The Big Move
We finally got everything moved over to Culver City and have been getting settled in. I put some pictures of the new space in the location tab and also have some pics of the salon on my Facebook and Instagram. It's between Elena's Hair Salon and King's Kabobs on Sawtelle Blvd in Culver City. Unfortunately, Google makes you wait on a postcard with a pin code to change anything, so my address is wrong on Google, Google Maps, and Waze until I can get that switched over. It should be right everywhere else, I spent a few hours Saturday night changing everything after I closed down at Sola Salon. I've had an issue with Yelp switching back and forth between the address for the salon in Culver City and the old one, but after three phone calls and me changing it myself a couple times, I think they have it locked on Sawtelle now. We are still doing some work to the salon, there's a love seat for the waiting area we're still waiting on, the drink fridge should be coming in any time now, and Krissy is going to pick up a TV for the salon. We already have cable and internet hooked up, we're going to have a wifi hotspot in the salon too, they still have to set that up though. So far it's been a pretty smooth transition, there have been a couple people go the old salon, and it's a little farther drive for me to get to Culver City from Woodland Hills, but everything else here has been great. Sometimes at the other space everything was so close together it felt like you couldn't even breathe, so it's been nice working out of a bigger space. With everything going on with the move, and how booked I get with haircuts during the day, I haven't had much of a chance to check out the area, and I hadn't spent much time in Culver City before doing hair here--but it seems like a nice area, I hope everyone is able to give it a try.
TIm
Reminder
Just a reminder, the salon will be closed on Sunday January 29th due to the move to Culver City. We'll be moving things between the Los Angeles and Culver City salons, and both will be torn down, so I will be unable to do hair that day. The last day in the west LA suite will be Saturday the 28th, and I will start in Culver City on Tuesday the 31st.
Dandruff
People have been using the word dandruff as a catch-all for anytime you get flakes in your hair, but just because you have some flakes doesn't necessarily mean you have dandruff. Dandruff is large greasy flakes while dry scalp is the little white flakes in hair most people think of when they talk about dandruff. In the ten years I've been cutting hair, I've only seen actual dandruff in someone's hair two or three times. Now that we've got that out of the, I was reading a good article on GQ about habits men have that are causing their dandruff. I agree with what they wrote and don't really have anything to add to their list, but there are some environmental factors that you can't control that can affect your scalp. Except for the weather we've been have recently, Los Angeles is generally dry, and I know a lot of guys that started noticing flakes in their hair after moving to LA. The changing of the seasons can also do a number on your scalp. Even though we don't get much of a winter in LA, I do see more flakes while cutting hair this time of year.
If you've followed the advice in the GQ article, and still have flakes, it may be time to switch to a different shampoo and conditioner. I have read good things online about Nizoral AD, but I don't have any experience with that particular product. What has worked best for me is Aveda Scalp Benefits and the Eufora Complete Shampoo with their Revitalizing Treatment. If you do everything in the article, get a good shampoo and conditioner, and still have scalp issues and see flakes in your hair, it may be best to go to a doctor. Below is a link to the article I referenced.
http://www.gq.com/story/bad-habits-causing-dandruff
Moving
I wanted to take a moment to write a blog post to inform everyone that we will be moving to a new location, and I will be cutting hair in a lovely salon in Culver City. I will also be sending out an email with all the details, alongside this blog post, so unless you've opted to unsubscribe from Vagaro emails, you should be receiving that important information shortly. Aside from the new location of the salon, I want to assure you that everything else will remain consistent,
There will also be some benefits on your end by the move to Culver City. I haven't been able to scout it out myself, but there's a free parking lot. No more having to use the garage, valet, or walk from Ralphs. With the extra space in the Culver City salon, we'll be able to have a waiting area and you won't have to find a bench outside of the suite while waiting for your haircut like you currently do at Sola. With the addition of a waiting area, we want to serving drinks again. I don't have a timetable of when that's going to start, Krissy is taking care of that, but we are planning on having coffee, soda, water, and beer again. The beer is something that people who have been getting their hair cut by me since the beginning have been asking for ever since my former salon got rid of it, so I'm glad to be bringing it back. We're planning on getting a bigger TV, putting it on the wall, and having the same set up for sports on it as I do now with the WatchESPN, NBA League Pass, etc.
