Guys haircuts in Austin?

February 17, 2006 10:26 AM

Where can a guy get a decent, reasonably priced haircut in Austin, TX?

Friend has been living in Austin for a few months and his normally cute-shaggy hair has become unkempt-shaggy hair. He is terrified of hair salons because he thinks they're all just going to cut his hair the way *they* want not the way *he* wants, so he needs a stylist who will listen to his tastes. He's not exactly rolling in dough, so none of those LA-priced places.

Any suggestions?

posted by radioamy to clothing, beauty, & fashion (8 comments total)

What's reasonable? Terresa Evans at Bella Donna Salon has never let me down -- I always leave with the exact haircut I want but could never put well into words. $25+tip. / She's only there like every other Friday so it takes patience to get an appmt
posted by fourstar at 10:45 AM on February 17, 2006

I wish I knew the answer to this question. I have been living here for nearly five years. The problem for me is what I consider "reasonable". To me, fourstar's $25+tip is not reasonable. I have relatively short hair and it seems like the cut should be straightforward. There are a couple of Barber Shops that cater to men's hair. I believe the Wooten Barber Shop which is on Guadalupe is between $15-20. Personally, I usually end up at a chain place where the women cutting my hair are all from another country. The cut is never great, but at least it is cheap.
posted by bove at 10:51 AM on February 17, 2006

I just got my hair cut at the Tarrytown Barber shop for the first time. It was $18, and I'm quite pleased with it.

The barber even said that if I wanted any adjustments to it in the next couple of days, just come by and she would touch it up at no additional cost.
posted by notbuddha at 11:00 AM on February 17, 2006

I like the $13 cut I get at the barbershop in the breezeway next to the HEB at Hancock Center. (4 Barbers, avoid the oldest fellow if you are under 50 y.o.a.)
Hancock Barber Shop
Hancock Shopping Centre, Austin, TX 78701
[phone]
Closed Mondays

My wife prefers for me to get the cut from her 'stylist' at Julian's on Lamar at 32nd (?). It falls exactly at the price you want. My problem is that it always ends of looking feathery, is left too long and is usually cut to require some product. I hate long hair, I want to be able to comb it once in the morning, then just run my hand through it the rest of the day. I don't want to put any crap into my hair. I went there for a few months before the wedding to make her happy. I looked like a poofy hippy.

Another difference is in interpretation of requests.
The stylist will listen to me ask for it to be short on the sides, and as long as she trims a millimeter it makes her happy. The barber will just cut it short like I ask and try to work around my cowlicks.

At the barber shop you can also talk about your favorite cooking show, recipes, your favorite pig hunting round, gardening, or the new curtains you have just made. They're pretty redneck, but incredibly nice.
I don't have much to talk about at Julian's.
posted by Seamus at 11:26 AM on February 17, 2006

If his hair is fairly straight, Flowbee.

No, really.

It's dead simple, easy to get a consistent result (more consistent than most barbers or stylists), saves a ton of cash, saves an hour of time every two or three weeks. And you get exactly the haircut you like, because you can keep cutting your hair, 1/8" at a time, until it's just where you want it. Once you figure out what spacers you want to use for various areas of your head, it's possible to quickly and easily produce smoothly tapered precision haircuts in about 5 minutes, without even looking in a mirror. It's incredibly easy to do good haircuts, and very, very hard to screw up.
posted by paulsc at 11:52 AM on February 17, 2006

I haven't lived there since 1985, but a little googling tells me the Wooten Barber shop (home of the woo-doo) is still a hit.
posted by TedW at 12:09 PM on February 17, 2006

I go to Hyde Park Barbershop, ex of Hyde Park, currently in the strip mall on Airport @ 46th.
posted by adamrice at 12:17 PM on February 17, 2006

I hit up Baldwin Beauty School on Burnett once before and got a passable haircut from a charming young lass who was utterly terrified to take two full inches off my fairly long hair and had to be coaxed and persuaded. Still, because I go for a fairly straightforward cut these days (chin length, slightly layered), beauty schools are good enough for me. No appointment necessary, cuts are $5 (they also do all manner of frosting/coloring/waxing, though the good waxer is purportedly there on Fridays), tips are optional but obviously nice.
posted by soviet sleepover at 2:42 PM on February 17, 2006