David Hillis

Agree with Dale M 100 000% — Hair Win!
I’ve been going to the David Hillis salon for years now. I just happened to be walking by one day and had a sudden urge to get my hair cut. I had walked by so many times and thought I would give it a whirl and give in to the urge. The front desk lady asked me what I was looking for so that she could fit me with the best stylist for my needs. I told her I wanted a senior stylist but didn’t want to pay through the nose. She suggested Jennifer. I have to admit, when I saw Jen I was a tad scarred, as she has a top layer of RED hair. But upon a closer look, her hair was really well taken care of. I realized that every other stylist I’ve gone to has had bad hair, and the fact that she took such great care of her own made me feel warm and fuzzy inside.
Before she even washed my hair, she pulled it out of it’s scrunched up bun and fluffed it out, taking about 5 mins to really look at my hair, the way it was growing, the condition of it and then took the time to wet it down with a spray to see the actual length of it. We went over what I was looking for and the like. I’m a firm believer that a stylist should know how to cut my hair for my face shape and my body frame. I shouldn’t have to tell them what I want, they should suggest what would look the best and why. Jen did just that :-)
She noticed that my hair had never been dyed before, it was virgin hair as she called it. She was so excited, I’ve never had a stylist get so excited to cut my hair before. Jen even called David over to see it — it made me feel very special. The fact that Jen knew that my hair had never been dyed impressed me even more, because I have been asked many a time by former stylists who did my colour.
When she washed my hair, the shampoo and conditioner were tailored for my hair type, a small detail that didn’t go unnoticed. You get an amazing scalp massage too… I almost fell a sleep in her hands.
After the initial cut, Jen blow dryed my hair and then did a dry cut to shape and sculpt the final look. She didn’t push any products on me, just told me what she used. I happend to buy the smoothing liquid, but that was only because I liked it, and I still have that same bottle it to this day — it was a great investment — a little bit goes a LONG way. When I got to the counter, I was plesently surprised that even with a $ 20 tip — I was so happy with it — that my bill for the cut only came to $ 80! Most of my cuts have been that before the tip, and have never been as great.
I usually only go to a stylist once, but I was so happy with my cut that I have continued to go back for the last 3 years, even thought I have moved out of the area, I still make the trek.
Jenn is the only one I will let touch my hair. I waited a whole 7.5 months until she was back from Mat Leave to get my hair cut! She is truly the only person I trust. When I go in to see her now, she hears the same thing all the time «It’s your hair, I just wear it», she giggles and does her thing. I don’t just have an amazing stylist, but I have a GREAT friend now too.

Hair Win!
I always struggle to write an interesting five-​star review. Criticizing is so easy, but there are only so many words one can use to sing the praises of his stylist /​hairdresser (what IS the proper term?)
Victoria has cut my hair three times now. It’s hardly a long-​term relationship, but sometimes you just know you were made for each other. My first visit to David Hillis’ salon was on an emergency basis; I had been butchered the day before by a «salon» (read: ’”chop-​shop”) across the street and called on a recommendation from a colleague. Victoria was kind enough to fit me in on less than a day’s notice (and has done so three times now).
At my first visit, we spent some time talking about what I was hoping to do with my hair before anything with a blade made it into Victoria’s hands. This consult gave me confidence that we were on the same page when she started cutting to clean up the disaster that had been imparted to my scalp in advance of our meeting. Given that I was trying to grow my hair out, she suggested I not come back for two months once she was done (Wow. Who turns down business in favour of her customer’s interests?)
I complied, and eight weeks later I returned. Victoria remembered not only who I was (my name was in the book, clearly) but exactly what I was looking for in a haircut and sufficient detail of our last conversation to allow us to pick up where we left off. I’m a firm believer that charm and personality are part of a good stylist’s skill set, and this one has both. She’s great to talk to, which makes it easy to communicate my needs and to take comfort that she is delivering what I’m asking for.
I was already planning on raving about Victoria when I went in for a haircut today. Just a cleanup («maintenance,» I’m told, is what this is called). I went in expecting to pay full pop (and had booked as much of her time), but when I expressed my interest in having things tidied up a bit and no more, she insisted on charging me half-​price and that was her final offer. I was happy to oblige, and left twice as satisfied as usual.
Highly recommended.

I went in looking for the perfect shade of blond. The place had been given good reviews all over the net, mainly because of a colourist named Branka, who I soon found out no longer worked there.
I made an appointment anyway, and asked the receptionist for an experienced colourist, citing my past difficulty. My hair has a lot of underlying red pigment that can be hard to get out. When I arrived, I thought the colourist looked quite young. I was willing to give her a try. It turned out she only had a few years experience.
Long story short, she bleached my entire head, didn’t leave the toner on long enough, and I left with ‘Andy Warhol white-​ish’ damaged hair and a chemical burn on my scalp. Besides that, the price I was quoted over the phone for a colour was not what I was charged upon leaving. I was charged double! The explanation I was given by the cashier was that they had to use double the amount of bleach/​colour because my hair was long. My hair was a couple inches below my shoulders! Give me a break! So I guess regular priced colour jobs are only for those with bobs or pixie cuts?
After paying over $ 200 for the whole fiasco (colour + cut + dry), I decided I was justified in coming back the next day to get it fixed. They made it seem like it was MY fault. They tried to tell me that I should have chosen a golden colour (which is the main reason I came in initially — to get rid of the brassy golden blond). I had chosen an ash blond from the dye book, but the colour I chose was not what I ended up with. If they had left the toner on long enough, my hair would have turned the proper colour. Instead, it looked the same as when they first washed the bleach out of my hair. I’ve been getting my hair dyed since I was 12, and I know how these things work. I could do it myself at home with 20 vol bleach and toners, but it’s easier to go to a salon and nicer to be pampered during the process.
The place was busy, full of cut and blowdry customers. I was willing to pay more than I was used to at my usual salon (which is $ 60-​$ 80) for the right shade of blond, but what I got was severely ripped off and left with damage that took almost a year to repair.