Since March 21, salons and barbershops have been forced to close, following state Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s orders. Now, Western New York has reached all the criteria to move into Phase Two of the reopening plan, which includes salons.

For two months, patrons have had to figure out how to cut their hair at home or let it grow.

Both scenarios were seen at Henry’s Hair Co. this week. Some people came in with longer locks they’ve seen since high school and others came in with the shortest hair they’ve ever had.

“Oh, it’s been madness,” said Rosie Pucciarelli, receptionist at the salon. “The phones have not stopped ringing and we are booked up for weeks now.”

The salon has put in a new system in place for appointments coming in. The salon is only open three days a week for now and they are not offering walk-ins at the moment because they are booked with appointments and can only have a limited number of people in the salon. They are also limiting the number of employees they have working, which on Tuesday, included four total, two stylists and two receptionists.

Customers must make an appointment ahead of time, then wait in their cars to be seen. The shop then calls the next appointments in as soon as it is their turn. The stylists use a mix of bleach and water to sanitize the chairs and tools after each client.

“We ask that everybody wears a mask when they come in because there are so many people going to be in and out every day,” Pucciarelli said. “All of the employees also wear masks to protect our customers.”

Aside from new protocols, the customers of Henry’s seem to be elated to finally get their hair cut after almost two months.

“This is the longest my hair has been since high school,” one customer said.

One of the hairstylists said she had missed coming to work and seeing her clients.

“It’s so nice to see everybody again, to see people out and about,” Gwyn Hite said. “I’m so glad to be back to work. I’m so excited for things to start getting back to a new normal.”