Taylor Taylor, City of London, London

I will never go to other saloon from now on, for the first time I saw that my hair could look so good, thanks!

Taylor Taylor has killed all other hairdressers for me. I will never actually be able to get my hair cut anywhere else without the crushing disappointment that comes with overly high expectations.
Got a cut and style yesterday, looks a-ma-zing but I’m not going to disclose the name of my stylist for fear of too many people trying to get onto the books ;)

I am not normally moved to write a review but this place is awesome. My girlfriend tells me I am pretty hard to please but I am still in shock that a visit to the hairdressers can be so good. It was a Friday afternoon , the place was full ( and I mean busy) , the music was playing and they had a dedicated barman on the free bar .....genius !! A pretty good start and that was before I had even met the stylist who turned out to be a very beautiful Scandinavian girl who spent a whole hour with me in the chair. Then the beautician arrived ( an equally gorgeous dark haired girl) who offered me a manicure or pedicure if I had time. Trust me I am not one of those high maintenance guys but I thought why not and it was well worth it. Reluctant to leave I arrived home around 8 o'clock with a new barnet and new feet. My girlfriend is a happy girl as apparently my feet are now baby soft rather than scaly monsters. Taylor Taylor I will be back .

I love love this place! I just had to write another review as I have just returned from my appointment and someone stopped me in the street and said "oh my god, your hair looks amazing, where do you get it done?" - wow, this was such a compliment. Taylor Taylor is one of the best salons in London and believe me I have tried a few! I used to be a Beauty Editor for a magazine so was always being invited for free haircuts and colours at some of the top places around and when I stumbled across Taylor Taylor I knew I had found a gem. It is cool, classy and gorgeous inside. The staff are all so friendly and treat you like friends. Thank you Taylor Taylor for yet another very cool haircut. I have been going for 5 years... that is a miracle in hairdressing world!

Well , I have been to many a Salon over the years and I am bloody hard to please. I have finally found my dream Salon on Commercial Street in Shoreditch.
I may live in West London but I am going to make that pilgrimage every 6 weeks from now on.
I though this Salon would be too cool for me but as soon as I walked in I was made to feel so welcome , a glass of champagne, a head massage in a beautiful underground vaulted room and the BEST cut and colour of my life.
I dont really want to tell you who I saw as I want ti keep it a secret and I am sure all the stylists are fantastic but I will tell you anyway ......Michellle coloured my hair and Elsa cut my straggling tresses into a gorgeously glamourous , toss your head in the hair style. I love this place , it claims to be one of the best Hair Salons in Europe. I havent been to every country in the world but it is definatley the best in London. ...Oh and to top it all off I sat next to one of the guys from Franz Ferdinand! I say give it a go !!!

I spent three years, impoverished, walking past Taylor Taylor v-e-r-y slowly in manner of orphan pressing nose agains the wall. It's utterly gorgeous. Everything I dreamed a hair salon could be. Then - hurrah! - I got a job that paid me a living wage and could finally afford to come in.

My first trip wasn't a great success: I read reviewed saying Robbi was terrific, but found he didn't really listen to what I wanted so much as listen a bit and then do what he wanted anyway. But hey ho, he was a director so I guess that's what they do.

Then I picked another stylist who was uniformly worshipped and stayed with him happily for two years.

The place is stunning - there's a huge bar in the middle offering great champagne cocktails (and cake on Sundays) and the wash room is tiled in gold. The main room has beautiful giant vintage mirrors and the sort of little tables that look like Louis XIV's garage sale. I love it.

Going there always feels like a wonderful treat, and its generous opening hours mean you can nip in after work rather than having to always try Saturdays. The two owners have Cavalier King Charles spaniels who occasionally set up shop in reception, very sweet!

Now, however, my stylist's set up his own salon with some other ex-Taylor Taylor stylists so it's au revoir to TT and bonjour to the new salon. It was great while it lasted, by finding a good hairdresser matters more to me than cute dogs in reception.

There are plenty of money off offers for Taylor Taylor if you scour the net so it's well worth it in the end, especially if you can find the right hairdresser for you. I got 10% off for 18 months before anyone quibbled! Game on.

Pros: Staff friendly, hospitable
Cons: technical abilities some stylists is questioned. Anne who cut my hair, left one side longer than the other. I wanted a full head colour but got half-head highlights. Too pricey for the results which I was not quite happy with.
With the sum I spent I am sure I would have gotten better results in other salons.

