrated that she started to cry! They finally decided to send a sample of my hair in to have it analyzed. The outcome was that my hair shafts were perfectly round and therefore wouldn't take a chemical curl.:confused: :confused: :confused:

Anyway, about 10 years later I tried again. It took tiny rods and about 3x's the processing time, but I finally got a "body wave" out of it. A normal person would have had an afro! To this day, I am very difficult to perm, but occasionally I have it done because I hate my naturally straight hair.

Peggy

[KathrynY]

I was blessed with naturally curly red hair, so I've never permed or colored it (although I begged my mom to let me color it brown in high school so I'd look more like everyone else :rolleyes: ). I did have it styled for a friend's wedding several years ago, which was a real experience.

I decided I wanted to wear it "up" - and told the stylist that I wanted lots of curl. Well, he made my hair the biggest I think it's ever been! First, he teased it - we have this great picture of me at that point and I look just like a lion with a huge mane. Then he curled it all and pinned it up on top of my head. It was a lot of hair, but I was feeling rather glamorous about it. That is, until I got out of the limousine at the church before the ceremony and DH saw me..... he took one look at my hair and said "You look just like Marge Simpson!" :eek: :rolleyes:

[lhall]

Peggy, I also have hard to perm hair.

I don't know that I've had a haircut I didn't like. I've done perms/hightlight/long/short. I did get it cut very short in the back once and Mom hated it, but I didn't.

I do have a couple of bad experiences. I started getting my hair done at salons in Buckhead (read: very nice) when I was a senior in HS. Well, I hadn't started using my current stylist regularly yet, and he changed salons. I went to this lady who said I needed to shampoo and use a spray on conditioner only. Well, I was getting perms and highlights then too. Needless to say my hair got fried. I could run my fingers through untangled hair and it would just break off! I took YEARS and tons of help from another stylist to get my hair back in shape! That's when I switched to my current stylist, and noone else has cut my hair since!! 15 YEARS!

Peggy, if I get a perm it must be a sprial wrap with the smallest rollers and a hot perm. I went to a different Buckhead salon (following my stylist around town) and the lady who did the perm insisted on giving me a cold perm. Well, I paid $$ for this, and in less than a week it was completely gone. They gave me a hot perm at no charge, bad part is I'd told her I needed a hot perm and she didn't believe me.

Leigh

[dulcecoeur]

Okay, I have a beautiful red-auburn colour hair (all natural) and thus I have never had any desire to dye it, plus its nice thick and with a little wave, so I have never wanted to perm it etc.

But......a new stylist coaxed me to try dying it a different shade (this was like a month ago). It was also red, but it was brighter. And since it was semi-permanent I went for it. Well, I decided pretty soon after I got home that I hated it - it was too bright for me, and I took great pride in my natural red hair. Plus my "baby hairs" are actually almost blonde, so they got really really bright. the stylist said it would come out with shampooing, and if I did not like it, to wash it right away to speed the process. Needless to say, that weekend I washed my hair about FIFTEEN times. By Monday, it was back to normal - with a hint of colour in the baby hairs but livable.

I will never never dye my hair again - everyone has to try it once, but that was more than enough for me. I guess it was a colour many people might like, but it was just not me.:rolleyes:

[Peggy]

Originally posted by lhall
Peggy, I also have hard to perm hair.

Peggy, if I get a perm it must be a sprial wrap with the smallest rollers and a hot perm. I went to a different Buckhead salon (following my stylist around town) and the lady who did the perm insisted on giving me a cold perm. Well, I paid $$ for this, and in less than a week it was completely gone. They gave me a hot perm at no charge, bad part is I'd told her I needed a hot perm and she didn't believe me.

