Michael Smith

Why do I never get the color I ask for at the salon?
On the off chance my stylist sees this, the first picture is not the actual inspo pic I showed her, but a similar one.
Over the course of the last 3-4 years, I have been to about 5 different stylists trying to get something similar to the first picture - a rooted blonde, blonde enough that if someone on the street was asked my hair color, they would say blonde. I feel like I always end up slightly lighter than I came in, but not truly blonde.
Quite frankly I’m sick of spending 300+ dollars to not get what I asked for. I’ve only said something once (not this time but the last time), and the reaction was a lot of attitude from the stylist and refusal to do any more blonding without paying more, so I’ve just decided not to say anything anymore. I don’t want to be a bad client, but it’s also frustrating when my result is repeatedly not even close to the inspo picture.
What am I doing wrong?

Salon burned my hairline
I need advise.. I’ve been going to this salon for years, I went this past week for an all over color. I said I wanted black hair, My hairline has been burning ever since and just continues to get worse. I’m having better pictures taken in the daylight of it tomorrow and going to the doctor tomorrow as the tops of my ears are start to blister and over all my hairline all around my head burns. I have been getting my hair colored for years and bleached at salons for years and this has never happened especially when I just wanted a dark brown/ black color. Minimum I need a full refund but does anyone have any suggestions of what else I should do? Its actually quite painful and I’m having trouble sleeping because of the burns. I’m worried it’s going to scar and it’s all over my forehead hairline

Please help me fix this 😩
I just got my highlights done today by my usual stylist, and somehow it turned out way too blonde—especially around my hairline. The front pieces look super chunky and harsh, which isn’t what I normally go for. I usually ask to keep my hairline more natural since I wear my hair pulled back a lot, but I must’ve forgotten to mention it this time.
She’s heading out of town tomorrow, and I’ll be gone before she’s back—I’ve got an engagement party to attend, so I’m kind of stuck trying to fix this myself.
For context, I haven’t done all-over color in years. We’ve been sticking to highlights and lowlights to blend everything (including some greys), and I rarely even need toner.
Right now, I’m debating what to do:
Will toning just soften the blonde pieces, or will it darken everything and undo my progress?
Should I try adding a few lowlights around the hairline to break up these harsh streaks?
Or is there a better quick fix I can do at home?
Also dealing with some scalp flaking that’s making everything look worse up close 😭
Any advice would seriously help—I don’t want to show up to this event feeling like this 🙏

Please tell me I’m not overreacting 😭 I asked for a soft blended balayage and a healthy trim… and somehow left with chunky streaks, uneven layers, and fried ends. The color is so patchy and way too close to my roots, and the cut makes my hair look thinner than ever.

I’ve already been struggling with postpartum confidence and this was supposed to be my little self-care moment to finally feel pretty again. Instead I came home and cried in the mirror. My hair used to feel long and healthy, and now it looks choppy, brassy, and completely unblended.

I honestly don’t even know how to style it because every layer sticks out awkwardly. I feel so embarrassed and I have family photos coming up soon. I keep wondering if I should call the salon back or if I’m just being dramatic.

Has anyone else had a balayage/cut go this wrong? Can this even be fixed without losing more length?

Booked with a stylist, paid in full upfront, and she canceled on me THREE times. No reschedule, no service, and still no refund despite me asking over and over. I’ve checked every single bank transaction (even wrote them all out to be sure) and nothing has come back.
I work for $10/hour, so this wasn’t just ‘extra money’—I saved up for this. Now I’m stuck with grown-out, uneven color and no way to fix it.
At this point I don’t know what to do. Any advice would really help

Please tell me I’m not overreacting 😭 I asked for a soft natural balayage and somehow ended up with chunky streaks, super harsh lines, and extensions that don’t even blend with my real hair. The colour is way too warm/orange near the roots and the whole thing looks so patchy in different lighting. I honestly don’t know how to go back to my stylist and explain what’s wrong without sounding rude. Does this look fixable? Any advice before I panic would seriously help 🥲

Next week is my wedding and this is the balayage I ended up with 😭 The roots are super harsh, the blonde is patchy, and the extensions don’t blend at all. I’m honestly freaking out and feel so disappointed. I have an appointment Tuesday to try to get it corrected, but I need advice — what would you ask the stylist to fix first?

