Tipping thing is getting out of hand

[canuk-gal]

I haven’t had my hair cut since November, when I went back to the UK. I’m flabbergasted at the cost of hair dressing here in the US. I used to go every week for a blow dry in the UK, cost me 15 GBP including tip, and a cut and colour every 5 weeks, which cost me 55 GBP including tip.

I’m colouring my own hair now because I’m just not prepared to spend $250 dollars every 5 weeks. I’m going to have to bite the bullet soon and find somewhere to get it cut because my fringe is down to the tip of my nose

I have friends who pay $350-600 for this service every 6-7 weeks. Can't make this stuff up.

 

[lambskin]

Yep a cut, blow dry and highlights cost about $250 to $300. I do my own grey root touch up to save the monthly expense of $75-80. But the price of the Wella dyes at Salli’s have nearly quadrupled since I started to do my own. Each bottle is around $10 with tax plus the developer and then super conditioner packets which used to cost a buck each on sale. Now they are $3-5 each. So it’s about $15 for me to do it each time and of course I don’t get the salon treatment of a wash, style and blow dry. And I miss a lot in the back, but that all gets covered when I get the highlights and have still saved a lot.
Even manis and pedis are super expensive nowadays there seem to be no more coupon deals. Been years since I have had one (and it shows). I see so many nail shops everywhere and the places are busy.

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

I'm sitting here right now coloring my own hair

 

[TooPatient]

Yep a cut, blow dry and highlights cost about $250 to $300. I do my own grey root touch up to save the monthly expense of $75-80. But the price of the Wella dyes at Salli’s have nearly quadrupled since I started to do my own. Each bottle is around $10 with tax plus the developer and then super conditioner packets which used to cost a buck each on sale. Now they are $3-5 each. So it’s about $15 for me to do it each time and of course I don’t get the salon treatment of a wash, style and blow dry. And I miss a lot in the back, but that all gets covered when I get the highlights and have still saved a lot.
Even manis and pedis are super expensive nowadays there seem to be no more coupon deals. Been years since I have had one (and it shows). I see so many nail shops everywhere and the places are busy.

A lady asked if there would be any interest if she started a small business. Another nail salon? I said maybe if she did something different than the rest. Offer affordable options that can be added to for the full experience so people can choose what level they'd like. Turns out she didn't want to know if people were interested enough to open a business. She actually has one and is moving it from a city about 20 minutes away. Her base level manicure is $300 . No, I have not been in!

I'm currently sporting two toned hair in a ponytail (where it isn't noticeable and actually looks intentional if you look close enough to notice) as I can't bring myself to pay $250+ for a trim and color plus the expected added tip. Debating on either doing it myself or letting it grow to where the colored part can be cut off.

 

[elle_71125]

I started dyeing my hair at home a few years back. My husband helps me out (and, honestly, he’s better at it than me). I got tired of paying $200+ every 6-8 weeks and still not getting the color I asked for. I’m glad I’m not the only one doing it themselves. Lol.

 

[Lookinagain]

I'm sitting here right now coloring my own hair

Well it looks like you do a very neat job. I color my own hair, but I get it all over my forehead. I quit going to the salon when Covid hit and started cutting and coloring my hair myself. I watched a U-tube video and got haircutting scissors and just cut it. I figured, hair grows and I wasn't going anywhere anyway. And I've just kept doing it. Funny, because my daughter went to The Paul Mitchell school for hair. So every once in a while she will cut it or color it for me, but she doesn't live that close by and her visits never seem to coincide with when I need something. She doesn't cut hair now professionally, so it is only when she visits. Tomorrow, for Mother's day, I told her no gifts, just a cut and color
By the way, when I was going to the salon, back in 2020, I'd get a cut and color for about $120. And the stylist was the owner and she was very good. I'm in the Boston suburbs, so a good stylist for a fair amount can be found.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

I think it’s been three years since I cut my hair, definitely two years. I am just too cheap when it comes to all the beauty stuff and terrible at keeping up with it all.

