The trials and tribulations of blondes

June 22, 2010 7:09 AM

What's a great place for a 20's female in Pittsburgh with fine hair to get a haircut?

I live in the East End of Pittsburgh, late 20s. I have very fine blonde hair and am into low-maintenance hair styles. (wash, condition, dry, go) I'm looking for a stylist who can make me look great -- not just cut hair but look at my face and my hair type and come up with a cut/style for me. Recommendations for a specific stylist would be great. I am willing to travel and willing to spend. I would prefer someone that respects my desire for a low maintenance cut. I went to Dean's of Shadyside once, and while I got a great cut, I'll never return because the stylist literally insulted me for not wanting to use product every day, get highlights, and return every six weeks for a trim.

This may seem odd to post anonymously, but I'm only doing it because pairing my city with information in my other AskMeFi questions will make it much easier to identify me, which I strongly prefer not to happen, given some of the things I've said here about my job, etc.

posted by anonymous to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (8 answers total)

McN Salon in the East End is good for people with fine/straight hair; several of my co-workers use it and they all have nice-looking hair. I went there once or twice; they were fine with my low-maintenance haircut desires and were even OK with curly hair, but they didn't feel comfortable cutting it short so I left that place.

I go to Denham and Company in Market Square, downtown. Tim (the owner) cuts my hair and does a fantastic job (my hair is fine, but it is also very curly). My haircut is pretty low-maintenance on a day-to-day basis. I never have to blow-dry it or break out any kind of other appliances. That said, I do use product every day to cut down on frizz (it takes literally ten seconds to put some styling cream into my damp hair), and because it is a short cut, I need to get it shaped every month.

I would guess that you still will need to return every six to eight weeks for a trim if you really want to have great-looking hair. A good cut depends a lot on proportion, and two months' worth of growth will make your great cut look not-so-great anymore. But either McN or Denham & Co. should be able to work with your preferences so that you can have a good-looking haircut without spending 45 minutes doing hair architecture every morning. Both places are moderately expensive -- I think McN was in the $50 range, and Denham & Co. runs me about $60 including tip.
posted by kataclysm at 7:32 AM on June 22, 2010

Try John at Cardamone's, downtown right on the corner of Forbes and Wood. My sophomore year of college I walked in on a whim, just dying to do something different with my hair. John talked and -- more importantly -- listened to me before I even sat down in his chair. Through the years he's steered me away from trendy things that would have looked terrible on me and highlights that would have been too high maintenance and towards a cut that I can wear either straight or curly, depending on how lazy I want to be in the morning. I don't get my hair cut as often as I should, and he's fine with that, and doesn't lecture me as other stylists have in the past.

The services link is borked when you click it through the site navigation; if you add an 's' to the word service in the URL it'll work.
posted by alynnk at 7:42 AM on June 22, 2010

My partner uses Pageboy Salon and Boutique in Lawrenceville and is pretty happy with it.
posted by buttercup at 7:54 AM on June 22, 2010

Bess at Hair Friends in Oakland is great. I asked her for a haircut that I wouldn't have to fuss with. I loved the cut and although she put some gel or anti-frizz goop in my hair after she dried it, she didn't insist that I use it everyday or try to sell me anything. I think someone (Bess or another stylist) asked if I wanted highlights, but no one insisted. And the cut looked great for at least three months.
posted by Meg_Murry at 7:56 AM on June 22, 2010

Christin at Lewis' in Shadyside. Never had a bad cut (short or long) and my hair is fine and straight.
posted by nnk at 8:08 AM on June 22, 2010

. . . that didn't come off as positively as I'd like. I should say I've always had good to great haircuts from Christin - and I know this, in part because they grow out really well. I am a no nonsense hair kind of person and she completely gets it.
posted by nnk at 8:13 AM on June 22, 2010

Try Puccini's in Oakland (they don't have a website, just a myspace page...). Their number is 412-621-2087. I have very short, fine hair, and they give me a great cut every time (I go to Katie).
posted by denimflavored at 9:01 AM on June 22, 2010

Try Eclips in Blawnox.
posted by pghjezebel at 10:29 AM on June 22, 2010