Mercer Island's newest salon fights head lice
MERCER ISLAND, Wash. - A new salon on Mercer Island is putting its combs to work against an embarrassing problem - head lice.
And on its day of business, there already were plenty of customers - even on the affluent east side - because the little bugs don't care about a family's income level.
One of those customers is Farrell Hogenauer, who made a shocking discovery when her daughter got out of the shower.
"I was combing out her hair and I saw some bugs, and I freaked out," she explains.
What she saw was head lice - and her shock wasn't over yet.
"Came in and found out that myself, my daughter, and my 2 1/2-year-old son had head lice," she says.
Hogenauer came to Nancy Gordon's new salon on Mercer Island, dubbed Lice Knowing You, which specializes in getting rid of head lice.
"Products help, but the reality is you have to comb everything out - even leaving one viable nit you could be back to where you started or in a worse position," Gordon explains.
So she opened her lice treatment salon - believed to be the first of its kind in Washington state.
It has flat screen TVs and games for the kids - and even a special lice-free playroom for after the bugs are removed.
In addition, a big part of the salon's approach is reducing the stigma associated with lice. Part of Saturday's grand opening celebration was a huge tray of cookies shaped like lice.
"You know, we're trying to erase that stigma attached to head lice. The reality is one in four school-age kids will get head lice at some point during their elementary school years," Gordon says.
And because lice spread quickly, the salon isn't just for kids.
"If mom needs to be treated, they're not in her hair, so to speak," says Gordon.
While there isn't a 'lice season', Gordon says this is the time of year many parents notice their kids have lice because they are not as busy with other activities.
Hogenauer says that getting the lice treated outside her home made a big difference.
"So I was very thankful that I could come somewhere, get my head treated, and then go home and deal with the issue," she says.
And on its day of business, there already were plenty of customers - even on the affluent east side - because the little bugs don't care about a family's income level.
One of those customers is Farrell Hogenauer, who made a shocking discovery when her daughter got out of the shower.
"I was combing out her hair and I saw some bugs, and I freaked out," she explains.
What she saw was head lice - and her shock wasn't over yet.
"Came in and found out that myself, my daughter, and my 2 1/2-year-old son had head lice," she says.
Hogenauer came to Nancy Gordon's new salon on Mercer Island, dubbed Lice Knowing You, which specializes in getting rid of head lice.
"Products help, but the reality is you have to comb everything out - even leaving one viable nit you could be back to where you started or in a worse position," Gordon explains.
So she opened her lice treatment salon - believed to be the first of its kind in Washington state.
It has flat screen TVs and games for the kids - and even a special lice-free playroom for after the bugs are removed.
In addition, a big part of the salon's approach is reducing the stigma associated with lice. Part of Saturday's grand opening celebration was a huge tray of cookies shaped like lice.
"You know, we're trying to erase that stigma attached to head lice. The reality is one in four school-age kids will get head lice at some point during their elementary school years," Gordon says.
And because lice spread quickly, the salon isn't just for kids.
"If mom needs to be treated, they're not in her hair, so to speak," says Gordon.
While there isn't a 'lice season', Gordon says this is the time of year many parents notice their kids have lice because they are not as busy with other activities.
Hogenauer says that getting the lice treated outside her home made a big difference.
"So I was very thankful that I could come somewhere, get my head treated, and then go home and deal with the issue," she says.