I trusted ChatGPT instead of going to a salon — and I regret it

I consider myself pretty low maintenance when it comes to my appearance. In my 20s and early 30s I spent a lot of time and money on makeup, mani/pedis and trips to the salon. But now? Well, let’s just say, I’ve been cutting my own hair since the pandemic. I don’t even color it; I just let the sun and my purple shampoo take care of my naturally blonde hair.

Well, that is until recently. During a snowstorm when I had no place to go and nothing but time, I figured I’d lean on ChatGPT for a makeover. I wanted to give myself a new look and decided AI would be the perfect way to do that. I mean, I’ve leaned on it for everything from travel advice to meal planning, what could go wrong?

As it turns out, everything.

Here’s what happened when I turned to AI instead of going to a professional.

I gave ChatGPT the reigns

I told ChatGPT that I wanted to freshen up my look, and it suggested toning my hair since I didn’t want to color it. In hindsight, this entire experiment could have been a lot worse had I brought dye into the mix.

It asked me to upload a picture of myself “in sunlight” and then made a few suggestions like lightning my look with toner and developer. That was helpful, but I should have stopped there and immediately made an appointment at the nearest salon.

With an impending snowstorm, I didn’t have any plans though and figured what the heck. A few more prompts later, I asked ChatGPT the exact products I should buy on Amazon and it found them for me. I ordered them and eagerly waited for the products to arrive. So far so good, right?

But what was weird was when I went back to the conversation, it asked me to upload a picture of myself again… and then suggested completely different products! Just to be on the safe side, I ordered those, too. ChatGPT assured me that I was doing the right thing and could even “mix them” for the perfect color.

The coloring process — chatting live with ChatGPT Voice

Under no circumstances should a novice like me be mixing toner and developer in the bathroom while relying on Alexa+ to keep track of different timers for various parts of my head.

Standing with a towel draped over my shoulders, I stared in the mirror to see my hair completely turning a weird purplish gray. I quickly turned on ChatGPT Voice, thinking that it would pick up our text conversation and it played dumb. “Just keep doing what you’re doing. And if you’re not sure, wash it out” it said. So, was I supposed to wash it out or keep going? I wasn't sure at all but I was also committed at this point.

Throughout the process ChatGPT Voice stayed with me as I was panicking but it was little to no help. I need reassurance that everything it had told me to do up until this point was accurate, but it basically through it’s digital hands up like, “Welp, we’re in this together. I’m here for you.”

At this point, there was a foot of snow coming down and every salon was closed. I was in deep. When Alexa+ told me it was time to wash the toner out of my hair, I quickly rinsed out the toner and stared at myself in the mirror. Yup, gray. I’m not so young anymore, but I don’t need to give anyone that kind of evidence.

Cleaning up ChatGPT’s mess

I immediately put a heavy conditioner on my hair and asked Alexa+ to set another timer. After 15 minutes and with purple-gray hair, I asked ChatGPT what I should do to fix the situation. Do not ask me why I went back to it again, knowing that I resembled Barney’s grandmother, but I did.

At that point, it did give me some helpful advice to redo the toner in a few days. Luckily, when I did, it came out a fairly neutral shade of light blonde that no one outside of my home seemed to notice. I actually like the results. And hey, with a foot of snow on the ground, it’s hat season anyway.

Final thoughts

I still use ChatGPT constantly for drafting outlines, brainstorming ideas and building quick checklists. But this experiment was a reminder that not every task should be handed off to AI — especially when accuracy, judgment or professional expertise really matter.

For me, it was also a wake-up call as an AI power user. These tools are incredibly useful, but they’re not a replacement for human decision-making or real-world experience.

In a strange way, that realization was reassuring. AI can move fast and think broadly, but it still can’t replace quick-thinking humans or deep professional know-how — and it shouldn’t try to.

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