How bad does it look really?
I’m trying not to overreact, but my ends are looking so thin and uneven lately. I don’t want to lose the length, but it’s starting to feel like the bottom few inches are just dry and stringy compared to the rest.
I’ve got a trim booked next month so I’ll take some off then, but I’m wondering if I should do more. I’ve been sleeping in a bonnet and just started using hair oil after washing, but it still looks kind of rough and patchy.
Does this look as damaged as I think, or am I overthinking it? Any tips to make the ends look healthier without a big chop?

Help 😭 did my stylist totally mess this up or am I overreacting?
I asked for a soft, muted champagne blonde balayage with long layers and face framing… and this is what I got. The color is super patchy with harsh lines and random dark spots, and the ends turned this weird orange instead of anything close to what I wanted.
She also skipped the Olaplex and pin curls (but still charged me for them??), saying it would “hide the color,” which already felt off.
The whole appointment was honestly painful—she brushed my hair so aggressively my eyes were watering, and there was SO much hair coming out she had to clean the brush multiple times. Then the blow dryer was literally burning my scalp—it was so hot it felt like it was smoking. I even said “ouch” and she just kept going.
Now my hair feels fried, dry, and tangled—I can’t even run my fingers through it. The cut is uneven too, one side is way choppier than the other, definitely not the soft layers I asked for.
The color barely looks different except for the orange ends, and for how much I paid… I’m honestly upset.
Would you go back and ask for a refund or fix?

I posted a few days ago about my balayage appointment and I still don’t know if I’m overreacting or if this really is as bad as I think it is.
I paid almost $500 for what was supposed to be a soft, blended balayage and instead ended up with these super chunky stripes and harsh lines throughout my hair. In certain lighting it literally looks like blocks of bleach instead of a seamless blend. The left side especially has these weird banded pieces that don’t flow at all from the root.
This was my first time ever coloring my hair, so I put a lot of trust into my stylist since I’ve gone to her for cuts for years. I brought multiple inspo pics and specifically asked for something subtle, warm, and lived-in. Nothing dramatic. But once she started blow drying my hair I immediately panicked because the highlights looked so streaky and uneven.
She kept telling me it would look better styled, and I think I was honestly just in shock and trying to convince myself it wasn’t that bad. I paid, tipped like normal, and left. But the second I saw it at home in natural lighting I wanted to cry.
I reached out the next day and she completely brushed me off, saying I’m just ‘not used to being blonde’ and that this is how balayage is supposed to look. She offered to fix it but after seeing these chunky patches and harsh stripes, I genuinely don’t trust her touching my hair again.
Now I’m stuck deciding whether to push harder for a refund or just cut my losses and pay someone else even more money to correct it. I hate confrontation and I never complain about services, but I honestly feel so embarrassed wearing my hair down right now.
Am I being unreasonable here? Would you ask for at least a partial refund?”

HELP 😭 I have a wedding next week and my hair is a disaster.
I went in with grown-out ombré and asked for the blonde to be brought up with a soft shadow root. I even showed a reference pic… but this is what I ended up with (see photo). The highlights are super streaky and uneven—honestly it looks like I’ve got random stripes or “noodles” in my hair instead of a blended balayage.
At first I tried to convince myself it was fine… but yeah, no. It’s not.
I used to do my own hair and I’m somewhat confident, but now I’m panicking. Should I try to fix it myself with more bleach? Would something like Sun-In actually help blend/lighten the darker pieces? I mainly want to soften those harsh brown streaks and make everything look more cohesive.
I don’t really have the budget to get it corrected professionally before the wedding, so I’m stuck trying to figure out a DIY solution. Any advice would seriously save me right now 🙏