Review- Privé Salon NYC

First of all I want to say that Privé Salon is gorgeous! The picture doesn't do it justice; it looks very classy and clean. Also, from the second you walk in, the staff is super-attentive. Third, and this is a big one, they are eco-friendly! How much do I love that?

The salon is attached to the Soho Grand Hotel (which also looks very swank). I was greeted very promptly by the receptionist who took my Privé Rejuvenating Shampoo and Conditioner bottles to be recycled. They are still undefeated as my absolute favorite shampoo and conditioner. The receptionist walked me back to meet my hairdresser, Brittany, and I knew by her haicut I was in for a good haircut myself. Brittany & I discussed what to do with my hair; I was clueless, but she knew exactly what I needed. She cheerfully chatted with me during the shampoo and haircut- a must for me- all the while giving my long layers the care they so desperately needed. Even when I did my hair at home days later, I didn't see any split ends sticking out (which is hard to achieve with layers). Brittany cut my bangs with the skill of a surgeon, taking off a little at a time until they were just the right length. Overall I am more than happy with the haircut and the whole salon experience.

Note: Brittany works two weeks in NYC, then two in Miami Beach at Privé, then back again.

Melissa says: I saw a picture of Hillary and was like, "who did her hair?" It looks amazing! The first thing I thought is that I must find out where she went because I'm sold. With Hillary's new look and this review, I must make my way to Privé!

Review- Yuko system straightening treatment at Bumble and Bumble NYC

(*Above is the before and after pic)

Oh Richard Corio, how ever do I thank you? I mean how does one properly and sufficiently show gratitude to someone who, since our interaction, has made everyday a day that I love my hair? I know. No, really, I know. That's a bold statement. I have been a client of Bb since 2005 but this is my first foray into permanent straightening of any kind. I love love love the salon, my sublime stylist Amy Farid and my beloved colorist, Tippy. As soon as I tossed out the idea to the team that I might want to go straight for a good long while, they both nodded enthusiastically before telling me I had "to seek out Richard," Bb's resident expert on the matter. (He is also a well-loved stylist and all-around super-cool guy!) After meeting for a quick consult after a haircut, I sensed why Richard is so special. His whole vibe is so cool, relaxed and best of all, experienced.

I had about two weeks before my appointment which only served to increase my excitement and anticipation ten-fold. I poured through magazines looking for the most killer haircut I could rock with stick straight hair (I settled on a long-heavily-layered-thick-bangs-look), I told everyone I knew I was taking the proverbial plunge, I wore my hair curly for like 8 days in a row to have a proper goodbye. Finally the day arrived and I did my best to steel myself for what I had been told would be a minimum of 5 hours in the chair. I should add at this point in the post that my scalp is like a little baby bird. To say I have a "tender scalp" is a huge understatement. For instance, at age 7, my mom, well-versed in raising girls mind you (she has 3) dragged me to the hair salon to get a Dorothy Hamill because she was so tired of my complaining, crying and whining every time she had to brush and style my hair.

Anyway, I arrived at Bb and we went right to it. The process began with the first of several piles of chemicals (and I do not mean that in a derogatory way at all I promise!). Apparently my hair soaked up the treatment so fast that as soon as it was fully applied, it was ready to be rinsed off. Richard figured out later that it was likely because I had gotten highlights the day before (which is NOT recommended, btw, but fortunately I escaped with every strand on my head intact). After rinsing, I got the first of 2 blow-drys, although this one was more of a rough-dry (which is the lingo for a haphazard blow-dry to simply dry the hair and ready it for the next step). Once dry again, my hair was saturated with the next pile of chemical compounds. This one stayed on a good thirty minutes. The cocktail then got blown into my hair with a blowdryer hotter than the fury of 10,000 fiery suns. And if I use the word meticulous to describe Richard's technique that's not even the half of it. The man literally knows how much heat and for how long to hold the dryer over any given section based on its current reaction to the sauce. Plus, no strand gets left behind. After my hair was completely and utterly dry as a bone, the hotter-than-Hades straightening iron came out. And dammit if every solitary lock of hair didn't interface with that iron. Between this and the former step, you can see why this undertaking is so time-consuming albeit relative to your own hair's length and thickness. Once this was finished I had hair like a sheet of glass. The texture on a molecular level was forever altered and that specific quality of this whole thing was unmistakable even to my untrained eye. As for the feel of my new hair? The smoothest and softest most loving consistency I've ever known.

