Follow Up & Review: Adventures in Haircutting (with the Conair Titanium Rechargeable Pro-Style Haircut Kit)

So, despite the hair pulling, pinching, and general pain and suffering inflicted by my last adventure in haircutting, my brave husband reminded me that he needed a haircut, and did I want to take care of that?  Part of me wanted to say "no thanks!!" but then I remembered that I didn't want to be a quitter, so I reminded him that the clippers we used last time sucked were not really in good enough condition for me to want to use them again.  Then I added "clippers" to my shopping list, and picked up a new set at the store on the weekend.  This time I went with a Conair cordless rechargeable unit (the Conair 36 Piece Titanium Rechargeable Pro-Style Haircut Kit), it came in a kit with tons of accessories, a carrying case, and best of all, an instructional DVD.  So out of curiousity, I popped it in.  I was really impressed by the usefulness of the video which covered topics such as cleaning and oiling the clippers, how to use them to trim nape and sideburns, and even had a section showing in detail how to perform 5 or 6 different haircut styles from start to finish.

There's nothing like being able to watch someone doing a thing properly to teach you how your technique can improve!  I would say the two most valuable things I learned were how to juggle the scissors and comb while doing a trim, and how to flip the clippers upside down to cut a clean line along sideburns and the nape of the neck.  And I dare say that the quality of the haircuts I completed (as well as the reduction in time it took me to finish two of them) improved a lot!  I gave my son a standard buzz cut with the #3 and #4 guides, in about 10 or 15 minutes (which included a break to find a way to wipe the stray hairs from his mouth).  Then we put the kids to bed, and I got my husband's "business cut" (I had no idea it had a name) completed in just a bit more time, as the top had to be trimmed with scissors to get the right look.

So, if you are looking to try your hand in the at-home haircutting game, I highly recommend this particular set (available from Amazon here http://www.amazon.ca/Conair-HCT221CPCZC-Piece-Pro-Style-Haircut/dp/B004RDQ622/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1332263654&sr=8-3-fkmr1), and regardless of what set you buy, I definitely recommend watching the instructional video that comes along with it.  For $50, you'll make that up in no time by not having to pay full price for cuts.

Giveaway - youTunes

Admit it, I know you've been there too.  The kids are all in bed, but the music is still on.  You find yourself singing along while doing the dishes (or folding one of the laundry mountains that have taken up residence on your couch...) and then you realize... you're singing along to the Fisher Price Classics.  You try and remember the last time you listened to something catchy that *isn't* Elmo And I Know It... and you realize you can't because it's been so long.

Now I'm more of an independent music fan, myself, and there are lots of artists on my music playlist that I guarantee you've never heard of (or maybe you have, some of my favourite indie acts have a way of making it big, and I don't realize it til I'm out shopping and hear a song I actually know playing on the speakers in a store...).  But as you know I'm also a runner, and as I'm training for a race this spring (actually training this time, not winging it like last time I tried a 10K...), I like having a selection of newer, upbeat music to run to.  Problem is, I don't know any of it.  And there's only so much you can glean from a 30 second clip in the iTunes preview.  Wouldn't it be great if I could listen to some top-100 music at home, so that I can then go and buy the tracks I really like?  Without having the blaring, screaming ads that all the popular radio stations are so full of?  Yes please!

Well it turns out that with youTunes, you can do just that, and more.  YouTunes is a free music player that lists the current top 100 tracks of pretty much whatever country you can think of, lets you add them to your own custom playlist(s), and then not only plays the song but also shows the corresponding video from YouTube.  Sometimes it's a music video, sometimes it has lyrics instead, but regardless, it's a nice way to catch up on what's hip outside of the preschooler scene.  It has great potential for a mom's night in (or as a prelude to mom's night out) by gathering up all the stuff that's playing on the dance floor, for your own party at home or in a hotel, as long as someone brought a MacBook and there's free Wifi...

In addition to automatically having access to each country's top 100 songs, you are also able to search for other songs if there is something you want to hear that isn't on there.  Now I do find that if you are searching for something more obscure, you are less likely to find what you're looking for, but the same thing would happen if you're looking directly on YouTube.  Most songs that show up in the search/top-100 list have links directly to iTunes where you can buy the official track or music video.  It would be nice if they add a link to purchase the song itself too, but that doesn't seem to be a feature in the app just yet.  I'm told that the company that makes the app is considering putting some settings into place to let you filter out songs with explicit ratings (making it sort-of kid safe, though I personally wouldn't play much of this stuff with my preschooler around), but there's no word yet on when that might be available.  So for now, this app gets the mommy stamp of approval, but consider it one you'd use when your kids are asleep or in another room playing quietly by themselves getting into trouble.

