After trying many different estheticians in the East Bay I finally found Alresa at The Brow Lounge. She has helped me shape and regrow my eyebrows after all the over plucking I did in the 00's. She's very sweet and great at her job. She is also the best when it comes to lash perms. Can't recommend enough! read more

I walk out of my appointments in awe of how beautiful my eyebrows look. In addition to her attention to detail, Alresa has such a delightful, calm & sweet presence. I'm so lucky to have her just a short walk from my apartment. Highly recommend booking an appt if you want gorgeous brows. read more

Great spot for brows! Reliable and clean. Appointments are usually a must. Friendly staff.

Alresa at Brow Lounge/ Cloud 9 is kind, funny and sincere. With a smart mind towards business and a discerning eye towards artfulness, she makes *you* a work of art! Who else would you want shaping the face you present to the world each day? read more

Alresa is out of this world!! I started going to Alresa in high school and always had the best experience. Not only do you leave with good brows, a clean bikini line, or whatever service you requested well done, you have a great conversation in the meantime. Alresa ensures you feel comfortable and taken care of. I no longer live in the Bay Area, but when I get the chance I am sure to pay a visit to Alresa. I cannot recommend the Brow Lounge enough!! read more

The nicest staff and best service. Cannot recommend the brow lounge enough. They are so welcoming to all and do a great job with brows!!

Alresa is the best in the east bay. I only come to her for my brow threading/tinting I recently got my lashes tinted and she did an amazing job read more

I have been seeing Alresa at her other location for years, and realized she deserves a review for this location too! This is the best bikini wax I've ever had. Covid safe, whatever wax and pre-post treatments she uses minimizes the pain of having hair yanked out, and Alresa is a lovely person that I love chatting with. Super glad her business survived the pandemic closures and 100% recommend going here! read more

Needed a new brow and eyelash Service salon, as my regular one recently moved, so decided to give "The Brow Lounge" a try. Made an appointment and as luck would have it the rain was coming down hard when I arrived. My first impression when I entered was how nice, warm and welcoming the two women were as well as the shop. The decor and lighting were nice and the plants were lovingly maintained and beautiful. Everything was very clean. Alresa, the owner, greeted me and informed me she would be doing my brow wax/tint and eyelash tint. I've had a lot of brow wax/threading/tinting and eyelash tint experiences. I could tell she was very experienced and professional. And she was fun and easy to converse with during the treatments. I was very pleased with my lashes and brow after Alresa finished. Since this was my first time at this salon I requested a medium brown tint for my eyebrows because I wanted to err on the side of caution. LOL... as I said to Alresa I didn't want to leave looking like Groucho Marx! And she did a great job giving me a medium brown tint. Next time I will go a bit darker (medium mixed with a bit of darker brown). I was very happy with my whole experience from beginning to the end. Will definitely be a return customer. read more

Wish I could leave zero stars. Paid $61 for threaded eyebrows, waxed upper lip and sideburns. I went in with overgrown eyebrows. There was plenty to work with. I don't think the woman had ever threaded or waxed anything in her life. Don't go here. My face is in pain. She didn't pull the wax strips fast enough and let it caught on my hair which is in a ponytail. She has no concept of how to do eyebrow. I don't know how this place has more than 4 stars. Staff didn't ask how my service was because they could see it sucked. I still paid. But please save your money. They just seem so uncomfortable with what they are doing. read more

I really enjoyed the atmosphere and professionalism. Comfortable seating in the waiting area and the two women in the shop were very kind. I was in and out in less that 20 minutes! I think I've found my new eyebrow spot. read more

I am 66 years old and my eyebrows have faded in recent years. A friend of mine in NY told me she had her brows tinted and really loved them. I looked up places that do brows and the brow lounge had good reviews. I went there as a walk in one rainy day and a very nice woman did my brows and I requested her to shape them with tweezers and she did a great job. I was amazed how great in looked. I went back the next day and had my eyelashes tinted- again, she did a great job. I will be returning because of the quality work. read more

After being a faithful customer of Alresa's for over two years, I recently took a five-month hiatus from ensuring my eyebrows were immaculately groomed. I literally walked in looking like Bert of Sesame Street. Alresa didn't blink an eye upon seeing such a sad transformation. Instead, she greeted me like I had still been showing up every month and even remembered details from the last conversation we had. How does she do that?! More importantly, though, how does she manage to create beautifully arched eyebrows from straight eyebrows like mine with simple thread? With Alresa-styled eyebrows framing my face, I have been able to confidently walk around sans makeup half the time and with minimal makeup the other half of the time. Now that I have perfectly arched eyebrows again, I vow never to walk into Alresa's salon looking like Bert again. Although, it is quite reassuring that she can rescue me should I ever let such a tragedy happen. read more

