Finding a barber (again!)…

Ok, guys, after the last few posts being mostly based on slightly philosophical subjects and ending in a bit of naval gazing, it’s time to get back on track a little, and start talking about hair and style again!

YAY!

(A very excited turtle, via CuteEmergency)

You may remember, from one of my first hairy posts, that I was getting my hair cut in the Waldorf Barbers, in Dublin. Unfortunately, I started getting reports that they were refusing to cut women’s hair. Now, I understand if a woman was going in, looking for a ‘trendy’, faux-hawk type style, that you’d rarely see coming from a really old-school barbershop like The Waldorf. (Side note, are we in 2005? JK, I love all you faux-hawkers!!) Or a very feminine cut, that you might get from a salon like Toni & Guy or Peter Marks. But it seemed odd to me to be actively turning away customers based not on the style they wanted (which the barbers there may not be trained in) but on their gender. It’s a real shame, because I got some of the best cuts of my LIFE there, particularly from Katherine, who is an absolute lady and a world class barber.

But even though they hadn’t asked me to leave or denied me a cut, I didn’t feel right about using a barbers that wouldn’t cut my friends hair. So the hunt was on to find a new barbers. Easy, right?

Well, yes and no. My first choice to try was Sams Barbers, who I had recommended to some folks here and on my Twitter feed as a great place to buy pomades in Dublin, although I’d never had a cut there. They are a pretty large Irish owned and run chain of barber shops across Dublin. So I went into the shop closest to me, Dame Court, where all cuts are €17. Which is nearly half the price I was paying in the Waldorf- I wondered what the quality of the cut would be like.

I didn’t actually get that far. I was refused service, being told they did not cut women’s hair, but that if I went to their flagship branch (on Ormond Quay, right by the river in Dublin), they cut women’s hair there- for €25. Even though I already had short hair, and wanted the EXACT style the guy that was getting cut there at that exact time was getting.

Needless to say, I was pissed. And I let Sams know, via Twitter. Ah, armchair warriors, unite!

ANGER
TWEET!!!

Now, I thought no more of it, shook the lesbian Facebook tree, and got a recommendation to visit the Star Barbers (where I hasten to add I got an great cut, and a great chat from Mark, the owner. Definitely recommended.) and kind of wrote off Sams.

BUT! Within a few hours, I had a private message awaiting me. (I like that they didn’t just reply to the public tweet. Shows a bit of class. Always good.) They apologised so profusely, and really wanted to impress upon me that it is 100% NOT their policy in any way to refuse business from anyone, and definitely not by reason of gender, whatsoever. After messaging back and forth for a little while, I got a phonecall from the manager in Ormond Quay, again apologising, and offering me a complimentary cut, and some pomade to make up for being refused.

I gotta say, guys. I was impressed. They dealt with a situation which frankly made me feel like sh*t at the time in a very professional, fast, and magnanimous manner. And it wasn’t like I was gonna say no to a free cut and some pomade, right? Who’d do that?

So, off I toddled yesterday to Sams. Whilst I was impressed and pleased with how they treated my complaint (which I admit I felt slightly sheepish about sending after the dust settled a bit…), I was reserving a bit of my judgement to see how they cut my hair. I really needn’t have worried, at all.

Elle gave me a very, very good cut, taking note of the way it flowed over my head and has oddly started to grow in about 5 different directions since I got a bit of a bad cut in Waldorfs a couple of months ago. (Seriously, I have cowlicks where I never had them before!!) What I really enjoyed was the little details they include with a cut there, like a 2nd wash after finishing the cut to get the tiny hairs off your scalp. Small touch, but appreciated.

After I was finished, I got talking to James and Sam, and again, they couldn’t have been nicer. We got to talking about pomades, and they showed me their range, which is usually more stocked than these pics show (and apologies for the not-so-great pics, it was a really bright day and the cabinet was really reflective!)

 

The cabinet of wonder!!

They stock the classics that I’d always recommend (Murrays Super Light, Sweet Georgia Brown Blue and Black & White) along with a lot of WB’s like Layrite, Sauvecito, Steadfast, Uppercut… The WB’s do sell better, so they have a bigger selection of them, which I can totally understand. I did, however, get a hold of their last tin of High Life VooDoo Island, which I have in my hair at the moment!

Dat shine! (Voodoo Island in the hair…)

I’m also stoked to hear they’re developing their own range of pomades from the ground up- I can’t WAIT to try them out.

