Texture that looks like you were born with it.
The soft men's perm, cut and permed in one appointment. In the home salon in Yelling, five minutes off the A428, or at your house anywhere across Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire.
Loose waves, not tight curls.
I have been doing hair for twenty years, I trained at Vidal Sassoon, and the men's perm is the service that has changed most in that time. It used to mean one thing, and it was a photograph from the eighties that nobody wanted recreating. Now it is the booking I take most often from men between eighteen and forty, and a good number of teenagers who have seen it on a footballer and arrived with the photo already open on their phone.
What has changed is the chemistry and the tools. The solution is gentler than the one that gave perming its reputation, and the rods I wind the hair onto are considerably larger. The process is the same as it always was: the solution breaks the bonds that hold your hair in its natural shape, the rod holds it in a new shape while that happens, and a neutraliser locks it there. What is different is the result. You get a bend and some movement instead of a spiral, which is why a good modern perm reads as thick, slightly undone hair rather than as a perm.
The honest sell is time in the morning. A perm on the right cut takes about thirty seconds of attention: hands through it, a little product, out of the door. That is the whole appeal, and it is why nearly everyone who books one books it again.
Two hours, four stages.
- 01
Consultation and a look
Ten minutes with my hands in your hair before anything else. Length, texture, condition and what you actually want it to look like on a Tuesday morning.
- 02
The cut first
The perm goes onto a shape, not onto whatever is there. Usually that is a flow cut: length kept on top and through the fringe, sides softened rather than faded.
- 03
Rods and solution
Large rods, wound in the direction the hair should fall. The solution goes on, gets checked repeatedly, and comes off the moment the wave is right rather than when a timer says so.
- 04
Neutralise and dry off
The neutraliser locks the new shape in. Then I dry it the way you will be drying it at home and show you the two minutes of product that keeps it looking like this.
Two hours is the figure I quote and the figure I plan for. Nothing about a perm improves by being rushed, and the one part that genuinely cannot be hurried is the checking: I unwind a rod, look at the wave, and put it back if it is not there yet. That is the difference between a perm that holds its shape and one that drops out by the weekend.
A perm is not a haircut. It goes onto one.
This is the part most people have not thought about, and it is the part that decides whether the result looks right. If the cut underneath is wrong, a perm will make it worse rather than better, because all a perm does is exaggerate the shape that is already there.
What works is a flow cut. Length kept on top and through the fringe, sides and back softer and longer than a fade, the whole thing shaped so the hair pushes back and slightly out instead of lying flat to the head. That gives the wave somewhere to go. It is why I do the cut and the perm in the same appointment rather than perming whatever walks through the door.
If you like a skin fade, I will tell you straight that a perm is probably not for you. The two ideas are pulling in opposite directions and you will not be happy with the compromise. There is more on how the two work together in my longer piece on men's perms and flow haircuts.
Who it suits, and who it does not.
Length. You need seven or eight centimetres on top, roughly three inches. Below that the wave has nowhere to sit and you will have paid for frizz. If you turn up shorter than that I will say so and ask you to give it two or three months. I would rather lose the booking than hand you a result you do not want.
Hair type. Straight and slightly wavy hair takes it best. Fine hair takes it beautifully and gains a surprising amount of apparent thickness, which is often the real reason somebody is sitting in my chair. Coarse, thick hair takes it too, but it needs bigger rods and a lighter hand or you end up with considerably more volume than anyone asked for.
Condition. Recently bleached hair waits. Perming hair that is already compromised is how people end up with a haircut they did not choose. If you have had something gentler on it we can usually work around it, but I want to see it in person first, which is what the consultation is for.
Already curly? Then you do not need a perm, you need a better cut. A fair few of the men who come to me asking for texture already have it and have spent years having it cut out of their hair without realising.
Age. I am happy to perm under-16s with a parent or guardian in the room. Colour is the service I will not do on under-16s. Perming is different, and some of the nicest results I have done this year have been for teenagers.
The first 48 hours decide everything.
Leave it completely alone for two days. No washing, no swimming, nothing tied back, and as little flattening under a hat or a cycling helmet as you can manage. The bonds are still settling into their new shape and anything you do in that window is what they settle into. This one rule does more for the result than every product on the shelf put together.
After that, wash it less than you think you need to and dry it kindly. Scrunch rather than rub with the towel. A little curl cream or a light mousse on damp hair, then either leave it to dry or use a diffuser on low, and keep your fingers out of it while it dries. Brushing permed hair while it is dry is the fastest way to turn waves into fluff.
