I Love Mokena!

I Love Mokena: The Story Behind the Fire Haircut

The "behind the scenes" of what led to the video of Tony Dina's "singe haircut" technique.

Welcome back. Last week we discussed hometown barber and singe haircutter extraordinaire Tony Dina. This week I will explain how the story came to be. Several months ago, after reading an "I Love Mokena" column, Tony Dina emailed me with some thoughts and suggestions. Over the course of a few weeks Tony continued to "enlighten" me on Mokena history, as only Tony can tell it. As part of my enlightenment I was told about the process of a singed haircut. I must admit that I was initially somewhat skeptical. After all, cutting hair with an open flame just sounded way out there. So I did some research.  And there it was. The singe haircut. Right in front of me. On YouTube. I actually had to watch it several times to make sure I was seeing it …

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I Love Mokena!

I Love Mokena: Giving a Fire Haircut a Try

Community columnist Don Labriola give's Front Street barber Tony Dina's "singe haircut" a try.

Welcome back. For most most of us, growing up included a series of lessons from our parents. Be polite, respect your elders, be honest, study hard, don't play with matches or sharp objects, etc. Pretty much all that was true in the Dina household for son Tony Jr. Except for the last two. What? The Dinas didn't teach their son not to play with matches or sharp objects? Not only did they not warn little Tony away from such dangers, they encouraged it! How could this be? An upstanding, God-fearing Mokena family like the Dina's? There must be a catch. And there is. Sorry, but I just couldn't help but take you all for a little roller coaster ride for a few paragraphs. Of course little Tony was introduced to sharp objects. Except they were the …

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Mokena Barber Cuts Hair With Fire: VIDEO

Watch as your Mokena, IL, Patch editor gets his haircut with an open flame at Dina's Barber Shop on Front Street.

Paper beats rock, scissors beat paper and, for Mokena, IL, barber Tony Dina, Jr., sometimes fire beats scissors. Dina, the second generation to run Dina's Barber Shop in downtown Mokena, is still familiar with how to do a "singe haircut." That's how it sounds: You burn the hair off instead of cutting it. Although the singe haircut leaves a sharper look—it cauterizes the tips of the hair rather than leaving tips cut at jagged angles—Dina said he's only done about three in the last three years. For starters, people have to know the option exists. Two of the recent singe recipients were men old enough to remember that barber shops used to burn. The third was a woman, a hairdresser who knew about the technique and, after looking at the …

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I Love Mokena!

I Love Mokena: Front Street Businesses Take Crown

When looking for Mokena royalty, one stop could be a downtown barbershop that has served as a gathering spot since 1948.

Welcome back. Last week, we explored the idea of our beautiful little village having royalty. Kings, Queens, Princes and Princesses. A premise for discussion. A "what if." As previously mentioned, one of the Mokena families that certainly would fit in as local royalty is the Dina family, as in Dina's Barber Shop on Front Street. Since 1948 the Dinas have been an anchor for businesses in Downtown Mokena. Along with Dave's Auto Service anchoring the west end of Front Street they have more than 100 years combined history serving our community. Last week we focused on the early years of the Dina family in Mokena and the contributions made by Tony Dina, Sr. One point that wasn't mentioned is the fact that Tony Sr. served for many decades as a …

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