Friday, July 15, 2011

Finally Got A Haircut - Solis Salon

So after 9 mths I FINALLY went and got a haircut!  Yes, Yes I know...WAY too long and if I were one of my clients I would be pleading and reprimanding them to get a haircut more often.  But here's the thing - my hair is like stick straight...seriously the stylist (Lindsay) asked if I straightened it when I got there (I hadn't...I don't even remember the last time I ran a straightener through my hair).  I think that's part of why I can "get away" w/ going so long in between cuts - I usually let my hair air dry or blow dry it for 5 mins (seriously it's dry in like 5 mins...I know you're hating me right now but guess what curling it is a real bitch) so it doesn't really get heat damaged, I mostly wear it down so unlike a lot of ppl w/ long hair I'm not getting a lot of breakage from hair elastics constantly pulling it back and it's just naturally dark, silky and shiny so even after 9 mths ppl wouldn't know it had been that long.

Anyway, I've just been basically letting it grow really long for like 2.5 yrs now...since I left for Shanghai basically...yes if you look back to the beg. of this blog you will notice a girl w/ a short chin length bob lol.  I actually don't think I've ever even let my hair get this long before b/c usually I would get bored and chop it...but I have to be honest I'm totally loving the long hair!  The only real changes have been that I had bangs for about 1.5 years and now I've been growing them out for the past 9 mths.

So I didn't really have a hairdresser anymore b/c the one I  use to go to before I left for Shanghai is mostly doing photo shoots and fashion now and I have to be honest I was not digging the girl that did my hair the last time I got it cut (maybe also why I waited so long).  I was trying to grow out my bangs and she did something weird to them and I swear I was yanking on them to sweep to the side during my whole two wks in Europe...very annoying.

Having no hairdresser I did what any modern, tech happy person would do I googled reviews for hair salons in Toronto.  This is how I came across Solis Salon.  I had seen it's sign a million times while walking down Yonge and it's literally like 3 blocks away and it had some good reviews and a decent website so I thought why not!  Plus they were having a special w/ one of their hairdressers who had just returned after being gone awhile.  I figured why not give her a try - I like a deal and it's not like I'm looking for anything drastic.

I liked that I could send my request in for an appt. via email b/c I have to be honest I do a lot of googling late at night or after normal working hrs so that was convenient.  The salon got back to me rather quickly w/ an appt. w/ Lindsay for Weds at 10 am.

Solis is on the 2nd floor on Yonge st. right near Charles st. which is nice b/c it keeps it calm and you don't get a lot of the outside traffic from being right on ground level.  Lindsay even said that most days they can even accommodate walk-ins which is great if you're looking for something like that.

It's a very clean and modern looking salon...not cluttered, big open windows looking out on Yonge and it doesn't feel pretentious or snobby which sometimes is the vibe that some salons give off...I don't know I just don't like walking into a salon where I don't feel "cool enough" to be there lol.  Right away I was asked if I wanted a tea or cappuccino...yes cappuccino - very nice touch, esp. at 10 am!  It was a really good cappuccino btw ;)

So right away Lindsay sat me down and we did a little consult.  I explained I really just wanted a trim to clean up the ends and some long layers  to relieve some of the weight of my hair and just give it a bit more body.  She totally got what I meant and even showed me what her "inch" off my hair would be just to make sure I was okay w/ that...I was fine I mean I just want it to look good I'm not the type to flip if it's an inch vs. an inch and a half.  She also mentioned that the biggest thing was my bangs needed to be blended into my haircut better which actually made totally sense to me...see I knew that other girl did something bad to them before ;)

So Lindsay then washed my hair and even gave me a little head massage.  Very nice in the morning!  After that she got right to the cutting.  She was really quick and she did texturize some areas as well.  There was a lot of hair on the ground but it's just cuz she had to cut in some layers...it was literally all one length before.  Lindsay was super friendly and I didn't feel forced talking to her...sometimes b/c of my business and working w/ clients all the time I hate having to make random small talk w/ others when I'm getting stuff done to me.

After it was all done and blow dried she showed me the back and what she had done to the bang area.  She also suggested I come back in about a mth just so she could help fix the bangs a bit more and blend them better.  Consult, wash, cut and style all took just an hr...pretty good in my book!

I left really happy...basically it looks like what I had before just better and lightened up w/ some layers.  Actually, most ppl wouldn't even notice it had been cut to be honest but you know what sometimes that's what we want.  I mean really a lot of us long hair girls just want to leave w/ our hair freshened up and looking long and lovely not w/ it looking several inches shorter or completely different then what we walked in w/.  Nothing worse then going in for a trim and leaving w/ your hair several inches shorter than you anticipated!

These were all taken a few hrs after the Haircut...it was SUPER hot and sticky on Weds!  See basically it looks the same just better lol!

I like this pic but it's not quite in focus



W/ the special my cut was $57 w/ tax + tip...that's pretty good for a haircut in Toronto in my books!  I left happy and maybe next time I won't go 9 mths between my next hair cut ;)

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