Animare Salon and Spa Aveda

Edited Notes: The next day after leaving this review, I got a call from the manager. She was really sorry and rescheduled me for a free appointment with the first manicurist I had and loved. I just got my manicure and it looks beautiful and only took an hour as expected. On my way out, I saw that there were products for sale in a special rack for $ 9.50. I thought, oh that’s awesome, I’ll take one of those. As I walked out, I looked at the receipt for the product and saw I was charged $ 25.00 for the product. I walked back in expecting them to say «oh, so sorry, let’s fix that.» However, when I mentioned that the sign said $ 9.50, they just took the sign down and said the sign was a mistake. Lesson learned, ask if the For Sale signs are current…
Original Review: I’ve been to this location twice. The first time was lovely. I got a beautiful gel manicure, pedicure, and massage. So, I decided to come back again for a mani/​pedi. Big mistake. The lady doing my second mani/​pedi was definitely not a manicurist. At this point, Shellac is not a new thing. The technician wasn’t Shellac-​certified and was unable to use the gel polish. When I asked if she could do a little design from Pinterest, she said «eh.» She also complained when I picked dark nail polish because it’s «harder» to do, dropped the bottle on the floor and spilled the color everywhere, and she took so long to paint my nails that the polish dried out and she had to start over with a different color. In fact, she took so long that she missed another customer’s appointment. When the woman was upset that she’d have to reschedule, the technician said, «well, she got something special so if she goes anywhere else they’ll screw it up.» I finally left the salon after 3.5 hours and a manicure so bad I came home and redid it myself in 10 minutes. When I got home, I emailed the spa privately to share my experience. I was hoping for an apology or any sort of response. However, it’s been a week and I have yet to see a reply. I’m $ 75 poorer and way more unhappy after coming to this salon.

I’m an out of towner, and I stopped in to kill a few hours of time. Boy was that a great decision! Excellent pedicure by Star, and a GREAT haircut by Brittany. Couldn’t have been more impressed. The salon was comfy, clean, and relaxing! If only it was closer to home, I’d be a new regular.

I have been going to Kaitlin for about 2 years now and she is absolutely the best! I usually only get a haircut there but this past summer I decided to try something new with my hair color and I left it all up to her. All I told her was that I wanted Balayage and she did the rest. I love the way it turned out! And I still get compliments for my hair 5 months later because of the way she did it. It looks natural even after it grows out. I definitely recommend her!

What a great salon! I have been going here now for about 4 years and always leave feeling like a new woman. I have incredibly curly long hair so it is difficult to find someone who knows how to manage these curls. I got a recommendation from a friend to go to Kaitlyn, and I have been with her ever since. She gives an incredible consultation, listens to her clients and is an absolute Wiz with color! She comes with my highest of recommendations and I’m very picky! This is truly a spa experience from the moment you walk in. You will love the salon and adore Kaitlyn!

Tabby is AMAZING! Go see her for you cut & coloring needs! I went to her as a brunette, and two sessions later, my hair is perfectly highlighted blonde. She didn’t want to go as blonde as I wanted the first visit, because she didn’t want to irrevocably damage my hair, which I respect. She didn’t try to force any products I don’t need on me (which I really respect… the last stylist I saw at Animare bullied me into buying shampoo I didn’t need practically every visit).

Kaitlynn was awesome! I’m picky with my hair and always tend to go to box color that goes back to one color after I don’t like what each hairstylist has done to my hair for years when I tell them I want caramel highlights that blend well. I always keep long dark brown hair but was wanting to get some great caramel color in it once again and get a shorter trendier hairstyle. Kaitlynn did not disappoint. She took so much time on my hair and gave me the result I’ve been wanting for so long! She did my first balayage coloring and I loved it! Definitely recommend her!