I gave this place three stars because I really enjoyed their service. The staff was extremely relatable and we have good conversation. But in all truthfulness there are plenty of places in Oakland that do this for a lot less. My coworker not only tweezed her eyebrows (the shape they gave her was AMAZING), but she also got her eyebrows tinted. She was informed that the color wouldn't stay 3 weeks like a lot of reviewers say, but she thought it would at least last 2 weeks. It's been 2 days and the tint is basically gone already. So much for tinted eyebrows for vacation in the pool. Kind of disappointed since it costed $40. They do sell small jewelry on the side. The gold hexagonal earrings I bought are super cute and I received a few compliments on them. Overall a pretty good place but won't go back for tinting and probably will stick to my chill spot closer to Lake Merritt. read more

The Brow Lounge - Front desk... - Hair Removal Near Me - Oakland, California

The Brow Lounge is a Black and Family owned brow salon in the heart of Rockridge that I've been exclusively getting my brows done for at least 5 years. The service is consistent and not pretentious but always feels like a treat for my 10-15 minute service. Highly recommended for waxing or threading (love that I have the option and both are done impeccably!) read more

I'm only changing this review because I did end up complaining to the owner and she wanted to fix it. However I was so irritated because it was a day before my bday party and my lashes were not it. I opted for a refund, which she did give me. read more

The Brow Lounge - This is work done by another shop in in SF, my lashes are straight upwards. Unfortunately they're closer. Wish I would have waited. - Hair Removal Near Me - Oakland, California

I came here for an eyelash perm. A woman Elisa was the one who did the perm for me. It turned out horrible, worst lash perm I've ever gotten. My lashes ended up looking weirdly bent, unpleasant, and even ended up making them looking shorter. This place just does not specialize in it well, and clearly is not one of their popular or good services. The technique seemed weird, as it wasn't like any other eyelash perm I've gotten in the past (I'd had gotten about 4 before at other places). I highly recommend AGAINST coming here for a lash perm. Really unhappy with how they turned out, and wasted $55. read more

Love this spot, they consistently do a great job and are affordable and kind. Highly recommend!

I wish yelp had a provision for negative stars, because I certainly would want to give this place as many of those for the unprofessional staff here. First of all, no where does it say that they are closed from 1 pm to 2 pm for Lunch. So I took a chance and walked in, when the staff there said " oh we are closed for lunch". REALLY!!!! I requested if they could accommodate me, to which she rudely said "NO". She then said "come later", I said what time to which this lady replies, "I don't know, call reception coz I don't deal with appointments". I said could you please try taking me in, she said no again. When I walked out of the shop, she locked the door!!!! In my defense I did call this place a few times but I got no reply whatsoever. Their voice message did say walk ins are welcome( subject to wait) and so I did. Very disappointed with this sort of service. read more

Not the cheapest brow place in town, but this is a super excellent local business that I'm happy to support! I stopped doing my brows after a few bad experiences at the many salons in the East Bay that seem to cater predominately to Asian women. My blonde brows often ended up totally non-existent, and I was a total target for pushing the brow-tinting services. This is absolutely not the case here - the staff is both diverse and ready to work with diverse clientele. The first time I came was right before my wedding. I made an appointment for waxing, but Vilma recommend threading. I'm hooked! It is much less painful, quicker than I thought it would be, and caused little to no irritation in the days following. My wedding-day eyebrows were on-point! The owner/receptionist is incredibly professional and kind. They have an easy online system for appointment scheduling, but last time I came, she was super helpful in squeezing me in last-minute on a busy Friday. read more

I dropped in with my girl one day who goes here frequently. I decided to get my brows threaded and a lip wax. It was $30 for both which is a great deal! I came back two weeks later and Zerka did my brows. Loved them! read more

