I love going to the hair salon.

Hmm … not that much of a secret, eh? Shucks.

Oh well.

When I tell you I’m my usual salon’s regular customer, I wasn’t playing it down. I mean, I go there at least once a WEEK. Yep, you heard me.

Of course, since I’m such a regular customer, I get quite a lot of perks, such as free hair treatments for 2 months after a hair-rebonding session (totally transferable; my mum *ahem* leeches on my treatments a lot :p), longer washes, longer neck massages … well, you get the picture. Plus, since it’s a salon in a residential area, their services come pretty cheap, compared to the salons in the shopping malls.

My sessions at the hair salon is not merely to just get a hair wash, hair cut, etc. Most of the time, I’m there to just relax and unwind, be pampered by the stylists and assistants while they give some good TLC to my hair and scalp.

Here are five things I do (not all at once, of course) when I’m at the hair salon (which you ladies can do too).

1. Read
Believe it or not, I hardly read at home these days. When I’m back from work, I either hit the telly, or the computer. I just don’t have the energy to focus on reading. When I go to the hair salon, I always bring a book with me, and within the hour (if it’s just a hair wash), I’d have read 30 to 50 pages. When I go for hair-rebonding sessions, which could last up to 6 hours, I’d bring two books with me, because I’d finish the first book even before my session’s up.

It’s a great way to catch up on my reading. Plus, with my nose buried deep in a book, I don’t have to succumb to the chattiness of the assistant(s) doing my hair!

2. Sleep
You’d be surprised to know that you can catch a few winks while at the salon. When my head’s in the steamer (tee hee) for 20 minutes, I normally doze off. Of course, I try to not go into a deep sleep if I can; just close the eyes and relax.

The reason I do not recommend actually sleeping when your head’s in the hair steamer is that sometimes the assistants forget the amount of time which has been set for the steamer to operate. This is especially true when the salon still uses old hair steamers which do not automatically switch off when the set time is up. The assistants will use a kitchen timer, and once the time’s up, in their busy state, they’ll switch the alarm off, but still get on with their things, WITHOUT turning the steamer off. It’s best if you keep track of the time as well. I brought this up because I almost had my head cooked for being in the steamer for almost 40 minutes!!

So, take a nap if you like, but NOT when your head’s in the steamer. It’s quite relaxing to doze off when you’re getting a neck massage 😉

3. Get a free neck and head massage
When I go for a hair wash, as the assistant’s washing my hair, they’d normally massage the head as well. With their slippery fingers covered in shampoo, they’ll give my temples and the back of my neck a good massage. This is particularly fantastic after a hard week at work.

So the next time you go for a hair wash, casually indicate to the salon assistants that you’ve had a long day at work, perhaps give your back a bit of a thumping just to show that your back hurts a little from the stress, etc, and more often than not, they’ll extend their massage to the back as well :p

4. Sharpen your mind
My mum brings crossword puzzles to the hair salon. Instead of reading the magazines provided, she’d be deeply immersed in whatever puzzle she was in. She tells me that it sharpens her mind whilst getting pampered. I do that sometimes too, bringing my puzzles, word searches, etc to the salon. I’ve seen customers doing Sudoku while getting their hair coloured as well. It’s quite a sight, with their hair all covered with slimy red/brown goo, aluminum foil on their heads, with a cape around them, and they’re concentrating on their puzzles. Tee hee hee.

5. Recycle your magazines
Once you’re done with your magazines, don’t bin ’em. Donate your magazines to your favourite hair salon. Granted, you won’t be able to make money compared to selling them to the newspaper man, but the hair salon will definitely be grateful to you. You’ll begin to get more value for your money; they’ll promote their discounts to you first, you’ll get longer massages, that kinda thing.

I give away my magazines to the hair salon I frequent once every three months. That way, I’d have accumulated enough magazines to give ’em, and they love it. In return, I get much better service compared to other customers. Now that’s worth going back for 😉

There ya go. Five things to do at the hair salon. Well, the last one doesn’t really count as a thing to do, but it really is worth a mention.

Have fun at the salon!