Everything people ask
before they book
Written by the people who answer the phone, not by a marketing department. If yours is not here, ring the salon — someone who cuts hair will pick up.
Booking and first visits
Do I have to be an existing client to book online?
Online booking is for people who have been in before. If this is your first visit, call the salon you want or send the form on this page. We will ask a couple of questions about your hair first so we book you enough time.
Do you charge for a consultation?
No. Consultations before your appointment are free. If you are thinking about a big change, book one and we will tell you honestly what your hair can take.
Can I book a particular stylist?
Yes, and it is worth doing. Several of the team work across more than one salon — Maria K is in all three, Emily and Dani split their week between Sunshine and Kingsville — so the person you want may not be in the room closest to you on the day you want. Book the person and we will tell you where they are.
What if I need to move or cancel my appointment?
Ring the salon directly as soon as you know. Reception can move you to another day, and it frees a chair someone else is waiting on. Phone is faster than email for anything happening in the next 48 hours.
How long should I set aside?
A cut and style is about an hour. A half or full head of foils with a toner and a blow wave is usually three to four. Your consultation is where we give you the real number for your hair, before you book the day off.
Colour
What does ammonia free colour actually mean for my hair?
It means the colour lifts and deposits without the harsh smell and the scalp sting most people expect from a salon. We use O&M and Natulique in all three salons. If your scalp reacts to normal colour, tell us and we will patch test you.
Which colour brands do you use?
O&M and Natulique, in all three salons. Both are ammonia free, and we buy them partly for what does not arrive in the box — packaging is one of the five waste streams we sort.
How much will my colour actually cost?
Foils run from $59 for a partline at Emerging level to $235 for a full head at Principle level, with toners from $28 and a root tint from $95. Those are guides. The real number is quoted at your free consultation, before anything is mixed.
Can you fix colour that was done somewhere else?
Usually, and it is what our Principle chairs are for. Corrections and big changes are the work that level is booked for. Book a consultation rather than an appointment, so we can see the hair before anyone promises anything.
Do I need a patch test?
If your scalp has ever reacted to colour, tell us when you book and we will patch test you beforehand. Ammonia free colour is gentler, but it is still colour.
Cuts and curls
Do you cut curly hair?
Yes, and it has its own service. The curly dry cut is from $95, and a first visit is $115 because it includes the longer consultation. It is cut dry, curl by curl, not cut wet and hoped for. Tina at Sunshine is the name people bring their curls to.
Do you cut children’s hair?
Yes. A wash, cut and blow wave is from $55 for primary school and from $85 for secondary, at any of the three salons.
Do you do short cuts and barbering?
Yes. A barber cut on a three weekly rotation is from $34, and a short hair cut and dry off is from $46. Short hair is one of the things Megan likes cutting most.
Prices
Why do your prices have three levels?
Emerging, Stylist and Principle. The price reflects how long someone has been behind the chair and how much time your service is booked for. Every level is qualified. Pick the one that suits your budget.
Are the prices the same at all three salons?
Yes. What changes the price is the level of the stylist you book, not the room you sit in. Kingsville, Sunshine and Essendon all run the same list.
Will an Emerging stylist do a worse job?
No. Every level is fully qualified. The price reflects how long someone has been behind the chair and how much time your service is booked for, and colour at Emerging level is supervised. Pick the level that suits your budget.
Sustainability
Can I donate my ponytail when I cut my hair off?
Yes. Tell us before we start and we will measure it, tie it and send it on to be made into a wig. It costs you nothing extra.
What does "95% of our waste is recycled" actually mean?
Five streams, sorted by hand. Hair clippings are bagged and collected for oil booms and compost. Ponytails are sent on to be made into wigs. Foils and colour tubes leave as clean metal. Colour water is filtered before it reaches the drain. Plastic and paper are separated, and cut down at the source by what we choose to buy.
Can I buy the products you use on my hair?
Yes. O&M and Natulique are on the shelf in all three salons, and the same range is in our online shop if you would rather it turned up at home.
The salons
Which salon should I book?
Kingsville is the original on Geelong Rd. Sunshine is on Watt St and is our busiest. Essendon is on Buckley St and is open limited hours for now. Some stylists work across more than one, so book the person if you have a favourite.
Why is Essendon open fewer days?
It is the newest room, opened in 2024, and it is running limited hours while it settles in — Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. If you need a time outside those, ring Essendon on (03) 9880 5994 and ask. We can often do it.
What is SATORI House?
The room behind the Essendon salon. It is a space for healing, workshops and teaching, hired by practitioners and open to anyone booking into what they run. It is not a hair service, and you do not have to be a Satori client to go.
Nothing here beats
actually asking
Consultations are free and there is no obligation at the end of one. If you are weighing up a big change, that is the conversation to have before you book anything.
First visit for colour? Ring the salon instead — we ask a couple of questions about your hair so we book you enough time.