Caitlin was looking to chop off some of her length, and willing to go a little shorter than she had in recent memory in order to update the style she'd been sporting for a decade. She had something like Claire Danes' long layers in mind.

What she got: "Originally, we talked about going blonder and cutting off two or three inches," says Caitlin. My first clue that that wasn't happening was when she was describing the cut to another stylist and said, "I really wanted to do something else, though." She also kept saying she wanted to make me 'sexier,' and that my husband was going to love it -- okay, crazy lady. The second clue was when she suddenly gathered all of my hair into a ponytail and lobbed it off at my shoulders. Before we got started cutting, I had asked her where the shortest layer would be, and she said my shoulders. The shortest layer was actually at my eyeball."

How she handled it: "I kept thinking, okay, maybe this won't be that bad. Maybe this will look cute because this is a really nice salon. Everyone kept asking me if I liked it, but I just trying to keep from crying! The color was great -- I really liked the highlights -- but the cut was just so awful. I didn't speak up about it because it happened so fast -- there is really no going back after someone chops your ponytail off. I reminded myself that when I got home I could wash it and fix it. That was not the case."

What she should have done: Again, a longer consultation might have made it more clear to the stylist how far Caitlin was willing to go. Petroff also notes that if something happens mid-cut that you're uncomfortable with, don't be afraid to say something right away, but do so in a calm way, even if your brain is chanting, ohmygodwhathavetheydone. Petroff says he's seen situations where women can't even express themselves, which doesn't do anyone good. "They weren't happy, but they were so emotional they couldn't vocalize it." Instead of getting so upset you shut down, calmly ask your stylist if you can take a second to talk about the cut before things proceed.

Emily was looking to brighten up her dark roots, and give her sandy blonde highlights a refresher. "I showed her a picture of Bridgit Mendler," says Emily.

What she got: "That is highlighter orange," says Emily. "One look at the bright, bright color of my hair in contrast with my dark eyebrows and I knew something got lost in translation. I was visibly upset, so the stylist called her manager over. He admitted she could have gone with an ashier tone. She was insisting that I had gotten what I asked for, but it just looked unnatural to me. She told me to think about it for a few days (she didn't want to fix it then because she said it would be too damaging) and that I could come back if I still didn't like it."

How she handled it: I hated it so much that I did go back, and she was able to tone it down a little. It was still sort of orange, but faded over time. I felt bad for her ... she cried and hugged me when I gave her a tip after the second touch-up."

What she should have done: Petroff says that Emily was right to give it a few days. "If you don't like your new color, mention it in the salon, but give it a few days to settle and to get used to it," says Petroff. He recommends looking at it in the sun, since lighting in salons is often terrible. And don't freak out, because Petroff says fresh color is easy to fix. He recommends using some clarifying shampoo to wash out the color at home afterwards. If you're still not happy, revisit it with your stylist. He also says a tip for correcting it is nice (especially if it took more than an hour or involves something you didn't ask for originally, like adding highlights), but not necessary.