I’m a Gen Z-er and love my beauty treatments; I get a manicure fortnightly, my brows and a pedicure monthly and sometimes throw in a facial or massage. They’re an essential part of my self-care regime, and take up a lot of time. Yet, most of that time is marred by the chat I’m forced to endure, explaining to the stranger holding the scissors and comb behind me what my job is, how many siblings I have, what I’ve done with my week so far and my plans for the rest of the year.
As an introvert, I find it draining and repetitive. And yet still I yap on, coerced by social pressure. The lady behind the nail salon bar is aware I spent a week in Cornwall last year, my eyebrow lady knows the ins and outs of my love life, and now the hairdresser will know the itinerary for next Saturday.
I know that I’m not alone in my hatred of salon small talk. When Samantha Cuswick London salon asked its 80,000 Instagram followers whether they were into chatty haircuts, 79 per cent said they’d prefer a quieter salon environment. So they added two news option to their offering: “Silent Haircut” and “Silent Blowdry” among the colouring treatments options and haircare specials.
On discovering this, my joy at the thought of skipping the “doing anything nice this summer” exhange felt almost overwhelming. Read Next I regret moving to a commuter town - I'm so lonely After confirming my booking for the following day, I received a “silent haircut guide” informing me that after my i.