Just as it was with the move from the last salon, I'm sure there will be some people that Culver City is more of a drive for so I'm willing to be flexible with my hours. I can't open everything up in Vagaro, but if you're looking for a hair appointment a little later than you see available in the online booker so you can miss traffic, give me a call or shoot me a text and we can try to schedule a hair appointment that will work best for you. For earlier appointments, I need to know the night before so I can plan ahead since I'm driving from Woodland Hills to Culver City.
I would just like everyone to know that this decision wasn't made lightly--but this was the best of the few options that were available to me. I looked into staying at Sola, but there are no suites opening up soon enough, and there's a waiting list (which I'm not currently on) for when one does open up. Staying in the current suite by myself would cost too much, and not even an option since I'm not on the waiting list for it. All of the other West LA salon suites are full as well. I checked with Salon Republic and Phenix. I also looked at closer hair salons to rent a chair in, but they were all very expensive, and I also wouldn't have the access I would need to work my hours six days a week. Some people at Sola offered to let me do hair out of their suite, but I would only be able to work one or two days a week doing that. I don't want anyone to think I'm just going to be bouncing around all over different salons in Los Angeles, Krissy signed a five year lease on this space, so this will be my last move until I'm able to open my own salon--which is years away at this point. With very few options, I think the salon in Culver City will work out best.
In closing, I really hope this works out and everyone is able to make it into the new space. I genuinely like cutting everyone's hair who comes in. I've had friends who don't do hair ask me how I handle difficult/rude clients and I always tell them that there's not anyone who's hair I cut that I wouldn't go out and grab a beer with. I will be sending an email when I know the exact date for the move to Culver City, which depends on how long it takes a plumber to get our shampoo bowls and sinks in. We're hoping for Feb 1st, but will know for sure after the plumber gets a chance to to look at the salon. I will send out an email as soon as I know. Stay tuned for photos or the new salon!
Hope to see you soon!
Tim
Update 1/3-/2017
The plumbing is done and the moving day is set. I will start doing hair out of the Culver City salon on January 31st. The last day in the Sola suite will be Saturday the 28th, I won't be working in either salon that Sunday because we will be moving things between the west LA and Culver City spaces. If you didn't receive an email, you may have unsubscribed yourself from Vagaro's emails. I will update the confirmation emails when we move with instructions for getting to the new salon, parking, etc.
What's New in Men's Hair for 2017?
That's a good question. With 2016 almost over, I've been looking for the best answer to that on different men's fashion websites, blogs, instagram posts, and a few youtube videos. I clicked on a link that said long hair will be in and the new thing, but then when I got to the article it was all pictures of guys with fades and undercuts. I have a client who I've been giving an undercut to for a few years now, and at the beginning of 2016 he was looking for something new, checked a few websites, and found the same thing as me--that undercuts were the "new" thing for 2016. I'm not knocking the haircut, it's one of favorites to cut in the salon (and one of the best looking haircuts in my opinon, I was just using that example to make the point that men's haircuts don't change too much over time. I mean guys are still getting a haircut make popular by Julius Caesar. One thing I have noticed about the current trend for men's hair is that anything goes, which could explain why that particular haircut has lasted so long. When you can do whatever you want nothing (which exception to avant garde styles) really goes out of style. I don't know about other places, but in Los Angeles you can feel free to get that trendy undercut, grow your hair long, get a business/professional haircut, or pretty much anything you can think of. As long as it's cut properly and put together, your hair will look its best.