If I get desperate, I’ll have DH just cut six inches off straight across, he doesn’t expect any tips, just dinner

 

[diamondyes]

I always tip. 10% if I’m grab and go and 20% for any full service. I see it as redistribution of wealth. I’m happy to share my good fortune with others. Shrug.

 

[Asscherhalo_lover]

Fun and purple! The dye is just a coloring conditioner so it's thick and not runny. I just apply with a brush and comb through. As soon as it's on DH comes and makes sure there's none on my ears. Then I leave it on for about 30 minutes and wash it out.

 

[nala]

 

[ireneelee]

There's 2 sit down places that I go to (if I plan it in advance!) that have a no tip policy, At one, the wait staff starts at 18 bucks an hour. The food is exceptionally good. Its not a cheap restaurant by a long shot, but it is very well run. Never had a bad time there. They seem to treat their people very well. They were in the news down here and might be why people flocked to them.

The other is a small shop. They open at noon and close at 7:30pm. Closed on Sundays and Mondays. Food isn't cheap, portions aren't super giant (thankfully!) but its exceptionally good. They do a lot of business, seems that its family run.

Like plenty of people, I worked in the service industry and while the tips were good, they were not something I relied upon. (at the time I recall making under 2 bucks an hour!) I did have a 2nd job that picked up the slack of the first. Mostly, I worked in a restaurant so I get a free meal a couple of times a week...lol (when you're a broke college kid you do what you must!) my 2nd job was at a trucking company, and it was easy enough to sit there and wait for trucks to come in and go out (I was the overnight dispatcher) Plus, I used the downtime to study. Besides that I can't help but notice that for me this development has been very hard and more specifically when you are a college student and you are faced with the question who am i, you understand that actually life is very complex and it's hard to decide what you could do next, I mean after college and in general during college, because I grew up in a simple family where my parents didn't give me a lot of money during college but only the bare necessities.

Tips should be a nice to have and not a guarantee. There's a place down here that charges right off the top 18% gratuity on every party. They don't tell you, its not in the fine print on the menus. That to me isn't right.

It's interesting to hear about your experiences with restaurants that have a "no tip" policy. I too have worked this way and, by the way, have been in both of the restaurants you mentioned and I must add that it is crucial for both customers and establishments to have open discussions about tipping policies, fair wages and the dining experience in general. It's encouraging to see restaurants that prioritize the fair treatment of their staff and offer exceptional service and food.

 

[YadaYadaYada]

This thread inspired me last time I went for my once a week Starbucks. Didn’t go through the drive-thru, walked in and ordered, and when the card reader asked about a tip I hit “no tip”

Still felt a bit like a jerk but a richer jerk than I would have been otherwise.

 

[Jambalaya]

Tips are for rewarding good service. That's why most restaurant servers go above and beyond in the States, certainly much more so than I've experienced in non-tipping countries.

Tipping for having a drink handed to you is crazy. I don't like tipping cabs and hairdressers unless they've done well. A fab cut at a reasonable price, or the taxi taking the most efficient route and driving well. But when the hair cut is expensive, the hairdresser pushes back on what I want, and the cab driver takes the long way round and is surly, I dislike the expectation to tip. Tips are meant to reward a job well done, not a mediocre job. They're also an incentive. Do your job really well = potential to get paid more. If no tips are allowed, where's the motivation to hustle? When I take an Uber, the people who are really motivated have handwipes in the back, bottles of water, they ask what music you want on, if any, if you want air-conditioning...it allows people with an entrepreneurial spirit to come up with creative ways to maximize their income, and the customer gets a superior service. Sure, not everyone will tip better for better service, but you have a better chance of earning more if you hustle.

BUT, I do hate the way that restaurant servers are paid such an insultingly low basic wage. That whole wage structure is way too extreme. Why not pay them more and make the suggested tip start at 10%? That way, servers would have more security yet retain the ability to potentially maximize their earnings by providing excellent service. (Since many people would pay a higher tip than 10% if they were very happy with their server.)

