Mark Allen Salon and Spa

Worst experience of my life with Kim! She does not listen. If you want color, balayage or ombré, stay away from her. I had to go twice for her to attempt to get my balayage right but I got out of there crying cause I had several colors in my hair including green! She told me to come back the third time and she will try to fix the mess or make me bald with all the bleach and color. Worst part is I couldn’t get a hold of a manager or owner. Definitely not going there again.

Called and booked an appt same day for a foil and cut. The front desk was so helpful both over phone and when I checked in hours later. It’s refreshing to get customer service!
I had Kimora as my stylist and she is AMAZING. She actually listened, looked at some inspiration photos I had brought and then she dove right into helping my sad long frizzy, dull hair and absolutely transforming it. I can’t remember the last time I left a salon actually stopping to look in the mirror so much. It was such a great afternoon and Kimora made me feel so comfortable and welcome. (even staying late to finish out my look!) Which is so different from other east side salons where you’re in and out so quick you can barely remember who you saw. I will definitely be coming back to see Kimora again and again. And I love the product selection. Oribe galore! parking was super easy too. Used the garage vs street parking.

So I had a bad dye job from a different salon. Nancy took me as a client and not only did she fix my bad hair color but steered me away from a bad hair cut being that my hair is so thick and suggested something similar that would work best for my hair type, needless to say I love it! She carefully listen to what I wanted the outcome of my hair color to be but also made great suggested routes to choose from if I decided to change it the future. Hands down she is one of the best hair stylist I’ve had the pleasure to meet if not the best. Such an upbeat and all around great person. Made up for the horrid experience I went through. Definitely found my ongoing stylist. Can’t wait to book my next appointment.

UPDATE #1 (March 2014): After my review, I was contacted via email by Mark the Director of Sales who, at the beginning, seemingly had good intentions. He apologized for my experience then asked if he could do anything for me to make it up. Then he asked me to remove my review and tried to guilt trip me. I thanked him for his offer but politely declined to remove this, which sent him over the professional edge apparently. What followed was a series of harassing emails trying to turn the situation around on me, accusing me of lying, and telling me what I should and should not do or say. It got so bad that I had to contact Gwen who was horrified. I went from only having negative things to say about one stylist, to having a whole LOT of things to say about this salon and the unprofessional management staff. Stay away.
UPDATE #2 (October 2014): I was contacted once again via email by Mark today: «Tina is no longer with the Mark Allen Salon. Gwen told us that you were no longer welcome at the salon. After that, you modified your review. Regardless of how you feel, Tina and Gwen are no longer working for the salon and your review does hurt truly innocents now.» Sad that this guy has the facts wrong once again. I amended my review AFTER he started harassing me over email– that is the only reason. I then decided I would no longer come to the salon for obvious reasons and notified Gwen of this. Thank you Mark for reaffirming exactly why I would never step foot in this establishment again. I was very happy to hear that Gwen followed in my footsteps. What «truly hurts innocents» is the erratic unprofessional behavior of Mark, and I hope others follow us out the door.

Very nice salon ! Good customer service. I had some color done and it was perfect :) I will tell all my friends about this nice place. Nancy nab did my hair

I followed my estetican/​wax/​threader gal Maryam here from Salon La Diva. I’ve been seeing Maryam for about a year and a half now.
Threading: She does an awesome job when threading my eyebrows. They never look too thin or too hairy. Maryam will also tell you where she thinks you should grow out your eyebrows and where she would like to thread. Since she’s Persian she knows what good eyebrows look like and she takes care of my caterpillar problems.
Waxing: Look mom no hair! Clean job and I leave happy
Facials: I was feeling like I was 16 all over again. Random breakouts that left me hating my skin. I swear there were times you could play connect the dots with my face. I was going in for weekly treatments when I first started and with the light therapy and masks treatments Maryam was giving me, it limited my breakouts. Now I see Maryam every 2 weeks and my face is still good. Less breakouts, my scars are slowly going away and my face feels good.
Maryam is easy to work with. Totally understanding if you need to reschedule and we have great conversations about random stuff when I see her. If you’re looking for any of these services, I suggest you see Maryam. She’s reasonably priced and you leave a happy customer. Love her!

I followed Gwen and Tina here from Salon JBU. Both of these ladies have been cutting and coloring my hair since I graduated high school, and I have never switched. As a team, they work together to create a style for you. In my case, I have short very thick hair and like it a little funky. I have always let these ladies do whatever they please; never walked in the door with a plan or a haircut I saw in a magazine. I just sit down and say «whatever you think». In fifteen years, we have never had a «rut» or gotten bored. My hair has been a myriad of color combinations, it has been long, short, curly, straight… and it has always been perfect! If you are looking to make a change from long to short, Gwen is your lady! She is truly amazing and finding a style and shape that compliments your features and your personality.
So far, I have enjoyed the friendly staff at Mark Allen Salon and feel very comfortable there. I cannot speak to the other stylists, but from what I have seen, they all do a good job.

DEANNA is a master at what she does, if you’re looking for someone to do your hair then she is the one to go to. Great service, great cut, overall a pleasant experience.