Holiday Hours
I just wanted to take a moment to let you all know that I am staying in West LA for Thanksgiving this year, which means I will be in the salon doing hair throughout this week. Please keep in mind that the salon will be closed on Thursday in observance of the holiday, but on Friday I will be working by appointment only. Saturday and Sunday will return to our regular hours for your convenience. This time of year is the busiest season for hairstylists, so it’s always a good idea to plan a little ahead to ensure you can secure your desired appointment. For Christmas this year, I will be operating under my usual schedule during the holiday season, with the only day I plan on being out of the salon being Christmas Day. In the past, I haven't had many guys trying to get appointments for haircuts on Christmas Eve, but just to ensure everyone has a chance, I'll leave my salon schedule open with normal hours available for online booking until the day before Christmas. The salon will also be closed on New Year's Day; however, I will be back cutting hair during my regular hours starting Tuesday, January 3rd. I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday! For New Year’s celebrations, I plan on having the salon open during normal hours on New Year’s Eve, but we will be closed on New Year’s Day to rest and recharge. After that, I’ll resume my regular hours, so I look forward to seeing all of you soon. Be sure to stop in early to guarantee that you’re looking your best before heading out to celebrate!
Why West LA
People often ask me why I chose to cut hair in west Los Angeles instead of a place in the valley since I live in Woodland Hills, or why I just didn't move to west LA in the first place. When I was living in Iowa and looking for an apartment, almost everyone I contacted wanted me to visit their office in person before they would rent to me. The place I live at now let me do everything through email and fax, which worked out best for me. When I first came to Los Angeles, I didn't have a job or anything. After applying and interviewing with a few different places all around LA, I chose to work at Alexander's for Hair salon because of their male clientle, since I had only been cutting men's hair for a few years at this point and felt if I wanted to start doing women's hair again that it would be best to assist for a while to bring me back to speed on the latest techniques and trends. After working there for five years, a lot of guys were concerned that I would take a job closer to where I live, but in this industry, to start cutting hair at a salon that far away from where I had been working would be basically starting over since most men wouldn't drive from the west LA area out to the valley to get a haircut. That's the reason we picked the studio we did when we moved, this is the closest one to the old salon. Traffic sucks driving all the way from Woodland Hills, but I have a few podcasts I like to listen to on the way here to pass the time and I genuinely like working in west LA, being on Wilshire with all of the different places I can walk to to grab something to eat, and I know I've been saying this for years, but eventually I'll move to the westside.
Tools of the Trade
Men who come into the salon are always saying, "How do I style my hair like you do?" or "I can never get my hair to look the way you can in the salon." The purpose of this blog is to help you get the right tools to use at home so you can get your hair looking its best as it does when you leave the salon.
Unless asked not to, when I get done with a man's haircut, I always shampoo it and blow it dry. I do this because after all of the tugging and pulling on a guy's hair that goes on during a haircut, I think the shampoo kind of hits the reset button on the hair, puts whatever wave you may have back in, and gets the hair to lay as it naturally would. The reason for the blow dry is because I need to see how the hair looks dry and the way you are going to style it so I can do some detailing before you leave the salon. Since I use the hair dryer on just about every man who comes into the salon, if you want your hair to look the same at home, this is the most important tool you will need. A guy may be able to get by without some of the tools I use or substitute for something different, but the hair dryer is something you can't replicate in your hair with a towel or by letting your hair air dry.
Another tool that is good for every guy to have at home is a vent brush. You don't have to get the best or most expensive one, just about any will do. If you are using a hair dryer/vent brush combo, put your product in wet hair and brush your hair in the direction that you want it to lay, and then dry it in that direction before you start to dry it. As the hair starts to get drier, you can brush your hair as your drying it. Once the hair is completely dry, it may look too perfect for your taste. If you're a guy who likes a little messier look, just take a little product and break the hair up a little bit.