I've been coming here for the past year... and will continue on. It is definitely worth the money whichever stylist you book with. (the 'cheapest' top stylist will do pretty much for everyone)

I have very curly hair and am always wary of who I let cut it. So it was with trepidation that I walked into Taylor Taylor on Commercial St.

I needn’t have worried. Oscar (one of my new favourite people) was friendly, listened to what I wanted done (mainly correcting a rather dramatic cut I’d had a few months ago that still hadnt grown out) and cut my hair speedily and well. He styled my curls individually so that they were ridiculously defined. I believe his skills derive from the fact he and his mother have curly hair, but it could just be years of training.

All in all a good cut, nice experience and not too pricey. My only complaint is that I didnt get a free drink from the large bar located in the middle of the salon, but theres always next time.

Everyone has their own technique when completing a ‘hair-cut’ task. Mine, I have recently discovered, is a bit haphazard. After traipsing round Spittlefields Market one rainy Sunday for 2 hours; short ‘one appointment’ and long ‘suede shoes’ (now wet) I could not understand why, when I wanted my hair cut immediately, every single hair-dresser was suggesting times next week.

Several times repeating the same scenario (ending in me not getting a hair cut) left me despondent and alone in the rain; my split ends weighing heavy in my heart. As I started the journey home, a sole beacon of light appeared on the horizon. A mirage. It looked like a bar, but was called ‘Taylor Taylor’. Being a big fan of puns, I put 2 and 2 together… Could it be…?

It was. I entered and, for the hundredth time that day asked the soul-searching question: “Can someone cut my hair please, like, now?” Military-style negotiations resulted in a ten minute wait, which would, I was about to find out, work in my favour.

The receptionist made his way over to the bar in the centre of the foyer and nodded at me.

Would I like a drink?

Yes.

Would I like a champagne cocktail?

Hell, yes.

Booze grasped tightly in my hands, I peered out of the window at the passers by in the rain and waited for my cue.

I was summoned by a stranger to come over to the stairs. I could sense it was about to begin. Nic* was my hairdresser. Lovely, handsome, Italian Nic. We descended to the basement, away from prying eyes, and he sat me down gently. Nic looked (via the mirror) deep into my eyes, and asked:

“How would you like it done?”

Overwhelmed, I broke our gaze and mumbled something about perhaps a fringe, stuttering that he was the professional so I was at his mercy, meanwhile wondering if I was flexible enough kick myself in the back of the head and, if so, would that be the right action to take.

He lightly touched my hair, stroking it and letting in run through his fingers. I could feel myself relax as he lifted up a section of my hair and draped it over my face in an attempt to emulate a fringe.

“Yeah, that should be fine” he murmured in his lilting voice.

At this point I was nervous: I could feel the butterflies in my stomach; the jolt of electricity every time his fingers brushed lightly against my cheek. Sparks were flying. The apprehension was almost too much. We were about to throw all caution to the wind and embark on the journey together. Was it sensible? I mean, I hardly knew this guy (lovely, handsome, Italian Nic). Was it the right thing to do? Not least of the worries currently nagging in my mind was the thought that his fringe impersonation, perhaps, looked a bit shit.

The champagne part of my brain drowned out my attempts to be all British and, safe in the company of Nic, I bravely said:

“Yeah, let’s do it. What’s the worst that could happen?”

Committed to this now, in body and in soul, I walked over to the sinks and took my place in the golden room with dim lights and relaxing music. I couldn’t take my mind of Nic and what he was going to do. I could barely concentrate on the polite holiday conversation going on around me.

With clean hair and dressed only in a towel-turban (in addition to the outfit I was wearing before), I bashfully stepped back into the salon. Catching Nic’s eye, I made my way over to the chair. He slowly sat my down and reached into his belt for his tool.

The pair of scissors made their first cut. My eyes were transfixed on them, snipping faster than I thought I could handle.. Nic was gentle but firm. Nothing came in between us and, in that moment, I felt safe with him. He had the demeanour of a man that had done this a thousand times before, but rather than feeling like I was paying for his service, he made me feel special. I could see in his eyes he enjoyed it as much as I did.

I was in agreement with Nic’s suggestion of a climactic blow-dry and by the time we had reached the end of it I was exhilarated. Nic asked me if I was satisfied. Speechless, I nodded, much to his enjoyment. He smiled, not breaking eye contact (through the mirror) he stroked my hair again, almost as if he were admiring his handiwork. I wasn’t ready to move so I remained seated and enjoyed being in the moment listening to Nic whisper into my ear phrases such as:

“You have really swingy hair”

and

“Do you want to buy any product”

Eventually it was time to leave. I collected my belongings and slowly made my way to the door, sipping on the remaining champagne and making small talk. As I ascended the stairs I knew the memories of this would stay with me for a very long time. In a dream-like state I paid the receptionist and thanked him for his help.

