Maguette African hair braiding — Local services in New York

I hate to leave a negative review because I really like Maguette and my first visit with her in July 2020 was great. This time around, not so much. I scheduled a Fulani Braid style for February 26. Right away, things were rough even on arrival. I didn't realize that Maguette was away on vacation, otherwise, I would have likely waited. Nonetheless, I got a wait regardless, because I ended up sitting for an hr while the braider supposedly looked for parking. I commented about how rude and inconsiderate her tardiness was and of course, no one had any decent response. In fact, the stylist managing the phone just stared at me like a deer in headlights. As soon as I got up to leave, she walked in and I honestly should have just left anyway.

The whole braiding process was lowkey torture. I brought my own hair that I soaked the night before because I had a terrible itch the first time I went there and used the hair they provide. The braiders seemed to be offended by that but its my scalp to itch, soooo...

The braider consistently braided and pulled very hard despite me constantly asking her to loosen up and pulling away persistently. When she started the cornrows, I noticed that she was pulling especially hard. I told her audibly, repeatedly to loosen up, to no avail. I will admit that I should have just gotten up and left when it seemed that clearly no communication would suffice, but alas.

When I got home, I noticed that the cornrows were pulled way too tight in the front but tried to thug it out and convinced myself they would loosen and it would be fine. By March 2, I started noticing some small bumps forming around my hairline and kept trying to push through. Then on March 4, I wake up to a large red swelling right at the start of the tightest braid. Over the course of the day, it became abundantly clear that it was due to tension and my follicles were inflamed as well. I called and asked to speak with Maguette and was told I would have to wait until she returned from vacation but come in on March 5 at 11am to have the braider correct them and let them see my scalp.

I instead decided to take the braids down that night because I ain't losing my edges for nobody. I called to inform the braider the morning of March 5 that I would just be waiting to speak with the owner and show her the photos and girlfriend went off. Long story short, she was mad that I had taken the braids down and over-talked me the whole call so idk what she was saying and I'm sure she didn't hear me either.

In summary: if you care about your edges, wait for Maguette. I have painful, swollen patches throughout my scalp and the braids didn't even last a week. I'm disappointed that I didn't get to wear the style long but I'm even more disappointed at how poorly the situation was handled. To be chastised for doing what I deem necessary to protect the health of my hair is wild. I hope that Maguette is able to get everybody on the same page when...

Update at 3 Weeks: It’s been three weeks and my hair looks very bad at the back and worsening. I don’t think I’ll be able to go back. I’m going to have to take these out in another week or so. What a waste of cash! :(((

Update at 1 Week:

My hair has been in for exactly one week and already several of the braids at the back, underneath are starting to get extremely frizzy and expose my natural hair. It seems like those were not properly slicked with gel as the braids were made like the top. The back also wasn’t tucked as well. The top are still beautiful. Disappointing because it means the style might last only 6 weeks or so instead of 10 :(

Original: I did a lot of searching to find a good braiding salon when my previous one closed. Maguette and her sister worked on my head (mostly Maguette) and it turned out beautifully. Regular box braids in medium size. Very slightly more expensive than some places but really worth it for showing up and leaving with my whole head done in 4.5 hours. And her basement salon is bright, airy and so much cleaner than most shops. Love love the look and will be back!

Make sure to call to check your appointment time is available and then Zelle her $20 to hold the spot which is then applied toward the style. No Cash App or Venmo. You can pay the balance in...

I got my box braids done here for the first time yesterday. I was going to give 4 stars because my scalp was EXTREMELY sore after I got them done (I am not tender-headed) but they have considerably loosened up after just one day. I think my braider was Rasheeda (don't know if that's how it's spelt, sorry), she was very sweet and is a very skilled braider. My parts are PERFECT, as per the picture I showed her. The braids themselves are very flexible. I got a middle part but they are so flexible that once they loosen up enough, I can change it to a side part if I want to. I could not do that with the box braids I had previously gotten installed by another salon. The length is exactly what I wanted. I had bought 3 packs of hair in the color 2, but it ended up not being enough. They had to sell me one more pack in the color 1b. That is my only "complaint," but it was technically my own fault for not buying enough hair, and the different colors are not at all noticeable. I recommend buying 4 packs of hair. The prices are very fair, my medium waist length braids were $120. Overall, nice experience! I will...