This is currently a Mac only app, available for download in the Mac App Store for $0.99, a pretty small price to pay to have all this music at your fingertips.  Plus, I have a bunch of promo codes to give away, so you could have the app for free!  Here's what I'm going to do.  I will give away 1 promo code.  If I get more than 10 entries to this giveaway, I'll give away a second promo code.  20 entries?  I'll throw in another one to give away.  (Max 10 promo codes to be given away).  So share this review, and tell your mac-owning friends, as in this case, more entries could actually improve your odds of winning (2/11 is better than 1/9, right?)

To find out more, or to buy this app, visit http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/free-music-player/id502305134?mt=12

Frugal Mommy - Experiments in Haircutting

Confession time: when I was growing up, I rarely went to a hairdresser.  My elaborate style (aka chin length blunt cut with bangs) was regularly maintained by my mom, on a folding chair, in the bathroom.  And when I got older, I usually cut my own bangs, sometimes it worked, and other times I was reminded that hair shrinks a bit when it dries (and my bangs looked a bit odd).  So it seemed like a real luxury when I moved out and went to University to actually pay someone else to cut my hair.  I bounced around between different salons, and ended up taking my meager student budget for haircuts and going to one of those franchise salons that doesn't take appointments and you never get the same hairdresser twice.  Honestly, it was always a bit of a gamble, sometimes you got a good haircut, sometimes... not so much.  Thankfully now that I am "all grown up" (haha) I have a great stylist at a nearby salon, and she knows my hair well enough that she can make suggestions about how I might want to consider cutting & styling it.  My husband and son, on the other hand, still visit the franchise salons, and I've watched them have their hair cut often enough to think "I really should be able to do that myself".

The culprit...

When my son was younger, he went through a phase where he thought that hairdressers were out to get him, and that any encounter with a spray bottle full of water, a comb, and a pair of scissors, was akin to being followed down a dark alley by a group of thugs.  Scream, and run away was pretty much his tactic.  So much so, that we were kicked out of a number of haircutting establishments because they just did not feel safe trying to cut the hair of a child that would kick, scream, twist, and squirm trying to get away from what he perceived to be torture of the worst kind.  So I did what any good mama would do, I bought my own set of torture implements (aka, clippers, cape, scissors, comb...) and decided that we would just cut his hair at home.  Yeah... that idea didn't quite pan out.  We would convince him that clippers would get the job done faster... bribe him with candy and toys (side note: lollipops consumed during haircuts will inevitably get hair stuck to them and become another source of aggravation), and he would sit still for about 5 seconds until the clippers shaved off just enough hair that you couldn't just quit, you had to finish the job.  Then he'd scream bloody murder and you'd have to whip out the scissors and try to cut his hair that way.  It was AWFUL.

So we started taking him to a nearby salon that specialized in kids haircuts.  He was coddled with TV, video games, toys, chairs that look like racecars, etc.  He still screamed and squirmed but at least he was in the capable hands of stylists that were used to cutting kids hair under these conditions.  It was pricey, but I considered it to be worthwhile because I could step out of the role of Terrible Mommy with the Scissors/Clippers.  Eventually, he stopped being so upset at haircuts, even looking forward to the balloon he would get at the end, he would even let them use the clippers!  Once we got to a time when there were no more tears, we decided to start taking him somewhere less expensive.  And then I got to thinking, I have these fantastic clippers at home, and could really just skip the driving/waiting/paying bit, and just do this myself.  So, the other day, I popped A Bug's Life into the DVD player, rolled up the livingroom rug, and put my son on a chair in the middle of the room.  He was OK with this, as I told him I'd pay him some money for his piggy bank (as I'd be saving $12 on a haircut elsewhere).  All through the haircut he kept cringing, whining and complaining about the clippers "hurting".  I thought this was ridiculous, after all, they are just clippers!  No sharp blades risking contact with skin, plastic guides in place to make sure I didn't cut anything too short, everything was as it should be.  So we (he) powered through.

After the haircut turned out pretty neat & tidy (for a beginner like me), my husband suggested I try cutting his hair too.  So, I rolled up the rug again, plugged in the clippers, and wouldn't you know it, he is grimacing and complaining too that the clippers hurt!  So it turns out that my "at home haircut set" (which I bought on clearance at a big box store) either wasn't a quality set, or was in some way defective, as a closer examination revealed that the metal plate at the end of the clippers (where the blade cuts against) kept getting loose and the hair it was supposed to cut, ended up getting pinched and pulled.  So, it seems that despite my best intentions, it's possible that the fear of hair clippers that my son still fights, was worsened by my attempts to try and make things better and easier for all of us.  The moral of the story?  Cheaper is not always better... I will be shopping for a new hair clipper, and I hope that when I find one that works well, the cost of it will be offset by the fact I will be able to save money by cutting my son's and husband's hair at home again.  Without the screaming.