I LOVE my littles! I see so many kiddos with different curl textures, different personalities, different styles, and different abilties. I love it!While some stylists prefer not to service children (or even have them in the salon), I welcome it.
Being as I have a private space and my own personal waiting area in my room, parents and families can comfortably be there with their children and watch the process. This also helps when parents are needing help learning how to care for their children’s haircare needs at home. This private space also helps my younger kids not be too overstimulated during the process.
Many kids tend to be tender headed (even more so with their parents because parents have no mercy when brushing and tending to the hair && because the kids are just OVER IT and don’t want you as the parents to touch their hair when they could be doing a myriad of other things) but if you have curly hair there’s bound to be a few more tangles which exacerbates the feeling of tender headedness.
I try my hardest to take it easy on the scalp with my littles but I do want to address a few things.
A-At home care will help the in salon process and create a better salon experience. When the hair is being taken care of at home the scalp gets somewhat use to being messed with, the scalp will be in good condition, and the overall manageability will be better.
B-I will not create more salon trauma for your child. I’d rather not do the service right then if the child isn’t comfortable. Often, with my curly kids there is already some sort of trauma when it comes to getting the hair done and I would rather build a rapport with them first versus having them just suck it up and do it. I had a recent client who’s little wasn’t comfortable the first time, we just sat in my room chatted and became “friends” first. She agreed that the next time that she came in she would let me do her hair and that’s exactly what happened at her next appointment! She was amazing!
C-Preserving sanity. Lastly, by doing the above mentioned this preserves sanity for all of us!
Here’s a few things to think about! How long will the service you’re requesting take? A good rule of thumb is that children under the age of 10 have about a 1hr threshold, after that they get antsy. You know your child best but tablets and other tools help serve as distractions during the hair process. I use my Amazon Echo to stream movies at times too to help pass the time for longer services like braids. I generally have drinks and snacks but if you or your child has dietary/allergy issues it may be best to bring a few of your own just in case. Anything over an hour normally requires a snack for the littles *wink wink*. If it’s outside of a Saturday, chances are the appointment may be centered around a mealtime, bring food, have it delivered, I’m totally fine with it! Actually encourage it… after all, HANGRY is a thing even in children!
I also want to add that with my space being private I can accommodate things like sensory issues and triggers in both children and adults. Just share them with me at time of booking and I’ll be sure to prepare my space best for you and build in extra time for the appointment if needed.
Now, let’s talk etiquette.
A salon space inhabits lots of dangerous things for children; sharp objects, chemicals, cords, glass, etc. As the parent, I’m counting on you to keep an eye on your children while respecting the space that I’ve created. I will never expect kids to just sit in silence but things like running can cause harm to your child in the space and screaming makes the experience for guests in the other part of the salon unpleasant as well as distracts me from being able to give the best service possible.
