RoundBrushHair! > Dominican Hair Care Blog

I don’t know about you, but nothing feels better than walking out of the salon with a fresh “do”. Your hair is shiny, healthy, bouncin’ and behavin’. They could easily mistake you for the Jet beauty of the week. The icing on the cake is when you start getting compliments from strangers. Buuut, then there’s the next day, and the next, and so on…and you wake up and your doo-bie has turned into a don’t-be.

The compliments start to fade. Even that nice African-lady at the K-mart parking lot hands you a flier to visit her braiding shop (what’s she trying to say?). Hmmm…..How did we get to this point? There must be an ancient secret passed on to only a select few of how to get a good night’s sleep and keep a scarf on your head. Personally, my grandma’s solution of putting a pair of clean drawers on your head at night in lieu of a scarf just ain’t gonna work these days.

I did find one satin sleep cap with a flat band that stays on pretty well. It resembles a chef’s hat. Sexy, huh? Drives my man wild. I am very interested in hearing your nighttime hair regimens. And please no undergarments! LOL!

A few days ago, I went into a local oriental beauty supply store and inquired about the cost of a flat iron. The price blew me away so without hesitation I asked for a less expensive pair; the next ones were only cheaper by a few dollars. By then I must have had, “the look”, on my face so the man behind the counter uttered something, in what I assumed was Korean, to a man standing next to him. They laughed, but how do I know it wasn’t at me?

Can you say PARANOID! My natural human instinct told me that he was saying something rude about me and for the first time I truly realized how it must feel when non-Spanish speaking women go to Dominican salons and hear the stylists conversing in their native tongue. At first, I couldn’t relate being fully fluent in Spanish but now, I see the situation from a different perspective. How can we bridge the verbal gap? Many Dominican stylist speak and understand English very well so let’s meet them halfway by trying to learn a lil’ Español (Spanish).

I came up with a few words/phrases that might come in handy during your salon visit. Now, I’m no linguist, so excuse the phonetic spellings in parentheses – that’s how it sounds in my head. Lol

Lesson #1
1.) I want……yo quiero (yo-kee-air-row)
2.) I like…..me gusta (may-goose-ta)
3.) thank you …..gracias (gras-ee-as)
4.) cut a little…cortame un poquito (coor-tah-oon-po-ki-toe)
5.) just a little….no mucho (no-moo-cho)
6.) natural….natural (na-too-ral)
7.) treatment….tratamiento (tra-ta-me-in-toe)
8.) how much…cuanto es (kwan-toe-ess)
9.) please…por favor (poor-fa-voor)
More lessons to come! Let me know if there is any word/phrase in particular you would find helpful on your next visit to the Dominican salon.

No kids allowed! Are they for real? More and more I’m seeing these signs posted on the windows and doors of upscale as well as, “round the way” shops. Why is this?

Well, I’ve actually worked in - not one, but two children’s salons and I must say cutting & styling kids’ hair is like trying to hit a moving target. Nevertheless, I truly get offended when I see this. It’s more than the fact that I have a whole gang of kids. It’s that salon owners should realize that kids turn into young adults that eventually turn into parents. Now that’s what I call generational clientele.

Sure, some folks let their kids run wild but that’s not true for everyone. More importantly how will the babies ever learn proper salon etiquette if they aren’t allowed inside until they’re old enough to drive? For those in agreement with, “the banning of our youth”, I leave you with this: How would you feel if your favorite restaurant took on the same rule? Personally, if it weren’t for “kids eat free nights” we’d never eat outside of our home nor would my children know how to act in a restaurant. Can somebody say train up a child…? (Proverbs 22:6):

[Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.; Instruye al nino en su camino, Y aun cuando fuere viejo no se aparta’ de ‘el.]