Avanti Salon

7 years later, still going to Julia 3 to 4 times per year! She has taken so many product and color classes in the past couple years that we have been able to try so many fun things with color and tape in extensions while still keeping my natural blonde look.
Lately we’ve been adding orange and yellow under my blonde highlights and it looks amazing and I get so many compliments.
Love this place!

Always get my hair cut with Christopher DiFazio he’s awesome and he’s been cutting my hair for 4+ years now. He does an amazing job cutting my short hair but I’ve seen what he can do with all styles of hair and he’s one of the most confident and thorough stylists I’ve ever seen.

I’ve been going to exclusively to Nancy Binder at Avanti for my hair color and cuts for over 10 years now. She’s the best! The color always looks so natural. She does exactly what I want on my haircuts and I always leave there feeling so great. Wouldn’t go to anyone else at this point!

The Best!

I was in desperate need of a hair color and cut after a bad experience at a salon about 20 minutes north of Boston. After searching on Gilt I found Avanti salon and purchased a voucher for a gloss, hair cut, and blowout. When I made my appointment I requested Angela, a master stylist/​colorist. I was told she didn’t participate in the Gilt promotions but they were nice enough to give me the credit of the voucher for an appointment with her. I can honestly say that this was THE BEST hair color (and cut) I’ve ever had. It looks completely natural and EXACTLY what I wanted. Angela is truly an artist– she painted the highlights in my hair freehand and it looks absolutely incredible. The salon is pricey, yes, but it’s to be expected from a salon on Newbury. Highly recommend

First time here today. Had a wonderful experience with Rebecca. She did a great job on my hair. Sometimes it’s hard to find a stylist that knows how to work with (wash/​style) extensions.

I highly recommend Avanti’s Christopher Difazio, who has been cutting and coloring my hair since 2010. After my first cut, I described Christopher as more like an artist. He always has his own vision of what will look best on me and brings such a sense of passion to executing it. If you’re looking for inspiration, he is the perfect person to help you find something new that is flattering and in line with your personality and style.
Christopher is incredibly skilled, with a deep well of effortless expertise, and incredible attention to detail. The two things I love most about his work: 1) His cuts grow out amazingly well. I often find they are almost at their best right before it’s time to get another. (How is this possible?) 2) I always leave feeling like a better version of myself. I’m used to leaving salons feeling like a different person altogether and usually can’t wait to get home and «do it my own way». The fact that I leave feeling like myself is very unusual for me. Christopher seems to get my personality, accept the reality of my lazy hair prep routine, and somehow reflect them both in interesting and flattering cuts that suit both my style and my lifestyle.
Christopher also did my hair for my wedding. While my hair came out beautifully, his ability to sense what I needed from a support point of view was even more valued (and likely harder to come by). I recommend him regularly and a number of close friends have become committed clients, including my sister. As for the salon, I have nothing but good things to say: beautiful and relaxing with helpful, professional staff.

I’m back with a rave review for Audrey, who gloriously color-​dazzled my hair. Could. not. be. happier. Thanks!