I had been going to this salon for the past three years. My stylist left late last year, along with many others, and I have been going to the new salon they work at for the past few months. I was in need of a haircut this past week, and my stylist had no openings. I decided to go to Animare, and booked an appt with Caitlyn since I needed a cut desperately. After I waited for 45 minutes, I did arrive early, I was told Caitlyn had left for an emergency. They said another stylist could cut my hair instead. I, unfortunately, agreed. She was obviously not very experienced, and seemed nervous. When she was finished, my hair looked horrible. After she blow dryed my hair I was pretty angry. I asked her to let me use her straight iron so I could fix it. She said hers was broken, and she didn’t have one I could use. I was so mad that I couldn’t speak. I walked away from her, paid my bill, and left. I was told by the stylists who had left, just how far down hill this salon had gone. I wish I had listened. I’ll never go back.

I have yet to actually have any services done here because for some reason the salon does not have a decent scheduling system. I made an appointment for a certain time for eyelash extensions. A week later the salon calls and tells me they need to reschedule because the lady that does the extensions had an emergency. No problem that is understandable. I rescheduled for a week later and the day before my appointment i got a call telling me that the lady that i had an appointment with did not want to block a whole 2 hr appointment when she hasn’t even seen what she was going to be working with as far as my eyelashes go, so they rebooked me for a consultation. Then on the day of my appointment they called me and told me my appointment was for a hair appointment & not eyelashes. Ugh really!!! At that point i figured i would never get my eyelashes done so i went elsewhere.

I love this salon! Kaitlynn gave my drab dishwater blonde new life with a balayage technique. She is passionate about what she does and is a true professional. I always leave feeling like a supermodel!!!

I absolutely adore this salon. It’s super clean, everyone is friendly and professional, and stylists are phenomenal. I see Kaitlynn and she does a great job every time. She’s good at coloring, cutting, and even eyebrows, which I am extremely particular about. ¹⁰⁄₁₀ definitely recommend it.

I’m traveling constantly with work and finally got myself booked in for a major hair clean up! I’m so pedantic with my hair and I’ve had platinum blonde for 3 years which I love but my hair was so damaged I knew I had to change to a slight ombré to make it more maintainable!
Caitlyn did an absolutely AMAZING job achieving this dark blonde to light blonde ombré. I couldn’t be more relieved with the result and recommend this salon for everyone. Thanks so much for the major clean up, I feel like a new person!

I’ve been going to this salon for a little while but my stylist recently left so I had my cut/​color retouch with Sara last week. I love what she did with my layers… its been a little awkward as I’m growing my hair out and it is laying so much better after what she did. Sara is new and working at building up her clientele. Give her a shot. I think she did great and would love to see her stick around for a while.

I stopped in here for a color and cut… never got the cut. Why? After I saw the results of my color — I just wanted to get out of there. The stylist took 30 minutes to just mix my color. I told her I wanted a warm brown and I wound up with black. To add injury to insult, my hairline was covered in dye.

So, here’s the thing — I don’t care about salons. I care about food, good service and a smooth drink. Fashion? No. Hair? No. My ideal hairstyle is wash and go, no frills/​products. The problem is that to pull this look off, you need a killer hair cut.
I had been going to another stylist for a while and grew tired of the constant product pushing and lack of listening. A friend recommended this salon and I’ve been hooked. Here’s why:
#1 — I’m a busy mom. I don’t have time to make an appointment three months in advance and expect to keep it. You can call this place the day of and find a spot if you’re not picky about your stylist.
#2 — Given number one, you might worry about the quality of the stylist you get paired with. The junior stylists here are fantastic. I’ve seen half a dozen now and they all did a great job. One bonded with me as a new mom. One talked me out of a Felicity moment. One gave me very sound and practical advice about my scalp issues without being overly pushy about selling products.
#3 — For the experience, I pay less than I did before. More convenient. Cheaper. And better for my needs. That’s a win.
My hair needs are simple, so that’s a constraint. I can’t speak to their ability to do dye or more complex hair types. What I would like to see is a little more effort from the front staff. Usually the greeter treats me oddly (maybe because I am generally underdressed for the normal clientele here). Also, several times while getting shampooed (which should be relaxing) staff members stand around talking about hair stuff. It’s distracting from the relax/​Zen vibe. Otherwise this place is awesome. I will keep coming back.

