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Texts to the tune of Are you okay?
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and I cant believe this is happening to you came in rapid succession.
The situation was not one of heartbreak…at least not the romantic kind.
Id just been stood up by an Instagram hairstylist.
Im not the only one with the IG hairstylist blues.
Countless other Black women have had negative experiences with a hairstylist they found on social media.
I had a feeling she was going to oversleep, says Georges.
(The claim is in the process of being resolved out of court.
The stylist did not respond to the request for comment.)
The stylist finally called the client back after an hour asking to reschedule yet again.
The client accepted but was left hanging a fourth time.
Hairstylists arent the only ones catching heat the iron is hot on both sides.
Some hairstylists online say clients have lost respect for all that goes into hairstyling.
When did getting your hair done become so complicated?
During lockdown, many Black women discovered they were gifted with our ancestors ability to turn coils intobraided masterpieces.
(Charles and St. Cyr both charged $150 for medium-size box braids in 2020.
Most likely because theyre the ones advertising their ability to keep up with social media trends.
When she went to that stylist in Jersey City, Georges wantedFulani flip-over braids.
Its like a damn syllabus, says another.
For some stylists, not offering a full service is due to limited space and resources.
But this could be changing.
Licensed or not, stylists need to do their due diligence to ensure they have some hair-care education.
When I took out the weave, I noticed a bald spot, says the client.
This isnt my first time getting a quick weave, so I know this isnt normal.
A business license also helps hold stylists accountable to the IRS.
Where do we go from here?
But do any of these complaints really matter?
Yes, says everyone I spoke to.
Someone having a million followers doesn’t mean they’re a great hairdresser, says Blissett Williams.
Finding and booking with independent stylists through sites likeStyleseatadds a layer of accountability.
Be prepared to pay a commensurate price for a licensed stylist.
Now to the other side of the red table.
Stylists in the Black community need to reconnect with the heart behind hairstyling: making people feel beautiful.
A change as simple as communicating your policies with kinder language can make all the difference.
says 31-year-old Nikki Abraham, who gets her hair braided by Charles.
She feels like a friend.
Read more about Black hairstyling:
Watch Saweetie share her takes on trends:
