I was to have a few hours on a Friday in Buffalo to kill...and what better way to spend them than getting my hair fixed up mighty fine!? Indeed. I went on The New Age Salons' great web site an made an online appointment. Score!
I'm still rockin' the red color I got in November. NOVEMBER. Yes, like nearly 3 months ago. I'm for real...I'm going for the ombre look now (accidentally, and haphazardly of course), so naturally the roots have grown out, but seriously...I got a damn good red dye job up in B-lo, courtesy of The New Age Salon. It's still a really nice color and my hair looks very healthy.
The cut? Left much to be desired, and I had to have it fixed at a local (Brooklyn) salon just a week later. My stylist in Brooklyn is not catty whatsoever and actually asked if I had cut it myself. Very uneven with strange chunks taken out of one side. That was quite disappointing and extremely rushed. It made me nervous to have my hair cut so quickly, and I could tell the gal was rushing because the color took a really long time. Cut and all over color with about 2 strands of highlights took well over 3+ hours, and I had to get myself back to NYC that evening. Grimace.
Oh, the highlights. Yes. I wanted purple highlights within my bright red hair. What can I say? I was feeling spunky.
This was the picture I showed them: http://pinterest.com/pin/46513808621018873/ (ps feel free to follow me on pinterest, word!)
My hairdresser seemed psyched and assured me they could do it. And then began the long 3-hour process. Some of the highlight foils were still processing and she was cutting my hair around them. I assume this is a major no-no. The haircut showed badly, so I'm going to go with YES, don't cut around foils. She really was just trying her best, I totally get that, but it was bad decision making. And the end product was bad.
Not to mention the purple highlights were hardly noticeable, and faded within about 1 week or less.
Had I just gotten the red dye all over color job, I think I would've been really, really happy. Five stars happy. The salon is smart and chic. Well appointed, clean as a whistle. Two floors of hair bliss. There's a somewhat cold vibe coming from the staff that I couldn't quite put my finger on. Not unfriendly at all, just a tad aloof. I'm not sure what it was, but it's worth noting. They do have a really sweet dog though!
Also, somehow the pricing got bungled a bit, in my opinion.
It should've been:
Cut with all over color and half-highlights:
90+ for color/highlights
34 for haircut
= 124. For what was done to my hair (I have short hair)...I'm not sure how it could've been more than the base price of 90. But apparently it was more like $120 for the color. Weird.
So, even though the highlights were faintly noticeable and I got a pretty sad little haircut, I ended up paying $158 + tip. My stylist seemed somewhat new and asked the owner (kind of in front of me, which was awkward) and they came back with $158. IN a rush now (even more than before) it wasn't worth the stress to go through the whole thing. She tried hard, but I had to pay $50 the following week in BK to have the haircut fixed, so this experience cost me quite a bit of money. And i never really got the glory of those great violet highlights. Maybe another day....
Really, not that much cheaper than I could've gotten done in Brooklyn...but I don't regret the experience, and I would actually give them another try if I were a local. Obviously, the locals love them so I may have just hit an off day.
It's a great salon worth checking out, just do research and read reviews for your stylists and definitely ask how long it will take if you've got something following your appointment. I'd also discuss price up front, even though it may seem uncomfortable, it is worth establishing so things don't get away from you. read more