I want to preface this review by saying that I've been going to Fringe for the better part of two…read moreyears and have admired the work I've had done by multiple stylists. The front desk staff has been sweet and appointments are usually a great time! So if you're a new customer and/or a QTPOC like me trying to get a sense of what the vibe at Fringe is like, book with the folks who consistently get good reviews. They've earned all of their stars, and the whole salon does not deserve a tank in it's rating despite what the rest of this review will say about my experience with Laura S. _________________________________________________ Usually I book haircuts, but since I'm growing it out now, I booked a bang trim. I'd never been Laura's client prior to this booking. After you book online, Fringe sends an appointment form that asks your name, pronouns, even a drink preference. I filled it out and uploaded a picture of what I was looking for: curtain bangs that part in the middle to frame my face and blend into the rest of my haircut. I arrived early to my appointment, but I was shown to the stylist's chair immediately. I don't think that appointment form I filled out was looked at prior to my arrival because she said my name wrong and then asked me to pull up a picture of what I wanted. I wasn't even offered a drink. (Mind you, it was close to 100 degrees out and I had walked there, but whatever.) A few seconds of awkward small talk later, Laura starts cutting my bangs while carrying on a conversation with an employee. Before I knew it, my bangs were uneven. I asked her to try and fix this while I was still in her chair. When she showed me the mirror again, I decided not to let her touch my hair anymore since she seemed to think that I looked fine. I took the pic I attached to this review a few minutes after my appointment. Honestly, I'm embarrassed that I paid to look like I gave myself manic bangs with nail clippers at 3 AM. To make matters worse, this is what I'll be looking like when I meet my partner's family for the first time this weekend. Wish me and my bobby pins luck. There's nothing anyone can do for me or my hair at this point, I only want to leave this review about this experience because it was extremely unusual and disappointing. It seemed disrespectful to me and my time. If I ever go back again, I would not book with Laura.

I visited there about a month ago. They were very nice and patient on the phone and during a…read morevirtual consultation and answered my questions. I chose it because it had great reviews. Unfortunately, my experience at the salon and afterward was the opposite. When I got there, a medium-sized dog rushed up to me, barking. It scared me--I have a fear of dogs I don't know rushing up to me after being injured by one. I asked politely if they could restrain the dog because I have a fear of dogs. Everyone rolled their eyes like I was being unreasonable but they told the dog to go into a corner. After much coaxing and barking, the dog did. But he didn't stay there. Throughout my visit, the dog continued to bark loudly and continued to come over to me, sniff me, and make contact, and obviously I couldn't move away as they were dying my hair. Each time I had to ask them to remove him, and each time they baby-talked to him and acted as if he was being cute. Each time, it took several minutes to get him to move away. They never apologized or offered to place the dog in another space or find another solution. I have no idea why a dog had to be in the salon or in the main room. As the employee was working on me, the owner of the salon (my stylist told me she was the owner of both the salon and the dog) talked loudly and pointedly to her customer at the station a few feet away about how annoying leash laws and people who insist that dogs be leashed are. The work they did on my hair was also terrible. We'd agreed on dying a lock of my hair on the side of my head a certain color (basically a streak of color) and then dying the rest of my hair a more subtle shade of that color. When she finished, I saw that the stylist had died that side lock of hair a different shade than the one I'd showed her in several pictures during the consultation. She said, "I tried this other shade because I thought it would look better." I was disappointed, but I thought it didn't look too bad and I'd been there a long time and had to leave; I didn't have time to stay another couple hours for them to fix it. I thought I could get used to it, but I still wasn't very happy. When I left, no one asked me how my experience was, thanked me for coming, or asked me to come back. I thanked and tipped my stylist. I don't know if they used cheap products or in some other way did a bad job, but they told me the color should last for at least several months. The last time I had this same process done elsewhere, the color lasted over a year. But after 2 weeks, all the color except in the side lock of my hair with the more intense color had completely washed out. Now, a month later, even that streak of color is turning another color, fading, and washing out. It looks awful. I spent several hundred dollars--I was treating myself after a long illness. I chose Fringe because of the great reviews. I am really disappointed.

