Alchemy Hair Salon — Attraction in Orlando

I hesitated writing this review because I accept that part of the reason I don’t like the overall cut is because I probably did not know the proper terminology for what I wanted, but then I took a picture of the back of my hair and saw how horribly uneven it was. First, I want to be very clear. I like the FRONT of my hair. I asked for bangs, I got bangs. What I do NOT like is how SHORT the overall length was cut and how choppy/uneven the back is and how THIN my hair is now. Photo 1 is what my hair looked like before I got it cut. Photo 2 is what my hair looked like yesterday after washing it and styling it myself after the cut, and the 3rd photo is this morning and the choppy unevenness can clearly be seen. It also looks, and feels SO THIN.

1. On how thin it looks and feels. I had a lot of curly hair. Now, it is VERY thin. I am 98% sure the stylist thinned my hair but did not ask me if that was what I wanted, or tell me what she was doing. She would go through random curls and make cuts into the curl at different spots along the length of the curl, starting at the top and working her way down. Not full cuts through, but shallow cuts. Then she took a fine toothed comb and combed through that curl. I made a comment about it looking thin short but she just shrugged it off and said “When you layer hair, you’re basically thinning it.”

OK. Maybe to an extent. But THIS much loss? You were thinning it, just to thin it. Or maybe to try and add volume, but I don’t have a problem with that so there was no need to thin it.

2. On a note with the fine toothed comb. The stylist was extremely condescending when I would flinch when she would catch a tangle and rip the fine toothed comb through my hair. On several occasions she would sigh and make comments like: “Oh… you’re tender headed…” “How can you be tender headed?” “I’m always shocked when people with hair like this are tender headed.” “How have you survived being tender headed chuckle”

Lets get a few things straight. If I AM tender headed, so what? Don’t rip through my hair. 2, I’ve “survived” by not letting people rip through my hair. You were taking a fine toothed comb and combing through my DRY CURLY hair. Of course it’s going to catch! That is why one of the cardinal rules of curls is not to brush it dry!

A similar thing happened when the apprentice who washed my hair came over to untangle. She brought over a wide toothed comb and I thought “great! This will work better, it’s the same one I use at home.” NOPE. She started at the very top of my head and combed down and, shocker, snagged a mighty tangle right away. My head went back, because, ya know… it HURT, and immediately comes the sigh. “Oh… you’re tender headed.”

NO. you are tearing at my hair! Its curly! Why wouldn’t you start at the bottom and work your way up so you avoid ripping through tangles?! I was always told that was how to untangle curly hair.

3. On the choppy, unevenness at the back. This is not entirely the stylists fault. I knew, and told her my curls don’t like to be cut so right after a cut they do not form into my ringlet clumps but stay more frizzy and more like waves. This also happens because I have time at home to let it air dry, while the salon does not, so it was diffused which adds to the frizz and the curls pulling apart. NOT saying this as a bad thing! It looked ok from the front at the end of the session and I know it did not look this choppy from the back, but now that My curls are forming into their normal pattern, this is the result. And there is no way to fix it, but to cut it shorter to even it out. Which makes me want to scream because it is already WAY shorter than what I wanted.

I can already hear the response now “It’s just hair! It’ll grow back!” yes it will. But it is so curly that it grows so slowly. Plus, at approx. $70-75 for the cut and $25 for the tip, I’m out almost a hundred dollars on a cut...

