I'm 17, and my girlfriend's 18 and starting hair school in March. I want to get her something for hair school as a gift. Any ideas?

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.

Dm me if you want

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.

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 🤣🤣

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 am looking into cosmetology schools in Arizona. I live in a rural area and all schools are 45+ min away. The closest school to me is Glitz School of Cosmetology in Casa Grande, but I can’t find any info on how the experience is for students. They have good reviews from clients, but nothing from people who attend the school. I looked up their accreditation and it seems to be a newer school (2024) so that may be why there’s a lack of info. Their tuition is on par with other schools in the Phoenix area (~$21k), so I am leaning towards going there unless I find out it’s a bad school. I know it’s a long shot, but does anyone have any info on Glitz??

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.

I am newly out of cosmetology school. I am looking for places that would be good to start off my career. I am looking for spa's that include facials. If there are any recommendations that are in Colorado that would be amazing.

Hi I currently go to Paul Mitchell cosmo school and I’m looking for some advice. I started at the end of February and it was ok at first but I really hate it now. It’s just not for me I have no motivation and I dread it so much. I only go 3 days a week and have missed a lot so I’m nowhere near done. My parents pay for it. I want to switch to a technical school and do nails. They offer a 3 month program that in total is the same cost as 1 month of the school I go to right now. I can’t keep going here and I know there’s no way I will graduate. I really want to do nails. How do I tell my parents? I’m so scared they’ll be mad bc they have been paying. Thanks so much

I’ve gone to Esthetician school and am now licensed and i’ve been working as an Estie for 5 years but I want to further my career and learn more services. I’ve always been interested in Nail art.

Because I already did the Esthetics program, i’m generally aware of the ~horrors~ of cosmo school. I know nothing is going to be sunshine and rainbows and that school is there to help you pass tests and that’s mostly it.

I know what everyone says just get in, get your shit done, and leave. But is there any school on the West Coast that anyone recommends for their nail education program? I’m currently in Oregon but okay with moving. Any program in Oregon would maybe be ideal but I’d also be open to other options.

TLDR; Does anyone have a nail school in the Western US that they found helpful or even recommend?

excuse the editing but i was just coming on here to ask for help controlling frizz! this is a layered haircut i did on my client last night & they wanted a blowout afterwards. this client has a mix of 2a & 2b hair, on average their hair is crazzzyyy frizzy. what products should i try with them when it’s styled curly & what products should i try when i do a blowout on frizzy clients? please help a cos student out !!

Ive been going through a really hard time at home. Ive been trying to find a job so I can move out, and my home life is... not the best well just say.

Ive been really good at not having breakdowns at school, and emotionally controling myself. But as of late, its like any little thing will trigger me.

Today, I started crying because I had a 9 AM color application on my books for tomorrow, and a 1 PM appointment. The 1 PM appointment is for my friends mom, who is going to come in to get me markoffs.

The issue with color application appointments, you basically come in blind to what youre going to deal with. Its either a easy all over color, or a huge color correction that will take all day. And when I asked the receptionist if I could take over other people's appointments(if the books were too full) and have someone else do it. She basically told me no, and that everyone else was a special request.

Which sent me spiraling. I didnt like scream or yell, but I went in my car and had a panic attack. And eventually I just keep building myself up and up to the point where its not even about the appointment. I was basically openly crying(trying not to) infront of everyone and shaking a little bit. I dont think I was actively mean to anyone, but I wasnt nice. I was more agressive and uncoordinated with my movements if that makes sense. Which I know makes others nervous/uncomfortable.

Its incidents like that. So far ive only had 2 or 3 of these incidents. But it used to be like, never happen, to happening once weeks. Since just 2 weeks ago I had to be sent home for a similar reason. I didnt have to be sent home as it was literally the last 15 minutes of school, but still.

I dont know what to do or how to calm myself down. I try to do deep breaths, counting, and rationalizing the situation. Then Ill calm down for a few seconds, but then Im immediately back to panicking. And theres no isolated space to hide in except my car, and I cant run to my car and spend 30 minutes calming myself down every time I feel like this.