Went to Lindsey to get a cut and consultation. She was wonderful and so kind! I'll be going back…read moreagain in April for extensions. The vibe in Flaunt is awesome!!!

Recommend. It was a solid cut, friendly warm stylist, and good price. I am happy to support this…read morecommunity mined business.

She is excellent with the pixie cut. I have not found any hairstylist who does good with the pixie…read morecut . She gave me a pixie cut and loved it . I moved to ohio .

From the owner: I specialize in short hair, pixie cuts. My main goal no matter what your hair texture is to…read moremaintain good health or to restore healthy hair if your hair is currently in a damaged state.

Minya is the best. Offers a great professional cut & blowout at a fraction of the price as…read morecompetitors. Even without the price difference I would still go to her as she's incredibly talented. Highly recommend! Call in advance for appointment as she books up fast.

I came here for a trim. Wash + cut + blow dry was $50. I called in for my appointment about a week…read morebefore and they did have earlier openings but they didn't work with my schedule. They do accept walk ins and the vibe was very old school and friendly. I've been here twice now and have enjoyed my experience both times.

I went to Smoke + Mirrors after seeing a video on TikTok; I am so happy I did! The salon smells so…read morenice and the aesthetic is so soothing yet also vibrant due to all the lovely plants. Savannah explained to me what she was using and why while washing my hair, the scalp massage and hot towel was a delightful surprise. Emily from the start of the appointment to the end listened to what I wanted for my haircut and absolutely delivered. I'd give Emily more than five stars if I could; I've already told my sister she needs to make an appointment with Emily.

Haley is a wonderful stylist. She is talented and easy to work with. I have wavy hair with curls…read more She cut my hair perfectly and I left the salon feeling wonderful. Thank you Haley.

This is my 2nd visit to Shy Watters-Federal Hill. A posh boutique hair salon. Kind staff, great…read morecustomer service, exceptional leadership from the owner. Absolutely love De'Sheara. Her meticulous braiding style is UNMATCHED! Worth the drive and the money!

I was first introduced to Shy Watters in the summer of 2016. Since then, I have been a long-time…read morerepeat (and happy) client/customer up until recently. This review is in reference to her shockingly poor customer service, not the salon itself or any of the other stylists. Due to COVID-19, appointments could no longer be scheduled using the app, clients were required to e-mail stylists in order to schedule, completely understandable. On August 12, 2020, I had an appointment scheduled for 11:00 am, upon arrival at the salon, there was a notice posted on the door that Shy had a personal emergency and would have to reschedule. I live about 30 minutes away from the salon, and although disappointed that I wouldn't be getting my hair styled that day as expected, I was more concerned that my stylist was ok and in good health. I emailed Shy before driving back home, I said I hoped that everything was ok and to please let me know when I could reschedule. A few days pass, it's now Saturday, August 15, and I haven't received an e-mail response, so I decided to call her other location, Fells Point, because I'm not sure if Shy was still experiencing an emergency and I didn't want to be a bother. I was able to get an appointment with another stylist at the Fells Point location the very next day, perfect! It's Sunday, my service appointment went well, to my surprise Shy called the stylist who serviced me and told her to give me a 40% discount, it wasn't unexpected, but I appreciated her doing that. Later Sunday evening, Shy emailed me and apologized for the cancellation, again appreciated the personalized customer service. We emailed back and forth about my current style and discussed ideas about what I wanted to do next. During the conversation, Shy informed me that she'll be back to work fully starting the first week of September and that online booking would be back up as well. Fast forward to August 21, I happened to be browsing the app and noticed that a few September dates had opened up - one of those dates being the 9th, so I thought maybe she opened her book early, but I wasn't sure so I decided to email her for clarity - I desperately needed an appointment for September 4th as I have an event to attend on the 5th, so I emailed her to see if she had any availability on that day, as since the beginning of the pandemic, this has been our primary source of communication. Her auto-reply says to give her 24 hours for a response, again me not wanting to be a bother, I wanted to give her ample time to respond. On the morning of August 25, I decided to call the Federal Hill location, because I really need to secure an appointment for my upcoming event. A woman answers the phone and I'm greeted with "Shy Watters Hair Studio," I asked "hey, is this Shy," she responds "yes, may I ask who's calling" and in a jokingly manner, I responded "hey, this is Nickole don't mean to stalk you," and then the line immediately disconnects. I'm thinking it must be a mistake, Shy wouldn't hang up on me, what would be the reason? I'm just calling to get clarity on her availability. I called back 45 minutes later just to be sure, and received no answer. And to date, she has not replied to my email from August 21. I'm writing this review as a buyer beware, yes, the salon is great, Shy does do great work, that is not up for debate. However, the way that she handled the situation was poorly done and in bad taste. I have never experienced such terrible customer service. Unfortunately, I will no longer be able to support her salon or brand. Hanging up on customers (unwarranted, might I add) is unacceptable and unprofessional. Treat your clients with more respect.