All in all, I was very impressed with Sams. After an initial bad taste in my mouth, I now have nothing but respect for these guys, and the barbers they have working in their shops. My cut was really great, and the service is cracking, with a really good range of pomades in stock to try at any time. And I wanted to tell the women out there who are thinking of getting cut in a barbers to try Sams out. I know that this is a pretty popular look at the moment, particularly in the queer community here in Dublin, but it might be scary to just walk into a barbers and get refused- you won’t have to worry about that with Sams.

Oh, and before I go, some news. I’m going to start reviewing pomades here in the next few weeks. I know there’s tons of guys out there reviewing at the moment, and I don’t necessarily think I can do any better. But these reviews will be a bit different- I’m co-opting my girlfriend in to do reviews too. So both of us will be reviewing the same product, but for very different styles. I’ll be styling my usual contour/ mini pomp and she’ll be… doing whatever it is femmes do to make themselves look fabulous. It’s a mystery to me, folks, but I guess I’ll learn, eh? We’ll present the reviews side by side(or as ‘side-by-side’ as WordPress let’s me!) at the same time. It could get weird, but hey! I guess we’ll soon find out.

Until then, stay dapper peeps!

 

Pomade basics… 102!

Howdy folks! How are we doing today? Having a good day? Good hair day?

Right, so my last post focussed on the basics of pomades, and the difference between water-based and wax based pomades. You can read up on that here. I figure the next stop on this introductory trail is the difference in holds, and the types of hair they’re best for. Because all of us have different hair, and it’s important for you guys to know the different types of pomades and what the different ingredients do when styling. Also, I have a specific type of hair, so what works in my hair won’t work in someone else’s…

( Most of this post will reference wax-based pomades, rather than water-based. I don’t use WB very much, because I personally have trouble styling with them- they fight my hair and it ends up not looking half as smooth as with wax based. Having said that, I’ve just found a fantastic WB that allows me to do just that. More on that later…)

First of all, my hair type… I have fine, Irish hair. I have a fair amount of it, which always lead me to believe I had thick hair, but I don’t. My hair itself is fine, which means that I can’t use the same products as someone with thick, curly hair. My hair used to be really curly, but as I’ve gotten older it’s started to straighten. Now, it’s more a gentle wave, if anything. Which can cause it’s own problems, and dictates how my hair styles, but that’s another issue! But I’m quite lucky in the pomade world. I can use lots of stuff and get good results- some better than others. When it comes to classifying pomades and figuring which ones to get, I tend to sort by hold. You have light, medium and heavy. Recently I’ve noticed a bunch of homebrewers making ‘super heavies’ but I haven’t tried any yet, and probably won’t! And this classification is purely MY classification- some of what I call mediums are labelled as ‘light’ by the makers, etc. So be aware of that when thinking about what kinds of pomades to try out!

Light pomade:

Ok, so let’s start with the light pomades. These tend to have petroleum or petrolatum as their top ingredient, and as a consequence are light and greasy, usually. They are usually very shiny, easy to apply, and don’t offer that much hold, although they do have enough for me to comb a modest pomp or keep an executive contour in line. If you have thick hair, forget about it. Some of the lights that I have in my arsenal and daily rotation are Dixie Peach, Murrays Hair-Glo, Dax Super Neat and Tres Flores. 

 

 

Lots of people use light pomades as ‘toppers’, which means as a top coat to add shine and scent to a heavier holding pomade. Because as you go ‘up’ in hold, traditionally you go ‘down’ in shine. This is because petrolatum gives shine, but doesn’t really give hold. That comes from wax, which doesn’t really have much shine. 

Medium pomade:

Mediums are just that… the middle ground between hold and shine. They tend to have a higher wax content than light pomades, and will have a decent amount of sheen. People with thicker hair might get away with using mediums on their own, but may need to move into the heavier pomade arena. Mediums are my go-to’s for full on styling. My favourite pomades are mediums. For high shine mediums I go for Sweet Georgia Brown (Blue), Murrays Super Light and Dax Neat Waves. Otherwise, some of my favourites are Green Fairy, Pompage, Bees Knees and Dax Green and Gold. 