For men looking to get a nice, crisp part in their hair, I would just reccommend just using a standard comb. If you're going for a slick look, you can put product in your hair, comb the part in, and then let it air dry. If not, put the part in your hair with the comb and then follow the blow drying steps. For a sharper part you may have to go back in with the comb after the hair is dry and then set it in with a little more product.
These are tips that I used to do back when a had shorter hair. Now that it's longer and I'm growing it out I don't want to put any heat on it so I don't use a hair dryer, and since hair is at it's most fragile when it's wet, I use a wide tooth comb out of the shower to help avoid breakage.
With shorter men's hairstyles you really don't have to break the bank buying any of these tools. You can get a good hair dryer in the $30 range from a place like Sally's, a vent brush from there would probably be under $5, and a 12 pack of combs is in the $5 range too. The only hair dryers I wouldn't recommend are those smaller ones like you see in a hotel. They don't have a lot of power if you're trying to get your hair to go up, and even if you aren't the lack of power makes it take longer to dry your hair.
Men's Hair FAQs
I thought this would be a good place to answer some frequently asked questions that men have while getting their haircut in the salon. I will add more as they come up.
Does my hair grow faster in the summer?
There may be a slight shift in your hair growth do to UV exposure, but it should be marginal and mostly unnoticeable. With men who wear shorter hairstyles, I think the hot summer days make them want to get a haircut sooner, so it feels like the hair came back faster. In the summer I have some men come in to get their haircut every two to three weeks.
Do I need to use conditioner?
This really depends on your hair. If you come in to the salon often, and have a really short hairstyle, you might not have to use it because your hair is getting cut off before it becomes too damaged. The longer your hair is, the older the ends of your hair are, making a need for conditioner to put moisture, protein, and other nutrients back into your hair that get stripped out everytime you shampoo. For men having issues with dry or frizzy hair, I recommend using conditioner. I use it everytime I shampoo, and if I go to the gym on a day where I don't normally shampoo, I use conditioner instead. Experiment a little and you can figure out what makes your hair look best.
How often should I shampoo?
This is another question that really depends on your hair type. Again, if you're a guy who has a shorter hairstyle and you get your haircut often, you can get away with shampooing your hair everyday if you want. Every other day and every two days is fine too. I noticed when I started shampooing less my hair was greasy at first. This is because your hair is used to being overwashed and trying to put more natural oils back in. Over time your hair will get used to less washing. Even the most gentle professional shampoo have cleansing agents to clean your hair, which is why shampooing less is a good thing.
What is _________ haircut called?
This is one I don't really get behind the chair, but I see people asking in the male hair advice subreddit. Some men on there look all over the internet to try to find the name to a particular haircut when it's easier to just bring in the picture. Even if they get the name of the haircut right, there are different lengths and versions of each haircut, but with a picture everyone's on the same page. It's even helpful to bring multiple pictures if you like different things about a couple of different haircuts. It's also helpful to have a few pictures to pick out which ones will be best for your hair thickness, texture, and your face shape.
How do I get rid of dandruff?
More than likely, what you have is dry scalp and not dandruff. Dandruff is large greasy flakes. I've only seen real dandruff a couple times in the ten years I've been cutting hair. Since dandruff is greasy flakes most dandruff shampoos are really drying. If you have dry scalp that can make the problem even worse. The first step is to figure out whether you have dandruff or dry scalp. If it's dry scalp, you may need to cut back on how much you are shampooing. If you don't already, get a good moisturizing conditioner. A leave in conditioner will work too. If that doesn't help, there are shampoos and conditioners that help promote a healthy scalp. I've had good luck with Aveda Scalp Benefits (you can order that from aveda.com) or the Eufora Complete Shampoo and Revitalizing Treatment. For more serious scalp conditions it's best to see a doctor.
I'll post more FAQs as they come up in the salon, or if you have any feel free to comment below.