I am particularly concerned with a stylist's ability and experience with bleach/color highlighting (in my case ,long hair specifically). A too high volume with bleach can and will destroy the condition of hair that has taken years to get long and most importantly, healthy looking,after years of highlighting. I found, by asking questions and sending pictures of my hair along with an explanation of what I wanted (no help from magazines). They were very open and easy about that type of communication (I had missed my consultation in person). What I wanted, well,not every stylist doesn't have the knowledge (much less time) to do what I wanted.They put me with Kristen. She was experienced, not intimidated and I trusted her. My highlights were spectacular (with help from 2 assistants). I gave 4 stars because the price was higher than I had been told by the front desk but ,in all fairness, I HAD missed my consultation in the shop ( I did send pictures as per request but when I asked Kristen, I don't think she gave them more than a glance). My highlights on long hair were quoted at a star point of $135, if a toner was used it would be $30 more,so &195 for full head highlights using a toner. I explained that I didn't want to use color, only bleach, so the foils would have to be removed at intervals, to get several shades of light blonde, med.blonde, dark blonde, etc.Makes for a very natural look but gorgeous when done properly. I had a bit of a trim but when they were a little blunt, I just adjusted them at home. I had her texturized the top back for a little height. That was fine but by then,I got a so-so blow out. My total cost was $260, which meant that I paid $65 for a bang trim/texturized top. Didn't touch the ends,just as I asked.She's very good and I booked for a full head touch up before I left for 7 weeks later. I tipped $40, I knew I had my new stylist. I was a little disappointed to have to ask that she dry the back all the way but I loved the color, the people and the whole easy feel of the place.I would recommend Kristen to anyone. Just be clear on what you want and what you expect,if you are particular about your hair. I would trust her with just about any service but you just want to get the right stylist for your hair, not mine.I dropped $300 ,a little more than expected but I have very long hair.Make an appointment and schedule a 15 minute consultation (it's worth it ) P.s. Kristen ended up leaving this salon and not telling me she wouldn't be there for my next appt. which was in a couple days. Not one person mentioned it BTW ! If I hadn't called the day before to check I would have arrived to MY STYLIST WORKING ELSEWHERE ! They still have some great stylists but when I found Kristen she told me she had to worry about mental issues and that every time I came in she ended up a nervous wreck. Lmao. Funny thing is she didn't look nervous at all as she was collecting $300 +/- bucks for my mental- stress causing problems which I'm not aware of. Never heard that in LIFETIME of going to some of the best stylists in Florida and New York, Atlanta etc. Im looking at it like this: She did me a huge favor by not taking me. 1st of all, it wasn't nervousness as I'd been seeing her for about 2 yrs since the old shop . Why didn't she say something in 2 years time. Never did. Not once. How unprofessional can 1 hair cutter be ? For that kind of money she could have bought vitamin therapy or CBD ! STRANGE 👧 GIRL. I now see Lindsey who is extremely talented and I'm going to ask HER if she feels drained after my appointment tomorrow on 12/23. She's great with blonde highlights but I'm just getting a cut & dry...

I absolutely do not recommend this salon! It saddens me to say this as I have MANY friends and family members that have been going to this salon for years. I had made an appointment for a color service, and sent the salon current pictures, pictures of what I wanted, and a full hair history. I am not new to hair color, and have been dying my hair for years. My hair has always been in a somewhat healthy condition, aside from the ends that I occasionally just need to chop off. I went in for my appointment and discussed with my colorist again what my hair history was, and what I was looking for. We both agreed that I would not be able to get exactly what I wanted in one session, but I would get the base of what I wanted, which I was totally fine with. We discussed services that would be provided, and a price. The price almost made me jump out of my seat, but I knew Alchemy was the very best (or so I thought). After being in the chair for 6 hours, and not knowing exactly what services were being done at the time, I had finished. I would like to say that the apprentice, Dianna, was the ONLY good thing about my experience. She was super sweet, and made me feel comfortable and welcomed in the salon. After my final blow dry, I paid and left. As soon as I got home, and inspected my hair more, I burst out into tears at how bad and unhealthy it looked. My hair has NEVER looked this bad. I called the salon that day and left a message for a manager. They then contacted me the next day, and I explained the situation, and sent over 2 sets of photos. I was told the owner would be contacting me. It took a WEEK of me calling daily for the owner to get back to me. It took me sending a detailed email and having family and friends that are also clients of the salon calling, to get a call. I thought that we were going to get everything sorted…I was wrong. The owner met me with a nasty attitude, and belittled me during our entire conversation to the point where I was shaking and on the verge of tears. I felt as if she was blaming my dissatisfaction on myself. She offered for me to come in and have her fix it, which I DENIED. I paid to have my service done, and have me walk out of the salon with what I wanted…That service was not provided, I will not take time out of my day to come by to a salon and be met with a nasty attitude and maybe get my hair fixed. I am absolutely disappointed in the service, and the lack of professionalism. It is so sad to see as this salon has been open since 1998. I do hope that things change, and no client ever has to deal with this frustration. This review may result in yet another response of how it is “not their fault”. Just do...