 

Heavy pomade:

Heavy pomade is something I don’t have the best knowledge of- just being honest! I have used a few and they’ve just been too heavy for my fine hair. I don’t even have hot weather to worry about with light and mediums (heat can compromise the hold) to make me try them. I have tried a few, and while I can tell some of them have been great, they just didn’t work for me. The wax content in heavies are usually high, and often mix different types of waxes (beeswax, microcrystalline, soy). Of the heavies I’ve tried, I’d recommend Pompking and Dax Wave and Groom. I wish I could have a medium with the smell of Dax Wave and Groom, it reminds me of my childhood, someone in my family must have used it!!!

I reckon that’s enough to be getting on with. As always, if anyone has any questions, ask away, I’ll do my best to answer them. Next time I’ll probably go into styling and using pomade to get different results…

Stay dapper, peeps!

 

Pomade basics 101.

Pomade. A small word, with lots of myths and mythology around it. In this post, I’m going to try break it all down into bitesize chunks, from my experience of using it and trying out different types for the last year. Now, I’ll be honest with you guys- I LOVE pomade. I love styling with it, experimenting with it, trying new ones, classics, different shines, different smells. At last count I had over 40 different types.

My pomade collection a few months ago. It’s about triple this size now…

Yeah, FORTY. My girlfriend hates me. :p

Anyway, here are some things about pomade that you might have been wondering about- sometimes the pomade and vintage world can be a hard one to crack into, information-wise. While I love all the pomade and pomapadour appreciation groups out there, they are overwhelmingly dominated by guys, and so for some people that could be intimidating, or a bit nerve-wracking. Fear not! I’m here to answer questions. So if you have any that aren’t included in this post, PLEASE leave a message or email me. I’m lovely, I swear!!!

1) What exactly IS pomade????

Ok, so let’s get basic. According to Wikipedia (who of course we can totally trust!) pomade is;

 is a greasy and waxy substance that is used to style hair.

Pretty simple, right? Well, not really once you get into it. There are actually a couple of different types of pomade, depending on their ability to wash out. You could simplify this into ‘water-based pomade’ and ‘wax/ petroleum- based pomade’. Traditionally, all pomades were wax/ petro based, and made the hair slick and shiny.

Pomades really started to take off in the early 20th century; many of the big names like Murrays (1925), Black & White (1922), Royal Crown (1936), and Sweet Georgia Brown (late 1920’s) are still around and making pomade the same way today. So there’s history to it, which I personally really love.

2) Ok, so what’s the difference in pomade types? 

Well, as I said you have water-based, and wax/ petro based pomades, and while they both have the word ‘pomade’ in the title, that’s pretty much where to similarity ends. Now, before we go any further, I have to warn you that many guys in the pomade appreciation world get their knickers in a twist about water-based pomades, claiming them to be gel, and not pomade, and only for pansies, yadda yada yadda. BORING. I say fire ahead with whatever suits your lifestyle and hair best. But, I might as well let you know my opinions. Lucky you.

Wax based pomade doesn’t wash out. Water-based does. That’s the main crux of the issue. But there are other issues, and here you go:

Wax pomades (from now on I’m just going to call them pomade, and water-based will be abbreviated to WB. I can’t be arsed typing everything out…) have a list of ingredients like beeswax, petroleum, coconut oil, olive oil, almond oil, fragrance etc. Main ingredient will be wax or petroleum, depending on the product, and the hold etc. For example this is the full ingredient list of one of my favourite pomades, Bees Knees: 

Raw Lanolin

Beeswax

Tea Tree oil

Peppermint oil

Eucalyptus oil

Pic of Bees Knees pomade (c/o The Dapper Society)

In contrast, WB pomades have some serious chemicals in them- like Layrite (one of the most popular and widely available WB pomades), whose ingredients are;

Water (Aqua), Cetereth-25, PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate, Propylene Glycol, Polysorbate-20, PEG-7 Hydrogenated Caster Oil, PEG-8 Methicone, DMDM Hydantoin, Methylparaben, Fragrance (Parfum), Red4 (CI 14700) Yellow 5 (CI 19140).

Layrite original (from Layrite.com)

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like the idea of putting that many chemicals into my hair and onto my scalp on the regular. If I can’t pronounce it, I dunno if I want to rub it on me.

3) So if you can’t wash pomade out, isn’t that… gross?

Maybe. If you don’t ever let water or shampoo near your head. I wash my hair every day, I just don’t wash the pomade out. I know that might sound odd, and I know when I first started I found the idea weird too. How can your hair be clean if it always has product in it? Truth is most of us wash our hair WAY more than we should. It’s pretty much self cleaning. Washing with shampoo strips all the natural good stuff of our scalp. Rinsing your hair every day, and washing with shampoo every third or so day is one of the best ways to keep hair healthy.

