Do You Get What You Pay For?

On Saturday I had an *big neon lights* ABSOLUTE BEAUTY DISASTER.

Yes, it happens to the best of us and yes I've been left reeling from my faux pas.

I was down in Bournemouth, the day after a friend's wedding when I happened upon a threading pop-up in the local shopping centre. The pop up was offering brow threading for just £4 (an absolute bargain compared to the £17 I usually pay at Blink) and top lip for an equally bargainous £5. Naturally, I thought 'why the hell not?' (why the hell indeed?!)

(I should point out that thankfully the mishap happened after the wedding and not before. Lol.)

You see, choosing to get my brows/top lip threaded at this particular pop up wasn't the problem. The therapists seemed well trained and had clearly been doing it for years. The problem lay in the fact I didn't say anything pre-treatment. Big mistake. Huge!

If I look scared it's because I am. Where the hell are my brows?!

'Too thin!' exclaimed the rabbit. (Well he didn't really but very well could have).

So what exactly happened?
The first sign of trouble was that the lady who threaded my brows, lovely as she was, threaded them in absolute record time (we're talking 2 mins max). The second sign of trouble was that she seemed to be taking a heck of a lot off, from both the top and the bottom. (Of course, as I'm lying there I'm thinking 'Hmmm, she seems to be doing this awfully quickly??' but because she was mid-flow I didn't want to say anything. Damn English politeness!). She then gets the scissors out and starts trimming the top.

My. Worst. Nightmare.

Brows 'done' (I'll say!) she then moves onto my upper lip and again, haphazardly works her way across. Closer inspection reveals she didn't do a great job as two days later I can still see patches of downy hair. I have also developed way more spots than I usually get along the area above my top lip which has left me looking rather like someone with a sizeable sugar addiction.

The irony
I could laugh (or cry) because just last week I submitted an article for BOE Magazine (you can check it out here) in which I proposed that well-groomed, fuller brows are fast defining an era in beauty.  Haha. And to top it all off, pre-brow disaster, I reckon I'd finally got to a stage where I was quite proud of my brows. I liked the fact they were bigger than I'd ever let them grow and that I'd finally embraced brow mascara (sniff).

Hindsight's a great thing a b*tch
Here's what I should have said to the threading technician in the pop-up:

"Hi there lovely threading lady! Before you begin working your magic on my brows can I please ask that you do not touch the top? Only the downy, blonde hairs underneath and in between my brows. That would be great. I quite like the shape/thickness they are and would love it if you could just remove the lighter hairs I find difficult to see. Thanks so much!"

It's sad really. I find myself replaying this request in my head on the bus.

Thank God for Sal
Bless my housemate Sal. About a month ago she'd rather excitedly announced that castor oil had been highly recommended to her by her local beauty place for boosting brow and lash growth. She's got a huge bottle of the stuff (organic brand: Pukka, £8.95 for 250ml from feelunique.co.uk) in our bathroom so I've been ceremoniously putting some on morning and night in the hope it will help my brows to grow back at lightning speed (any slower simply won't be quick enough).

Instances where it's possible to enjoy a bargain
Now I'm fully aware there will be ladies and gents out there who have enjoyed expert beauty and grooming services for not much money. In fact, I too have had unbelievably brilliant manicures for just £15. I've also had unbelievably terrible pedicures for obscene amounts! One pedicure sticks in my mind as it was just shy of £50 (i.e. above average for a standard pedi) and within an iconic department store with an almost impeccable reputation. My pedicure was so shoddy I felt compelled to complain the next day. The staff were very apologetic and offered me a deluxe pedi in return which I discovered a month later was just as bad, if not worse than the first! Paying more doesn't always guarantee a better outcome or service but one would hope it would excel that of its high street/market stall counterpart? Otherwise, why bother parting with the extra cash?

A bargain is possible I believe....but only in instances when:
- you know the therapist/makeup artist/hair stylist/barber/beautician personally and trust their work
- the treatment you're having is fool proof (e.g. leg wax). Hair cuts and eye brow waxing/threading is going to be highly visible so you can't afford to 'go cheap' on the off chance.

Is it worth the risk?
If you are thinking of testing out a cheaper service, my top tips are:
- Be prepared to walk away not entirely thrilled with the result (you are paying peanuts after all)
- Do your research. If recommended to you find out the name of the person who performs the treatment.
- Decide ahead of time what you're going to ask for. Be specific, even if you think you're spelling out the obvious, and trust your gut (if you don't think they've listened to you now's your chance to get out!)

First had this chop back in Feb 2014 and I absolutely love it.

Hair
Here is a case in point where it's ALL about the stylist.

I've been having my hair cut by a lady called Sally at the Aveda Institute, Covent Garden since mid-last year. Haircuts at Aveda are now an eye-watering £76 (they've just gone up by £2) for a cut and blow dry with a Senior Stylist. Having tried elsewhere for cheaper and been far less impressed with the results, I'd much rather pay an extra £20-25 and be absolutely delighted with my cut. A haircut is something you wear everyday and for me it can really set the gauge on how I feel. Bad haircut, bad mood. It's as simple as that.

But I'm not paying for the Aveda brand here (although I must admit the head massage at the beginning and the salon itself are both pretty wonderful). If Sally (hairstylist Sally, not housemate Sal) worked at a cheaper salon around the corner I'd follow her there. I'm paying Aveda prices because that's where she works and that's what they charge.

Same too can be said of makeup artists. An artist with a more expensive rate card doesn't necessarily guarantee a better quality of service or skill set.

Do you think you get what you pay for when it comes to beauty and grooming services? Have you had a beauty disaster when you've paid either through the nose or on the cheap? What was it and how did you cope with the aftermath? I'd love to know!

Image credits: 
NARS for Philip Lim 3.1 SS15
Spasalon.com
Pukka
All other images Natalie James Makeup