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What Makes A Salon Experience Wonderful

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ShortyDooWhop

Well-Known Member
I normally do my hair at home, but went to a hair salon recently after a long time and was left wondering what a phenomenal salon experience is like? So, ladies who have experienced salon nirvana, can you share what that experience was like.
 
Lol I used to have a wonderful stylist although I moved from him(to another state) and do my own hair now. . My appointment would always start on time(I don't care if you are celebrity stylist if your customer service sucks it ruins the experience). I would see a fly hairstyle in a magazine(think them old motions ads). I would take the picture to my stylist and say "I want this"! He would tell me what I would have to do to get it. Sometimes he would be like "you know that means I have to give you layers" to make sure I understood if a cut or something I wasn't used to was necessary then we would proceed. The scalp massage during wash was awesome. We just chatted as the stylist gently did my hair then when he turned me to face the mirror : VOILA! I got exactly what I asked for. No surprises or disappointments. No major anxiety throughout appointment because I knew he was a person of his word and was always awesome. This salon owner did stuff like open the salon at 5 am or 6 am on my birthday so I could leave the salon right to school/work. He was awesome.
 
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I haven't gone to a salon to get my hair done in years. The last phenominal salon visit I had was probably in my late teens/ early 20s. I worked with a girl whose cropped hair always looked fantastic. She put me on to her place and it soon became my place.

I used to frequent this salon every 6 weeks or so. It had a great vibe and knowledgeable, gentle and reliable stylists. I had a particular stylist (still miss you Dean:cry3:) but most- if not every- stylist in there was fantastic. Everyone had their lane, whether it was colour, short-dos, added hair, silk press... just greatness. It was the first time I fully trusted a stylist, and left not having to fix my hair to suit me better. I used to be greated with a smile, offered refreshments, and I didn't have to wait for an eternity to be seen, even though I arrived on time.
 
A knowledgeable, caring, and considerate hair care professional makes for an excellent salon experience. I haven't had that since I rocked a Toni Braxton-esque hairstyle that was dependent on relaxer and a tranny stylist name Crystal.
Crystal introduced me to Aphogee and good simple hair care. She was the 1st person to tell me that well conditioned hair doesn't need grease.
 
ETA: I read the OP wrong. I've listed my salon wishlist below. Never experienced salon nirvana. Never. :(

Hmmm,

Start my appointment on time

Don't eat while you're doing my hair. Schedule time for your lunch.

Don't cut my hair into a style. I don't care about trendy styles. Just trim my ends exactly like I ask.

Don't work on 4 heads at once. All of us end up being stuck in there with you 2 hours longer than needed.

Offer me a bottled water or something. I tip well. Can I get some 'free' water?

I want the salon to look and smell like a hair spa experience. No black and white decor please.

If I found a salon like this, I'd go in for a dc and rollerset to experience all of that.
 
The best salon experiences go back a lot of years for me.

My best / favorite stylist worked in a salon that never overbooked her and she had a dedicated assistant.

You actually got full service treatment from start to finish in about 2 hours or less. The shop was always clean, never over crowded. My stylist took great care of my hair even thru the "Rough" treatment of those styles of the time. I had color, a perm, crimp and healthy hair.
 
My new stylist is phenomenal. I saw her again on Saturday and I had my regular wash, a steam treatment, clip ins and makeup done in 2.5 hours. No excess people in the salon, no excess talking (important for me), my hair came out fantastic, my makeup was flawless and I couldn’t be more pleased.
 
Do not answer texts while you're doing my hair. Last salon visit I had, I loved the results but was triggered by the amt of times she answered texts. So rude.. like why would someone keep trying to carry convo when they know you're working!
 
I dont go to the salon often, just for dry hair cuts and trims.

The best experience I had was with a caucasian stylist who specialized in curly hair cuts. She trimmed off exactly how much I asked which is almost unheard of when going to get a hair cut. Also when doing my layers, she showed me how much she was about to cut before doing anything with the scissors, she did a great job.

