I Got Redken Color at an Aveda Salon: What?

I've battled frizzy hair all my life, so I figured I should start using hair products that are as natural and good for the hair as possible so that my hair could be in better condition.

This is how frizzy my hair gets.

I chose Aveda products to reach that goal, which (as far as I can tell) are as natural as you can get for hair products. I started buying Aveda products to use at home, and I chose an Aveda salon to get my color done.

But the Aveda salon I picked, Van Michael, which is a big name around Atlanta with many locations, had been using Redken color on me for years without my knowledge.

What? How is that possible? The Aveda logo is prominent on the outside of the salon, and all you can buy there are Aveda products. So, silly me. I assumed that I would have Aveda products applied to my hair.

Not so much.

It appears that the salon I went to is an "Aveda Concept Salon" as opposed to an "Aveda Lifestyle Salon." I'm not sure about all the particulars between the two, and I'm pretty sure that only people in the industry would know, but I've come to find out that only the lifestyle salons must use Aveda products on clients.

The Aveda salon I went to uses Redken products to color the hair (maybe mixed with Aveda products, maybe not, from what a receptionist told me).

So the whole time I was going to the salon and paying premium prices to get my hair colored in what I thought was Aveda color, I was not. I could have gone to any walk-in strip mall hair studio to get Redken color for a much cheaper price. I was also paying extra for conditioner to be added in, which would have been unnecessary if the salon had used Aveda color on me in the first place because Aveda color contains all the conditioners needed.

I'm a big proponent of "buyer beware" and to take responsibility for your choices. In hindsight, I realize I should have asked whether the color I was getting was Aveda color. But, because this was an Aveda salon and all I could see were Aveda products, it didn't occur to me to ask.

I believe the practice of calling itself an "Aveda" salon, concept or otherwise, displaying only Aveda products and having the colorists go into a closed-off backroom to prepare Redken color, is deceptive by omission.

My goal with this post is to let people know this goes on.

I just had my hair done at an Aveda Lifestyle salon. The colorists prepared the color out in the open so the clients could see the products that would go on their hair.

If you care about using natural products on your hair, make sure that you can see the products that are being used, or at least ask your colorist or stylist what products they will be using.

I'm anxious to see whether my hair will remain as smooth and silky as it was after leaving the new salon with Aveda color on my hair all the way up to my next appointment without my hair starting to frizz and becoming unmanageable halfway through, as I was used to.

What do you think? I'd love to hear your comments. Do you think I was naïve, or was this practice deceptive?

I Could Have Had a "Larry David" Moment, But I Chickened Out

Last night my husband and I went out to dinner for our anniversary. We had a fantastic time and a wonderful meal, and then we were ready for the check. But the waiter told us that we couldn't go yet — we needed to hear about the desserts so we could have something special.

I thought special meant free.
Image source: Wikimedia Commons

My husband still wasn't interested, but I said to him that if the dessert were free, why not? He didn't think it would be free just because the waiter mentioned a special dessert for our anniversary, but I was sure that's what the waiter meant by "special."

Bet's on.

The dessert was beautiful with a large chocolate "Happy Anniversary" message written in cursive across the bottom of the plate.

Time for the check. My husband won. Not free.

If I were Larry David … no not worth it! But you can imagine what he might have done: "Waiter, excuse me. Come here. Didn't you, didn't you say … special? I thought that meant 'free.' Why do you say special unless you mean free? I think …"  And cue music.

Boss Jerkitude or Acceptable Behavior?

In this post, I will refrain from saying whom it happened to, you know, to protect the identity of the persons involved and all that jazz. So here goes: anyone who works and who has a boss can probably relate.

What just happened?
Image source: morgueFile

The boss comes in to visit the store, and everyone is on his or her best behavior, making sure the place is running just right. This place of work happens to be a restaurant.

The two bosses sit at the server's table, and, of course, the server works extra hard to make sure the dining experience is an impeccable one, even running back and forth to the bar to give the bartender new drink ideas one owner has just come up with.

This was a more stressful server experience than most.

You probably know that servers rely on tips, and the better the service, the better the tip they are likely to get. So, in this case, the server was expecting at least to get the average tip, especially considering the meal was free for the owners.

Imagine the server's surprise and disappointment after ensuring a satisfying dining experience to receive no tip. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

The owners provide the job and believe workers should be grateful just to be employed.

Boss jerkitude or acceptable behavior? What do you think?