I really hate to give this place a bad review but I've had enough bad feelings when looking back on my experience there that I have to. I got married in May, and though I don't usually get my brows threaded or my lashes dyed, I wanted to for this occasion. I carefully researched various places on Yelp and tried many in the months leading up my wedding so as to find the perfect place for my big day. Of all the places I went to, this was my favorite. I got threading done on my brows upper lip, and chin from Upama. She was amazing! Incredibly fast, thorough, and very gentle. Besides the fact that she was friendly and easy to talk to. I then had my lashes and brows dyed by a woman whose name I unfortunately forget. And for those of you who don't have naturally blond hair, this is a must for those of us who do. Without makeup I look sick if I unless I've got my dye on. Unlike the other places I had tried, I walked out with lashes that looked like I was wearing mascara and brows that actually looked like they could be mine (not too dark). Anyway, it was awesome. So I scheduled to come back before my big day. I wanted those same practitioners again and that meant that I had to schedule for two days before my wedding. It was far enough out that I could make that work so I took it. I had been talking about the wedding so much with everyone that the woman who worked my in the schedule even wrote down that my wedding would be 2 days after the appt. I worked the rest of my schedule the week before my wedding, which was packed, around this appointment. I think you can already hear it coming. 2 days. 2 days before the appt, when I was in the thick of dealing with more last minute details than anyone should humanly have to, I got a call from that same woman who, just 2 months previous had been chatting with me about what my colors would be and how excited she was that of all the research I'd done, the Brow Lounge was my top choice. She told me that Upama's (and the other woman's) hours had changed and could I come in the following day. The day to which she was eluding was the DAY BEFORE MY WEDDING and I was due in Santa Cruz for my rehearsal dinner. She seemed genuinely sorry for my plight and said she would make a few calls and call me back. In the end she set me up with another woman at the time I had originally booked. Her name was Rasheeda. She was a really great person. I mean, i would have been friends with her. But her work was the worst of anyone I had tried. Her threading was slow and painful. She seemed to break her thread with every pull. And she gave my a painful blemish on my upper lip where she apparently thought my skin was hair. The last thing you want right before you're going to get married. And when she dyed my lashes she had me close my eyes and only put dye on the top. When I told her that no one else I had seen had done it that way and that I would rather she put dye on the lower lashes separately cause I really wanted them to be dark, she said that the dye would coat both the upper and lower lashes this way and not to worry. and when she was done and my lower lashes were too pale and I asked if she could darken them, she said they would get darker in the next few hours. They didn't. So after all the hours I put into research, experimentation, and planning, I ended up with a red mark on my upper lip that I had to cover up, and lower lashes that needed mascara after-all. It was the only part of my wedding that was less than incredible. It sucked. But I will say that Upama is amazing! Ask for her. read more

This is a review about MJ and her eyelash perming AWESOMENESS! For many, eyelash perming seems like a ridiculous service, however, if you have short eyelashes that point straight to the ground (thanks mom!) then you will love to hear how after one visit to the Brow Lounge with MJ, my eyelashes do not point to the floor but rather curl up and fan out :) I went on a Thursday evening. Parking is so congested in that area. I checked in and was seated. Offered water and tea. MJ walked me through the entire process. I had two eyelash curlers on both eyes, she applied the perm, and I sat and waited for 10 minutes. Then she applied another solution and I sat and waited another 10 minutes. During the waiting, MJ was constantly checking in. "Are you ok? Do you feel any burning? Can I get you more water?" I really appreciated that. After twenty minutes of closed eyes and much anticipation, my eyelashes were gorgeous read more

I drive down College Avenue most nights after work. For the last month or so I noticed a chic looking little store called "The Brow Lounge". Everyday I looked to see if it was open and when I finally saw some action going on, I knew I had to check it out. The stars must have been aligned today because not only did I walk in and get an appointment right then and there, but Alresa (the owner of Brow Lounge and of Cloud Nine fame) did my brows. I am, admittedly, an over--the-top tweezer. Alresa did not scold me, but offered her diagnosis - tint the brows, thread a little bit, and LAY OFF the tweezers. Alresa is a perfectionist and it shows. She spent at least 30-40 minutes on my brows. I never felt rushed and I already made my follow-up appointment in 3 weeks. Now all I have to do is muster up the courage to toss my tweezers!!! read more

