I posted on our blog the other day a draft of our proposed fulltiming budget.  One line item I included was a $25/month allowance for hair care.  I figure Marti can cut my hair, she's done it for years, but she gets her hair done at her favorite salon.

Marti looked at my proposal and she nearly had a cow.  I'm not in the dog house over this, I'm in the outhouse (basement)!

What do you ladies do for your hair care needs on the road?  Marti spends a lot now because of her position in the corporate world, but I thought once on the road, we wouldn't have to spend that much.  Boy was I ever wrong!!!!

Can anyone help me out so I can at least get back in the house and if I'm lucky, sleep on the couch?

Best Regards!

-- Edited by Old Snipe on Thursday 17th of June 2010 03:42:21 PM

The lemon Tree cost me $14 plus tip and i go 4 or 5 times a year....$25 a month seems generous to me, I think that will be the budget i use for Virginias hair care. On second thought maybe not, Virginia has mentioned going to different Spas while we are on the road, i suspect the budget will be taking large hits those months, Hmmmm does anyone make a book that lists only states without spas, Gene

First you say, "Dear, what was I thinking" and then you go spend money on her like a nice dinner out. If that doesn't do it then go clothes shopping with her and not whine or complain.

Oh I am with Bill all the way on this one!! It may sound wimpy but it sure will make life eaiser!!!!

Tell her it was just a typo. It was suppose to be $250 not $25 and your keyboard is faulty on the zero's. Maybe that would work but be prepared to take her out for a nice dinner.

I understand your wife totally but because I was in on the budgeting issue,I knew I could not spend are you ready for this $150/month on my hair so I made some changes. I spent some time researching hair color and found a color and product at Sally's beauty supply that I liked. I went out and watched you tube videos to learn to do it myself which was a huge step out for me. That brought my color down to about $6 a month. I wear my hair longer so it is an easy cut to explain to someone new but i will probably ask around in different towns to find a decent stylist to cut it because I've had some bad cuts at the discount places. In the end I think it will probably come out to around 40 to 50 a month. I know that still sounds steep to some of you but that is $100 a month savings, some day I may get it down further but I feel good about this so far. Good luck with the wife. Maybe if you include her in the process, like me she will be willing to make the changes on her own.

I suspect once she is on the road and talks to other full-timing women she will realize this is an area that can be cut back. But if you push it she will probably resist strongly and keep up her fancy salon visits just because. As others have said, let it be her decision. When Diane changed jobs years ago from a place where she wore a business suit to one where casual was the norm it took her a while to adjust. People who know Diane now would have trouble visualizing her in a business suit.

Now wait until the issue of makeup arises!  That may leave more room in your budget too!

I think most of us ladies use much less makeup while traveling!  At least I do -- do others agree?

Snipe, you need to learn to dye your wife's hair yourself, if she even dyes it at all. I'm still trying to figure out what she could possibly be spending that much on for hair care. My wife could easily get by on $25 month. She gets a pretty simple cut, uses a curling iron from time to time, and when she wants a dye job, we pick up something at Wally World, and do it ourselves. I would say to buy your wife some flowers, maybe some chocolates, and one, if not all of Dave Ramsey's books. If you're already close to full-timing, a lot of his stuff would be pointless, but a big savings on hair care could potentially go to something else she might like (nice dinners out, better RV, any variety of things). Our situation would be a total role reversal. DW would be the one in the doghouse if she wanted to spend more than $25 for hair care while full-timing. But, like others have said, it really needs to be her decision, so you don't want to go to war over it. I'm just at a loss.

Well, this is an interesting post. We started full-timing in August 2009. I always wear make-up and have gotten my hair cut and highlighted twice since August. When we were volunteering at a NWR I asked one of the ladies in the office that wore her hair like mine who she recommended. I went to her hairdresser and loved her. Great cut!! When we were "home" for the holidays I went to my old hairdresser and got a highlight and cut. When we were in Gulf Shores for the winter I asked another full-timer (again someone who wore their hair like mine) for a recommendation. I went to her hairdresser and it was an ok cut. Not bad but not the greatest. Since we have been camp hosting I have done the same routine and had a great cut just last month. I am trying to let the highlights grow out and just go natural. With that said when we are back in our old home area I will probably let my old hairdresser highlight again. Who knows??? I still wear Clinique make-up but not so much of it as I used to. I also substitute mascara and eye shadow now. I buy the Cover Girl or Revlon brand in that. Works fine. The rest is still Clinique just like before. I also asked for gift cards for birthdays and Mother's Day and I use that for making some of my purchases. I have found it isn't as big a deal as it used to be. I still want to look nice but not going to work (in the "other" world) everyday makes a huge difference. You just put your emphasis on different things. Good luck and I also agree.....a nice dinner out, nice apology and some red roses should do the trick.