Now as for the above-posted pictures: the first is a before pic and the second picture was taken immediately after in the dressing room.

I would absolutely recommend this for someone who has the cash to invest. (Yes, it's pricey. The cost is also based on your natural texture plus the aforementioned length and volume in addition to how much time it ends up taking.) You are also a good candidate, imo, if you wash and dry (and iron) your hair more than 3x a week, you feel better/sexier/more radiant with straight hair AND you are willing to deal with the aftermath aka the growth process (which I have yet to experience so I can't really speak with authority on what it's going to entail other than being told this lasts a year and many people do a touch-up at 6 months to address new growth). Previous to the treatment, I washed and styled my hair 2 or 3x a week. Because the essence of this product is deeply conditioning, my hair does get oily a lot faster than before leading to me wash it approx. 4 times a week now. I add this because I know some are drawn to this option so they don't have to wash and style so frequently. Having said that, with my new regime, it's fair to say it takes half the time it used to and I rarely if ever break out my iron anymore. I don't know if I'll do the 6 month touch-up or redo the whole shabang come December but I will absolutely do this again at some point. I do occasionally miss my waves or even having the option to whip out my curling iron for some roller rink hair. Alas, my view of hair is that at the end of the day, "it's only hair" and it'll grow out if some style/color risk goes horribly wrong. If you are considering this, I say go for it and commit to do it with a pro. Richard has been doing this for a decade and he trained with its creators in Japan. Do find someone who has interacted with lots of different types of hair with this process. Bonus points if you find someone who you pleasantly mesh with for pretty much a full day of poking, prodding and pulling like I did!

Review- Hair Date Salon in New York City (East Village)

Packed among high priced/high end salons in the East Village is a great spot to have a very satisfying high end experience at a very low price! I have never written about a salon or stylist on Beautifile before because I have bounced around from place to place trying to find the right combination of customer service, attention to detail, expertise and price. Let's put it this way, in the past I've paid four times the amount elsewhere and received about one-fifth of the service at best... sadly... But now I am a dedicated client of Hair Date. My boyfriend has been to see Veronica (proprietor of Hair Date) on many occasions, even before she opened this salon. He has consistently returned to her for every hair cut since he's moved to New York, and I can see why.*

I spoke to Veronica several weeks ago while she cut his hair about wanting to do something drastic with my look. I've spent the past five years with jet blue-black home-dyed hair and I was ready for a change. What I really wanted was something close enough to my natural color that I could grow it out with no roots. Several master colorists told me this feat was impossible, that I would either have to grow my hair out (and suffer the nightmare of two-tone hair for 6+ months) or cut it brutally short. They told me horror stories of bald patches and hair with the consistency of a brillo pad. Needless to say, I was really depressed about being stuck with black hair. On top of this, in the past I'd had a bad salon coloring experience that left my hair bright orange and my brain SHOCKED, so I was feeling stuck. I decided to talk to Veronica about my dilemma and she was so knowledgeable! She suggested stripping as much color as possible and using a semi-permanent dye to reach as close to my natural color as possible, and assured me that it could be done with minimal damage. After talking this over with her I felt confident in her work, and as soon as some roots showed, I made my appointment.

I really wish I had a great camera to show everyone some amazing before-after photos (and maybe I can update later when I get some good outdoor lighting to show the detail), because while I spent a good few hours terrified my hair would fry off my head, I left with a nice natural looking highlighted brown color. What I was told was impossible by others came out fantastic, I couldn't have asked for a better outcome. My hair is even touchably soft, when I thought it would end up being as dried out as bale of hay. Not only was the color work great, but Veronica also trimmed my hair (and my super fussy bangs-from-hell) and gave it the exact amount of body I wanted.