I wanted to love, heck, even LIKE, The Brow Lounge, I really did. I have a great place back home in San Diego, but sometimes a girl needs an emergency fix. I'm super wary of having someone new do my eyebrows, so I scheduled a lip appointment online. (Kudos for the online booking system though!) I showed up 5-10 minutes early for my appointment and...the door was locked. Uhhh...? A woman comes out and just looks at me for a second, then opens the door and asks me if I had an appointment. I said yes, told her the time and service as well as my first name. Eventually, after an awkward minute just staring at me, she lets me in. She checks on the computer and says, oh there you are. Mind you, I am literally the only person there, I don't know how she could have thought otherwise. Anyways, she leads me over to her station, preps and whatnot. The first thing that struck me was that you sit upright and they're not reclining chairs. Maybe that's normal elsewhere, but I thought it was kind of odd. Also, she's a really slow threader. It stung a little less than normal, but I swear it took twice as long! She put the normal witch hazel on after, then she smeared this weird clear shiny gel all over. I was like, uh homegirl, I'm not trying to draw attention to the fact that I just got my lady 'stache removed. Then, when she holds up the mirror, I find out why she did it: my lip area was BRIGHT RED. Seriously, I'm a hair removal vet, neither threading nor waxing has turned my lip that red in YEARS. But what can you say at that point? I go up to the front to settle up with the receptionist who just came back from her coffee break, and she asks me what the service was. Like, don't they have some sort of system for that? Can't you tell by my unkempt brows and bright red, GLOSSY upper lip? Maybe check the appointment book for THE ONLY PERSON IN THE SALON. Whatever, I pay and leave, and rub the gel off as soon as I'm outside. But the worst part? When I got home, there were at least 15 little hairs left! The service ($10 for a lip) cost me literally twice as much as I pay at home, irritated my skin to the point of turning beet red, and didn't even do a good job. Save your money and time, and go somewhere else. read more

Just visited the Brow Lounge this morning and was greeted by Alresa, the sweetest person and the owner of the Brow Lounge and its main branch Cloud Nine. I spent over a month growing my already unruly brows out and needless to say, I was nervous to put something so visible in the hands of a stranger. But Alresa is more than deserving of her great reputation and she kindly talked with me about how we could work on my brows. Although some areas were still sparse and needed more growing out, she did a wonderful job of giving me real shape and a clean, soft arch. The whole procedure was relatively pain free and she was very thorough and detail-oriented. She talked to me about growing out certain areas and helped me out by filling the sparser bits with brow powder. I bought the brow powder and brush sold at the store, although I could have certainly bought it at a drugstore for cheaper, just because I felt the need to support her and the wonderful business she is running. Before I left I thanked and congratulated her on the great job she is doing and the success of her stores. She looked up and earnestly remarked at how great my brows looked and how well they complimented my face now that she saw them from further away. I will no doubt ask for her in person next time, but from what I hear all of her associates are as equally dedicated and talented. read more

I've never been conscientious with eyebrow maintenance. And exacerbated by an unusually busy work/school schedule this fall, my eyebrows could not have been more unruly...before I stepped into the Brow Lounge! Alresa waxed and shaped my flat, thick eyebrows into the picture of elegance (if I do say so myself). I've never had any real 'arch' to my brows and she sculpted them like a real Michelangelo. I've never had people compliment me on my eyebrows, but it has now happened...twice! Alresa was attentive to what I wanted. She was honest yet polite and highly professional. She made sure I was satisfied with the results. Also, I never felt shame for my eyebrow neglect. No "WOW, it's been awhile, hasn't it?!" (a comment received at another salon). I felt comfortable and at ease. While the salon is on the pricey side ($20 for eyebrow waxing), I think it's well worth it. Also, the ability to book online is a nice feature! read more

Zarqa is amazing. She does lip threading for myself and my daughter every 3 weeks or so. Quick & easy and no rash or irritation, as I have had with waxing in the past. I have been going to this place for years for my brow waxing. The receptionist is also very pleasant. read more

I have literally been looking for someone that knows how to really do eyebrows for over two years since my last eyebrow angel moved away. After reading review of the Brow Lounge I decided to give it a shot. I called in this morning thinking I would a have to wait at least a week for an appointment and was pleasantly surprised to hear that there was a same day opening. I arrived at exactly 12:15 (my appointment time) and was warmly greeted by Rasheedah who was immediately available and is wonderful. Super sweet and my eyebrows were done to perfection. This is literally the first time I have been thrilled with eyebrows in over three years. Rasheedah is a gem! read more

This is a super cute and relaxing place to get your eyebrows done. After reading reviews, I decided to try Upama and eyebrow threading. I had done eyebrow threading about 8 years ago. I remembered it being in a shoddy salon and it was like 5 bucks or so. I was able to get an appointment and when I walked in, the receptionist/greeter was super sweet. She offered me tea which I believed she made herself. I was then introduced to Upama who was very kind. She was very attentive and always asked how I was doing. The pain was of course a little more than waxing only because it took a little longer. But Upama was so thorough and sweet- I would definitely keep coming back. read more

I decided I needed to get my brows done and I wanted it done NOW. Without an appointment I walked in to the Brow Lounge and sat right down. I love that. The space is very relaxing and clean (super clean really). Rasheedah did my brows and they look great. She got me as much of an arch as a girl with stick straight brows can get! read more