I've moved to a different state so I'm not able to visit her anymore, she was awesome.
 
I currently have salon nirvana with my current stylist. She is the following:
- Punctual
-Manages her time well and her clients, so that you are not there all day. I have fine APL hair, so my silk press takes about 45 minutes...consistently.
-Provides snacks
-Atmosphere is calming, never crowded, never loud (except the occasional laughter from a good story), and clean.
-Has changed her hours to accommodate the working woman (appointments start at 0600).
-She is constantly learning and constantly teaching.
-The only person who was able to color my fine strands and my hair is still on my head.

I don't what I'm going to do when it's time for me to move.
 
My current stylist resparked my faith in salons entirely lol.

  • Always on time, she never double/triple/quadruple books so I've literally never had to wait when I show up.
  • She's so gentle on my hair that even detangling my hair at it's worst can feel nice.
  • Salon is always clean, peaceful, great music playing.
  • Never leaves the relaxer on too long; perfect texlax everytime and I never have to worry about a "chemical cut."
  • QUICK. I hate nothing more than spending 3+ hours at the salon no matter how nice it is honestly. She gets me in and out (touch-up, deep condition, occasional trim, and flat iron) in less than an hour and a half.
I started going to her after my mom got too sick to do my touch-up's and I barely knew how to comb my hair much less put a chemical on it lol, so I found great reviews for my current salon, booked an appt., and since then my hair has thrived. :D

Edit: Unrelated, but this is my first post so I figured I'd say helloooo, LCHF :love2:
 
Celestialx said:
My current stylist resparked my faith in salons entirely lol.

  • Always on time, she never double/triple/quadruple books so I've literally never had to wait when I show up.
  • She's so gentle on my hair that even detangling my hair at it's worst can feel nice.
  • Salon is always clean, peaceful, great music playing.
  • Never leaves the relaxer on too long; perfect texlax everytime and I never have to worry about a "chemical cut."
  • QUICK. I hate nothing more than spending 3+ hours at the salon no matter how nice it is honestly. She gets me in and out (touch-up, deep condition, occasional trim, and flat iron) in less than an hour and a half.
I started going to her after my mom got too sick to do my touch-up's and I barely knew how to comb my hair much less put a chemical on it lol, so I found great reviews for my current salon, booked an appt., and since then my hair has thrived. :D

Edit: Unrelated, but this is my first post so I figured I'd say helloooo, LCHF :love2:
Click to expand...

Hello!:bouncy:
 
Celestialx said:
My current stylist resparked my faith in salons entirely lol.
  • Never leaves the relaxer on too long; perfect texlax everytime and I never have to worry about a "chemical cut."
Edit: Unrelated, but this is my first post so I figured I'd say helloooo, LCHF :love2:
Click to expand...

:hiya:

How did you communicate the whole idea of texlaxing to your stylist? I have to fake burning in order to have her quickly rinse out/wash my relaxer, when I’m ready.
 
GetHappy2014 said:
:hiya:

How did you communicate the whole idea of texlaxing to your stylist? I have to fake burning in order to have her quickly rinse out/wash my relaxer, when I’m ready.
Click to expand...

Hey hey, girly. :flowers:

It's funny that you ask that because she kinda turned me onto the idea haha.

When I first went to her, she had asked me how straight I wanted to go and since my hair was a wreck (in actual knots, brittle as a bone, unintentional dreads; I laugh now but I was sobbing then lol) I begged her to bonelax me. And she actually said she would, but I think after seeing the state of my hair and wanting me to keep some on my head, she went ahead and underprocessed it a little bit just to be safer. After going to her more often and reading some more of her reviews, I came to find out that their salon has a habit of texlaxing just a little bit to keep people's hair from frying and most, if not all, clients like that about them. At first I was pretty annoyed that I wasn't bone straight and considered asking for a corrective, but her underprocessing has helped my hair thicken and GROW like never before. Now that I've actually started a consistant HHJ, it just continues to thrive with her help.

