The Power of a Great Hair Designer

Does the 2026 energy feel different or is it just us? We are seeing lots of transformations in the salon right now. It’s a fresh year and a fresh opportunity to rebrand yourself. How can your local hair salon help in this adventure you ask? Well let me take you through a journey.

Our journey begins in the mind of a designer. Creative, passionate, visual are all words that describe a great hair designer. Hair designers see things differently. When they look at you, they see a beautiful pallet. They are not only taking in your hair (condition, density, texture) they are noticing your facial features and structure, your skin tone, your personality and your overall vibe.

A great hair designer knows how to create a look to highlight your best features, including your personality. The mind of a designer is always working. It’s calculating color formulas that would make you glow and angles they would cut to enhance your beautiful eyes. This is not a judgment on you or your looks, it’s how their brains work. Their job and purpose is to make you feel like a trillion bucks. I am so lucky to see it every day. I get to see women feeling their most beautiful on a regular Tuesday afternoon all because of the talented women that I get to work with.

As our journey continues the designer’s mind goes into consultation mode. This is your chance to communicate the vision for your look. It’s always great to have a few inspiration pics to share with your designer to help connect their vision to yours. Keep in mind that your inspiration picture is just that, an inspiration. When we see disappointed guests, it’s usually because they have the expectation for their hair to look just like the picture they show. We get attached to the look in the photo. Before you get attached, ask yourself a few things.

For color:

1. Is my skin tone similar to the person in the picture?

a. This one is huge. Our skin has underlying pigments. The wrong hair color can make you look green, grey or washed out. Your designer should guide you in the direction of color options that really make your skin tone glow. It may be a similar color that is in the picture, but with a warmer or cooler tone than you are looking for. This is their way of making that inspiration a bit more you vs the person in the picture.

2. What is the condition of my hair? Will it hold up to doing this color process?

a. If you have been coloring your hair at home with box dye, or getting regular highlights for years these things may have damaged your hair more than you realize. If you have a dark box dye and want to go blonde, the ingredients in the box dye and bleach can actually melt your hair! Or you may have very damaged hair that has been heavily bleached and want to brighten it up. Putting more bleach on your hair will compromise the integrity of your hair causing extreme breakage or falling out.

3. What does the maintenance look like with this color?

a. If you only get your hair done once every six months to a year this is a very important question. Some looks may require every 4-6 weeks to maintain. If you aren’t willing to commit to that, ask what other low maintenance options you could do.

For Cuts:

1. What are my best features? Do you have any recommendations to enhance those features?

a. You may love your eyes or your amazing snatched jawline. Share these things with your designer. They can really make your features pop with the right cut.

2. What kind of cuts would work with my hair texture?

a. We all have very different hair textures. What looks so cute on your friend might look flat and stringy on you. Hair designers notice texture differences.

3. What is the maintenance of this cut?

a. How much time and money do you want to commit to this style? Again, if you only get your hair done every 6 months to a year, opt for a style with an easy grow out.

A great hair dresser will answer all of these questions and ask more thought provoking questions with intention and thought. From there they will create a hair plan tailored to your hair, look, personality and lifestyle. A great designer does cost more, but there is so much more to what they do than just add foils and trim your hair. They are creators of self love, beauty, and confidence. For most of us that feeling is priceless.