Growing out a buzz cut
I was just reading an article on GQ about Justin Beiber (sorry) growing out his buzzcut. Regardless of how you feel about him, there were some good tips in it for not just growing out buzzcuts, but ones men can apply to any type of haircut they're trying to grow out. Instead of repeating what they said verbatim, I'll link their article at the bottom and offer more tips in addition to what they wrote here.
As they touched on in the article, one of the main issues with growing out the buzzcut is how round it gets. This is a big reason I don't like buzzcuts on most men. Since the clippers are following the shape of your head, the haircut ends up really round. As your hair grows out, it gets even rounder. When transitioning from a buzzcut to something new, you'll need to come in to the salon often to get the sides of your hair cut. If you don't quite need that much hair cut, I offer a service called a hairline and neck trim. What I do for this service is clean up your sideburns, tidy up the hair around the hairline, trim the hair on the neck, and do a taper in the back. I do not touch the hair on the sides or the top or give a shampoo with this service. Since it doesn't take me a lot of time I just charge $10. It's good for growing out any type of haircut, not just a buzzcut. It's also a quick way to keep your hair looking it's best as it grows out.
When growing out any haircut it's also a good idea to get it all cut once in a while. If you just let your hair grow without trimming it, you can get split ends which can cause breakage further down the shaft, hindering the process of getting your hair longer. One strategy I have been using over the past year as I've been growing my hair out is using a leave in conditioner. This is a conditioner made to be used outside of the shower and worn in your hair throughout the day. They don't have any hold, so if you need your hair to stay put, you might want to use a hairspray alongside it.
A few other quick tips for growing out your hair--wash your hair as little as you can get away with, be gentle with your hair when it's wet (this is when hair is its most fragile and can break), and try to avoid putting heat on your hair. I know most men don't have to worry as much about the last tip, but the things to avoid are blow dryers, flat irons, curling irons, and any other hot tool. If your hair is long enough to pull back in a pony tail or man bun, try to wait until the hair is dry before putting a band around it to help avoid breakage while the hair is wet and fragile.
Here is the GQ article I referenced earlier in the post.
http://www.gq.com/story/justin-bieber-buzz-cut
Unwanted Hair
As many of you know, Monday is the only day off, and even though I work in west LA I live out in Woodland Hills. Right now it's 110 degrees here, so I figured it would be a great time to stay inside and write another blog post.
For many men, myself include as we advance in age more and more unwanted hair keeps sprouting up. It can come in the form of back hair, ear hair, nose hair, and many guy's eyebrows can become bushy. Keeping this hair at bay can make a big difference in your overall appearance. Many men who visit me in the salon have me trim their eyebrows and ear hair, for some guys it's much easier for me to do it than to try it themselves at home. If your eyebrows are really bushy, I like to use a clipper over comb technique that will cut all of the long hairs and last until the next time you visit the salon. If you only have a couple wild hairs I use my comb and scissors to accurately cut only the few needed. Neither of these techniques will change the shape of your eyebrows or make you look effeminate. For men who have a unibrow, or starting to get one, I can wax the hair in the middle. If you're starting to get a unibrow, do not shave it! Not because of the old wives tale that shaving makes it grow back faster and thicker, but it just looks bad as the stubble starts to grow back in. I know I don't have any waxing on my service menu, but that's mainly because I don't do any eyebrow shaping. If you just want the hair in the middle removed, let me know a little in advance of your appointment so I get get the wax heated up, and we can do it at the shampoo bowl while the conditioner is on. I only charge $5 for this (mostly to cover the product costs) because it doesn't really add any time to what's already been allotted for your haircut. For ear hair, I generally clean that up as I'm finishing your haircut, most men just need a few cut off the lobes and the edge of the ear with the trimmers. I have a few hairs that come in on my ears, and I wax it off at home. This isn't a service I provide in the salon, but is't easy to do at home. You will need a wax pot, some hard wax, and some small applicator sticks. I buy all of this on Amazon, but make sure you get hard wax, the soft requires paper strips to get it off. If you're unsure which to get, you can email me and I'll send you a link. All you have to do is heat the wax up in the warmer, apply it to the hair with one of the sticks (go with the grain when you apply), wait for it to dry, and pull it off against the grain of the hair once dry. You'll have to work up a little corner with your fingernail to grip in order to pull it off. The reason I think this is best instead of just trimming the hair off is that when you rip a hair out over and over, eventually the follice will die and hair won't grow their anymore. I've been waxing my unibrow for long enough now, that even if I forget to keep up on it, mostly peach fuzz grows there now. If I hadn't been doing that for years and forgot about it, I would have something growing that would rival Anthony Davis. If you're a person that gets a lot of ingrown hairs, waxing may not me for you--also if you have any questions about any of this, please feel free to ask me the next time you're in the salon.
