College life can make even the most mild-mannered of us into great big balls of stress and dealing with that stress is an important part of staying sane.
Self-pampering for college students with limited spending money can be difficult because most clothing stores, hair salons and spas have prices an average student can’t afford. I looked around St. George to see if there are businesses with prices less harmful to a students wallet and these are the places I found.
Clothes shopping at a discount
Finding the perfect outfit, or even the right pair of jeans, can go a long way toward helping with a person’s self-image or just feeling ready to face the world.
Clothes can be expensive in most stores, and a single shirt can cost anywhere from $15 to $50.
At Runway Fashion Exchange and Coyote Exchange, I found clothes I can find at Buckle, American Eagle Outfitters and Gap for a fraction of what they would cost at full price.
Kyleigha Gibson, Runway Fashion Exchange manager, said: “Short sleeve shirts range from $6.50 to $9.50. Our long sleeves range from $8.75 to $12.50.”
Gibson said prices depend on what is brought in to them because they get designer denim and those normally cost $150 new, but at her store designer jeans will only cost $75.
Both stores pay customers for clothes they bring in and sell them for at least twenty to fifty percent off, but the clothes can’t be in just any condition.
“The stuff we’re looking for needs to be current [and] needs to be clean,” said Coyote Exchange owner April Godspeed. “It needs to be ready to wear.”
A new do for much less
Our hair is part of us, it goes with us everywhere and some will spend hundreds of dollars on acquiring the perfect hairdo, whether it be the newest style or dyeing it lavender.
Spending most of your paycheck at the salon isn’t necessary — not when there are places like Hairitage Hair School, where a haircut costs as little as $6 and a full, one color hair tinting will cost $20. Other treatments and styles cost more, though prices are still much cheaper than that of a regular salon or even a shop like Great Clips.
“You can get highlights here starts at $45; anywhere else, it could be anywhere from $150 to $200,” said student Brooklynn Bundy from St. George.
Getting the kinks out
Stress affects the body as much as it does emotions or our state of mind and going to a massage parlor for a full body massage might do the trick, but it will also put quite a dent in the bank account.
At Zion Massage College, they offer four different types of massage — from Gua-Sha to a Deep Tissue Massage — and massages can be scheduled with either a student or licensed therapist.
Massages with a student are available for $32 and $49 with a licensed therapist. Sessions with a therapist at a similar establishment or spa, would be much more expensive.
Rocio Varner, a sophomore general studies major from Palm Springs, said as a student at Dixie and working at Zion Massage College, it is hard for her to find time to get a massage because she has to balance between school, work and having time to study, but the college does have a way for students like her to take advantage of the services offered.
“We have appointments in the evening — we just started doing that his week — so from five to seven [students] can get massages,” Varner said. “And on Saturdays, which students usually leave for homework, they can just take a chunk out of their time at the beginning or at the end and just kind of treat themselves.”
Glowing skin at a fair price
It may not seem like something that would affect how we feel, but Debbie Leavitt, director of education at the Skin Institute, said taking care of your skin while you are young is important so you aren’t trying to repair damage that was done when you are older.
“The cost is half about of what you would pay at a regular spa or salon,” Leavitt said. “The students that come to our school are really passionate about what they are doing.”
The Skin Institute’s most popular treatment, the signature luxury facial costs $55 and consists of two cleanses, exfoliation, two masks; hand and arm massage, foot and calf massage and finishing treatments — moisturizer, sunscreen and eye cream. The same treatments at a spa would cost about $100 to $120.
Is it worth it?
Being college students who don’t always have the funds to buy clothes, get a massage, a facial or an impressive hairdo, there is value in saving money because money issues add stress to an individual’s life.
The hair school, skin institute and massage college all have a clean, calming atmosphere to soothe away stress. Each of the clothing exchanges were well organized and had clothes in outstanding quality.
When visiting any of these, customers will be greeted with friendliness and an eagerness to help. Businesses like these provide a way to pamper ourselves so we can look toward the future with pride in our appearance and a body free of tension.
