After living in Jakarta after FOUR years, I finally had my hair cut here. Whoa. I know, I know… It sounds crazy that I always just wait until I go home to Manila to get a fabulous hair cut from the amazing Stefan. I haven’t been home since September 2012 and with no trip home in sight, I decided to go for it.

It wasn’t that easy actually hehe! I have the craziest, thickest hair, which I hide with my daily ponytail. I rarely let my hair loose, mostly because it’s really to darn hot to have my hair down in Jakarta. I can’t stand when it sticks to the back of my neck. (Ew!) There are few people I trust with my hair and I usually stick to my lion mane tamer once I find one that I like.

I was in Kemang and I asked my friend, Emilie, for a recommendation for  a pedicure and she immediately said Nikki’s Salon, because she finds that her polish lasts longer when she has it done here, than in other salons she’s tried. I went, and I was so happy with how stress-free the procedure was! I went in and the staff were so nice and pleasant, and spoke very good English! I didn’t need to dig into my basic Bahasa to explain how short I want my nails, what shape, etc. So relaxing and pleasant was the experience (and isn’t this the very reason women love to go to the salon?) that I made an appointment the very next day for a creambath and a haircut with Nikki.

Nikki, the young scottish owner and stylist, trains the two other stylists herself. She did a rather thorough consultation before anything (which is a must before your hair gets wet). I love how much time she took to understand what I wanted.

I got my creambath first, which was heaven of course. The staff was so professional and pleasant. Then Nikki cut my hair cut and it was so lovely, it was more like I was sitting and chatting with a friend than getting a hair cut. I loved the results! Nikki totally knows what she is doing. Now my hair feels and looks healthy and fabulous (on not-too-warm days that let it down) again. I also loved the high quality products that they used. I told them I was having trouble with flakes (it’s the high stress!) and they used this imported tea tree shampoo. The heat protection was also fantastic.

Nikki’s is not the cheapest, nor the most expensive salon I’ve encountered in Jakarta. Once I asked for an English speaking stylist in a salon, and gotten a quote for IDR 1.2Million!! #WTH

I love Nikki’s Salon because…

1. It’s clean (see #2)
2. Each person who gets a mani/pedi here get’s her own set of implements for hygiene purposes (i.e. pumice scrub, brush, etc.) so when you come back, you can use it again
3. the staff all speak great English
4. It has a great vibe. Such a happy and pleasant place – even the work of art on the wall is oozing with positivity!
5. They use great quality products
6. They have up-t0-date international magazines in English
7. They give you a long tube dress to change into for your creambath, so not only are you comfy, but you don’t need to worry about getting product on your clothes.

All in all, Nikki’s is great value for money. A salon where you can indeed de-stress and pamper. After the tough 2 weeks, nursing DiploDog to health from his near death experience, it was the perfect treat!

I wish I had known about Nikki’s sooner, so I didn’t have to suffer through bad split ended hair for long periods of time during the last four years… oh well… better late than never right?!?

Next time, I’m going to try the reflexology with the back massage. Looking forward to it! =)

 

Nikki’s Salon

Jl. Kemang Raya No. 47A Coming from McDonalds, it’s right after EMAX and VIN, on the same side of the street
Tel: 021 719 2917 *appointment is a must 
Prices:
Haircuts: Rp 300,000 – Rp 400,000 | Coulouring: 565.000 – 1.100.000<
Creambath: 130.000 | Reflexology: 100.000
Manicure: 125.000 | Pedicure: Rp 150,000 | Waxing: 55.000 – 132.000
Hours:
Mon to Fri: 10am – 7pm | Sat 9am – 4pm | Sun 10am – 5pm