Hairstylist turns her frustration into haircut happiness for kids with special needs

Jasour: News Desk
Getting a haircut is something most of us take for granted, but for parents of children with special needs it can be a challenge. Enter 20-year hair styling veteran Kelsey Simpson, owner of Glitter & Fade Kid’s Salon in south Lansing. What makes her salon unique is that it caters to kids with sensory issues. “There is not another salon in the area that caters to special needs kids,” Simpson says.

Her salon features kid-friendly haircut stations, including an airplane chair, and a Spiderman car, plus a big screen TV where cartoons are constantly playing. The salon is filled with vibrant visual distractions for kids in the chair… so Simpson can focus on cutting their hair. And before any hair is even cut, there’s a fun place for kids and parents to hang out, away from the buzzing haircutting clippers. It’s called the “Social Suite,” a large back room full of sensory toys for kids, and a big comfy couch for parents. The kids love it, the parents love it,” says Simpson.

Parents like Zack and Emma Allen have been bringing their five-year-old autistic son Teddy to Simpson for the past year. We tell anybody at all whatsoever that mentions any struggle with haircuts, to go to Kelsey, Emma Allen says. Patience, perseverance, and a sharp sense of when to cut, and when not to is all part of Kelsey’s specialty in taking away the trimming trauma for special needs kids. “It’s a complete success knowing I can get him in the chair and get his hair cut, completely finished with no tears,” Simpson says. She turns follicle frustration, into haircut happiness at Glitter & Fade Kid’s Salon