It does take getting used to, and it’s not for everyone. But personally I’ve found my hair to be in far better condition since I started using pomades and washing my hair less. And I have ZERO dandruff. Most pomades I use have great essential oils in them like teatree, peppermint, jojoba… My barber even comments on the condition of my hair now. Plus I save a ton of money, because rather than have to use shampoo and conditioner and product every day, I use far less than I used to. And I save time- most mornings all I need to do is rinse my hair, put a small bit more product in (to replace what has come out overnight and in the shower) and comb my hair. Done in about 3 minutes. Whereas if I were to wash and shampoo and restyle from scratch every day… yeah, way longer.

But everyone has their limit. I know guys who don’t “degrease” for 2 or 3 weeks. Personally, I can’t go more than about 3 days without needing to completely cleanse my hair of all product. I just don’t like how my scalp feels (even though I do rinse it every day) and my hair is pretty fine, so build up for me isn’t great- it starts to weigh my hair down and it’s not good. I also know of people whose partners have a fit at the state of greasy pillows and ruined pillowcases- pomade does rub off at night!

4) I heard using pomade makes your hair fall out. 

Pomade doesn’t make your hair fall out. Improper care of your scalp can do that. And because you comb your hair a lot when you style with pomade, the hairs that naturally fall out during a day can come out all at once, making it look like chunks of hair are coming out. Yes, leaving petroleum and wax on your scalp for long periods without letting your scalp breathe can cause oxygen to stop getting to your pores, which causes problems like spots. But like I said above, if you do it right, this doesn’t occur. I usually have one day a week where I use no product or a light WB product to let my scalp breathe. I’ve been using pomades every day for a year now and if anything my hair is thicker and fuller than before!

5) But… how do you use pomade?

I wish someone had been available to answer this question for me a year ago! I had no clue what I was doing, ended up buying the completely wrong product and freaking out because my hair looked terrible and I had no idea how to fix it. My next post is going to be about how to choose the right pomade for you, but for now I’ll say this; pomade needs to go IN your hair. Not on top. You need to apply it right down to the roots, not just let it sit on top. You use your hands to apply it, a comb or brush to work it through, and a comb to style. Do it right and it’ll stay where you put it all day.  I will also make a few videos to go with my posts, but right now I’ve been sick in bed for a week and I am in no fit state to show myself off to the world!!!

So I hope this post has helped a few people with some questions that they were curious about. I am a huge fan of the slick, sharp styles that can be created pretty easily using pomade, and I’ve seen a few butches and dapper so-and-so’s that have everything down except the hair, which is a shame. The sheer number of products is astounding, and there are almost as many ways to style as there are people! So it can be a bit daunting to someone coming into this arena for the first time. If you guys have questions or comments, I’d LOVE to hear them. As always, you can follow me here, or on Twitter, Facebook and soon, Pinterest. (I do have a personal account but I need to set up one for my blog I reckon!!!)

‘Til next time, stay dapper!

Outfit updates

Hey guys and gals and everyone in between- you beautiful beautiful people you!

You might sense that I am in a good mood, and you’d be right. The sun is shining GLORIOUSLY in Dublin at the moment, which means everyone feels great, so everyone looks great. Short skirts and shorts are ten a penny, and this lesbian couldn’t be happier! It’s Friday, too, I mean COME ON!

I also had a great couple of days… I have been making a few submissions over on the FANTASTIC QueerBois tumblr (check it out if  you haven’t already, it’s great!) and a few reblogs have happened, which is pretty cool. I even got reblogged from the QueerBois site to another tumblr I follow, which was a bit strange, seeing myself pop on the equally great Masculine Of Center tumblr! But for those of my followers who haven’t succumbed to Tumblr, I said I’d stick up a couple of the pics to share with you. I ‘m getting more and more confident in my accessorising… even it’s it’s terrible, don’t tell me!

Sharp for summer

Black Tie stylin’…

 

Anyway, enough of me and my mug! I hope all of your guys’ summer calenders are starting my fill up nicely with parties and bbq’s that give you great excuses to either dress up in your finest dapper duds or at least oogle those of us who do! 😉

‘Til next time, stay dapper, folks!

 

 

Hair update

Sharp part with a fade- as styled by Waldorf Barbers. Now the challenge is to make it look like this all the time.

