No More ‘Coronacuts’: Salt Lake Salons, Barbershops Set To Reopen
Apr 29, 2020, 10:13 PM | Updated: Apr 30, 2020, 12:31 pm
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah –Salt Lake hairdressers and barbers are back in business – with restrictions – beginning May 1. But until that was official, many wondered whether or not they should attempt a “coronacut.”
Teacher Janet Barnette enlisted her 14-year-old son, Toby, who’d been only on the receiving end of a haircut, to give her a trim. Her hair was much shorter than most, but for Barnette, it was still uncomfortably shaggy.
“I’m pretty desperate. I think I was about two weeks away from a haircut when we went into quarantine,” she said. “I know many people would argue my hair is not long but by my standards, it’s getting pretty long.”
Toby Barnette wasn’t totally unprepared.
“We Googled and we found a couple of great videos. That was his homework last night,” Janet Barnette said.
The advice from Chad Lott of B Space Salon — just don’t do it. You have only to take a tour of the train wreck haircuts on Instagram to see why he said that.
If you couldn’t live with all that hair on your head, Lott offered this advice: Go slow.
“Don’t start too short,” he said. “There’s no coming back from too short.”
“There are some very good fails to watch to lend you some conservatism,” added hairstylist Peter Sosnowski of Park City. “Less is more.”
Pre-pandemic, he posted a series of YouTube videos under the title “Kitchen Cutters,” to teach people how to cut hair at home. He recommended using electric clippers with numbered guards so you don’t inadvertently give your loved one racing stripes.
Jeff and Kara Fuhriman, co-owners of mobile salon Dapper & Dash, have been offering “virtual haircuts.” You hold the clippers while a stylist on a video chat tells you what to do.
“We just wanted to be there in case someone needed help,” he said.
However, he added few had been using the service.
“People are having a bit of a hard time mustering up the courage to do their own haircuts,” he said.
“Hair is hard hair is hard,” Lott said. “I say that every day. People are always amazed when they start doing it how difficult it is.”
Janet Barnette, meanwhile, was pleased with her backyard trim.
“That’s awesome,” she said. “That feels so much better, that feels like me.”
