What is it with barbers or hair dressers? You go in and they ask you what you want, you tell them and then they proceed to do things to your hair that go against your original requirements. You may be different but most people I know want something fairly simple from their visit, they want the hairstyle they currently have, more or less only shorter and tidier. When I go in and get in the chair I even say it to them. ‘What would you like done today?’ they ask and I reply ‘Well, more or less the same only shorter.’
Now I have a side parting, I’ve had one since I left school where I had a centre parting but I go into the barbers with a side parting and have every intention of coming out with one but we discuss what I want, they spray my head with water and cut and snip and shave and then blow dry my hair into a style that I have only seen in a black and white photograph in the window of a sixties hairdresser. I don’t blow dry my hair and I don’t use hair spray to keep it in place and so really don’t understand why I have to go through this rigmarole every time. The same happened to me today and at the end I had to remind the barber to put a side parting where I had one when I came in. An awkward silence followed.
So here is an idea. When you go to the barbers and they sit you down in the chair in front of the mirror and ask you what it is that you want done and you are one of the ninety nine percent of the population who just wants something similar, then a small camera that is placed at the top of the mirror takes a photo of you and displays the image in the top right hand corner of the mirror. I can’t quite work out if it would need to be reversed though I doubt this is complicated but the picture would look the same as the image that you and the barber see of you in the mirror. You can then say to the professional ‘I would like it like that only shorter and tidier’ and they have no excuse. The image will tell them if you have a parting, if you wear your hair forwards or backwards, curly or straight, comb over or pony tail or whatever quirk or fancy style that you have. It will even remind them how many ears you’ve got and where your eyebrows are positioned.
What could go wrong? How easy would this be? No more un-required brushing, no more un-requested blow drying, no more unwanted hair products and no more embarrassing requests for them to undo what they have done and do what you asked them to do in the first place. I’m sure this technology would be easy to deliver and anyone who thinks they can have a go at it is more than welcome to the idea for free, or perhaps for the price of a quick haircut.
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 