Encore Studio

Great service and great haircut from my favorite stylist Randall! She’s one of the few talented stylists that can cut Asian hair intuitively and beautifully. I’ve tried many different stylists and salons to mediocre results and now I follow her to Encore where she is doing amazing work. Highly recommend everyone to give Randall your trust, especially for you out there with challenging strong hair!

A simple bad and no-​design haircut… $ 40

I’ve been back once a month since my original review and just now got back from a body scrub treatment by Amber so I feel it’s only fair to update my review and upgrade my previous 4-​star rating to a 5!
Amber’s facials and body treatments are WELL WORTH the slightly higher prices you’d pay elsewhere. The whole experience, whether facials or other spa treatments, is so relaxing that I normally doze off and wake up feeling FANTASTIC! While I’m asleep, I typically dream about what it would be like to wake up as Amber so I can give myself (or my partner) facials, massages, and body treatments whenever I want…

Great atmosphere, love the new style after their remodel. The staff is friendly and I love how welcoming the whole place feels. I had the best pedicure ever from Kim. Julie has been my hairstylist forever and Amber (esthetician) uses natural/​organic products and really knows her stuff. I highly recommend any of the stylists, as I’ve always seen happy clients leaving and genuine customer service all around.

Michelle is a true artist! She gives the kind of meticulous attention to detail that results in people coming from across the parking lot to compliment whatever cut she has just given me! Her capacity to listen to what you want and then gently tell you what is possible is deep and her colorist abilities are epic. No one believes my hair is actually all white;) Recent remodel is very Zen and clean. Love this place!!!

I recently went here for the first time and got my hair cut by CAROLYN. She was awesome, I would definitely go back to her. Very friendly, and the conversation was super easy. She did start very conservatively, like any hairdresser cutting someone’s hair for the first time should, in my opinion. But as soon as I told her I want it shorter, she didn’t have to be told twice. She lost all conservatism and took about 3.5 inches off, which is what I wanted (my hair is shortish to begin with, so 3.5 takes some guts). She gave me bangs and did all the necessary steps to make my blonde hair not look chopped. Definitely happy with the results.
As far as the ambiance, I guess I’m not a stickler. The chairs are pretty close to each other so I guess if it’s crowded in there it could be a bit cramped, but it was clean and not crowded when I was there around 10am on a weekday… The people were all very friendly, and the tea while I waited was delicious =)

Hillary has been my stylist since before her days with Encore. For years I wanted short hair, but was always told I couldn’t pull it off. Hillary had the guts to go short, and every time I go in I always walk out with a great cut and style. I can ask her «what do you think would look good?» — most stylists would turn that question back around at me, but she answers and produces great results. The salon itself is nice and simple, and the staff is always friendly. After spending a lifetime looking for a quality stylist, I can’t imagine going elsewhere.

When I travel, I find salons through the Bumble & Bumble site. This was the only B&B exclusive shop I found in Ann Arbor (which means that they get regular training from B&B in NYC). My hair looks fabulous. Jamie was wonderful. She took the time to talk before hand, and really gained my trust. The place is clean and for the level of training there, well priced. I highly recommend it.

Of course, people’s experiences will vary at a salon because we are all reviewing different stylists. That said, I have had nothing but excellent experiences with Jamie at Encore. Getting a pretty, short, low-​maintenance style that does not look like «mom hair» is not easy, as I have found over the years. A lot of stylists will try to make you feel bad that you don’t want to spend 30 minutes every day on your hair, and give you a haircut that requires it anyway. Jamie really listened and gave me what I wanted – pretty, stylish, low-​maintenance hair! The haircut even grows out well so I don’t have to come in so often. She is friendly, has a good memory, runs on time, and is technically skilled. My only complaint here is that they don’t take credit card, but that’s pretty minor so I still give it five stars!

It’s hard to find a salon that can do black hair in Ann Arbor. I called a few places and got an appointment with Jennifer here. I came in for a cut and my hair straightened. I don’t have any chemicals in my hair so I applaud her for blow drying and straightening my Angela Davis puff. She’s really nice and asked a lot of questions to make sure I was satisfied with my hair. She got it pretty straight (without using a pressing comb) but my hair was really brittle and dry afterward. But I stopped at Sally’s got some Argan oil (which worked wonders!) and styled it differently. I’d go back and possibly do the Keratin treatment. If I do I’ll definitely give a review on here. It sounds like a good alternative for people who want straight hair but not a relaxer. But it costs $ 350 yikes!

I’m surprised by the poor reviews for Encore. I have had nothing but fantastic experiences with JEREMY M for well over a year. He’s great with curly hair and I’ve sent other curly headed lasses to him and they all been very happy with the result. Also, he did a fantastic job fixing the nasty, chunky highlights I got from Salon Vox. In fact, they were the best highlights of my life. It was obvious he’d been well-​trained by the way he alternated parting the hair during the foiling. If I could afford it, I’d do it more often. Jeremy is the only stylist I’ve had at Encore, but I highly recommend him.
I’ve also had my eyebrows waxed by Quinn and she did a very good job. I prefer threading, which she doesn’t do, so I’ve only been to her twice for emergencies, but I would still recommend her services for anyone who prefers wax.

I went here rather late on a saturday to see if they could squeeze me in for a cut and color. They did, and I was appreciative, but the results were not near what i desired. I wanted a tiny red tint in my hair. I got a really dark purple. Not happy. I wore hats for months to come. There were also lines where one color ended and another began.
I apologize that i don’t remember the exact stylist. I wouldn’t recommend, and I am sure that I can’t speak for all of them. I am still looking for a good stylist in Ann Arbor. Listening skills are so important.

A bit pretentious, perhaps it’s the address? I’ve had a few cuts at Encore over the years, and they veer towards conservative/​very conservative on styling and a ⁵⁄₁₀ on ambiance. The place could really use a good remodel and some new art. I had one of the worst haircuts in my life from one of the hairdressers: I wanted a shaggy bob, he gave me a 1970s Dorthy Hamil wedge… He said it made me look like Babs (aka, Barbara Streisand… ACK!!!) so I shouldn’t be upset. I cried later at home, but survived: O)
but I digress:
Encore is a good, solid salon if you don’t want anything creative done with your hair, the staff (the nutcase I mentioned before no longer works there…) are quite competent/​well trained — it’s just… a bit conservative.

You may have not have noticed this salon located on the second floor of Kerrytown. I only became aware of it because many friends would get their hair cut here.
I tried it out once, I got a fringe trim. It was good, no complaints. But the interior didn’t really make me want to come back. It wasn’t bad, but it was just really blah, plain. I either want to be impressed with atmosphere, the stylist or results. I didn’t really a wow from it. But don’t get me wrong, I have friends with really great hair cuts from here.