The Importance of Trust

As a beauty writer with a focus on hair, I shouldn't admit that I'm one of those clients who you'd probably hate. When I go in for a haircut, I hyperventilate when my stylist tries to take off any more than an inch, and it took about 20 minutes of convincing for me to cut long layers and angles about six months ago (that was the "drastic" change I made when I got this job!). I think I get my conservative hair ways from my mom, who never likes the way her hair is cut or the way it's blown out, even when it's just a trim. We both love our hair and aren't very open to change.

That said, I think I shocked both myself AND my mom the other day when we went to the amazing Mark Garrison Salon in New York City for services, and I left about 7 inches of my precious long hair on their floor. My fabulous colorist there, Patricia Ribiero, who I have been going to for almost four years, was in shock when she saw me. She had tried to convince me to lose some of my length for a long time, and I always refused. This time, however, there was just something about the way Mark explained to me what he wanted to do—and why—that made me trust him (I had never had my hair cut there before, just colored). He talked about the structure of my face and my long neck and how he wanted to give me a style as opposed to just a cut. It only took about five minutes for me to agree to put myself in his hands and just let him do what he thought would look best. And it wasn't just me. Five chairs away, my mom was getting much more than her usual trim, thanks to her stylist, Maria Palazzo, taking the time to go over her hair type and concerns and really making her understand why she should have it styled in a particular way. We both left Mark Garrison Salon with lighter heads and bigger smiles.

The lesson here? Even your most boring and conservative clients will let you experiment if you use your knowledge of hair to explain things to them. Most of us just stick to what we know looks good, but as the expert, you can see what might look better. Keep that in mind next time someone asks for just a trim ... —Lori Morris, senior editor