Urban Fringe

They had me at lay-​down wash stations with warming back cushions and a scalp massage. Olivia was great. I got the cut I wanted and will be back in 8 weeks!

Found them on Unilocal and wish I hadn’t. Worst salon experience. Here’s the horror story:
A few days before my birthday, I called to make an appointment. I explained to the receptionist that I wanted to go blonde, if possible, but that my hair was naturally brown but had been dyed a semi-​permanent black 8 months earlier, which had mostly faded to match the 2 inches of natural roots. She made the appointment for 5:00. I offered to come in earlier, knowing this could take a while and that they closed at 7, but she said that wouldn’t be necessary.
When I got there I explained my hair’s situation to the stylist, emphasizing that it didn’t need to be super light — only as light as we could go without frying my hair. (I used to change hair colors myself all the time and got a little overzealous going from black to blonde several years ago, and it ended up looking good but in bad condition. This time I wanted to have it done by a professional.)
So she bleached the lengths, washed that out, then did the roots. She didn’t say more than a few words the whole time, which was fine as I was content to read a magazine, except that twice she asked if I wanted a cut afterwards. But times I told her, nicely, that there was no need for a cut — we were already past closing time and I liked my length anyway, plus my hair grows slowly. I knew we all wanted to get out of there (her, me, and the manager, who had stuck around even though the shop was closed). She insisted that it was no problem, so I agreed to a small trim.
It was after 8 pm by the time she sat me in front of a mirror to blowdry. When she parted it down the middle, I almost screamed. It looked HORRIFIC. There were 2 inches of light brown roots, then 2 inches of pure WHITE where she’d overlapped the bleach, and then a light yellow-​blonde on the rest.
I was stunned. I sat there, wondering what to do, as she cut a couple of inches off my ends (way more than I was expecting or wanted). She acted like nothing was wrong. As she started to blowdry, I told her I was concerned about the roots being so obvious, to which she responded «Oh, now that you mention it, they are a little noticeable.» That’s all she said. She got back to blowdrying. I told myself that she must know something I didn’t — somehow, once dry, it wouldn’t look so ridiculous.
By the time she finished blowdrying (with help from the manager, who also acted as if nothing was wrong), it was 9 pm. My hair still looked horrendous, and I was MAD. The stylist then started on it with a straightening iron, which is when I finally spoke up and told her not to bother, because I’d need to go home and fix the roots myself anyway. She finally dropped the act and said I should come back the next day to get it toned to darken the white parts to blend with the roots.
Then the manager came over and told me she couldn’t let me leave looking like that. She said needed to bleach the roots more. Wanting to cry, I reluctantly agreed. They slathered the bleach on, but soon my scalp started burning. Manager told me she didn’t know why my scalp was so sensitive (perhaps because it had just spent several hours being bleached, washed, raked with a brush and blasted with heat?) and that if I couldn’t handle it, we’d have to do the toner. I sat with my head on fire for another 30 seconds, until I really couldn’t handle it. They washed it out. I had SCABS on my scalp from the chemical burn for several days after.
They put the darker toner in, washed, and re-​blowdried. It was nearly 11pm when they finally finished. My hair felt like straw and the roots were still clearly visible, which I knew I’d need to fix myself after I gave my head time to heal, but it was passable for the time being. As I got my things together, the managed told me it would be $ 160. Surprised they expected me to pay at all, I said, «You’re not even going to give me a discount??» A hellacious glare spread over her face as she explained to me that my expectations had been too high (which is funny, because as I had told the stylist, I HAD no expectations other than it being somewhat lighter and not horribly damaged). She said that if I didn’t want to pay full price she’d just as soon I not pay at all. I said «Fine,» and walked out. Then, I guess just to further demonstrate her professionalism, she called behind me sarcastically, «Have a happy birthday!»
My hair has never been so damaged, or so many different patchy shades, even when I used to bleach it myself. Even the cut was bad, the pieces to the right of my face cut shorter and straight across so that they formed nearly a right angle with the rest. I had to cut pieces even shorter to blend it. I wore it pulled back and parted in a way that helped disguise the weird rings of color until I eventually evened out most of the it myself with bleach and toner. Luckily, I DID have a very happy birthday, regardless.

Urban Fringe also does nails and Erika is so good that I thought she deserved her own post. She is incredibly attentive to detail (very neat edges) which is important to me, especially when I get a gel manicure that I want to last for 2 weeks. Great color options in both gel and regular polish. She is also super adorable and fun to talk to and really took her time. Definitely the best manicure I’ve received in the Raleigh/​Durham area (everyone else just slaps polish on). I will definitely return and recommend her to my friends!

This place is awesome! Taylor cut my hair, and she did a fabulous job. Everyone is very friendly, good service, and they use Paul Mitchell products, which is always a plus. The best haircut I’ve gotten in the Chapel Hill area, and for a reasonable price.

From out of town to attend a wedding and had a major nail emergency. Got an immediate appointment. Was greeted and given a tour of the salon before meeting with manicurist Erika. Not only did she make my hands look and feel great, I felt like we were longtime friends as we chatted. If I lived here, I would be a regular! My husband (who never really cares about the «girly» things) remarked, «your hands never looked better!»

Emily has been cutting my hair for almost 10 years now and I can’t praise her skill enough. The Paul Mitchell coloring products are top quality and very natural looking.
I love the feeling of welcome and friendliness in the saloon. Each time I am there I meet new friends and feel more and more part of a community. It’s as though I am in one of the old fashioned «neighborhood» salons from yesteryear but with a hip cool vibe and the latest styling products and techniques too! A real winner!

Amanda has been cutting my hair for a few months, and she’s great. The atmosphere is warm and friendly, and they go out of their way to schedule convenient appointments.
Oh yeah, as you can see in the pictures, the hair washing stations are amazing. I literally almost fell asleep on one of the tables/​bed/​chairs because they are so comfortable.

This is a new business with two expert, fun and friendly stylists. Their new space is contemporary and wonderful. Amanda has been my hair stylist for years and does an excellent job every time. I get many compliments on my hair. I cannot recommend them enough. They do book up fast, so call for an appointment in advance.

Amanda and Emily are both fantastic and incredibly friendly. Perfect color and cut every single time. They are willing to do edgy styles, or keep it more traditional. Love the new space– it’s hip and beautiful. This is the place to go if you want to look gorgeous!