I got a good haircut in Missoula the week before I left, but by the time I got to Portland six weeks later, my hairline in back was pretty shaggy. Yesterday I was walking to our rental from K & F Coffeehouse and noticed Gilly’s Salon on Clinton. I’d also noticed Sei Bella salon while looking at Ladd’s Rose Garden Circles and Squares, which is an X-shaped set of streets a few blocks from our apartment. I checked out both on Yelp and decided on Gilly’s.

When I walked in, I saw a woman reading a magazine and told her I’d like to make an appointment. She said she could cut my hair right then and introduced herself as Gilly (with a hard G). I told her that my hair has been falling out for 15 years and my husband thinks I should just buzz it again but I’m still fond of running my fingers through my hair (all 3 to 4 inches of it). She thought I still had enough hair for a style, especially in the back, so after some negotiation about how to style the back, she got to work with a razor.

It was the longest I’ve been in a stylist’s chair for a haircut alone, probably more than an hour. She was meticulous about shaping the hairline over my ears and the layers in back. All the while, we chatted about southern Oregon and the differences between Portland and Seattle and our similar reactions to shaving our heads. She said she wished she had bought a house in the SE part of Portland before it got so hip and expensive.

Toward the end, I was feeling sleepy and thinking, “Are we there yet?” But when she showed me the neckline, I was very happy with it. My hair feels so short now but still has volume on top.

Gilly’s uses Organic Color Systems to color its clients’ hair. So if you’re sensitive to the chemicals in traditional hair dye or you are looking for less toxic hair products, this is the salon for you.