ETA: I think that watching someone's restaurant tipping is a great way to see how cheap they are. I've always thought meanness with money equals meanness of spirit. I know how badly servers get paid, so I automatically tip 20% on the total. I don't quibble about the pre-tax amount. They get paid so much less than me, and a couple of dollars more doesn't make any difference to me. If they've gone above and beyond, I'll leave a few dollars extra. If the service has been totally fine, and the person I'm with leaves 15%, I think badly of them, unless they are truly short of money. I also tip well with DoorDash, seeing that they're actually bringing something to your house!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Well it looks like you do a very neat job. I color my own hair, but I get it all over my forehead. I quit going to the salon when Covid hit and started cutting and coloring my hair myself. I watched a U-tube video and got haircutting scissors and just cut it. I figured, hair grows and I wasn't going anywhere anyway. And I've just kept doing it. Funny, because my daughter went to The Paul Mitchell school for hair. So every once in a while she will cut it or color it for me, but she doesn't live that close by and her visits never seem to coincide with when I need something. She doesn't cut hair now professionally, so it is only when she visits. Tomorrow, for Mother's day, I told her no gifts, just a cut and color
By the way, when I was going to the salon, back in 2020, I'd get a cut and color for about $120. And the stylist was the owner and she was very good. I'm in the Boston suburbs, so a good stylist for a fair amount can be found.

i carefuly smear some moisturizer on the skin closest to the hairline but you have to be careful to get none on the actual hair

 

[Arcadian]

I do now


I recently noticed one of our restaurants here did that automatic 18% gratuity as well and I didn't realize it until I saw it on the bill. To me that is just not right.

Yeah and its interesting, that one that does it constantly gets complaints.

@Tonks, I don't disagree with paying people a living wage, not at all. And in fact, we should! But burden should be on the corporation. You have lots of corps where CEOS are making 100 times + more than their lowest paid employee.

I typically shun fast food and instead go to more family run places. Equally, I don't use grocery stores as much these days and as we have the ability to shop with our local farms in my area, I do. I try very hard to shop as small as I can when I can (I don't always manage sometimes I have to go to walmart for things, but I keep those instances low)

Just recently 5 of us in the neighborhood bought into a half cow from a farm an hour north. Yeah thats a lot of meat! But you know what? Comes out a hell of a lot cheaper than at Publix or Whole Paycheck.

 

[mrs-b]

I always tip. 10% if I’m grab and go and 20% for any full service. I see it as redistribution of wealth. I’m happy to share my good fortune with others. Shrug.

Trust me when I tell you - my hair dresser is wealthier than me.

 

[RockOnReen]

A local restaurant snuck this one past me a few days ago...I didn't notice until I had already calculated the tip and signed the check but I felt like I'd been "taken" even though it was only a few dollars. It was like they had shamed me into giving them a few extra bucks (really, you're going to make me request to have it taken off in front of my lunch guests?) and I'll think twice before going back.

 

[monarch64]

A local restaurant snuck this one past me a few days ago...I didn't notice until I had already calculated the tip and signed the check but I felt like I'd been "taken" even though it was only a few dollars. It was like they had shamed me into giving them a few extra bucks (really, you're going to make me request to have it taken off in front of my lunch guests?) and I'll think twice before going back.

I’d rather see increased menu prices! That’s ridiculous. They just don’t want to put out the cost required to update their menus is my guess. I grew up in the restaurant business and I can remember every so often all the menus would have to be entirely redone. Back then it wasn’t as easy as having digital files to use, either. My family would NEVER have tried to slip one past their customers and tacked on a surcharge with a little fine print. I’m honestly grossed out by that concept and would never return to that restaurant. If they’re cutting corners with menus they’re cutting them elsewhere, and none of them benefit the customer’s wallet or health I’ll bet.

 

[nala]

 

[kenny]

People vary, as does tipping.
Once again, there is no single, universal "right" way.

Each of you, tip whatever you want to tip.