The Brow Lounge is amazing! I'm not a typical girlie girl and I don't have a lot of brow hair to work with. They are able to clean me up with out taking too much. In the end my brows look fabulous. They look natural, fuller than they really are, and are not way over the top. The brow lounge techniques fit me and my personality. It is wonderful to get such great service. The environment is relaxing and nice. I even force my girlfriend to get her very full brows done here as well. Can't say enough great things about the Brow Lounge. read more

Recently moved to the East Bay and have been looking for a threading salon. I've passed by a few times but they have always been busy and had no appointments open, so this time I planned ahead and used their online booking system (very good idea). I had the first appointment of the day, the salon is very clean and I like the individual booth areas. I hadn't been to get my eyebrows done in a while, so knew it would be an adventure, the lady who did my threading (sorry dont know her name) was really really nice and did a fantastic job. Prices are a lot more than I was paying in SF, but they did do a fantastic job, I will definitely be going back. read more

Not only does the Brow Lounge do the best work in the Bay, it's the only place that feels safe enough to visit during the pandemic. They are taking extensive safety precautions: only one customer in the entire studio at a time, the shop is well ventilated, plexiglass partitions divide the space, temp check at the door, both customer and technician wash their hands before starting, and the technician was wearing a K95 mask, face shield, and gloves. I was in and out in 15 minutes and my brows look amazing. The Brow Lounge has been around since before brows were a thing, and it's a Rockridge institution. Plus, it's a black woman owned business. Highly recommend this shop! read more

I'd like to second Jamila's review. I've had my brows threaded by Alresa in the past and I've always been very happy with both the experience and the results. However, today I saw Upama and left feeling extremely frustrated and fairly ugly as well. After repeatedly explaining to Upama (before and during her work) that I like my natural brow line and just wanted it cleaned up, she took it upon herself to do some pretty significant and not entirely symmetric shaping. I am not a skinny brow girl. I have never been a skinny brow girl. And if I was, I'd at least like them to match. On the bright side, upon seeing the horrified look on my face when she handed me the mirror, Upama did insist that I not pay. I might have argued against this, but I was worried if I tried to talk to her, I might cry. So, um, yay for free, painful, de-beautifying mutilation? If my brows ever grow back, I might go see Alresa again. read more

Went to The Brow Lounge for the first time. Would not recommend the place at all!! Had my eyebrows waxed and had my skin pulled off ! ouch!! And on top of that the owner refused to refund me for the service! Owner was uncooperative and argumentative. Nice way to run a business. read more

I really wanted to give 5 star but hell it is expensive! I chased my fellow eyebrow lady to here, and she did great as always. The big PLUS I would give to this salon is they sanitize everything and use one thing for one customer ONLY! Can you believe that! They use the brush, tweezers only once for each customer and then they sanitize it for tomorrow use. However, I had eyebrow threading and it is usually under $12 in most places I know, the highest price I paid was 18, but here they charge straight $20! I think that's expensive and that's why I take one star off! read more

I am constantly raving about The Brow Lounge (and its sister site, Cloud Nine). I gave up waxing when I started taking retinoids so I got into threading. My first experience on the Peninsula where I work left me less than thrilled about the process. I decided to give it another shot. I knew that I wanted to spend to support my community rather than where I work so I checked out reviews of threading studios near my home. Alresa had amazing reviews so I booked an appointment with her. I have been going to either location for over a year and have never been disappointed. She is excellent at what she does, is a complete professional and is also incredibly sweet. read more

Maybe it was a bad day. We all have bad days but I often go to yelp to guide me in my decision making. My experience at The Brow Lounge was Terrible. I really wanted a Brow Wax but I agreed to try threading since the person no longer did waxing. The skin on my brows was pulled and stretched. It took two weeks for my skin to heal. The skin sagged to the point I did not want to leave the house. I will NEVER go there again. It is so important to trust the person that works on the skin around your eyes. This is a VERY sensitive area. Please be careful. read more

Yay for you. I did not come out here looking like I have robot eyebrows. The people here really take their time and care when perfecting people's eyebrows. I've seen women walk in looking like george of the jungle eyebrows and come out with nicely shaped arched eyebrows. I tried threading with Upama here and I really love it. She and I seem to share the same philosophy on what kind of eyebrow looks good (not overly plucked and nice natural shape) so I like that we're on the same page. I lost faith in threading for a while because the last time I did it, the woman who did it cared more about getting it done fast rather than getting it done right. I would definitely recommend Upama for eyebrow threading. She really takes the time to look at the quality, design, and symmetry of the whole thing. She does recommend that you do not pluck too much in between sessions, which is probably good advice since it might not grow back or it might grow back all funky... Threading cost $20 bucks plus tips read more