Blown Away

We’d been together for almost four years. (Isn’t it amazing how quickly four years can pass?) In the beginning, things were good.  It was fresh.  It was exciting.  There was a long time when I was truly happy, and I knew other people were actually jealous of what we had.  As I write this, I can honestly say that I never saw myself with someone else.  I was sure that if one of us were to eventually leave this relationship, it certainly would not be me.

It’s not like I didn’t ask for what I wanted.  I even brought pictures, but nothing helped.  Looking back, I guess all the signs were there.  There was the weeknight I waited almost 20 minutes, without so much as an apology or a glass of wine.  The background music gradually changed from contemporary pop to acid house, for no apparent reason.  Prices increased, without explanation.  Then we hit bottom (sometimes it takes actually hitting bottom):  I left with orange highlights.  Orange.  Highlights.  I even went back (even after orange highlights).  I thought I could salvage things, but less than a month later, I was walking around Washington, DC with mini bangs and fluffy sides.  It was over.  I knew it was time to find a new hair stylist.  I just didn’t know how.

Last weekend, (after spending an hour trying to make my bangs grow longer and un-fluffing my sides), I decided to take a stroll around my adopted hometown: Old Town Alexandria, Virginia.  In the back of my mind, I knew I was “out there” –in the fray– looking—in “hair flux.”  I walked down King Street to get my usual: a Starbucks Venti Sugar Free Cinnamon Dolce Soy Latte (which I highly recommend if you haven’t tried it, because it is really fabulous).  I was walking home, minding my own business, sipping my latte, and there it was:  a board advertising Blown Salon.  It looked fun and interesting.  Could there really be someone there who was right for me?  It took me three days to work up the courage to call.  I told my story to the young woman on the phone (she was clearly moved) and she suggested that I see Dominique.  I’d already browsed the early reviews on yelp.com, and I had a feeling that Dominique might be for me.

I’ve never written about a salon before, but I can honestly say that Blown Salon really inspired me.  They made me feel at home.  They listened to me.  They liked my red lipstick.

Tonight, I feel redeemed.  My bangs look good.  My sides are not fluffy.  I’ve snapped 20 pictures of my new hair and sent them to friends and family, all of whom were impressed with the results.  I will be back, Blown Salon (and, dare I say, I feel really confident about our future)!

(Interested in the fabulous that is Blown Salon?  Check them out at www.blownsalon.com!)