Charisma Salon & Day Spa

Came to get my hair done for a wedding, and it was very convenient as we were staying in the attached Marriott. I always get updos, similar to my wedding hairstyle but sometimes the stylists make it too sleek or rigid for my liking. My appointment was with Stephanie D. I showed her a pic of what I wanted, soft romantic side bun updo, and explained how my hair is fine and doesn’t hold curls well. She glanced at it for half a second and then got to work knowingly. I figure if they’re attached to a hotel, they probably get a lot of wedding guests and parties, so I wasn’t too worried, and I was right. My hair came out AWESOME — better than I expected! The side bun was perfectly placed, tight enough to hold but still flowy, while the top had volume and was still soft. She even managed to keep my many baby hairs hidden. My hair held all day (touched up with some pins and spray) and I was able to brush it out that night without too much damage. All in all I’m glad I got Stephanie!

I’ve been here twice. Very well done, fast haircuts, and friendly stylists! Typical high prices. Both times I brought in a picture of what I wanted, asked if it was possible with my hair, and was given a yes, only to end up with something clearly different. The quality of haircut is very high, but not listening to the client really disappoints me. I do not think I will be going back to Charisma.

Had my first visit here, yesterday, and let me just say; I LOVED IT.
Let’s start with booking my appointment. Cameron answered the phone and was very helpful, polite, and knowledgeable. He got me in short notice, the same day, for getting my hair dyed and French mani.
I parked on the wrong side of the mall and had to hurry to the appointment, which was my own fault, should have researched their location better.
Upon arrival I was greeted promptly and told it would be just a few minutes. The waiting area isn’t very comfortable, my only complaint. I am guessing that they really only have a waiting area for companions and walk-​ins. Which if you don’t make an appointment, you might wait a while because this place was busy.
Shannon dyed my hair and did exactly what I expected. I went it a little unprepared due to wanting something different than what I usually do and wanted an expert opinion on what I wanted. She explained what I wanted wouldn’t exactly work due to the last time I dyed my hair without me stripping it first. I wanted to really get these grey hairs covered so I opted for going a little different than normal but similar. You can’t go wrong with a classic. (unless it is a mullet) I will definitely go back to Shannon when it is time to redye this hot mess again.
After Shannon did my hair I was off to see Sara to get my nails done. Again, I wanted some expert opinion on polish, I knew I wanted a French mani but wasn’t sure on shellac or another polish. After Sara explained the difference between these polishes to me I opted for Vinylux polish. Sara did an amazing job with the nails. They are shaped perfectly and look beautiful.
Both girls were outgoing, talkative, and attentive. I definitely recommend this place. Bring cash as well, as tipping is not accepted on cards.

I came to town for a wedding and Mary Haddad Sworski did my make up and Shannon curled my hair. Both ladies are experts at what they do (and great to talk to). Another plus: it took only an hour to do both! Money well spent.

I’ve been going to Charisma for years to have my eyebrows shaped by the best in Metro Detroit… Mary Haddad!
Thanks to Mary my eyebrows are always well kept and looking great! Mary also does great make-​up too.

I had a last minute appointment with Dan for an updo. He was great! It looked awesome and I got great compliments at the wedding reception I attended. My only complaint was that I had told him I needed it to stay put and it started to unravel (still looked cute) after the first trip to the dance floor. However my hair is known for not cooperating, so I still have to give him mad props for giving me a style that still looked great when it came a little unraveled.
The second part of this review is for Mary the makeup genius! I cannot even put into words how wonderful she made me feel and how stunning my makeup looked! Mary did my eyelashes and wow! I definitely will return if I have another event in the area. I would recommend her to anyone!

I went to Mary Hadda Sworski, Make up artist for eye brows and eye lashes for a special event. Seriously the best ever. I don’t get eye lashes often, but the looked great and stayed on for several days. High brows looked great too. I would HIGHLY recommend her.

Jenna gave me the perfect updo last weekend for a family wedding! I brought in a picture of a celebrity hair style and she matched it perfectly. She was very friendly and sweet. I don’t live in Michigan, but would definitely recommend Jenna to anyone in the area who needs their hair done.

