It saddens me to leave such a review for a woman-owned small business and I hesitated for a while after having left them a very generous tip. However, I hope that the before and after photos I attached speak for themselves. Read on if you want the longer version: My stylist, despite being described as "senior," was not able to match my previous balayage, nor to follow my request to stay away from brassy, warm tones. The result was streaky and brassy. I think they rushed it and did not allow it to develop past the ginger phase.
Also, on the topic of being rushed-- I asked about adding an Olaplex type service when I had initially called to book the appointment and they declined it because I already had an add-on blow dry service. This system of a-la-carte-ing everything ends up feeling pretty restrictive and you can tell they are in a great rush. Still, the annoying a la carte system and the rather restrictive polices could be tolerable were it not for the caliber of the service I received.
Before you ask why I did not take it up with them-- on the day my rushed service occurred and I first took a look in their mirror after they dried my hair, it seemed like my hair was lighter. I surmise that my previous color simply appeared a bit brighter due to the heat that had just been used. As I left for a work trip over the coming days, the sad reality began to sink in that the actual "balayage" they did had little effect beyond that. I basically paid 400+ for some heat and toner. Also, nobody around me noticed that my hair looked any different than the remnants of the grown-out, old balayage I had before the appointment, which is unusual in my line or work. In general, those in my life who always notice didn't this time ;)
My sole purpose in leaving this review is to inform others--I am not seeking anything from this salon and certainly was not going to return after having my trust in their capacities shaken. My suggestion to this salon: design your policies from the perspective of how clients will feel, so that you can retain them; giving clients the impression that you are rushing them makes it seem like you just want to milk them. The lesson I took away from this experience is to that, going forward, I will try to continue to give my business to LGBTQ-leaning salons, where consent and self-determination are more likely to be taken seriously. In a typical salon like this one, it seems it did not matter what I described--the stylist just did what she was comfortable with doing. read more