Villager Beauty Salon

I confess: I am a cheapskate and have been to too many places in the Twin Cities looking for a good color at a value. I am sorry, but I’m not going to pay $ 100 or better for a color that I can do better on my own with a couple boxes of Clairol for $ 20. This situation has happened too many times than I care to admit.
Then I discovered, through Living Social, the Villager Salon in New Brighton.
From now on, Kelly does my color or I do it myself. I’ve had too many unhappy surprises. Kelly gets it right every time. And — get this — the full color and tip comes to $ 60. And I’m an okay tipper. I’d easily pay twice or three times that much for a color and tip at a fancy, schmancy place in Downtown or Uptown.

I purchased a Groupon for a body wrap and facial. There was a mix up with scheduling but once the manager was informed my original appointment time was honored. The facial and body wrap were excellent. The room was warm and the music relaxing. I also received a scalp massage. The service was professional and very accommodating.

I went here on a Living Social deal for a hot stone massage. I had actually purchased two vouchers and a friend and I were trying to make a relaxation day together out of it. Upon calling though, they said they would not be able to accommodate the both of us. Either they only had one massage room or one masseuse (She said both) and we would both end up having to wait the our and a half while the other was getting body work done. That was a bummer. I guess with these LivingSocial deals, from the ad you can never tell if it’s a mom and pop shop or a full-​on spa. So, we decided we’d have to book our deals separately.
Upon arriving, I saw that it was indeed a pretty small place. I filled out the standard forms and was taken to the basement where they had a massage room setup.
I was sort of underwhelmed by the room. The sheets on the massage table were stained and the room had glass block windows without curtains, so the sun was shining in (see pictures for both). I really prefer a dimmer room to relax in, but at least it was a cloudy day. It was still pretty bright though. I was assured the sheets were clean, just that the oil from the massage stones had seeped into the fabric.
The masseuse (Bailey I think her name was) was actually quite excellent. She did a good job giving me a good amount of pressure to the trouble spots. The only downside was, she had not warmed up the massage stones prior to my appointment, so I didn’t get any rocks at all for the first 30 – 45 minutes. Had this been a traditional massage, I would rate it at 5 stars. Very good technique and movement. It was supposed to be a hot stone massage though.
Overall though, the scheduling hassle, the stained sheets, the bright room, forgetting to warm up the stones… those are all rough spots around this experience. It really could have been a 4 star review. The masseuse was really quite good. The place definitely has potential. They just need to make some adjustments. The room can be easily fixed with new sheets and a curtain. Then just remember when you have an appointment, to plug in the warmer. Until then, it is what it is… two stars.