Laboratory Hair Studio — Local services in Morris Plains

Men looking for a phenomenal haircut, this is the right review for you

I haven't gotten a haircut since March because of the quarantine. With my hair grown out, I figured I'd look up a place with high reviews and splurge on my first cut of the quarantine. My overall experience with Laboratory Hair Studio was memorable, enjoyable, and marked with exceptional professionalism. I'm going to shape my review and experience in 3 major sections: Pre-cut; At the Salon; and Post-visit.

**PRE-CUT: Before making the commitment, I called into the Salon to ask questions. Their reviews and pictures seemed to indicate that the salon's clientele was dominantly female hairstyling. However, the receptionist assured me that stylists have a lot of experience cutting men's hair, as well. My hairstyle is a very sensitive thing to me because my hairline has been thinning over the past two years due to stress. I made it a quarantine goal of mine to find a salon that would allow me to feel confident and good about my hair. I've been gladly & comfortably getting my hair cut by my previous barber for the past 10 years of my life but I was open to a possible change. The receptionist was understanding of my situation and answered all my questions with knowledge and patience. She gave me the recommendation to get my haircut by Carmen and set up my appointment easily. My pre-visit conversation made me feel a lot better about coming in and that I would be in good hands.

**AT THE SALON: When I arrived at the salon, I was met with exceptional professionalism and care. They asked to read my temperature, fill out a Covid-19 questionnaire, and I was asked if I'd like a service beverage. They sanitize all areas, have access to hand sanitizer for clients, clients/stylists keep their masks on during the session, and the stylists are incredibly mindful and considerate of the client's comfort, as well.

Once I sat down in my seat, I had the privilege of meeting my new stylist, Carmen. I came in communicating a very particular idea of how my hair was cut in the past, what my hair is like, and inspirations on how I'd like my hair to be cut and adjusted. My recommendation would be to go in with an idea of what you want, communicate, and trust that the stylists expertise will help you achieve a certain look you're hoping to become a reality. I did just that- I explained, and let Carmen show me her skills & artistry. She was incredibly thoughtful throughout the session as she asked me questions, made recommendations while still respecting what I desired, and she even explained the reasons why she was making certain decisions in the cutting process. This is precisely the reason why I wanted to transition from a barber to a salon. It's all about that care, precision, and intentionality. Layering, texture, weight... things so often overlooked in a barbershop setting (in my personal experiences). As a client, I very much appreciated her gentle, calm-spirited demeanor, and down-to earth personality. I'm grateful she was open to having good conversation, as well. :) Please don't make her really busy so it's harder for me to see her easily... Totally kidding.

**POST-CUT: I loved that I walked out of the Salon with new knowledge, ready to style my hair on my own. I was set up for success. I purposely wrote this review 2-3 days after to see how sustainable my hairstyle would be. I've already gotten nothing but compliments on my new look. GOAL: check. success. Feeling confident and good about my hair. Carmen worked her magic to keep that hairline hidden and controlled. Since this is an honest review, my only hope is that I'll be able to get my hair cut in the same way with consistently. I'm new to the salon so I understand it'll take time. My hesitations are reassured by my great experience.

FYI- Price point is competitive but not unreasonable compared to other places in the area. It's well worth the cost. I even walked out of the salon with a new hairspray, too...

I absolutely loved my haircut, my now new-found stylist, and I will without a question...

I had been going for several years to this salon. My hair stylist was fantastic. Unfortunately she no longer works there. I decided to have Laboratory hair studio do my hair and make up for me and bridal party for my wedding. I paid over $1,200 only to have them use subpar make up products on us on the biggest day of my life. My hair was perfect, the make up was applied correctly however since they used such junk products my make up didn't last thru ceremony. I asked my stylist prior if my eyeliner and Mascara were waterproof. She said yes.

I was concerned even during my trial as the cheap lipstick used didn't last more than an hour so I went out and bought my own high end $30 lipstick for my wedding. When I was getting trial I noticed great lash Mascara in their make up drawer. Like really a $3 Mascara?

Day of wedding while getting ready it was a little chilly in morning. My maid of honor got her make up done and went outside to take pictures came back with her eye make up messed up from tearing. She alerted me and I told her they just did it 20 minutes ago have her redo it! They did

Ceremony time of course I cried during my wedding. I made sure to not whipe my eyes and just use my finger on lower eye area to get the tear. I did not want to smudge the make up. I wear waterproof eyeliner and Mascara and water doesn't make it smudge but I was still careful.As soon as ceremony us over my bridal attendants came with make up whipes and cotton swabs and a mirror. My entire eyelids were black. All the eyeliner and Mascara was all over. Unfortunately that meant I walked down the aisle leaving ceremony with all my friends and family with black stuff all over my eyes.

Of course I didn't bring any extra make up except my $30 lipstick and some eyeliner. So I didn't have any eyeshadow on for the rest of the wedding.. I had to re do my eyeliner which since it was a standard waterproof stayed on.

This was very upsetting and was planning to reach out to salon. Until I happened to get a phone call from them letting me know my stylist was no longer at the salon. I tell one of the managers my story. She said she would speak to someone else and get back to me. Never did. You would think with my story and the fact my stylist was no longer there they would have offered to reimburse me a chunk of my bill. Nope not even a...

I don't normally write negative reviews. But after this experience, it is an earned review. New customer to the salon. Called to schedule a hair cut appointment. Spoke with the receptionist, explained what hair cut and skills I was looking for and asked who they have that matched what I was describing and could do it really well. They assigned an employee. Failure Point #1. Got to the salon, the employee stated she was not sure about the cut, would try her best. Failure Point #2. The result was a hair cut so bad (failure point #3), that I had to schedule an appointment at a different salon to see how/if it could be salvaged without needing to walk around with a hoodie on all day long to cover it up. Employee of different salon is also a teaching hair instructor. She said the hair cut was so badly done that your employee needs to go back to school to learn how to cut hair. Your employee's hair cut left unevenly cut sections of hair in directions that made no sense. One side of the head had longer pieces than the other side of the head. Your employee did not know how to use the tools she needed to cut the hair. And because she did not know how to do the hair cut she also cut the hair shorter than she was supposed to. What needs to be corrected at your salon: 1) Your receptionists need to fully understand the skill sets and capabilities of your employees. If they had, failure point # 1 would not have happened. 2) When your employee knows that she can't perform the haircut, an immediate cancelation of the appointment should have happened either via phone or on the spot in person. Had that happened, the botched haircut would never have happened that led to failure points # 2 & 3. And I would not be writing this 1 star review because I would have appreciated the honesty. Thank you for comp'ing the bad cut, but will never return to this salon again because of how many failure...