I purchased the BuyWithMe deal for a keratin treatment with Joe Kinane at Firefly for $115 - the cheapest keratin deal I've found yet. I had a great experience and highly recommend Joe. For more details than you probably ever wanted to know, please read on.
The phone number on my deal rang me straight through to Joe's cell phone, which I initially thought a bit odd and maybe unprofessional but in the end was pleased with the ability to work out a mutually agreeable time with Joe himself, - without the need to go through a receptionist. My last attempt to schedule a keratin treatment at a fancy pants salon (see my review for JV) was really frustrating due to their utter lack of flexibility. I ended up taking a half day off work just to use my coupon. Joe Kinane, on the other hand, was the epitome of accommodating. I basically picked my day and time. A+ on scheduling!
Note: I later found out that Firefly is a space owned by Ellen (as noted on their listing), who rents out chairs to stylists. Joe is one such stylist. So this isn't your typical salon, but rather, more informal, hence the cell phone calling instead of a receptionist etc. Not a bad thing, just a fact.
Firefly is located a couple blocks west of the Diversey brown line stop in a cozy basement space that is surprisingly bright and welcoming. The salon is clean and tastefully decorated with art by a friend of Ellen's. There was another young, female stylist working during my appointment who didn't acknowledge my presence and seemed kinda bitchy/unfriendly. Joe, on the other hand, greeted me warmly and asked plenty of questions before getting started. He was also careful to make sure I understood the "rules" of keratin treatments both at the time of scheduling and when I walked in, which is really really important. The other fancy pants salon I went to really dropped the ball in that regard.
Joe completed the process on my hair in record time, and didn't tack on any hidden charges like the Other Salon I was keratin'd at. He did spend a fair amount of time commenting on mistakes my hairdresser had made in cutting and coloring my hair, which I found a bit uncomfortable and unprofessional. However, given the economy and nature of these groupon-type deals, I get how he needs to fight to get customers to come back to him after their deal is done.
Overall, I'm on day two after the process and my hair is stick straight, as it should be post-keratin. Joe Kinane did a fabulous job at a really cheap price, and made my appointment enjoyable. He is sincere and honest and someone I will return to for future keratin and probably a cut and highlights too.
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