My mom and I went to Charisma for mani-​pedis hoping for a nice, relaxing, quality experience. Our first hint that this wasn’t going to feel at all luxurious should have been the location — how relaxing can a cramped mall business really be?
We arrived and waited a good while before anybody bothered to help us. We were then introduced to our (very young) nail technicians, who took us back into the cramped, cave-​like pedicure room. After our pedicures we were moved to the cramped, dirty, manicure area. This salon is designed to basically hide the nail areas from view from the main salon, and both of them seriously need a makeover — which makes for a very unpleasant experience.
Most importantly the quality of our mani-​pedis was subpar. My mom asked for nail art which was, perhaps not surprisingly, beyond the abilities of our nail girls. My fingernails chipped the next day (not that strange for a manicure) and my toenail polish chipped only a day later (very bad for a pedicure).
Definitely don’t waste your money on getting your nails done at Charisma!

I went to Charisma to get my hair and makeup done for my friends wedding. Mary did an excellent job on my makeup. You get a choice of natural, medium or dramatic for the eyes. I chose medium and was very pleased with the results, I highly recommend the false eyelashes as well. Mary used liquid foundation on me and it turned out great, but another bridesmaid got the air brush and didn’t think it covered enough so I would recommend liquid foundation.
The hair dresser I had was Sally (I believe) who also did a nice job especially considering I have short hair and I requested that all of it be put up (instead of half up). She was able to get all of my hair into a low bun, even the extra short pieces on bottom. She also gave me lots of height at the crown, which I love.
Overall a very good experience. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars because I dont go often enough.

Whenever I want to treat my mom to a special day out I take her here. We’ve gone for pedicures together here many a time and they’ve always done a really nice job and she’s loved the experience of getting pampered, especially since she rarely does it herself. It’s a little pricier than the nail places I usually go to but for a special occasion this is a nice joint.
Most recently I came in to get my mom a gift card for Mother’s Day so she can treat herself to whatever services she wants, whenever she wants. The woman who rang me up was incredibly friendly and we had a nice chat. They even had a free gift with a gift card purchase that week so I was also able to give my mom a nice bottle of hair spray with her card.
In the past I’ve also had massages here which I also found to be really satisfying. I’ve never had a hair cut here but everything else I’ve had has been fab. A great standby!

When Charisma opened they had really good waxers. LIke waxers that justified paying $ 20 when I could go anywhere else in metro detroit and pay $ 8.
The next time I came back (which was years later) they added a waxing room I guess, and made me lie down on a cot, resulting in the obviously inexperienced waxer dripping hot wax all over my hair. She deflected the mishap by laughing and saying she hoped I wasn’t going to a party afterward. I was going to a wedding. She didn’t seem to care bc I still paid a ton for something I could have accomplished in my bathroom with a pair of tweezers. And I wouldn’t have had to cut wax out of my hair.

Looking for a great place to get your hair done at a reasonable price? Well look no further as Charisma is the place for you.
The last time I got my hair done here was for a wedding many years ago and they made me look fabulous– so when I needed a wash and blow dry on a recent trip to Livonia, this was my first call.
The salon is located near to the entrance of the mall so no need to wander about– either park in the parking structure or enter at Max and Erma’s and walk straight through. If you go in the morning as I did, watch out for the mall walkers! They are everywhere and you almost have to merge into them to gain access into the salon!
The salon is contemporary and functional. There isn’t much of a waiting area but who wants to wait anyway? And they take your coat and hang it up for you so there is nothing for you to do but sit for a bit.
I was warmly greeted by Stephanie who took me to her station and assessed what I wanted done with my messy mop! A quick shampoo, some product, a professional blow dry and my hair began to look like it actually belonged on my head again. Stephanie did a great job (I’d highly recommend her) and I walked out looking like a million bucks.
But that’s the best part. It only cost $ 25!

Went here for a hair cut and highlights. My stylist was young and perhaps a little new (sorry, don’t remember her name). For the highlights, she said that they must use a particular technique where they use foil and push all your hair forward over your face. This was fine with me — whatever works… but it came out with some stripes. She did not seem too comfortable or familiar with the technique and it took her a long time and also felt like the foil was sliding down. She left me under the dryer a bit too long and my hair came out white. (I wanted bright and light but not quite white.)
The hair cut was average. After taking so long with my highlights, she seemed rushed.

