Lou Stevens Glam Squad is extremely unorganized and unprofessional. I booked them in March for a May wedding. They ask you to fill out a detailed questionnaire where you answer questions on what services you would like, how many people will be needing which services, what time everyone needs to be ready to leave, phone number on how to contact you on the day of etc. Once you agree to a booking they set up a website for your account with them, which tracks payments and email correspondences. They also ask that you submit pictures of examples for hair and make up. So things seemed to be okay up until this point.
I uploaded the questionnaire, listed everything that they asked, including my contact phone number, what services I would like, the fact that both me and my sister have thick hair, and the time that we would need to be done and ready to go.
In order to book with Lou Stevens, there is a minimum of $500. I received a payment request based on the services I had requested - also assuming that everything I had submitted to Lou Stevens was reviewed based on the importance that was emphasized about doing so. In order to meet the minimum, I requested an additional makeup which is $90. Fine. I paid a deposit of $100, then paid the remaining $568, totaling payments made to Lou Stevens of $668 (which included an automatically calculated tip).
Fast forward to late April. I had not heard anything from Lou Stevens so I emailed Amanda to ask when the hair and makeup stylist would be arriving to my hotel on the morning of my wedding day. She responded with a question asking what time i needed to be ready (information that was submitted to them in March). After telling her the time, she sent back a schedule for hair and make up where it was quickly identified that there would not be enough time to do my hair and makeup nor my maid of honor's hair and makeup in the amount of time slotted.
I emailed Amanda back and stated that the time slots that were designated for hair and makeup would not be enough to make my wedding on time. She emailed back and reassured that there would be enough time because of the skill of the hair and makeup stylist. My maid of honor also informed them that her hair has never been done in less than an hour. Again, we were both reassured by Lou Stevens that there would be enough time. It was on about the 3rd iteration of our thick hair that Amanda stated there would be a $25 charge for each person who had thick hair. Given that an extra makeup for someone had been added to meet the minimum dollar requirement, and as it turned out there had been no previous charge for thick hair included in the original bill, I requested that the $90 makeup be removed and that the $50 be taken from the $90 makeup fee, which would give me a $40 dollar credit, plus the tip adjustment.
This is where it became EXTREMELY frustrating and stressful. Getting a hold of anyone at the studio, via both email and telephone, was near impossible. After literally days of calling and emailing different people at Lou Stevens, with the argument of all bookings being final 30 days before the event and that they could take the makeup service off, but they would not take the charge off. In addition, I would owe them $50 for the thick hair fee, which I was then receiving daily emails of payment requests. Finally, Caitlyn returned my call stating that she spoke to the owner Lou Stevens, who instructed them to do what I had asked. Caitlyn and Amanda stated over the phone that they would cancel the makeup, use $50 of the $90 makeup fee and would then issue me a check of $40 plus the tip adjustment. On May 14th, I deposited the $40 check that the studio had written out and sent to my home. No tip was ever adjusted.. I felt that taking the "hit" of a few dollars just to close the door with these people was.. well, I just wanted to be done with them.
Back to my actual wedding day!!!!
I was not given a contact number for my hair and makeup stylist, nor was the hair stylist given any way of how to get a hold of me or where to go.
Additionally, she did not have any knowledge about the pictures that I had uploaded to the website assigned to my account with Lou Stevens or any of the questionnaire.
Needless to say, there had been no communication with the hairstylist from Lou Stevens except for the address of the hotel and an approximate time. The only way the stylist found us was because she asked the front desk if anyone with my last name was staying in the hotel.. then just took a guess.
She was very nice, but I was not happy at all with how my makeup turned out, or my hair. There was no time for any corrections or redos because I WAS already LATE TO MY OWN WEDDING!!!
Fast forward nearly 4 months: I get an email from Amanda at Lou Stevens saying that a payment is 4 months past due.
I genuinely do not know HOW there are so many positive reviews online about this salon. Absolute Nightmare for Any Bride!! read more
