We created this program after seeing another library's Facebook post about creating a program with materials from Daddy Daughter Hair Factory, an online community "built to encourage fathers who would like to learn about doing their daughters' hair."
I noticed the majority of the parents that would bring their kids into the library were moms and grandmothers. I wanted to try to get the dads and grandfathers in and thought this would be the perfect program to do that. Children's programs are popular with our community, and this was too cute an idea to pass up!
A local hairstylist came in and taught 12 dads (or grandpas) how to style their daughters' hair into three basic hairstyles. The girls colored or read while their hair was being styled, and everyone decorated cupcakes afterwards.
Advanced Planning
I contacted Daddy Daughter Hair Factory and was sent information on what a class entails. For $25 they sent 12 participant kits, each containing a hairbrush, detangler spray, a comb, hair ties, bobby pins and a certificate of completion. We decided to limit registration to 12 participants so we wouldn't need to purchase another set of kits. To supplement the supplies already provided, I went to our local dollar store and purchased headbands, barrettes, claw clips, mini bottles of hairspray and little plastic totes to put all of the styling supplies in.
To find an instructor, I cold-called hair salons until I found a stylist willing to volunteer her time.
In advance of the program, we also compiled a list of items from our collection that are all about hair; these were put on display during the program. I also found some hair coloring pages online and printed copies to have available for the girls to color in while they were having their hair styled. (View a list of collection materials and sample hairstyle coloring pages under Attachments at right.)
Marketing
To promote our program, we put up posters in the library and around town and also posted information on our website and Facebook page. The local newspaper ran an announcement about the program, and I took posters to the hair salon the program's volunteer hairstylist owns for her to put up and pass out to her patrons.
Budgeting
We paid $25 for the 12 hairstyling kits from Daddy Daughter Hair Factory.
I also bought claw clips, barrettes, mini bottles of hairspray, headbands and totes from the dollar store for $50. This provided enough of these supplies for 12 participants. It's not necessary to buy these extra items; it just provided a few more tools for the participants to work with. The hair salon/stylists you work with might donate items, too.
Daddy Daughter Hair Factory suggests doing a "bonding" activity with the girls at the end, so we had them decorate cupcakes. I already had all of the supplies to make and decorate them. You could also do another activity, like a craft that you already have the supplies for.
Day-of-event Activity
To set up for the program, we arranged several tables in a horseshoe shape so the hair stylist could walk around and everybody could see her.
At each seat, we provided the coloring pages and colored pencils so the girls would have something to occupy them while their hair was being styled. We also filled each plastic tote with all of the hairstyling supplies to make our kits, and placed one at each seat.
Lastly, we set up our book and DVD display. Girls could read the books during the program or check them out afterwards.
Program Execution
We held the program on a Thursday evening from 6 to 7:30 p.m., planning for an hour of hair instruction and a half hour for cupcake decorating. We had 11 dads and daughters sign up, and they all attended — 22 participants total. It was truly dads and daughters who participated, for the most part. We also had one grandpa participate with his granddaughter, and a few moms also came. They just sat in the back to watch and take pictures.
We had the hairstylist teach the dads how to do a simple ponytail, braid and bun.There might be some dads who can do those styles, but a lot of our dads were beginners, so we didn't want to overwhelm them with fancier styles. The stylist brought her niece to use as a model for each style, and she also walked around and helped the dads one-on-one, which they appreciated
We did "before" and "after" pictures of each girl with her dad/grandfather, as well as a group shot. They all turned out very cute! (View some "action" photos under Photo Slideshow at right.)
I only heard positive feedback from the participants. The mothers told me it was a really cute program, and they were glad that we did something like this. The hairstylist told us we did a good job with the kits we provided, and she loved the table of "hair" books we had for the daughters and dads to read.
Advice
Daddy Daughter Hair Factory is a wonderful organization, and they work with you throughout the process, so don't be afraid to ask them questions.
Set up your tables so the stylist can walk around and help each participant, and ask the stylist to bring a model (or provide one for her/him). Both the demonstration and the one-on-one attention helped our participants a lot.
Be prepared to take a lot pictures — this program provides very cute photo ops!
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