There are so many fun/cool/awesome things about this salon that I can't possible cover them all in this little entry. For a few, the shampoos are amazing and sudsy and feel grrrreat. The space is insanely clean and organized. It's also aesthetically beautiful and crisp looking inside with an awesome birch branch accent in the manicure area. The space is quiet, comfortable and relaxing. Every employee is extremely friendly, no pretentiousness or snobbery. When I candidly told Veronica that I have a skin condition that sometimes causes my scalp to blister and peel, they took amazing extra measures to protect my scalp and to painstakingly work around the delicate areas on my head that could be damaged. The prices are ridiculously reasonable (see below) and the attention you receive is amazing (you even get a little shoulder massage!). Everyone came in with a smile and left with a bigger smile. I felt like I was fawned over and well taken care of. I would recommend this salon to anyone, you'll leave as a dedicated client and with a wad of extra cash in your pocket to spend on other fun things!

See below for the Hair Date website for full information and prices, but for now here is a brief list of the prices for a few select things they offer:
Hair cut: $45-60
Bang trim: $10
Color retouch: $75
Single process: $85+
Gloss: $30
Body perm: $85-150
(these are obviously subject to change over time)

Hair Date is located at 329 Bowery (between 2nd & 3rd street) in Manhattan. (212)228-8381 website here
Business hours: 7 days per week, 11 am - 9 pm

I highly recommend anyone looking for a new cut (or dye, or perm, or manicure!) stop by Hair Date and give them a try. I don't think you will be disappointed. This is a true find in NYC.

(*if you dig carefully, you will see his picture on their website!)

Review- Highlights @ Arrojo Studio SOHO NYC

Arrojo Studio 180 Varick St. New York, NY 10014 (212)242-7786

That hair you are looking at with the gorgeous brown tones and not a hint of blonde is on my head and I'm loving it! Let me explain- you see, when you get highlights, everyone assumes that you want to go blonder. As with me, that is not always the case. I want a brown close enough to my own so that when it starts to grow in it's not that obvious. Why get highlights at all you might ask? Well my answer is a four letter word- gray! It happens to the best of us eventually. Anyway I went to see Kelly at Arrojo Studio to get rid of those blasted hairs that remind me of my age.

To be honest, I had never heard of Arrojo until recently, then when I did, I was hearing about it everywhere. They are some major heavy hitters on NY's hair front. When their PR person offered to let me review the salon I jumped at the chance.

First impression- the place is huge (it even has a café in it!) and it runs like a well oiled machine. I was treated like someone special from the moment I walked in the door. I don't believe that this was due to the fact I was there to do a review, I think everyone who visits the salon gets "A-List" treatment. I met my colorist Kelly and we immediately hit it off in both the personality & hair departments. I told her I wanted my highlights more brown so that re-growth wouldn't be so obvious. She used about 5 different colors to do my highlights and lowlights which initially made me a little nervous. But let me tell you- the result is fantastic. My hair looks so natural but with the kind of highlights you usually only see in children's hair. My hair only better. The end product showed she really listened to what I was looking for because she went beyond what I pictured to something much better. As an added bonus, Kelly is a funny, genuine person which made the fact that the color took 3 1/2 hours much more bearable. This is no quick fix filling station. I guess it takes extra time to get highlights so perfect.

Overall I am so happy with my hair color. I especially recommend Kelly, but using her as a barometer I would recommend visiting Arrojo Studio in a heartbeat. If you are in or near NYC for whatever reason, it's definitely worth it to treat yourself to great hair color.

Review- Cutler Salon on 57th St. NYC

Cutler Salon (Uptown)

47 West 57th St. between 5th and 6th

New York, NY 10019

(212)308-3838

or

(877)308-3838

How do I love my new hairdo? Let me count the ways! The color! The cut! Everything about it is just wonderful. You may have read my review of Cutler Salon Soho a while back and if you remember, I was pleased as punch with my cut and color. I thought it would be a tough act to follow. Not only did my cut and color at Cutler Salon on 57th St. live up to the standard set in Soho, it exceeded it! But it is totally dependant on who I was talking to which salon I would send them to. The two have totally different vibes. The Soho salon is much more relaxed and sedate. The floor plan of the Soho salon makes you feel as if you are in your own little pod and there is far less hustle and bustle than at the uptown location. I, however, have no problem with hustle and bustle and like the lively atmosphere at Cutler's uptown location. And everyone from the coat check lady to Mark and Kara the assistants are as friendly as can be. They really go out of their way to make you feel important at the Cutler Salons.

