SPN hair salon review

Eyes on za hair :)

I haven't done a hair post in a bit, because i just haven't had the zeal. Earlier in the year, i started an in-depth draft post for new Naturalistas and Transitioners, it was supposed to be a go to guide with links to more info on all you need to know about natural hair as a newbie. Long story short, i did not know my internet connection was down and all i had typed and linked did not save as a draft, before i could rectify this, my Google Chrome browser crashed and restarted but without all the content i had spent time and energy. Pissed is an understatement of how i felt, i just closed the laptop and went to bed (i did learn a lot while drafting the post though) and just haven't been able to getting around to re-doing the post.

my three-strand braids for keeping my hair stretched

I have given myself a haircut or 2 since my last post, mostly focused on my ends, i have also stuck to washing and taking care of my hair by myself at home, wigs have also waltzed into my hair routine , my hair has grown out quite some as well as the bald spot (traction alopecia) i got on my hairline,from tight braids(Halleluyah!!) and much more hair jist, watch out for a post on this *covers face.lol. I decided after my plenty DIY to visit a  salon to get my hair washed, i have 2 friends who are also Natural and they recommended SPN salon to me.

2 days post-salon visit. I had to moisturize with water n rosewater to style

SPN (Snow's Purely Naturelle) Salon are supposedly Professional Natural Hair Stylists and located on the 2nd floor in Centrepoint Mall on No. 35, Adetokunbo Ademola Cresent, Wuse II, Abuja (close to Chloe's Cupcake). I had almost forgotten to do this review till i read that of fellow blogger Achenyo.

I went to the salon on the 4th of December and its a small space with about 5 or 6 chairs, i noticed it had just one wash basin and one hair dryer and it was full of clients. I was warmly welcomed by one of the stylists and the owner of the salon, i spoke to the stylist about washing my hair and i was told it costs #1,500 (i felt it was on the high side but i also know detangling can be stressful), and i asked if my hair could be blow-dried afterwards and they told me, they do not blowdry or stretch Natural hair and clients hair have to air-dry huh?? I was confused, i had thought as 'professional hair stylists' they'd give me the option of a cold blow dry or they would have temperature regulated straighteners and heat protectants or suggest i go with any of the heat free stretching options. I told the stylist straight up that i was not ok with having my hair air-dried 'cos i get almost 85% shrinkage and would end up with tangles and knots, even when i do my wash at home, i work with two-strand twists or braids to help stretch my hair while it air-dries in a microfibre towel head wrap. After much back and forth, th owner of the salon intervened, i explained my stand to her and she told the girl to put my hair in two-strand twists after conditioning. I was ok with this though i wasn't pleased i'd leave the salon with damp hair. 

I asked how much it would cost to get my hair in medium kinky braids and i was told it costs #6,000 and one pack of the attachment costs #2,500 (it costs 1k5 in the market by the way) and i would need 3. OK. She said they do not open on Mondays and i'd have to come on Tuesday if i wasn't doing it after my wash, she also said i wouldn't have to pay for my wash if i got my braids done there right after my wash. I told her i had other plans and that will not be possible so i'd stick to just washing and conditioning and having my hair in two-strand twists to go. I had prepped my hair before going to the salon, detangled and cornrowed into four. While i waited for the wash basin to free up, the stylist took down my cornrows and did some detangling while the owner and i conversed, she had asked me how long my hair was and i told her 'i don't know', which is the honest truth. I do not length check, my only goal is to have healthy hair. She saw how long and full my hair was when taken down, asked how many years i had been Natural, other customers got interested in my hair journey, regimen, etc. and we all conversed. She told me she had been trained abroad, i told her i usually don't go to salons and prefer to cater to my hair myself. I enjoyed the conversation and told her i avoid using products with coconut oil because my hair is protein sensitive (check here, here and here for details on this) and they make my hair brittle, stiff and hay-like especially when used in excess. She was surprised when i said that and said her hair loves coconut oil. She offered me and the other customers fruit cake at some point and i felt really comfortable.
My hair was properly washed, although i did not like that i couldn't tell the brand/content of the shampoo or conditioner because they had been put in a bottle without labels, it was dried with a t-shirt (which is normal for natural hair) though i'd have preferred a micro-fibre towel and it was around this time that the owner of the salon left. I sat in the chair and the stylist said she was going to use their leave-in conditioner in my hair, i told her i'd rather use just shea butter and she sed they did not (what natural hair salon has NO SHEA BUTTER) have any so i had no option but to use the conditioner. She had already put the conditioner (A LOT) in my hair before i remembered to confirm that it did not have coconut oil in it and it did. *sigh. She did some light detangling and put my hair in very loose two strand twists which basically defeated the aim of me getting the twists (which was to reduce my shrinkage). I was pissed! I asked for a t-shirt and wiped as much of the product out of my hair as possible and did a firm three strand braid in place of the twists to help stretch my hair. The stylist sat down throughout and watched me do all this without offering to assist, apologising for using a product with coconut oil in my hair and in excess; as far as she was concerned, she was done and i should pay up and leave. I paid the #1500 and as a first time customer, i was not impressed with the service and i noticed they were not polite to the two customers in the salon with me who had complains about how their hair was being styled.
I had to re-moisturize my hair with a mix of water and rosewater the next night after my salon visit and the night after (hubby's bday) before i could style it o get rid of the stiffness and hay-like feel the coconut oil had given it. I ended up having breakage, damage to some of my ends and basically lost some hair 'cos of how strong it was and difficult to manipulate, even simply taking down the braids it was in.*big sigh* I doubt i will be patronising the salon anytime soon and if at all for ONLY styling, gonna stick to my DIY home hair-care that has worked so far.

1 day post-salon visit. Check out my hairline (no bald spot) :D

1 day post-salon visit. I took out d braids.Hair was stiff & Hay-like

The owner of the salon seems like a warm person that does understand natural hair and her stylists seem well behaved when she is around but when she leaves they switch and they definitely need more training on how to handle natural hair. I agree with Achenyo's post on the improvements they need to make. They really can do better.

Toodles!XooX

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