After reading one of the other Unilocal reviews from a fellow Groupon user, I was a little nervous going into Charisma today for my end-​of-​the-​semester treat: a pedicure and a massage. The location is good– lots of parking and it’s right by the mall entrance, so you don’t have to schlep past a bunch of stores to get there.
The waiting area isn’t very comfortable, but I wasn’t waiting too long, so it wasn’t a big deal. My pedicure was with Sabrina, who was extremely nice and did a fantastic job. We chatted for a few minutes when she began, but then she noticed that I was holding a magazine and said, «Go ahead and read your magazine and relax!» Which was SO nice, because sometimes making small talk with someone while they paint your toenails is kind of a pain; you’re yelling over the bubbling from the foot bath, they’re trying to make eye contact while they also try not to paint your foot, etc. So that was good. Sabrina exfoliated my feet REALLY thoroughly, too– and they needed it, since this was my first real pedicure of the spring.
My massage was with Connie, who was also great. She was very professional and thorough, and my muscles felt like butter when she was done.
Overall, this was an excellent experience. I will totally admit that sometimes I buy a Groupon for a place, go once, and then never go back. But the whole point of Groupons, from the merchants’ perspective, is to bring in prospective customers who wouldn’t have gone there otherwise, impress them and turn them into regulars. Charisma is a little pricy for me to go often, since I’m on a grad student budget, but for a special occasion I’d definitely go back!

So, I purchased a Groupon for this place about a month ago. I was a bit hesitant since it’s a new unknown place and they were gonna be working with my hair (yes, a bit nerve-​wracking since we all know how us girls feel about our hair). However, I have been looking for a new stylist since my old stylist was the girlfriend of one of my really good friends and well, they broke up. It was just kind of awkward going to her after the breakup so I decided it was time to move on.
Back to Charisma… I am so pleased with my hair that I actually left grinning ear to ear. The stylist I ended up with (Jen Sadler) did an amazing job. I went in with a picture of what I wanted and she exceeded my expectations ten fold. In fact, the picture had a girl with slightly longer hair so I told her to just use her professional experience and create what she thought would work for my face shape. Yes, I put a lot of trust in someone I had just met but it paid off. She did an awesome job! Yay! I won the hair lottery!
The salon itself is pretty nice and the staff was extremely friendly. The counter girls gave me a ton of compliments on the way out and totally chatted me up to make me feel like I had been there a million times. Back to the stylist (Jen), she was also really, really sweet and I felt like she really listened to what I wanted.
Also, my boyfriend bought a Groupon when he seen that they had manly services (heh). He used his Groupon for a 1 hour massage and a facial. He was delighted after he left the massage room (no, not that kind of delighted… perverts) and he said he seriously felt like she worked all of his problem areas. He also got the express facial and since it was his first facial, he didn’t really know what to expect. He did say that the woman who did the facial really informed him on what was going to happen and told him skin tips. He was a happy camper all around.
As for why I am not giving this place the full 5 stars; pretty much one reason and one reason only… A stylist in the salon was careless and went on and on about how much they hated the Groupon deal. The inside scoop: A regular of the stylist came in (I could tell by their convo) and the regular mentioned that she was bummed that there was a Groupon for new customers only. The stylist proceeded to rag on Groupon and the people that use Groupon. The stylist said that they were losing money and didn’t want to be a part of it. The stylist also said that the only people that were going to come for the Groupon were only coming for the deal and would never come back. Like we Groupon users are a bunch of Cheap-O’s simply because we want a deal! I was pretty livid when I heard talking like this. I was in an area where I could clearly hear the stylist. There was another girl in this same area and I think she may have used a Groupon too. I understand that not all stylists will like the Groupon deal but it’s a business decision that the company THEY work for has made. Like it or not, the employees should use some tact when expressing their feelings on a business decision that was made to HELP the business. Especially, don’t talk about it in the salon when there is a very high chance that there are new clients there utilizing the deal. How unprofessional!!!
Other than that, this place was great. I will be going back to get my touch up in 4 – 6 weeks and my boyfriend said he would like to start going every other month for a massage. I highly recommend this place. The location is pretty convenient too; a lot of shopping nearby and plenty of restaurants to choose from. Oh, and if you are from another city, there are a ton of hotels in the area too. I say make your appointment, go relax, grab a bite to eat, hit some stores and make a day of it. We did and couldn’t be happier.
Oh, one more thing (slight gripe), BRING CASH! They only accept cash/​check for tips. Something that I wish I was told on the phone when I made the appointment. However, they do have an ATM directly in the salon so if you’re okay with the fee, than you’re good to go.