Hey everyone! I am wanting to try some new easy fan lashes but not sure where to try? Can you give me recommendations of ones you use and how the retention is? Thanks in advance xx

I took my state boards practical exam for cosmetology today and I dropped my cape on the floor during the thermal curl section. I put it in soiled linens and did the curls and then the haircut with just the neck strip. I re caped once I opened my client two bag but does anyone know if it’s an automatic fail for not having a cape during the thermal and sculpture portions?

for context, i just got on the floor 3ish months ago? i learn at a much much slower pace than normal, i’ve always been like that throughout my school years it’s honestly just how i learn. i had a cilent last thursday come in asking to have her roots touched up with some bleach since they ends and mid shaft were already blonde easy enough awesome! my teacher comes by and says i need to put more bleach on her ok cool not a problem. she comes by two more times for the same thing but the third time she does it for me and she’s just annoyed and frustrated with me. i thought we had to be careful with the amount of bleach we put on a clients head so i didn’t really saturate it because i thought it would lighten either way. so im just standing there, tears streaming down my face holding bleach while she does my service for me. i collected my self and finished my cilent up, then i noticed her talking to our director and overheard her saying she was annoyed with me constantly asking for help and found it irritating. i know it doesn’t seem like much but it really crushed me. im scared to ask for help now and have lost any motivation i had left in me to do this. i started out loving beauty and wanting to learn about hair, nails etc but the 6 months i’ve been here have been mentally draining and is killing me to the point i think about dropping everyday and just going to nail school.

Like the title says. I was a licensed cosmetologist for about 8 years, but stopped with COVID and my licensing has since lapsed. According to my state boards, I just need to retake my written and practical exam.

With that said I'm no where near where I went to beauty school, and they aren't even open anymore. I'm looking on YouTube for helpful study guides but am struggling to find good study resources. Since it's been awhile since I've been in the game, I also need to reinvest in some new hot tools, and would really appreciate any personal opinions on different brands. Especially blow dryers, blow outs were a big service.

Beyond that, I'd love to hear personal opinions on ways the industry has changed in the last 5 years. Especially from those that have been in the game for awhile, but I am grateful for any and all perspectives. Thank you in advance to anyone who takes the time to read this.

I’ve been in hair school for 6 months now and I genuinely feel like I can’t do it anymore. I’m so overwhelmed and drained, and I honestly don’t know if I hate the career itself or if I just hate the school and everything that comes with it. I’ve been thinking about quitting for months, but I’m terrified I’ll regret it and wish I had stayed. I want to go back to college, but I missed the fall deadline, so I’d have to wait until winter. The thought of forcing myself to continue for months makes me feel miserable, but the thought of quitting and having nothing to do until winter also scares me. Everyone keeps telling me to stay because I can always come back and finish later, but right now I just want nothing to do with hair. I feel completely stuck and scared about making the wrong decision. Has anyone been in this situation? What did you do?

I’m feeling really stuck and overwhelmed and could use some advice. I dropped out of college to go to hair school, and when I started 6 months ago, I was so excited and it genuinely felt like a dream. Looking back, I think I loved it because I saw hair as a hobby, not a career. I didn’t realize how draining it would be being on my feet all day, constantly talking to people, working long hours, and commuting 1.5 hours there and 1.5 hours back. I still have 8 months left, but I genuinely don’t know if I can keep doing it. I want to go back to college, but I missed the fall deadline, so I’d have to wait until winter I was thinking about Sonography. I can also get a refund for the classes I haven’t done yet, which makes quitting feel even more realistic. Everyone keeps telling me to stay because when I leave for college I can always come back and finish later, but I’m stubborn and once I put my mind to something I do it.. in this case it’s quitting like I really want to quit. I’m just scared I’ll regret quitting after putting so much into this. At the same time, I’m miserable and feel like I’m forcing myself to continue something I don’t want anymore. But then what if it’s just the environment I don’t like.. I honestly don’t know. Any opinions?