Iisha African Braiding — Local services in Hamden

I’ve tried both booking an appointment in advance and walking into this salon, but the outcome has always been the same: the salon is consistently busy, and everything seems to operate on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Having been braiding my hair for years, this wasn’t unexpected, but what caught me off guard was the lack of communication and constant shifting around during the process. My appointment began at 11:45 am, and a stylist started on the front, only braiding half of each braid, leaving the rest unraveling and unfinished so that another person would need to complete it later. Meanwhile, a second stylist worked on the back of my head. Around 4:45 pm, the second stylist—who I assumed would finish my braids—left abruptly. I sat there for nearly 30 minutes with no one working on my hair, growing increasingly frustrated. Only after asking repeatedly did I learn she had left the salon.

At that point, I was already over five hours into the process and becoming increasingly exhausted. I tried to offer to pay for the work that had been done (about 2/3 of my hair), but they refused, insisting they would finish the job. Another two women eventually took over, but they seemed visibly frustrated with me. In total, I ended up spending over 7 hours at the salon.

If you have an entire day to dedicate and don’t mind waiting, I’d suggest being the first customer of the day and preparing for at least 7 hours, especially if you have a busy schedule. I’ve been to many busy salons in New York and Connecticut, and the longest I’ve ever spent—regardless of style complexity—was 5-6 hours. I had asked for a simple style here, yet the process took much longer than anticipated.

As an African and someone who supports small businesses, I really tried to be understanding. However, better communication with customers could significantly improve this experience. I’m typically a very easygoing client, but I left this visit feeling frustrated and disappointed. The braiding itself was not bad, so I’m leaving a 3-star review, but unfortunately, I won’t...

I would not recommend this place to anyone.I was so mad leaving this place. I called a week ahead and made an appointment to be there at opening time, 10 am on a Sunday for knotless braids. When I got there, there was a group of other women there who were also told to be there for 10. There were only 2 workers there at first and everyone had to wait for other stylists to arrive. I wasn’t started until some time after 11 and the girl that did my hair came in and went to eat first before even starting. It took her literally all day to do my hair! I didn’t leave until after 7 which is ridiculous! My braids were not small. They were long however I’ve been to another place that had me done in 3 hours, 4 hours max. I chose to go to this place because I saw this tik tok and some other pics and thought they would be good. They are also closer to my house. Throughout the time I was there I watched some of the other stylists and their parts were horrible and uneven. No one was trying to make sure the parts looked good ant all. There was only 2 ladies whose parts looked good. Everyone was going in and out to the store or break room taking their time and talking. When the girl had like 2 or 3 rows left of my hair in front, she told me she was going to go take a break to eat. I told her no because I had been there all day since 10 am, hadn’t eaten or anything. It shouldn’t take that long to braid medium size knotless braids. My braids came out ok but my parts are not the best, she used too much hair, and I don’t think I like the brand of hair. Never again will I go there or...

I’ve been here about 3 times and to be honest the braids come out really nice. I usually get boho knotless mid back and when I request not too much of the boho hair to be used they never seem to get it right. It’s either too much or not enough. I’m not able to tell how much they’ve added until my hair is done. My braids do last a long time and I do think that the pricing is fair. They braid pretty fast. However I do think they could braid even faster if the workers knew how to multitask as in talking and braiding at the same time. Multiple times my braider has stopped braiding my hair to talk. Another thing I will say is that some braiders will leave for a long period of time without saying anything. This does make me frustrated because I have to sit in the chair for so long. The shop is really busy no matter what. I recommend coming early in the morning like at 9 when they first open. Even if you have a scheduled appointment and get there first it doesn’t matter they start braiding on whoever they feel like. I do wish that the braiders would get to the shop and prepare the hair before the appointments.You will at least be waiting for about 30 mins before you get your hair done. I do like this place but there is a lot of flaws. I recommend taking a whole day off work to get...