I know, I know, you guys are probably sick to the back teeth of me and my damn hair. (And if you are, you share the emotion with my girlfriend,  trust me…) Anyway, I have started trying to expand my product horizons, mostly to make life easier for myself. I may like looking good but I also like lie-ins.

Cock grease, sadly, doesn’t work in my hair. Sadface. But that hasn’t stopped me, so I’m experimenting with Black & White pomade right now and I’m waiting for a few others to arrive in the post.

ANYWAY, where I’m going with this is that if you’re looking to get into pomades, it pays to do your homework. And thanks to the internet, that homework can be done via youtube, facebook and blogs. Hurrah! So I’ve put together a few links here that might help if you’re looking into finding out what might work in your hair without paying out a load of money beforehand. Especially if you’re based in Ireland and are at the mercy of whatever Boots has in stock.

The first thing I’ve found great is the Addicted to Pomade group on Facebook. The guys in there know their stuff, and a lot of the new pomade makers actually are part of the group. They’re super helpful, so it’s a good first stop.

Jan Hella runs the Rebel Rouser blog and does awesome pomade reviews. Definitely subscribe. Some other good ones are The Dapper Society and Livin’ The High Life.

As for youtube, there are a couple of channels that will help you up your game, hair wise.

jmizzle4 knows his pomades, and he does incredibly in depth reviews and styling videos, mostly for finer hair. I have learned a lot just by watching his vids. Likewise insaneone188– he specialises in reviews for thick, wavy hair.

Anyway, there you have it. I’m still trying to put together a post on my thrifted finds, but it’s taking a bit of time to find somewhere to photograph them!

Til next time, keep it dapper!

Tools of the trade

Howdy folks!

Ok, as my girlfriend will freely admit- I am obsessed with my hair. As if this post on my last cut wasn’t enough, I have decided to tryout a bunch of new ways of styling, products and tools. To the mirror!

Since diving into this world of pompadours and rockabilly inspired styles, I’ve had to do a surprising amount of research into pomades in particular- as someone who has, for most of her life, had curly hair and tried to maximise that, trying to find something that works is proving to be a challenge.

You need your pomp to be slick, neat and to stay that way. In Irish weather, that’s not so easy. Rain, wind, rain, wind… since that’s all there really is, it’s hard to keep a style from getting messed up as you go about your business. At the moment I have a somewhat lengthy process to get my pomp looking good. When I started with it, I wanted it to look natural and dry- no grease. However recently I’ve been digging the more shiny looks I see on some folk- check out Fuck Yeah Queer Pomps for some inspiration and examples of what I mean. My current pomp crush is Sinclair Sexsmith, of Sugarbutch– I mean seriously, look at it!!!

Look at that pomp! Mr. Sexsmith, my new pomp idol!

Currently, I wash my hair and apply setting lotion, usually reserved for little old ladies to manage their perms. This stuff is pretty amazing though, and it allows you to blowdry into the right shape, and it’ll stay. Depending on the strength lotion you use, anyway.

After I apply that, I comb it through, get my part right (it has to be ruler straight- I HATE wonky parts!) and start blowdrying with a round brush to get my hair into the desired shape. I then apply my pomade- right now I’m using Waldorf Barber shops own make, and they class it as a hair shaper. It smells incredible, and it does have pretty good hold, but it’s not quite what I’m looking for. I have to finish with hairspray and tbh I don’t like using three different products in my hair to get the hold I need.

So I’m expanding. I read a bunch of pomade review blogs, and pompadour styling sites, and the best so far is definitely The Rebel Rouser; the guy knows his shit, and does great reviews of pomades, combs, and all sorts. He also has a YouTube channel where he has some great videos of applying pomade, how to comb, how to style, etc. Highly recommended. As someone who basically has no money, and no access to pomades (seriously, Ireland is SHIT for this kind of stuff. All I can find is Dax and Sporting Waves, and ZERO water-based pomades. Pppfft!) I need to chose my internet orders carefully.

I’ve decided to start strong, which is probably SUCH a bad idea- by ordering myself some Cock Grease XXX. Yes, Cock. Grease. So many jokes!

I can’t wait!!! (via cockgrease.com)

Also ordered a new comb too, so we’ll see how that all turns out. I’ll stick up a blog post about it when I figure out how the hell to style it all out!!!

So, what kind of hair products do you other dappers use? Any recommendations? I’m particularly interested in those who sport pomps and quiffs- give me the good stuff!!!

Crowning Glory

I have far too many hair related puns in my head right now.