Finding the Right Haircut for You
There are a few things men need to consider when choosing a hairstyle. Hair texture, thickness, your face shape, and what you do for a living can make a big difference in finding something that looks good on you. The same haircut on a guy with curly hair is going to look a lot different on a man with straight hair, or even one with a little wave in his hair. I wouldn't give the same haircut to a teenager that I would to a older man who's hair is thinning. It's not just a matter of the thicker hair being thinned out by adding texture, a hairstyle that looks good on a guy with really thick hair may make the guy with thinner hair just look like he's trying to hard to hide his hair loss or to cover something up. Today I'm going to talk more about face shapes and which hair styles I think look best for each particular shape. These aren't written in stone-hard fast rules, even stylists have some disagreement on which styles look best for each face shape.
For men, the ideal face shape is square. When a man has less of a square face, the idea is to get a cut that creates more of an illusion of a square. This doesn't necessarily mean every guy who sits in my chair gets a square haircut, but there are little tricks I can do to create the illusion of a square face. I'll get into that as I talk about each face shape individually.
If you are one of the lucky guys who already have a square face shape, pretty much any haircut from longer to short will look good, but neat and clean haircuts are going to look the best. The only thing that you have to worry about if you're a guy with a square face shape is that the shorter you go, the more it will look like a military hairstyle.
If you have a rectangle face shape (long and narrow) what you really don't want is a big contrast between the top and sides--this will create the illusion that your face is even longer. A beard will do the same thing. A cut where the top and sides are proportionate and some hair falls over the forehead looks best on a guy with a rectangle shaped face.
On a man with a round face shape, I like to do the opposite that I would on a guy with a rectangle face shape. You want that contrast between the top and the sides. On a guy with a round face shape it helps great the illusion of having a strong jaw line. A well groomed beard can help with this as well.
Less men have diamond shaped faces than the ones listed above--but if you're a guy with one, you want something with softer lines, not too short (that will make your ears look bigger), and a side part. If you have a heart shaped face similar haircuts will work for you too.
For a triangle shape faced man, longer lengths are usually better. This adds volume to help offset the narrow forehead and wide jawline. I think beards don't look the best on guys with a triangle face shape because they're already so wide at the jawline and the beard makes it look even wider.
Below are some examples of the different face shapes on men.
When you do have an idea for a new hairstyle, or even if you don't have an idea, it's best to find pictures on the internet to show your barber/stylist. Even having multiple pictures is good if you only like part of one and a different part of another. I go on Reddit Male Hair Advice and I see so many posts with a picture asking, "What is this haircut called?" There will always be a lot of responses saying, "It's called take the picture into your barber." and then other comments with people debating on what the haircut is actually called. This is why I think bringing pictures in is best, the same haircuts are called different things regionally, or just from person to person. Where I moved from "the combover" when when an old guy brought all of his hair from one side across his bald head to try to cover up the fact that he's bald. A lot of people here call it a combover when a guy with plenty of hair parts it to one side. I had only heard that called a side part until I moved here.
Thanks for reading, I hope this blog has been helpful in helping you find a new hairstyle that will look best on you.
