aldora: Garosu Korean Hair Studio, Duxton Road

Korean Haircut and Hair Colouring (+ Treatment) Experience

It is undeniable that our fashion trends are very much influenced by the Koreans.

Almost everyone aspire to look like Korean celebrities who looked so effortlessly appealing in Korean Dramas / K-Pop bands. However what shall we do when we reside far far away from Korea?

Fret not, in our island - Singapore, we are infamous for importing Foreign Talents! Hence Korean Beauty Salons seem to be a thriving business in Singapore :D

I first got to know about this hidden gem whilst browsing through The Entertainer Mobile App to discover deals near my office (Tanjong Pagar). As Tracy and I both badly needed a haircut, the one-for-one haircut deal offered by Garosu Korean Hair Studio attracted us and we made an appointment to visit after work on a Friday Evening.

Garosu 1-for-1 Haircut Offer

Gents Haircut too!!

Introduction

Garosu means "tree-lined street" in Korean. This is inspired by the Garosu-gil area which is a fashionable and trendsetting destination in Seoul, South Korea.

Garosu Korean Hair Studio provides a wide range of trendy hairstyling services at affordable prices. The hair products used are mainly from South Korea (they have other famous brands as well).

The mission of Garosu Korean Hair Studio is to realise the 'Perfect Beauty' - individualistic and simplicity of style! Indeed Korean celebrities are attractive because they are simple and natural-looking.

Salon Name: Garosu Hair Studio
Website: http://garosuhairstudio.com
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/GarosuHairStudio
Location: 59 Duxton Road, Singapore 089523
Tel: 6220 0677
Operating Hours: Tues - Sunday, 10:00 to 20:00

Services Provided and Price List

The pricing is reasonable as this salon is a relatively new set-up.

Salon Team

We were surprised that the manager (cum boss) of the salon - Uncle Sebastian is a Singaporean who can converse fluently in mandarin and cantonese! Chit-chatting with him was indeed a pleasurable experience as we were expecting to experience some language barrier if the entire team comprises of just Koreans.

The salon is currently helmed by 2 hunky hairstylists - Chris and Hiro (Uncle Sebastian told us they are still single - so ladies, do visit this salon if you are keen!)

Chris

Chris was assigned to Tracy for her haircut and hair colouring. According to Uncle Sebastian, Chris had over 20 years of experience in this industry and hence his strokes are neat and precise.

We almost mistook him for being slipshod as he trimmed Tracy's hair in under 15 minutes and went on to apply hair dye on her head!

Tracy always had her hair coloured blond and hence it is time for her to dye a darker colour in order to make her hair look less 'grassy'.

Hiro

I was assigned to the younger hairstylist - Hiro! I love his gentle and careful approach when he washed and trimmed my hair. I was terrified of hairstylists who cut at the speed of those 10 dollar cuts as it feels as if my hair has been chopped off in huge chunks at any one time! Also, by trimming my hair in a slower pace, I can feel that my every cent is well-spent.. LOL!

Le' Process

We tried to navigate our way to the salon - realised that we can reach this place in under 10 minutes from Tanjong Pagar MRT. It is located very near to Pasta Brava @ Craig Road (my favourite Italian restaurant for pasta and desserts)!

Garosu Korean Hair Studio, Duxton Road (Part I)

Le' Grand Arrival

The salon was cleverly hidden behind a Korean Fashion Boutique (also owned by Garosu) and we were initially confused as we could not see any salons along the road! It was through our chat with Uncle Sebastian that the idea is to conceal the salon from public view as patrons will not feel comfortable to be seen by passer-bys like how we would peer through glass enclosures to look at animals in a zoo. I fully agree on this as most salons would purposefully display their interiors using glass panels as a form of publicity.

Also, it was further revealed to us that the clothing was selected and brought back personally by Hiro who had an astute eye for fashion :)

Le' Cashier Counter

Behind the fashion boutique was a cosy lounge area where patrons can sit on the sofas to browse magazines and to enjoy the sweets and beverages. They serve plain water, orange juice and 4 different types of tea (Earl Grey, Green Tea, English Breakfast Tea, Chinese Tea)!

Cosy Lounge Area :)

I had grown my fringe into a thick long mess.

I have naturally flat and lifelessly straight hair and hence I am very tempted to cut my fringe to make myself look different...

Before Look...

As Hiro was preoccupied with another patron, Tracy went ahead to have her hair treated by Chris.

Chris gave her a very quick trim and we were impressed that it was done under 15 minutes!

Chris Trimming Tracy's Hair

Our tea was served promptly by Uncle Sebastian (I chose Earl Grey!).

I was scalded by the Metal Lid as it was too hot. Would suggest for them to use plastic lids instead.. Meh :(

My Earl Grey Tea :)

Chris Applied Hair Dye onto Tracy's Hair. She is going to dye her hair BLACK!

Toilet Paper Wrapped Around Le' Neck Area...

Chris carefully wrapped the toile paper around Tracy's neck to prevent her neck from being stained from the hair dye. It looked hilarious on her! LOL!

Waiting for my turn to be served...

YAY! Finally it was my turn to be served!

I showed Hiro my ideal look for fringe and he acknowledged it before ushering me to the back of the salon for a hair wash.

My Ideal Looking Fringe (Casually "Stolen" from Google Images)

Hiro washed my hair before giving it a quick blow dry. Then he started to trim my hair in a slow but steady pace.

Hair Trimming by Hiro

Getting my fringe carefully snipped off...

After he was satisfied with the haircut, he continued to blow-dry my hair before setting my hair with curling thongs. He then taught me how to blow-dry my fringe to achieve that tamed curled in look.

Hiro curled my hair with curling thongs and here's the final look!

Next, Tracy's colouring was ready and she had her hair washed.

Chris blew her hair dry before trimming it again to his perfectionist taste.

Tracy's hair was initially blown straight but she commented that she preferred curly hair. Hence Chris went on to curl her hair with a flat iron :)

Looking refreshed in Black Hair :D

Ignore that ultra short bangs because she had specifically requested for it in order to last her for another few months :P

Curling her hair with a flat iron

Adding Final Touches to Le' Hair

Although it was near to bedtime, the perfectionist Chris went on to add styling products (including hairspray) to Tracy's hair. We jokingly said that she could sleep whilst sitting down in order not to spoil her perfectly coiffeured hair :P