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    In Marian Keyes' novel Angels (Perennial, 2003), the heroine goes into her local salon for a simple blowout and leaves with the Edward Scissorhands special. Did she voice a complaint, you might wonder? Alas, no. "What could I say?" the character asks. "Don't we all know it's harder to be honest with hairdressers than it is to get a camel through the eye of a storm, or whatever?"

Here are four ways to avoid similar salon disasters with the help of expert insight straight from stylists and colorists themselves.

1. Style your hair before getting a cut or color. If you're going to a stylist or colorist for the first time, it's better to avoid the ponytail-and-unwashed-hair look in lieu of arriving with your hair styled the way you would do it on a typical day. The experts say this gives the stylist a better idea of what they're working with--and what you want to change (including the length). "That way you can say, 'I always get this flip and I hate it,' or 'I like this flip. How can I get it all over?'" explains Jo Ann Welch, a Pensacola, Fla.-based regional educator for the Fantastic Sams salons.

2. Be perfectly clear. Sure it sounds obvious, but simply saying you want your hair shorter or blonder leaves a gaping space for error. "Stylists can't read minds," says Welch. Consult color charts, browse through magazines and point out shades and styles you don't like as well as those you do. If you wear your hair up seven days a week, share this information.

Once you've explained what you want, make sure that it's practical for you. That messy shag you have your heart set on might look like a wash-and-go 'do, but in reality it could take a lot of time to achieve. "Ask your stylist how long it will take to re-create a look at home," urges Welch. "Most women don't have hours to spend on their hair." Be specific--ask how many products you'll need, what type of brush you should buy and what kind of time commitment a certain look requires.

"Women who think they're going to get beautiful, glossy locks like Catherine Zeta-Jones' or Kate Hudson's with no effort at all need to hear the truth," says Gretchen Monahan, founder of G-Spa and Grettacole spas in Boston. "These stars are loading on lots of products, and someone else is styling it for them."