Leigh,

My sincere sympathies!! It is so discouraging to spend all that money and time to get a few waves that fall out immediately. I always warn a new hair stylist and they rarely take me seriously. That is, until they try it their way! I usually get a repeat for free on tiny rollers with a LONG appointment for the additional processing time. How I long for natural curly hair!!!:(

Peggy

[slknight]

A few years ago, after I had just moved to Massachusetts, and hadn't found a stylist yet, my sister talked me into getting my haircut with her. This stylist works from her home, although she used to work in a salon. I told her that my hair does not do well when it is short and very layered because it always wings. She said that obviously I had just never had the right cut, and if she cut it this way, it would be fine.:rolleyes:

I also wanted to highlight/color it. My hair's a kind of dark blond/dishwater brown, so I just wanted to go lighter. She talked me into coloring it red. :o I walked out of there with winging, bright red hair. It was absolutely horrible. I have never gone to get my hair cut with my sister since then.

[beejayw1]

Originally posted by KathrynY
It was a lot of hair, but I was feeling rather glamorous about it. That is, until I got out of the limousine at the church before the ceremony and DH saw me..... he took one look at my hair and said "You look just like Marge Simpson!" :eek: :rolleyes:

OMG, Kathryn! Having seen your gorgeous hair and having met DH, I had to sit back and laugh out loud. I can just imagine DH's delivery!

Someone once said, "Heaven protect us from our nearest and dearest!"

[JHolcomb]

Originally posted by Peggy

How I long for natural curly hair!!!:(

Peggy

Trust me. You don't want it. I long for wavy hair so I can curl it or straighten it. My hair is so fine that it doens't straighten well, so I'm stuck with curly. Blech.

[buffygirl]

I'm getting such a laugh out of this thread I nearly choked on my celery stick!

I've had lots of bad hair experiences but the worst had to be a cut I received last summer. First a little background...my DH and I have a running joke (even before this haircut) about my 8th grade band picture. I'm a chubby little 8th grader with my saxaphone, fur hat high on the head and this boxy little bob haircut framing my fat little face. Soooo I started going to my husbands hairdresser last year. Mistake #1, even if his hair looks great do not assume that she will cut yours just as well. So I take a cute picture of Faith Hill's new do (a cute choppy shag) for replication. Mistake #2, never think that your hair will look half as good as the picture, no matter how good the stylist is. So she starts cutting and cutting and we're chatting. I'm noticing lots of hair on the ground. I'm thinking, no fear, it will look fine when it's blown dry. She starts blow drying and I realize 'I've got the 8th grade band do'! It looked awful. She even said "This isn't exactly what we were going for, was it?" I was horrified. I never went back!

[linsleyd]

My brother Brent also went through the stages of coloring his hair and about a month ago he did the mohawk. Then two or three other people in town had mohawks, since he can't stand to be like others he had to shave his head!

Anyway, I too, have natural red hair. Well in '86 in fifth grade my mom took me to get a perm at the mall. (BAD BAD BAD mistake) When they were done with me I looked like freakin' Annie. ANd the curls NEVER loosened. It was absolutly the most horrifying thing ever. I won't let anyone near my hair again that works in the mall or mentions the word perm. Not a good thing on my head!

[matt]

When i was in the 10th grade most of the guys had flat tops and so i decided to get one too. I went to my local Supercuts and had it done. I told the young lady i wanted a flat top and she said sure no problem. When she was done i had two bald nicks in the back of my head. of course i did not know at the time. I went over to a friends house to show off the new haircut. he had told me i had two bald nicks, i thought he was pulling my leg. His mom came in the room and told me the same thing he just did.
so needless to say i have never gone back to supercuts again.

[Kahlico]

When DH was still DB back in high school he went through the whole platinum blond thing to the hot pink thing (for swimming). I had to beg him to not shave his head because he has 2 very large eyebrows. The first time I saw him was when he was a sophmore and I was a junior in HS and he had a shaved head. All you could see of him were his bushy, almost black eyebrows.

2 summers ago I decided I was fed up with my hair color (I have golden, wheat blonde hair) and I decided to darken it to a light brown (I felt like a cliche, blonde hair, blue eyes). Well, my hair didn't take very well to the home color and it turned peachy/pink. I was dubbed my little pony and strawberry shortcake at work. I just decided to be happy with what I have :D

~Emilie