Ok, to business. Hair. For many butches, dappers, bois, whatever you might label yourself as, your haircut is often one of the first big changes you will go through when you finally can make your own decisions and when you begin to become more experimental with your style.

When I was younger, I had long, straight hair, usually ‘styled’ by my mother in pigtails. One on either side of my head, like Pippy Longstocking. When I was 9, in what I now realise was my first crush on a girl, I demanded my mother let me get my hair cut short like my best friend did. I got the really rather fetching ‘pageboy’ cut that dominated the late 80’s and early 90’s. The weird thing was, once I got my hair cut short, it grew back curly.

And I MEAN CURLY. For most of my teens I had a full on Irish ‘fro. “Golfball hair” as my friends helpfully tell me.

I went through phases of long and short hair, sticking with short and curly (LOL) for most of my 20’s. I hit 30 last year, and as I have become more and more comfortable in expressing my personal style, I decided to bite the bullet a few months ago. I chose a barber, chose a style, and went for it.

The barbers I chose was the renowned Waldorf Barbers on Westmoreland St. in Dublin. Established in 1929, the Waldorf is a real institution of Dublin City. Innocuous from the outside, a traditional red and white barbers pole signals the entryway, which is a long, steep stairway down into the barbershop. The first thing I notice when walking down is the music- the shop plays vintage 40’s music on their own radio station all day- no dodgy pop or r&b music here. The next thing is the smell. It just smells like I always thought the 50’s smelled.

The shop itself is pretty much unchanged since opening in 1929, with the original sinks and chairs and fixtures. The shop is operated as a living museum of barberana, and it is amazing.

Waldorf Interior (Dave Keegan photography via Waldorf facebook page)

The barbers are trained in the classic mens styles from the 20th century, but will do pretty much everything and anything. Linda, who runs the shop along with her father Liam, tells me that they also style women’s traditional upstyles etc., with a real focus on rockabilly and vintage styles. All the barbers know their techniques- for crying out loud, they even can do singeing!

I have never really felt fully comfortable in hair salons. They smell very feminine, they give me magazines I have no interest in whatsoever, and usually style my hair in the most feminine version of the style I wanted. They are also really loud. They have that low-level terrifying hum of chatter I associate with hen nights and groups of women out on the town. Waldorfs is the exact opposite. It instantly relaxes me as I walk in, am offered a seat and a coffee, and as I grab one of the vintage Beano annuals to read as I wait.

Yeah. The Beano.

Sitting in the green leather seats, that are tilt-able and all sorts for the hot towel shaves this place is famous for, it’s like you step into the past. For the first time, getting my hair cut is a true pleasure. Washed, with an old fashioned collar protector in place, with all sorts of tonics and lotions getting massaged into your hair listening to old jazz… it’s bliss. The time they take with the cut is fantastic. No corners are cut, the clippers come out, scissors and a straight razor for my neck.

If any of you guys out there with short hair haven’t had the back of your neck shaved with an open razor, you haven’t lived. It is so, so pleasant.

All in all, the 30 or 40 minutes I spend in the shop is time well spent. I come out feeling suave, dapper and incredibly cool. For someone who walks around getting some unusual looks for wearing ties that sit over a very female chest, that feeling is invaluable. It has also really helped with my styling in general- from a dodgy shaggy curly mop to something a bit streamlined and dare i say it- dashing. I look neat and tidy for the first time in my life!

The ‘before’ shot. (Thanks to Linda at the Waldorf!)

The ‘after’ shot- thanks again to Linda.

I realise that this post might come across as a bit of an advertisement for Waldorfs- and in a way it is. I know that there are lots of women out there like me who really don’t get what they want at a regular ‘salon’, and who might be a bit nervous of approaching a barber to get a cut that they’ve been thinking of for a while. Certainly in Ireland it wouldn’t be the most usual state of affairs for women to frequent a barber, and it can be a scary thing to do. But if you’re even just thinking about it, there are barbers out there who will ‘get’ what you want, and won’t try to feminise your cut. I am incredibly pleased with my experiences to date in Waldorfs, so why would I not recommend them? They have been really welcoming to me- now I get a ‘hello’ and ‘same as last time?’ comment when I come in. It feels really great.

So, I can see this becoming a monthly grooming regime. An hour out of my month to reign in my hair (which grows like I’m on steroids), turn off my phone, listen to some great music and chat, and come out feeling like I was born to strut. Yes please.