1. Do what you can at home. Although there are plenty of tutorial videos on YouTube about giving yourself a haircut, I would otherwise recommend other beauty regimens you can do at home. For instance, you can save up to $20 by doing your own manicure at home. Furthermore, you can even invite your girlfriends for some DIY spa. You can give each other some hair treatment or do some facial mask recipes together. You can do these stuff at home without worrying about the tip.
2.Volunteer as a model in a cosmetology school. You should expect that experienced professional beauticians and stylists charge high fees for their services. Since you are on a tight budget, try looking for cosmetology schools that model to learn on. Normally, services of this kind can be availed at half the price. You don’t need to worry about being at the mercy of a student because I am sure, his supervisor is looking over his shoulder.
3. Try Groupon. You may be a regular patron in a local salon but since you want to save on your beauty expenses, Groupon is an excellent place to find discounted services with your neighborhood. If you are lucky, you might find one priced more than half of the regular salon price.
4. Purchase your beauty products from the drugstore. Buying from the department store or the beauty boutique would normally cost you at least $50. The drugstore offers the same quality products at much lesser prices. Always remember that some brands are owned by the same company so these products have been formulated by the same masterminds.
5. Minimize your regular visits to the salon. Instead of having a monthly haircut or weekly manicure, you can space those visits accordingly.In between, you can visit a cheaper salon if you cannot avoid having a nice trim. You can have other family members do your nails in between.
I agree that beauty is not cheap. However, keeping yourself fresh does not mean your salon expenses should eat a huge chunk of your monthly income. There are lots of ways to stay beautiful while enjoying some amount of financial leverage.