But what I can suggest, if there's one close to you at all and you aren't going to one already, is looking into a natural hair salon or a salon with some natural hair stylists. The salon I go to has mostly white stylists and it definitely caters to a wide variety, but my black stylist is younger and more accustomed to working with natural hair types, so I think because of that she's way more concerned about the integrity of the hair than just slicking it down, you know. So that could make a difference.
 
Celestialx said:
Hey hey, girly. :flowers:

It's funny that you ask that because she kinda turned me onto the idea haha.

When I first went to her, she had asked me how straight I wanted to go and since my hair was a wreck (in actual knots, brittle as a bone, unintentional dreads; I laugh now but I was sobbing then lol) I begged her to bonelax me. And she actually said she would, but I think after seeing the state of my hair and wanting me to keep some on my head, she went ahead and underprocessed it a little bit just to be safer. After going to her more often and reading some more of her reviews, I came to find out that their salon has a habit of texlaxing just a little bit to keep people's hair from frying and most, if not all, clients like that about them. At first I was pretty annoyed that I wasn't bone straight and considered asking for a corrective, but her underprocessing has helped my hair thicken and GROW like never before. Now that I've actually started a consistant HHJ, it just continues to thrive with her help.

But what I can suggest, if there's one close to you at all and you aren't going to one already, is looking into a natural hair salon or a salon with some natural hair stylists. The salon I go to has mostly white stylists and it definitely caters to a wide variety, but my black stylist is younger and more accustomed to working with natural hair types, so I think because of that she's way more concerned about the integrity of the hair than just slicking it down, you know. So that could make a difference.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the great advice. I currently have a stylist that I have been guiding on my hair for a few years now... she’s nice, and I love the way she applies my relaxer (mostly new growth only), but I am now trying to communicate to her that I PREFER an under-processed relaxer. I assume they (stylists) have been so accustomed to avoiding under-processed hair that it is taking time for her to accept that under-processed/texlaxed hair is what I want. My hair has thrived because of it, I think she’s getting it now.
& Thanks for the flowers. :bighug:
 
There are really only two reasons that I would go to a salon. The first one is simply to be pampered. I can pretty much do everything that needs to be done to my hair on my own, so I'm going primarily for the experience. And I want it to be a spa like experience. I want soft music, minimal talking, a nice long head massage, an invigorating steam treatment, maybe some champagne/wine, AND I want to leave with my hair looking/feeling better than if I had done it myself. I want time to be taken to make me feel great.

The second reason I would go to a salon is if I'm pressed for time, and doing it myself would take more time that having a "pro" do it, or I just have too many other things to do. In this case I need the stylist to not be late, not be over booked, not be doing 50-11 other things while doing my hair, not be needing a lunch break in the MIDDLE of my session. I wrote before on here about a braider that I booked to do my hair the day before my honeymoon. The girl made it known to me at least 3 times that tardiness will not be tolerated. Yet, on the day of my appointment, SHE was late, and had me sitting in the care waiting for HER. Unacceptable, and I told her so.

Another mark of a good stylist for me is one who does what needs to be done to get the style 100%, and doesn't get lazy and try to cut corners. I once went to this stylist to have my hair cut into a short Halle Berry type of style. She did so good. She took out these tiny barrel marcel curling irons and curled all of the hair in the back down to the nape and combed it out. It was lovely. Next time I went, I guessed she didn't have time for all of that finessing, cause she just basically shaved off all the hair in the back and started curling towards the crown. :ohwell:
 
  • Easy to find Parking
  • Appointment starts on time
  • Stylist is knowledgeable about hair and gives you tips
  • They're not trying to sell you something
  • The stylists speak English
  • The salon is clean
  • They use quality products
  • The salon is not overbooked with a million people waiting
  • Music is calming and soothing
  • Its not loud, there are not 101 conversations going on at once
  • You get what you asked for in terms of style, treatment, etc
  • The stylist listens
  • The prices are reasonable and they don't try to increase the price while you're on the chair
  • Stylists are respectful and pleasant not sizing you up or acting catty
  • Stylists are gentle
  • They have reasonable hours
 
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