Ella, The Stand Mixer, and Toni & Guy
Posted by Reid Greven on January 18, 2009
Another adventure in child rearing…
Beware the Kitchenaid Stand Mixer:
This afternoon, while helping make Banana Bread with her Papa, Ella accidentally got too close to the Kitchenaid Stand Mixer.
Her hair got caught by its rotation and was immediately and violently entangled in its shaft and attachment.
It was pretty horrible.
But Papa, Aunt Kelly and I got her untangled and eventually calmed down. She was OK.
But her beautiful hair was another story…
Kelly and I tended to her, which included a bath to aid the process of washing the Banana Bread batter out of her hair, and then untangling it. When that didn’t seem to go so well, we realized something…
The rats nest of hair that was being so stubborn was not just knotted hair, but actually a clump of hair that had been ripped out of a 5″ x 3″ section of her scalp and was finely intertwined into a nearly solid matte of hair. Almost as if someone had glued a fist-sized clump of hair halfway down her own.
Once Kelly and I realized that untangling it was a hopeless cause, I called Jennie (who was on an errand) to give her the story and the bad news.
After she got home and we called two of the family’s go-to hairdressers, Jennie and I opted to take her to the Toni & Guy salon at the mall and have them work some magic on what was certainly to be Ella’s new “shorter than desired” haircut…
Well…
Convinced they could save her hair length and prevent a drastic hair cut, a team of stylists and wash girls – lead by the salon manager – worked for 3 hours on Ella’s hair.
They were incredible. They used every shampoo, conditioner, oil, and chemical they had, plus a ton of patience, perseverance and old-fashioned elbow grease.
And don’t worry. I’m pretty sure we gave them the biggest tip they’ll have for a loooong time…. 
Hey – that sure beats the alternative of a 4 year old girl with a buzz cut!
Thanks T&G ladies!!!
Hour #1…
Hour #2 – Reinforcements arrive…
Hour #3 – still going…
Final Product: No visible difference !!!
But this is the damaged area under the top layer of hair. Nearly the entire area is smooth to the scalp, pulled out by the root.
I’d cry too if this was yanked out of my head by a 325-watt, 5 quart, 22 pound household appliance!!
Melissa said
oh, poor ella. i’m sitting here in tears. i’m so glad she’s “ok”. how scary for her and for you guys.
Kelly Moreton said
i feel bad because the person that commented before me is in tears feeling bad for her and i am laughing. i am a bad bad aunt! but it’s still kinda funny.
Reid Greven said
Jennie did mention she put Rogain on the grocery list for tomorrow…
Kelly Moreton said
hahaha! i just keep thinking about when you and i first discovered that there was a bald spot! i felt bad but it was so shockingly funny!
donna said
Hey Ella,
I am so sorry that this happened to you today! You still are and always will be the most beautiful girl, inside and out!!!
I Love you,
Miss Donna
singwritelaughplay said
oh my gosh! i can’t even begin to comprehend how painful that must have been for your sweet girl! i did once have to take a screwdriver to an automatic train that tangled itself around my sweet niece’s hair. poor girl… i hope she got a lot of sugar for that episode!
jj said
as a woman with long hair-i cannot imagine how painful and traumatic that must of been. i too am sitting here with tears rolling down my face…mostly for ella but also because of the sweet women at t&g who saved her hair. poor, poor ella. i wonder if this will affect her desire to bake when she gets older…?:)
Leah Case said
I’m the nice aunt. I even made the hair appointment for her.
But seriously, so glad she is ok!!
nana said
I’m the Canadian Nana and I have to say my heart is with Ella’s Papa. Is he OK?