The short of it--this was one of the two worst experiences I've had with a salon in over forty years, in respecting my requests, outcome, and customer service. I understand Caleb has a good rep, but I'd advise getting anything done by Ashley or Elisha in writing first. Their main expertise seems to be attaching chicken feathers. Concisely, I paid for blond highlights and Ashley dyed my hair a dark mousy brown and the owner lied and said that was what I asked for.
The long of it, i.e., the experience on which my rating is based.
Over the past few years I had had highlights done several times by different Salem salons--each of whom said they were not able to simply highlight new growth, as one stylist I had gone to before moving here had done without any difficulty. (Other stylists over the years, prior to Salem, had been careful not to overdo the previously treated areas.) The result from the Salem salons was that previously treated hair was getting rebleached each time, so I held off any treatment for 11 months. (John of Le Motive had done an excellent job of providing subtle enough highlights on my last visit that the regrowth looked fine, although, as he had told me, after 40+ years of being blonde, I would not like my own color--which proved to be correct as it grew in.)
After interviewing several stylists about simply re-highlighting the new growth (and covering the gray underneath in the back that is not visible, so it had been ignored by previous stylists), I decided to go with Ashley of Havana. She convinced me that she did what the client requested and not what she decided privately, and we had an intensive consult during which she assured me she would have no problem doing just the roots. I really loved the color of my hair and several people had told me not to change it. I also realized it would be unlikely that she could get the roots exactly the same, so I asked her if she could just get it as close as possible and blend it in with my existing blonde. I also told her I had had a very stressful week and wanted as little change as possible to my hair.
No problem. She just dyed my entire head dark brown, a mousy flat color even darker than my natural base.
I was totally thrown off balance as I saw it, and she and Elisha kept telling me it was the color of the walls there making my skin/hair combination look so unflattering. When I got home and realized she had completely eliminated my blonde, I got progressively more disgusted. I called the salon and left a couple of messages, as the salon was closed for a few days. I had read that it was important to remove dye as soon as possible, but I didn't want to do anything on my own.
When Elisha called me back she said she could add some highlights, although that might damage my hair further. (The permanent dye left my ends really dried out--which I imagine has to do with their product.) When I complained that I couldn't understand why Ashley would dye my hair brown when I came in for highlights, Elisha--the owner--said she had 'heard me say I wanted to go back to my natural color'. Since I never said anything even close to that, I realized what I was dealing with at that point--a little late to save my hair. (It would have been hard for Elisha to hear anything, as it was, as her 20-month year old child had been running around the studio the entire time, unsupervised except for customers, and screaming part of the time. Quite cute but it didn't seem the safest situation for the toddler or respectful of the clients.)
Things happen with color--although I don't feel anyone has the right to completely change you from blonde to brunette without permission--but the complete lack of concern for customer satisfaction, coupled with the ease with which the owner lied made me feel it was risky to go back for highlights. Interestingly, what Elisha was saying on the phone was so divorced from what I was saying, it gave the distinct impression she was saying what she wanted her staff or clients to hear, acting as if she was repeating words I had never used--like malicious. It was probably how it feels to try to stay on point with Casey Anthony. Just bizarre.
She also tried to imply that because I complained about this I was paranoid, for starters. I asked for blonde highlights, had my hair dyed dark brown, and for this "I think everyone is out to get me"??? Methinks she's been working with too many dingbats from the chicken feather crowd. It was almost humorous to hear the words she made up in trying to sound intelligent, though, as a post facto check of her website shows is a running theme.
If you enjoy paying money to people to experiment on your hair for their private enjoyment, this is the place for you. I'm out $118 plus tip, with an ugly dye job, so I'm not amused.
At this point, I expect a slew of glowing reviews written by Ashley and Elisha's friends and family--all from reviewers with no previous reviews to their credit. read more