I’ve had Mark cut my hair for the past 10 years. Obviously I’m a satisfied customer. During that time they have made an effort to fit me in whenever I call for an appointment. Given that I have an erratic work schedule, this extra effort is greatly appreciated.

I don’t know much about this salon… The reason I go here is to see Kim Carter. She does heavy, consistent and fast (but not rushed) foils. Kim is really sweet and down to earth, a very family oriented person. She has been coloring and cutting my hair for over a decade. Also, if you have dark hair and are looking to go blonde she will help you get there. It may take a few trips, naturally. So, go see Kim C.

BY FAR Deanna is the best one to cut your hair. We have been going to Deanna for the last 10 years. We refer all of our friends to her. She is the only hair dresser that actually keeps their clients up to date on where she is at in her life so that you know what her schedule will be. She sends an email out every week so you know what her schedule will be. She is new to Mark Allen as of april 2013 but she has been cutting hair for the last 10 years at a location in bellevue, and seattle. We have followed her for years and will always follow her no matter were she goes. You not only will find a great hair stylist but a great friend as well.

After bouncing around between Hairmasters for years (and getting randomly poor cuts), I finally went to this place. Ivan has cut my hair several times, now, and I’ve got to say he does a first rate job. There’s no loud music playing, so it makes for an overall pleasant experience.
I highly recommend.

I purchased their Living Social coupon. Since then I’ve called to schedule and they’ve tried to put me off: appointment way out in the future… I emailed for an appointment and never got a response back. I’m going to see if I can get my money back from Living Social.

Got a groupon for a cut at this salon and gave it try but the cut was very unflattering and the stylist kept insisting that she needed to cut layers into my hair to give me a simple bob. A few weeks later I went to the Aveda Institute and had them clean up the mess.
The salon also gave me a gift card good for merchandise and services for the remainder of my groupon and then refused (rudely) to honor it for merchandise. With all the salons in Bellevue and Seattle, you could throw a dart randomly and hit a better place than the Mark Allen salon.

I am editing my review to say only that this business has threatened me multiple times with legal action for posting a one-​star review and sharing my personal experience for the benefit of other potential customers.

HI! I just have to say I left the salon a few hours ago, and I am *still* completely, insanely, OBSESSED with my new hair color! My hairstylist Kim Hooks worked with me for five hours to lift my hair color from black to blonde, tone it, then put highlights and an all-​over beige base color in it. I was so ecstatic that she was willing to do it, as I’ve met other stylists who would never touch my head with bleach.
Surprisingly, my hair feels stronger after the coloring process, NONE fell out, the color was amazingly gentle to me (but Kim also said she was surprised that my hair was as strong as a horse’s tail!). The colors she suggested for me are PERFECT for my skin tone and the lightness that I wanted. Even though it doesn’t match the picture I came in with, I love it a THOUSAND times more than what I was expecting the outcome to be.
Kim was incredibly patient, kind, and even offered me and my friend (who was there for moral support) her amazing homemade egg rolls since we were getting hungry by midday. She is the real deal: amazing service, friendly, professional, expert advice (36 years in the industry, but you’d never guess by how young she looks! Asian women are the luckiest!). Kim takes great care of her clients, and we had an awesome mutual respect for each other.
I used a LivingSocial voucher, and I actually found out that the salon gets $ 0 from that purchase. LivingSocial makes $ 35, and Mark Allen/​employees/​associates get nothing. It’s supposed to be promotional for new customers like me, and it certainly got me in the door – for a place I’d never noticed before, even after living in Bellevue for 15 years, that’s great advertisement for them! I made sure to leave a fat tip because it’s just not fair for hardworking hairstylists to not get paid from the work they do, especially when it’s so amazing like what Kim did to my hair today.
Some salon-​goers are really hesitant about more upscale salons pushing the product sale. No one ever tried to sell me anything– products, services, or another appointment, and whenever my friend or I asked about products or other beauty treatments we were considering, we were offered great, honest advice. Our 5 hours were well spent. I would go back to Kim any day for haircolor. =)
I also got a hair cut from Kim today. I love that it suits my personality, my face shape, and is versatile. I had a great experience with Kim today, and getting dressed down into a robe made me feel like I was getting star treatment! I liked the shirt I was wearing into the salon that day, unlike one of the reviewers below… Hope you guys enjoy your experience here too!

A very nice option in a competitive Bellevue market. This salon features a very talented and knowledgeable staff. The salon itself is set across from Bellevue park and is spacious and comfortable. Karen Lee has recently relocated there and is well known for the work she did at Gene Juarez and her own salon. She is my personal stylist and does an extremely good job for me even though she specializes in female cuts, and straightening. The other nice thing about this salon is they are full service and have a very friendly staff.

I give my 5 stars to Kim Hooks who has worked here for the last 5 (??) years. I have been going to Kim to get my hair foiled for the last 8 years and I will never go to anyone else. She does the most natural looking highlights and always listens to what I want. It’s a drag to drive over to Bellevue but she is totally worth it!!!