The Lock Loft — Local services in Lakewood

I truly wish I could give a better review, but I’m disappointed and communication is key to running a good business. I had my appointment at The Lock Loft on Saturday and since then, I have taken time to think. Despite the review, I know that being a stylist of any kind is difficult- you can’t please everyone. This review comes from a place of respect and honesty.

I’ll preface this with two things. 1: the salon is gorgeous. Clean, spacious, and aesthetically pleasing. The staff is kind, friendly, and not overbearing. If I had to base my review off of the care and atmosphere, we’d be batting 100. 2: I have bad luck with haircuts. It doesn’t matter where I go (I do my research, give details before the appointment, etc.), nobody can seem to quite grasp my ideas.

In this instance, I spent a year growing out my hair from a pixie cut. As you can guess, I was very proud of my healthy, bob length hair. I decided that I needed to tweak my new growth just a little bit. I did my research, found this salon, and loved all of their online content.

When I went in, I asked for some odd layers on the side opposite my part to be fixed and for the back to be leveled- nothing drastic. I also told my stylist that I wanted my hair to eventually be all one length. She then proceeded to go in and add significantly more layers. My short top pieces that I spent months growing are now even shorter. The bottom layers that were already thin are thinner. I felt a little strange leaving after the appointment, as it wasn’t what I thought I’d communicated. I figured it just got styled in a different way, perhaps the stylist wasn’t sure what to do with my texture? Unfortunately, not the case.

I believe the cut my stylist aimed for was on trend and messy, a look that does work for so many girls my age with the right face shape and texture. The truth is that on me it looks like The Rachel. It’s also not a healthy cut. I have naturally curly hair that I used to let air dry to give my strands a break- no longer an attractive option. I had just reached ponytail length, but it’s too short/thin now so hiding the cut isn’t an option either. My only choice is to use hot tools for styling, 24/7. Using heat on curly hair with thin layers is asking for split ends. Ultimately, I’m short $55 with a weird cut that will be damaging in the long run. Growing you hair out is a tough process, and this cut has set me back four months at least.

All this being said, I have no hard feelings toward the staff at all. My recommendation to them is to make free consultations a widely available option. List them online, on your stylists’ Instagrams, in the salon. In fact, I recommend requiring them for new clients. If they can’t come in separately, schedule longer blocks for haircuts so your stylists and customers have time to get to know each other. You can hire people you trust, but you must make sure the customer’s needs, desires, and stylistic intentions...

This is a great salon! I loved my experience with Alissa! She was so knowledgeable. I have naturally curly hair that I've barely ever cut or colored because I never thought I would be able to achieve the looks I'd seen online or on other people. I also have had horrible luck with people understanding how to truly give my curly hair the techniques it required! Alissa proved me wrong in the best way! After describing the look I wanted and showing her some reference pictures of the balayage look I wanted, she explained exactly why she was cutting and coloring my hair a certain way. She described the effects and purpose of each technique so I was confident that my hair would turn out the way I wanted. After the final reveal I was speechless - my hair looked AMAZING! I wanted to cry! Alissa also took the time to talk through my curl pattern and hair issues and recommend several styling products. Several weeks later and my natural curls still fall perfectly with the perfect balayage. Thank you Alissa and the Lock Loft! I can't wait to go in for...

Disappointed to have to leave a 1-star review. I had a great first appointment here with Elizabeth. The salon was clean and comfortable and I was happy with the results. I booked a 2nd appointment on the spot for 6 weeks later. Since the stylists are independent I didn't get any sort of appointment reminder on the day of my appointment or before.

I showed up at my 2nd appointment time and sat there for 20 minutes. The stylist never showed up. I text her to ask if we were still on and she said she was sick and would be rescheduling at no charge. She asked if I was free next week and I responded, but never heard from her again. That was 10 days ago. So needless to say, I won't be back. If I had not shown up to my appointment with less than 48 hours notice, your cancellation policy would have charged me for 50% of the service.

This salon seems to have a lot of 5-star reviews, so maybe this is a one off experience with this stylist, but being considerate of people's time is easy and requires...