I too use to go the chain haircut shops because it always seemed so convenient but have come to realize you do get what you pay for. I was very pleased with the service and cut I received here. The atmosphere is very relaxing and I was impressed to see 4 other men getting there hair cut here at the same time. The aroma therapy scalp rub was amazing and is included with the cut as is the shampoo. Karen Miller was my stylist and she rocks.
Made another appointment before I left.

I’ve had my hair cut here several times and by several different stylists. Before coming here, I went the bargain route to the sport clips, hair cuttery, and supercuts, and those places can’t compare to Animare.
Everyone at this place is super friendly and professional and they are very skilled in what they do! I highly recommend this place and after my first visit, I won’t go anywhere else!
As I mentioned above, I’ve used several different stylists and they all rock! Check them out :)

I visited to have a haircut today. I called this morning and was able to secure an appointment for same day, which I was very excited about! It had been a while since I’d gotten my hair cut and was in need of a style. I showed the stylist 3 pictures and had a great consultation with her. She began cutting and I was comfortable with the length removed (approx. 8″). As she went on, she was uncomfortable and had to consult a different stylist on 2 occasions. Finally it became apparent that she could not do the cut and had to turn it over. This was a basic longer bob. I am giving 2 stars because the girl who corrected it did it very well, though even she said that the length will have to grow back and work to get the desired style I wanted. They also discounted my service because I was there for 3 hours for a haircut. With so many salons in Hampton Roads, I will not be back.

Oh, Animare… how I love you. After much angst with my past salon, which shall remain nameless, I bit the bullet & called Animare. After a consult, I chose Erin, a Master Designer who truly «gets» my rather finicky naturally curly hair. Since I started going to Animare, I consistently get compliments on my hair. I use Erin for my cut, color and waxing needs. Highly recommended for anyone with picky hair like mine!

I’ve been going here for a few years now and I love it! I think it’s the nicest spa (and best value) in the area! I love that they offer you something to drink while you wait for your appointment, and that all of the stylists are really knowledgeable. It usually isn’t too difficult to get an appointment last minute, which is great if you’re big on deciding to get a haircut on a whim like I am.
In addition to haircuts, I’ve also had a massage here, which is heavenly!!! Totally worth it. Can’t wait to treat myself to another one soon!

So as the Unilocal CM I read tons of reviews on a daily basis. I’m always looking for something new to try out (mostly food). From time to time I catch a review about a salon and read about how named stylist is the best ever… often times written after the Unilocaler’s first experience. I then think to myself how crazy it is for someone to feel that way immediately. Well, here’s one of those reviews.
I’m in Newport News working away from meeting to meeting knowing that my hedgehog head needs work. I’ve been loyal to one barber shop for years but with the interest in saving time (as well as seeing rave Unilocal reviews of GHQ) I’ve hit up other spots. It’s been the same do for many years. Fade up my sides and leave a little on top for me to throw some product to give it some shine.
I’ve decided I want something new. I’m not so sure what different I can make my hair because it really isn’t that long. The only issue is that it grows straight out. With an hour or so free on Tuesday I decide all of a sudden that I’m going to tame my Sonic look. I knew Animare was around the corner of whereI was so I double checked my decision by reading a few Unilocal reviews on my phone. From the outside looking in it’s obvious that they catered to women. I then saw a review that they do men’s cuts so at that point I was going to take a shot.
I sat down with Ann Marie and told her what I wanted. I even pulled up my Kindergarten picture on Facebook to show her what potential my hair has when it grows out. I wasn’t sure what she could have done but she spoke with confidence and started cutting away. Everything seemed just fine until she started using these crazy looking scissors I’ve never seen before — texturizing scissors. Within a minute I noticed a difference that I absolutely loved! I probably don’t look any different to you but I can tell the difference. Ann Marie was the absolute best to deal with. I think I’ll keep the hair growing over time with touch ups every four or five weeks.
It can’t get any better than digging your new look, getting a nice shampoo and wash and finishing off with a scalp massage.
$ 25 for a men’s haircut. I was so happy with the service and the look that I doubled the bill with a tip. Best experience! It really was…