Free Haircuts

[Sparky]

I came across this idea the other day to get free haircuts while hanging out with some very frugal backpackers  in Australia.

Quite often there are hairdressing students looking for people to practice on and many will do it for free or for the cost of materials for hair dying. You might be at the mercy of the student for what style of haircut you'll end up with.

This little idea can also hold true for many other jobs as well. Sometimes our local universities and tech colleges are looking for persons to let practice dental care, car repair, or fix small engines

[5oclockshadow]

I like the way you're thinking, Sparky.

In the late 90's, I came to the beautiful, rose-lined intersection of my frustration with paying for haircuts and the still-infantile ebay, full of sellers who were clueless as to how to run a profitable business.  I bought a pair of (retail) $20 hair clippers for $0.99 with free shipping.  For 15 years now, I just go on my back patio ever 2 weeks and buzz my hair to 1/4".  It takes 2 minutes, and being outside, requires no cleanup.  Perhaps it's just a factor of the general niceness of my neighbors, but I've yet to hear anyone comment on my ugliness.  Even including electricity costs (12 watts x 4 minutes/month), I'm paying a fraction of a penny per haircut, pay no transportation costs for my haircuts, and have saved a few hundred hours of time in transit, waiting, etc.  And, in 15 years, I've saved over $2000 compared to what I was paying for monthly haircuts (and I haven't even fancied that number up with compounding interest!)

Of course, this only works with a simpler 'doo, but the savings inherent to the simplicity makes it a double win in my book.

[dancedancekj]

Dental schools are an awesome deal if you have a lot of work that needs to be done and if you have some spare time. Patients are always needed, and you actually do get some pretty good work since every step is triple-checked by a professor. The only issue is that it takes such a long time to get work done because your teeth are triple-checked by a professor (4 hour appointments for one filling sometimes).

In terms of savings, it depends on what you needed to have done. Compared to my current private practice (which is relatively cheap compared to some of the higher-end practices in town) you save 50% on silver fillings (I don't know where else you can get a filling done for $25 these days), and 70% on composite resin (tooth-colored) fillings, 50% on dentures, and it gets even better if you're having a root canal, a crown, oral surgery, or an implant placed. The hygienists also need patients for cleanings too, if you don't have any work to be done.

Granted, you'll be flipping dentists around every two years, some dental schools have a waiting period/waiting list, and it can be unnerving for some patients to be worked on by a babyfaced twenty year old ("Doc? Are you old enough to drink?") Just remember that dental students are like bears: they're more frightened of you (or hurting you, or doing something wrong) than you are of them.