Wow fantastic experience at Bella! Kristen styled my hair. She was very meticulous in the ways she…read moreevaluated my hair, gave her advice on how to cut, and did extensive layering. Took my opinions and how I felt about my hair into account as well. I have a lot of hair, and she made it feel weightless. She also helped my layers look more natural. Got a wonderful head massage and shampoo too before the cut. Will definitely come back!

I was so nervous to have my hair done because I had not had my hair done in over 2 years. Megan had…read moretalked me through how we were going to do my hair, and the finished result was even better than I had expected! I came out of the salon 10x more confident than when I walked in. I will be coming back here to do my hair from now on! The ladies were so nice, and even offered water and tea.

Have been going to this salon for several years. I have used multiple stylists - all of them are…read moreexcellent. They ask questions and actually listen to your responses. Madison is my fave, she will offer ideas if asked. She is extremely talented in color, highlights, low lights, glosses. She knows just what needs to be done with my hair, color & cut every single time. I feel happy & proud after I leave the salon!

My entire family now has our haircut by Dani at Soiree. Originally it was just my wife. Then my…read morekids. Finally I got on board as well. My original draw to Soiree? I missed the head massage and hot towel treatment I used to get at the Aveda Salon I frequented in Florida. My first salon experiences in this area incorporated lukewarm hair washing water and no head massage. I couldn't do it anymore. Soiree knocks the hair washing service out of the park. They have their own crew completely responsible for washing hair, massaging scalps and providing hot towel treatments. My daughter likes it so much that one time I was having my hair taken care of, she just asked if she could have hers washed. They fit her in right in. You best believe there is no lukewarm water here. My haircuts themselves are also top notch. Dani is really good at her job. Not only with the actual cutting and attention to detail with my hair but also with the conversation. I am always sad when the haircut is over. It all goes too quickly. Scheduling and rescheduling appointments is super easy. They send text reminders so that I am never surprised when it pops up on my calendar. I look forward to my visits to Soiree. I know my family feels the same way.

1st time here and I was a bit nervous! Lauren was…read morefantastic, she listened to what I wanted and did a fantastic job! She is super sweet and friendly! Highly recommend this salon!!

Outstanding- simply the best!! Wonderful people and service. Always a pleasure to go. Great…read morelocation as well.

This salon is absolutely incredible! Wendy and Nina are absolute masters of their craft. I came to…read morethem with very streaky highlighted hair from a previous salon that I was very unhappy with, and the level of kindness and skill I was met with was truly amazing. They knew exactly what I was looking for and after assessing the damage from the previous salon, were able to get me back to an expertly blended brunette. The attention to hair health and amazing stylist to client relationship is beyond rare and they've definitely got a forever client in me now. I cannot recommend this place enough! If you want personalized service and to walk out with the hair of your dreams this is the place! Nina and Wendy deserve all the praise in the world! So happy with my hair! For reference this is my before and after

Nina and Wendy are amazing. Personalized hair cuts and color. I have difficult (thick, wavy, full)…read morehair that requires time and expertise. Nina and Wendy deliver. They have experience with my hair type and listen to what I want. I originally went to them to correct a bad home color mistake, and I stayed. Their salon is so comfortable and welcoming (not loud or commercial). They are experts in cut and color. They have worked with my hair and brought out its strengths, so it is no longer a frizzy unmanageable mess. I now enjoy my hair and my look. Thank you!