Cassandra and her makeup stylist traveled to my wedding venue where myself, my mother and my 4 bridesmaids were getting ready. My mother, MOH & I had already had hair trials so we knew what to expect when everything was finished. My hair looked exactly as it did during my trial and my makeup looked great too!! The makeup artist made sure that I was comfortable with how it looked before she left! I was slightly nervous that they estimated it would only take 2 hours to do 5 girls for makeup and 4 for hair, but they made it happen and everyone looked gorgeous. They were fun and professional. Cassandra even personally opened up her shop on a Sunday (their normal day off) to be able to squeeze in a hair/makeup trial for my mother, sister & I. Since my wedding was in the morning & most of my bridesmaids were from out of town, traveling to their salon was not feasible. Having the salon travel to us made the morning go much more smoothly than I imagine it would have if we were all racing around in our cars, trying to make it back in time for the ceremony!! The only down-side to this, is that the Salon charges a automatic 30% travel fee as well as an automatic 20% gratuity on top of that. So for a $65 updo, they would charge an extra $19.50 for travel, and then $16.90 on top of that for tip for a total of $102. To compensate, I ended up paying for the travel expenses for all my bridesmaids. I was very happy with how my hair came out. In hindsight, I should have had my makeup artist put on more bronzer, but that was my own fault!!

The stylists came to our wedding site where the ladies were getting ready. They did all the bridesmaids', mothers' and my hair. They were fun and professional. Coming on-site made our day much easier and more enjoyable. However, the hair styles themselves were hit or miss. Some of the girls' hair looked great. Others looked like they were taken from a few decades ago. One of my bridesmaids' husband said she was "the cutest 80s rocker he'd ever seen." That being said, New Hampshire is certainly not the headquarters of fashion, and this may be just what you should expect for the area. Still, I went in for a styling a few months beforehand and, assuming they would remember or have noted it down, didn't give them much instruction for my hair on the day of. They ended up doing something nice, but quite different. So, ok on the hair, but the on-site option is a big plus.

At first, I was really excited to work with Cassandra and the Galleria Salon. She seemed really nice on the phone and pretty flexible working with me. She was quick to send me the documents I needed to get started, and answered all my questions. But the closer my wedding got, the more nervous I was. Every time I called to confirm prices, I got a different answers. The hair started at $75, then to $55, then it became "$55 to $65 depending on which girl did the hair." And then the makeup prices suddenly changed from $15 to $20 each. It was really hard to plan and have my bridesmaids know what it would cost. I had to make a chart myself breaking down the prices and what each girl wanted so that I would have it in writing what she told me on the phone. I really wish she made a contract or something so the prices wouldn't have been so up in the air. I felt like I was the first bride she's ever worked with, even though I dont think that was the case.

Truth is, she did a beautiful job on everyone's hair, which is why I rated the Quality high. I will say that.. if you're willing to spend money, Cassandra's your girl. But my real problem was the way she calculated her fees. She charges a base rate for each girl... then charges 20% tip on that. And THEN charges an additional 30% travel fee on top of the base charge AND the tip! That's right, she charges a 30% travel fee on the tip! I am pretty sure it is illegal to charge a fee on top of gratuity. And since Cassandra is the owner of the salon, technically, you dont even have to tip in the first place!! For example, a $20 makeup became $31 total!! So some of my girls who thought they were paying $65 ended up owing more than $85!

The real tip on the iceberg was at the end of all the hair and makeup. Since I was the bride, I was the last to go. She finished my updo, and stuck my veil in my head and started packing up and leaving. I stood up and the veil fell to the floor. I picked it up and said "Can you make sure it doesnt fall out"? She said "That's just how it is". I was like "What do you mean?? It's on the floor!! It has to stay in all night!" She jammed it in again and I said "I cant turn my head left or right" and she said "Well, that's how veils are" and she left! I was in tears. One of my bridesmaids had to use bobby pins to secure it. I gave her a lot of business that day, and I feel that I was inappropriately treated. She told me that I was her second wedding of the day, but that's not my fault!

Anyways, if money's not an issue, Cassandra is great. But I just felt that her professionalism wasn't up to par, and the way she calculates the bill isn't ethical.