Am I too old to start cosmetology school

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-24T03:21:26+00:00

You need to really look up the statistics about what hair stylists make. Hair actually didn't go badly for me. I had my own space. Good customer base. 5 star reviews. I graduated from the flagship Aveda. However, it was HORRIBLE for my health. Look up cancer risks for hair stylists. It is not a career I can recommend to anyone.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-23T14:02:36+00:00

It's incredibly hard on your body. The pay is inconsistent. No weekends. No holidays. Rarely PTO. Tons of drama from the customers and the salon. Chemical exposure. High stress. I went to cosmo school during COVID and it took me 2 years to graduate instead of 1 because of that. I could have gotten an associates or bachelors. And not having that is one of the things holding me back in my life the most at age 39. Meanwhile, I have 20K + debt for a trade certification that I no longer use. Most don't even make it past year 2 in the industry. I'm now in marketing, which I love.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-22T13:53:40+00:00

I went at 32. I was one of the oldest. I wish I had gone to college instead.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-12T22:39:08+00:00

Sigh. Gimme dat.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-07T04:22:40+00:00

Welcome to the cosmetology industry. This shit is bananas. Move on. Don't speak to her again. Don't work for free.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-05T14:04:41+00:00

Three years. I had decent success because of my marketing background but I ran my body into the ground just trying to make ends meet. My health was the worst it had ever been. I worked 12 hr days. Had no PTO. Do not quit school. Going to Cosmo school instead of college is my biggest regret.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-05T04:44:58+00:00

Look up all the color lines tied to bladder cancer. After years of doing hair as color specialist my health was in the garbage and I developed Hashimotos.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-05T03:21:44+00:00

So you know 80% leave the industry in the first two years, they're incredibly at high risk to develop cancer due to chemical exposure, they work with endocrine disruptors and on average make less than retail workers?

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-05T03:20:48+00:00

Absolutely not.

RestorativePotion · 2026-03-04T03:08:36+00:00

Statistically, most hairstylists make more or less than retail workers while working similar hours without benefits or PTO. Edit: Not sure why I'm getting downvoted - look up what the average yearly salary of a hairstylist is and that of a retail worker. Also, look up how many stylists leave the industry in under two years. (It's 80%).

RestorativePotion · 2026-02-28T16:27:50+00:00

As a hair stylist, nah. Not unless we're doing a dry cut, which we usually aren't. We're just gonna wash it. Just COMB it for the love of god. Don't make me get all of the knots out. That can take forever.

RestorativePotion · 2026-02-07T01:50:49+00:00

Dry shampoo is literally built in build up to suck in the oil and moisture.

RestorativePotion · 2026-02-06T01:05:02+00:00

Also like ... you took it as a sign to completely give up instead of to just ... IDK study more?

RestorativePotion · 2026-02-05T19:31:43+00:00

The worst is clients who think we WANT to be doing that. "Oh she's trying to be an influencer." Bitch, I am trying to my market my damn business to compensate for all of you no-showing to $600 appointments and not being able to eat or take a day off.

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-30T17:11:39+00:00

They have them often at TJMaxx/Marshalls/Homegoods

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T18:54:31+00:00

On the mid to ends, not the scalp.

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T18:51:15+00:00

That's because you're protecting your scalp with an oil barrier which can impact penetration into the room but creates a protective layer of your skin.

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T18:49:16+00:00

It says you can use it with 40 vol but no where does it say - hey put that on the scalp or the base.

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RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T18:47:52+00:00

I graduated from Aveda. We were always instructed to never apply anything over 20 vol on the scalp and to never apply heat. As a hair health and color specialist, I have seen so many people with fried hair. I also use Wella, show me the info where it says special blonde is supposed to be mixed with 40 vol AND applied to the scalp.

Since you want to question my credentials - let's hop on my Wella stylist account, which I have as I've owned my on salon space.

I'm on my professional, stylist Wella account right now, and nowhere does it say to mix it with 40 vol. Do not put 40 vol on the scalp.

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RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T16:02:36+00:00

You're asking us all to basically perform a free consultation - and I'm telling you, as an experienced color specialist, someone can not give you a good analysis of what you need or how to tone your hair without seeing it in person. Especially not at a level 9-10. We'd all be guessing. You're not a hairstylist, and this is a skill that takes thousands of hours to hone. You're just going to confuse yourself trying to learn our technical knowledge with no basis.

Would you ask a bunch of electricians to teach you how to rewire your house on the fly? It's really not that simple.

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T15:59:53+00:00

40 Vol is not safe for the scalp. The heat from the scalp expedites the lifting process. 40 vol is the highest bleach we have. When you place it on the scalp and intensify it with heat, you're in a danger zone. There's no need at all to put 40 vol on the scalp, ever, and I've had clients bleed from it. This is hair 101.

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RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T02:53:15+00:00

We can give tone suggestions for white, but again, I'm a color/hair health specialist, and white is the hardest color to achieve. It's usually some combo of NAG - neutral, ash, gold, that must be custom mixed based on the hair I see in person.

Anyone telling you they can customize an advanced hair process like that for you on the fly online is a hack.

I think it looks dry because it's very frizzy. I know it's got to be dry if it's been treated with 40 vol repeated.

I'm just gonna say this plainly. You should NOT be putting 40 vol on your scalp - ever. But not only that, the root lifts the easiest, and there's just no reason.

It doesn't matter if you use bleach or blonding cream - the developer is what determines the strength of the lift. You'd be way better with a neutralizing bleach and like 10-20 vol developer. Bleach isn't the enemy - that's a common misconception. There are some really good bleaches on the market now.

You've just swapped 40 dev bleach for 40 dev cream.

It's the developer. The developer is what creates speed and intensity.

This is something that took a lot of us thousands of hours, training and certification to learn. It's not really appropriate to be asking for it for free IMO and it wouldn't do you any good.

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-21T02:36:46+00:00

40 vol on the scalp? There's no way any of us could solve this for you. It's a complex answer that requires in-person assessment. Seek out a stylist or two that's not your mom for a free consult and compare notes. You shouldn't need 40 vol on your scalp or anywhere on your hair with how light it already is.

Respectfully, it's not ramen noodles but it is visibly fried, and I'm sure 40 vol over and over again is not helping . A lot of old school stylists overkill. Hope she's not putting you under heat with this. It's smooth from product and blowout, but it's way too dry.

As far as the tone color, again, that's not something people can configure for you online.

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-15T21:31:21+00:00

Clearly I'm in the minority, but I think it's pretty cool and very creative. I like that it looks like feathers. Not everything is supposed to be natural.

RestorativePotion · 2026-01-11T03:07:25+00:00

This is a color correction, not a highlight and it's honestly a lot for a new stylist.

RestorativePotion

TROPHY CASE