I had my color done by Laura who did an outstanding job of matching the color which was already on my head. Before I went to Cutler, everyone kept making my highlights blonder and blonder. At Cutler (both times) they gave me exactly what I wanted, lighter brown highlights on my brown hair to hide the greys. The intricacy with which Laura colored my hair was truly impressive. I felt as if every hair was getting personalized attention. And to top it off she's an absolute sweetheart. Chatting with her really made the time I had to sit in the chair fly. I highly recommend Laura if you're visiting the salon, even my hairdresser, Francesca was impressed with her work.

My haircut was done by Francesca, and I have to say, it is one of the top 3 haircuts I've ever had in my life! Last time I got my hair cut with Tyson at Cutler Soho, he couldn't do a thing to the layers in my hair as he said they were already as short as they could be without looking odd (which means-you guessed it- the person before him botched the job). This time my hair was about an inch- inch and a half longer than last time, so Francesca had something to work with. And work she did. I've never had a more thorough haircut in my life. She wields her scissors with such precision, I was floored. She also showed me where my hair needed fixing (I needed more bangs) and once my hair was finished I felt like a model. There was not a split end or fly-away on my head. Francesca is a perfectionist, but don't think you sacrifice personality for that, she's friendly and pleasant to talk to (although I mostly sat in awe of the transformation my hair was getting). Cuts with Francesca are expensive ($110), but bang trims are free and I have to say it's worth every penny.

Review- Cutler Salon Soho, NYC

Cutler Salon Soho (there is also a Midtown Location)

465 West Broadway NY, NY (212) 308-3838

I recently had the pleasure of getting my hair cut and colored at the Cutler Salon in Soho, NYC. Now I'm afraid I've developed a habit that I can't afford! I've got a "Great Hair" monkey on my back!

First thing you notice when you walk into the salon is that it's modern without being cold and hip without being snobbish. I was made comfortable the moment I walked in and immediately offered a cappuchino. My hair colorist was Joe and although I had initially been happy with my last color, he pointed out some streaks that I hadn't observed were so noticeable until I got under the salon lights with a professional. I had originally gotten highlights just to cover the grey in my light brown hair, but it seems that every time I went to have my hair touched up, the colorists' (there were a few) made me blonder and blonder. Joe told me what he thought without being pushy (he's a very nice guy) and he told me he could give me highlights one shade lighter than my natural hair that would look great and believe me, they do. I had never wanted to be blond, I just sort of ended up that way, now I'm happy to have my brown hair back and the highlights look so much more natural since Joe did them! They blend beautifully with my hair and there are no streaks. I think he also did a glaze to tone the highlights. He is such a meticulous craftsman that I was surprized how few hairs he put in each foil, but his conscientiousness paid off. I love my hair. Partial highlights with Joe will run you approximately $170 (there is a general price list for all services on their website which I appreciate). The price is very reasonable especially considering the attention to detail that you're getting.

I then had a haircut with Tyson. Tyson is a very charming New Zealander and he's a lot of fun to talk to. I knew I needed something done to my hair as I have layers that were starting to look a little shabby. Well I hadn't had a haircut in about 3 months and Trevor said he wouldn't go any shorter on the layers (which means they had been cut too short last time). He cut my bangs to perfection and added a little choppiness to update my look. The one thing I found odd is that at Cutler they have assistants blow out your hair. It came out great, but I always thought that was part of the deal with hairstylists (& it means one more person to tip). A haircut with Tyson runs $90, but I'm thinking of selling my blood so I can keep getting my hair cut there. I know $90 is not a fortune, but I'm far from swimming in it. One nice plus is he said they do bang trims free after a haircut and I'm used to paying up to $15 for this.

Overall, I'm very happy with my color, my cut and my experience at Cutler. Never once did I feel pressured into making changes I didn't want, or ignored, or anything but well attended to and listened to. I will be going back, I just have to save my pennies to do so!