east London hair salon

Last week, I escaped the madness of the tube strike in the relaxing surroundings of ESHK Clerkenwell.

ESHK Hair was established in 2005 with salons in Shoreditch and Barbican and the new Clerkenwell salon has been open for just three months.

I usually like to be organised with my hair appointments, but realised I’d been paying too much attention to my colour (more precisely, camouflaging those pesky grey hairs) and had neglected the ends. Perhaps it’s psychological, but I felt compelled to give my hair and spirit a lift – in fact, it was playing on my mind for days.

So, I hit Wahanda to browse London hair salons and decided on ESHK Clerkenwell for a Cut and Blow-Dry (£31.50) as it’s reasonably close to me and I’d read good things about the salon – ESHK won Time Out’s ‘Best Hairdressers in London’ award three times in a row.

You can’t miss ESHK with its sleek black exterior and bold sign on the corner of Grays Inn Road. It’s a beautifully-designed boutique salon with an urban retro feel and nice touches such as Cire Trvdon candles and vintage furniture.

I was around 20 minutes early after allowing extra time for tube strike traffic and was immediately seated in the cool, bright ground floor cutting room. I refueled with a cup of tea served with Italian biscuits and was soon greeted by my lovely stylist Gianluca.

After a quick consultation, I was taken downstairs to the wash basins and Gianluca prescribed a combination of two different Kevin Murphy shampoos for fine and colour-treated hair and a conditioner thick, curly hair that also works well on fine hair like mine.

Vanessa washed my hair and gave me a delightful scalp massage, which is always my favourite part of the salon experience.

Gianluca refreshed the lengths and cut long layers back into my hair. We chatted about Italy and had a laugh about how out of shape my hair had become, in the safe knowledge that I’d be leaving with a much better ‘do.

My hair was then blow-dried straight and dry cut to complete the shape. To finish, the lengths were straightened to combat frizz, curled on the ends and combed through for a soft, wavy look.

I was thrilled with my new bouncy, lighter style and the blow-dry that looked fresh and glam (I can’t be bouffant styles that make me look older than my years). Before leaving, I asked Gianluca’s advice on how to improve my current hair colour and I’ll definitely be going back for colour soon.

I was really impressed with ESHK and loved its friendly, neighbourhood boutique salon vibe. It’s also very affordable for central London (there’s the option for a free rough dry with colour services), so you can easily make it your regular ‘go to’ salon.

For more information and booking, visit: www.eshk-hair.com

All photos by ESHK

London is the centre of creativity and cutting-edge styling, yet it has take over three years to find a hair salon to call my own. The worst experience was having my hair colour double teamed, ensuring much yanking on either side between the stylist and his assistant, followed by a diffuser dropped repeatedly on my head (ouch!!) and walking out like Shirley Temple’s socially awkward older sister… not a good look, as you can imagine!

However, all memories of painful salon experiences drifted away as I entered the heavenly sanctum of Taylor Taylor at Spitalfields. The Commercial Street salon is beautifully designed, like Marie-Antoinette’s east London boudoir.

I was shown to a chair in the airy bijou cutting room and met Anna, a Senior Techician, with reassuringly great hair, from New Zealand.

After my consultation, I was swiftly brought a delicious Rose Bellini, a glass of chilled mineral water and a bowl of peanuts.

The original plan was to refresh my colour with a semi-permanent gloss and add some warmth, allowing more golden tones and to stop it from looking too flat. We chatted about east London, little dogs and hair trends – Anna was my kinda gal, for sure!

I’ve always wanted to try dip dying, but never got round to it, so when Anna asked if I’d like some highlights put through to lighten the ends, I jumped at the chance. She applied some cream to my hairline to stop the dreaded dyed forehead and worked the gloss through my roots. She then added the bleach foils and ran through the rest of the colour. I was left with some glossy mags and my cocktail for a short while and then it was time to quickly inspect and wash it all off.

I was particularly looking forward to having my hair washed in the opulent gold room. As the wash room was in the basement, it felt like being in a secret Egyptian tomb – so decadent! I was also given a hair treatment, which felt thick and nourishing and a long, relaxing head massage from a lovely, chatty assistant.

I was then brought through to the cutting room and had a consultation with Jason, a Top Stylist at Taylor Taylor, while sipping on fresh pineapple juice. Jason suggesting keeping the length, reshaping the fringe, freshening up the front layers, which were more damaged than at the back due to over-styling, and adding shorter layers on top to give volume at the crown.

While cutting, Jason gave me advice on natural hair products, how to care for my hair and how to cut back on heat styling. It was a friendly chat without the hard sell and it was great to get some tips from a professional.

Jason used Aveda Curl products on my hair to tame it before twisting my curls into sections and diffusing gently. He was careful not to upset the curls and cause frizz – us curly girls are notoriously sensitive about fluffy locks – and gave my side fringe a light blow dry to loosen the curl slightly.

When I went back up the colourful staircase to see my new cut and colour in daylight, I was taken aback at the lightness of my new highlights. Anna told me that if they were too light, I could come back for an extra toner application, but I actually loved it!

The colour is bold enough to see a real difference and it even made me rethink my wardrobe – so it’s true what they say about a new hair style changing your whole mindset.

Since then my hair has felt extra soft and shiny and I’ve styled it different ways to see the colour effect – a top knot bun shows the most contrast and you can see the dip dye effect more clearly when my hair is styled wavy-straight and mussed up.

This is my hair before, an all-over mid-brown tied with a Liberty x Hermès scarf and straight after the Taylor Taylor treatment, all curly and tousled, with my beloved summery Luella dress.

Taylor Taylor understands just how important a hair style change can be and they make the experience enjoyable and luxurious and really make you feel at home. The staff are warm and approachable for such a cutting-edge salon and they’re more than happy to share their expertise throughout.

I can think of nothing more enjoyable than sipping cocktails and being pampered in the the most exquisite surroundings, in the safe hands of stylists who go beyond your instructions and actually anticipate what you really want. With such an instinctive approach, there can only be good hair days at Taylor Taylor.

For more info and booking, visit: www.taylortaylorlondon.com

Chérie City was a guest of Taylor Taylor

Chérie City

ESHK Hair Clerkenwell, London

A New Change At Taylor Taylor London