Moolah Monday - Home Salon Treatments

One of the things I do as a frugal momma is try to limit discretionary spending when I can. An easy one for me to control is salon care for a few reasons:

1. First and foremost, I have a lot of kids (4 right now, but that changes)! There is almost no way that I can get to the salon with any regularity for any kind of service. I remember when I just had my son - my best friend had a son just a few months after I did and she always made it to the salon for pedicures, haircuts, etc and I didn't know how she did it (she was single most of the time). She just took her son with her! I remember taking my son with me once to get a haircut when he was 2 months old and I was just panicked the whole time. Since then I have taken him a few times to get a pedicure, which worked out fine, but now with 4 kids there is no way I'm taking them with me. So, to go to the salon I'd have to find a babysitter which is pretty hard and makes the salon treatment that much more expensive. With the schedules my husband and I keep there isn't an option to leave the kids with him either.
2. I am a pretty low-maintenance woman. I suppose I have to be based on #1, but really I always have been. My hair is curly but can be dried straight if I try really hard, so I really don't have the need to get a style cut very often. I can do regular trims on my own, but manage to get a haircut 1-2 times per year at a salon, usually on a break from work. Occasionally I'll get it colored, but again not very often and because I'm low maintenance and my hair is curly it isn't that big of a deal unless I try to go blonde again or something. Which I don't do because I couldn't keep it up. I don't particularly care if I wear makeup or if my toes are perfectly polished. I try to be presentable, but don't worry if I'm not at my best.
3. It's expensive. I just couldn't bring myself to budget for a pedicure, waxing, cut/color, manicure/tips, etc. each month because I just can't fathom spending that much on something so fleeting. Not regularly anyway. When I get a pedicure it's about $50. When I get a haircut w/color its about $175.

So, there are a few things I do to keep the salon expenses down.

1. I maintain a manageable look - I chop off my hair about every 3-4 years to the tune of a donateable amount, which typically then requires more frequent maintenance. Other than that I keep my hair at a color and cut that works well, is easy, and doesn't require frequent professional touch-ups.
2. I provide my own services to family - I am the family barber - I cut my husband's hair and my son's (usually) so I avoid those fees. I usually bring my foster kiddos to the kiddo salon because it's typically their first haircut and I want them to have that token first hair-cut picture and assorted memorabilia, but aside from that I do the cutting in my house (and my sisters...)
3. I do my own:

• Waxing - Using this set I wax my own eyebrows regularly. Occasionally this ends up in an error - but most of the time I can do a pretty decent job. I’ve screwed up twice, once was the day before my wedding and I got married missing part of the arch of my eyebrow…nothing an eyebrow pencil couldn’t cover up! (and the low maintenance me didn’t care anyway…). I have tried other waxing and let’s just say we won’t do that again...
• Manicures – I have a file, nail polish, and polish remover at my desk. I take care of my nails with an acrylic top coat and the file as I wait for my computer to boot up in the mornings. I occasionally apply a color, but since that doesn’t last long in my world I usually stick with au naturale
• Feet – I clean in the shower and do whatever filing necessary with home pedicure treatments. I have a pedicure station thing (massager, cleaner, etc.) but rarely get to use it.
• Facials – I use daily products to keep my skin healthy, including SPF lotion, and then as needed use scrubs, peels, and a steam mask (these latter pieces happen irregularly)
• Hot Oil Hair treatments – slightly heated olive oil makes a great treatment to dry curly hair. (And can be used to treat atopic dermatitis of the scalp in kids and adults alike!)

I’d be lying if I said I never visit the spa. I do try to get a pedicure every couple months when I can swing it (I’ve had 1 in the last 6 months, which will give you an idea of how often it happens). This is primarily a treat for me to relax and get pampered, which is the real reason I’d go to a spa anyway. Who’s with me on that?