It grows out rather than washing out, because the bonds do not travel backwards. What actually happens over time is that new straight hair arrives at the roots while the permed lengths carry on doing their thing, so the shape goes soft from the top down. Most men come back for a tidy of the ends before that becomes obvious, and we decide then whether to perm again or let it grow through.
What they said afterwards.
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We visited Biba today so my 15 year old son could get a loose perm after seeing Biba's amazing TikTok video! Biba was so kind and welcoming, made a beautiful cup of tea and we had a great chat! Most importantly the perm...it's amazing! My son is over the moon! Thank you Biba, you are wonderful! X
Rosie M · Perm · Fresha, September 2026
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Biba is amazing, I love my perm, she done a fantastic job, she took 6 hours of ensuring I was happy with the final result. Thank you again. Highly recommend
Daliya P · Perm · Fresha, August 2026
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Had a men's loose perm with Biba and could not fault the experience at all. The hair result was amazing, can't get over how natural and good it looks. Outside of the hair Biba was so easy to get along with and such a genuine person. Completely recommend her to anyone
R P · Men's perm · Google, July 2026
More of them, from all three platforms, are on the reviews page.
Yelling, or your kitchen.
The home salon is at 10 High Street, Yelling, PE19 6SD, five minutes off the A428 and a short run from St Neots, Eaton Socon, Buckden, Godmanchester and Huntingdon. There is a kettle on and somewhere to park.
If it is easier, I will come to you. A perm travels perfectly well: everything I need fits in the car, and I cover Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire, roughly a 30 to 40 minute drive from Yelling. Book the Home Visit version of the service on Fresha rather than the salon one, because they are listed separately and picking the home visit is what tells me to come to you and adds the £10 call-out charge. There is more about how that works on the mobile hairdressing page.
One practical thing about home visits, because it matters more for a perm than for a dry cut. I do not carry a hydraulic chair or a portable backwash, so the rinsing happens at your sink or in the bath. That is completely normal and it works fine. All I need from you is a chair near a plug socket, a little floor space, a couple of towels and a sink I can get to.
The men's perm sits under the men's services on the full services list, alongside flow cuts and the usual wash, cut and blow dry. Prices are not published here on purpose: they depend on how much hair there is and how long the appointment runs, so they live on Fresha where they stay correct.
What men ask before they book one.
How long does my hair need to be for a men's perm?
At least seven or eight centimetres on top, roughly three inches. Shorter than that and the wave has nowhere to sit, so it reads as frizz rather than texture. If you are not there yet I will tell you to grow it for a couple of months and come back rather than take the booking.
How long does the appointment take?
Allow two hours for a cut and perm together. That is the honest figure, and it is the one I will give you when you book so you can plan the rest of the day around it.
Will it look like an eighties perm?
Not unless you ask for one. Modern perming solutions are gentler and the rods I use are considerably larger, so the result is a bend and some movement rather than tight uniform curls. The aim is hair that looks like it grew that way.
How long does a men's perm last?
It is permanent in the sense that the bonds do not go back, so it grows out rather than washes out. How long it looks good depends on how fast your hair grows and how often it is cut. Most of the men I do come back for a tidy up of the ends before the shape goes soft at the roots.
What do I do in the first 48 hours?
Nothing. Do not wash it, do not swim, do not tie it back and try not to flatten it under a hat or a helmet. The bonds are still settling and this is the single biggest thing that separates a perm that holds from one that drops.
Can you perm bleached or coloured hair?
Bleached hair, not until it has recovered, and I will say so when I look at it. Hair that has had something gentler on it can usually be permed, but I want to see it in person before we book the appointment rather than find out on the day.
Do you perm under-16s?
Yes, with a parent or guardian present for the appointment. Colour is the service I do not do on under-16s. A perm is fine, and a fair few of the loose perms I do are for lads in their teens who came in with a photo on their phone.
Can you do a men's perm at my house?
Yes. Book the Home Visit version on Fresha and I will come to you anywhere within roughly a 30 to 40 minute drive from Yelling. There is a £10 call-out charge on top of the service price. I do not carry a hydraulic chair or a portable backwash, so I wash and rinse at your sink or in the bath, which is completely normal and works fine.
How much is a men's perm?
Prices depend on how much hair there is and how long the appointment takes, so they live on Fresha where they stay accurate rather than on a page I might forget to update. The men's perm is listed under the men's services, and the home visit version is listed separately.
Book a men's perm.
Cut and perm together, about two hours. Choose the salon or the home visit version on Fresha, or send me a photo first and I will tell you honestly whether your hair is ready.