Dawn C. asks:
What do you think about posting something about your opinion on holiday tipping for people like hair stylists, mani/pedicurists, eyebrow waxers, housekeepers, etc. (Yes or No? And how much?). My specific question is for hair stylists and waxers. My last hair stylist was a friend of a friend, so a holiday gift was more personal and easier to figure out. The new "person" I go to I have only seen about 3 times and although I like her, I don't know if I should tip or not this year. Same goes with the girl who does my eyebrows.
My opinion on holiday tipping is that it is nice in theory and awkward in practice, so I don't do much of it. I will break down the categories of people I have in my life that all the lists on the internet say I should tip.
Esthetician - The same woman has been waxing my eyebrows for eight years. I have never tipped her for Christmas. I think I might have bought her a present one year when I saw something I knew she would like. I also bought her a wedding present and two baby presents. This year, I am getting her a $20 Starbucks gift card but that is because I missed my last appointment and I feel bad about it. I tip her $5 on a $20 service every two weeks. I feel like that is enough.
Hair stylist - I don't have a regular one now, but when I did, I didn't tip her at Christmas either. I feel like tipping her every time she cuts my hair is enough.
Manicurust - See hair stylist.
Housekeeper - When a friend of a friend was our housekeeper, we tipped her $50 for Christmas. She was awesome and we loved her. I knew her financial circumstances and I felt like we were getting a good deal on her services, so I was happy to give her a tip. Now that we employee a cleaning service, I will not be leaving them a tip. I am considering leaving them each a little box of candy, though.
Mail carrier - I have never tipped the mail carrier before. I don't feel like I've ever had one that has made any sort of effort to know us or be nice to us. This year, however, I am considering leaving a $10 Starbucks gift card. We had to get a new mailbox this year. We tend to not collect our mail regularly, so we got a locking mailbox to provide better security. Since we got that mailbox, we check our mail even less often and I can tell it is sometimes a chore for the mail carrier to jam our mail into it.
Garbage collector - Never have tipped them.
Daycare provider - Last year, we gave her a present and we will probably do the same this year.
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