Just as I was leaving I heard someone call “Sara”

I looked round expectantly and saw Nic approaching me. He slipped me his card into my hand and said to me:

“Please come back in 6 weeks for a trim”

I knew what he meant. When you share something like that together it creates a deep, lasting bond and he didn’t need to say out loud what I knew he felt in his heart.

*(names have been changed to protect the innocent).

Terrible terrible terrible.

The worst haircut and colour I have ever had. The colour was left on my hair way too long and then was blow dried so harshly everyone could smell the burning hair. I’ve been walking round with intensive treatments on my hair ever since.

To top it off they didn’t even have the courtesy to respond to my complaint, even when I re-sent it.

I honestly do not complain much, I have had many a good haircut in other salons but I felt I had to tell the world not to go here. For the sake of you hair -JUST DON’T!

Generally I love going to the hairdressers. The experience is always mixed with a little fear and excitement when it’s your first time at a new salon, or having a new treatment, for me it was both. I had read many great reviews on Taylor Taylor so I decided to give it a try.
I liked the attention to detail of a phone reminder of my appointment the day before. On arrival I was offered a delectable array of drinks from the bar while I waited.
The decor is plush, more spacious upstairs than downstairs. I thought it rather dark downstairs where my colour treatment was performed. I kept straining to see in the dim light and shadows the details that my stylist was pointing out.
He discussed the possible outcome before proceeding and was very confident but honest about the potential results. I’d never had my hair coloured in a salon and was apprehensive to say the least. I decided to have only a semi-permanent colour applied. I was thinking at least it would fade out and all would be good. I know I’m a bit of a weeny, but I finally gave in to the experience of a professional colour treatment. Then there is the wait to have the colour set. One must be patient for beauty. After a short time I was lead to the shrine, the gold tiled sanctum of hair washing. A very nice young man did the washing out, it wasn’t his fault but, wow, do they have to use high grade toxic paint remover on my skin to remove the residue of dye from my forehead. Yikes, that burned. Mind you, if no one else complained it might be just that I have very sensitive skin. Maybe I should bring a jar of petroleum jelly to apply to my skin before the treatment. It works to keep the dye from sticking to the skin, at least it does when you apply colour at home. Salon dye is different, but still, it hurt.
The cost was £50, it lasted for a very long time, and I got loads of compliments. I have to admit that the method of taking the dye from my skin is what keeps me from going back, and it’s been a few months since my trip to Taylor Taylor. I should find a way to remedy this problem as the stylist did a very nice job.

Best hairdressers in London. It’s like a beautiful French Boudoir in here and my stylist makes me happy. They do something to my hair that is magic. Really. I come out of here bouncing on air. And the cut and blow dry only takes an hour. They’ve got a beauticians too but I’ve never been.

I have interesting conversations with Robbi as he snips away. He does not ask me about holidays. We talk about fun things. While I’m getting drunk on the free cocktails. That’s right. They have a bar. You can squeeze in two if you drink quickly.

I’m not going to pretend it’s cheap her. It’s 60 quid for a cut and blow dry. But they do my hair so well I only have to come here once every two-three months. So really it’s saving money…. sort of.

They know what they’re doing. The receptionists aren’t bitchy and I’ll never get my hair cut anywhere else. They’ve slotted me into emergency blow dry appointments a couple of times too. Very handy if I don’t know I’m going out later that evening and I’m hungover. Not that that happens a lot…

Now I don't generally enjoy a trip to the hairdressers, in fact I find it incredibly boring and it's one of the things I hate most in the world, that's why this place was such a treasured find...

It's a boutique style hairdressers in a listed building on Commercial St. Inside the decor is quirky yet gorgeous (check out the all gold hairwashing room) and overall it's veeery few places I've been able to relax whilst having my hair done.

You can chose to have other beauty treatments done while you're waiting and sup the free cocktails as they cut. Most thankfully tho, the stylists are happy to leave you alone if you prefer to read not chat about where you're going on holiday. The whole experience is really chilled out, plus they give amazing head massages.

It goes without saying the cut/colouring is amazing, otherwise ultimately I wouldn't go there. The only down side is that it's certainly not cheap. Personally though, I'd rather pay a bit extra and try to enjoy the trip rather than dread it.