I went to Avanti in October 2014 and had them give me a haircut and brighten up the ends of my hair to be blonder for a natural looking ombré. It was extremely pricey, as any salon on Newbury would be, but they did an amazing job.
Fast forward to October 2015 when I scheduled another appointment to go back and do the same exact thing: get a haircut and brighten up what was left of my ends to freshen up the ombré. I got a 25% off coupon in an email which made me decide to go back, too.
After 3 ½ hours, I walked out thinking I just got Punk’d. I explicitly discussed with my stylist how some ombré’s look awful because there is no blend and it looks like a straight line across girl’s hair. Well… that is exactly what I got! It looked beyond unnatural, and after all that time spent in that salon, I just sucked it up and left. I thought maybe in the lighting it looked bad and it would look better when I got home.
I called the salon and talked to the receptionist, and she asked me to send pictures of my hair like I didn’t just walk out 20 minutes before with the proof on my head. I sent the pictures and she said she could reschedule me for the next day on Thursday. Well that was great, but I mentioned I have a full-​time job and cannot leave work in the middle of the day for another 3 hours. I also didn’t want the same stylist, but she said if I got a new stylist it wouldn’t be guaranteed to be free. My thinking is, if you as a salon royally mess up and the customer isn’t happy, you should get a refund or redo for free — no exceptions. It was either the next day at noon to get it redone or I had to wait until Saturday, and clearly I couldn’t wait that long. So, now I had to face the same stylist to have her attempt to fix it and explain to work why I had to leave in the middle of a crazy day.
I will say the staff was incredibly understanding, and they could see exactly what was wrong with my hair. Even the stylist admitted she didn’t like the job she did, yet because I said I was okay with it the night before, she didn’t say anything about it. That is not how it should work… do you know how awkward it is to tell someone who is working so hard on your hair after so long to say, «I hate it.»? Very awkward.
Even after getting it re-​done, I still wasn’t thrilled with it. I still see a pretty noticeable line across the front ends of my hair with the ombré. The color they used to fix it faded over time since it was not permanent, and the line across my hair became more noticeable. At this point I am just done forever with this salon. Safe to say, I strongly encourage you to look elsewhere to get your hair colored.

I recently had my makeup and hair done for a wedding by Rebecca Serra at Avanti. Rebecca did an amazing job, I loved everything she did and I couldn’t count the number of compliments I got from friends that evening!

With only a few days left before my wedding, I was frantically searching for a salon to fit me in. I called several places and they were either booked solid or didn’t return my call. I called Avanti thinking it would be the same, but I got to talk to a human being who got me an appointment the next day. I told her I was looking for someone who was good with dyed, blonde hair and she set me up with Julia.
Julia is awesome. When I arrived we had a great consultation where she assessed my fried, orange hair and how she could fix it. She chose to do a full head of foils with a gloss treatment. She even gave me a stellar scalp massage while washing my hair. She worked extra hard to repair my damaged hair and make it look naturally gorgeous. When she found out it was for my wedding, she knew the appointment would be longer than it was booked out to be but took such good care of me any way. By the end of my appointment, I had a super cute blow out with beautiful, natural-​looking, bright, blonde hair. I felt like a Disney princess. I was so incredibly thankful and happy that my hair would be beautiful for my wedding day. My only concern was that I didn’t tip her enough! They are quite pricey, but that’s understandable.

I did some thorough research on salons before selecting the Gilt City for a gloss, haircut, and blow out because a week prior I had the worst haircut I’ve ever had in my life, and I needed some real help fixing it. I wasn’t sure I wanted to commit to paying full price for something as I had just had my hair cut, so I figured a Gilt City offer for a reputable salon would be a great. I looked at reviews of Avanti and was convinced I should try it. I called to book an appointment with my voucher, and the salon booked me with J.
J is absolutely AMAZING. I can’t say enough good things about her. When I sat down in her chair she asked me what I was looking for and I told her all about the horrible haircut I had just gotten and she told me I didn’t really need to go on because she could definitely tell. I told her I wasn’t sure if it was as bad as I thought, and she went through my hair assessing the damage and showing me all the ways my hair was cut poorly. No wonder my hair looked horrible.
J listened to what I wanted and gave me the best haircut I’ve ever had. It looks absolutely phenomenal. You know when you walk away from a salon and you’re not sure if it’s ever going to look that good again because they’re always amazing at styling it? My hair still looks great even when I just air dry it, although granted not as amazing as when J did it, but that’s because she’s superb. I could not be more pleased with J and her skills, and on top of it all, she’s so nice. I highly recommend her and Avanti, and I will definitely be back. Thanks for saving my hair!

There really aren’t enough good things to say about stylist Rebecca Serra, and Avanti Salon. The space itself is gorgeous — I especially love it during the daytime, when sunlight floods in through the windows and illuminates the creamy marble — very clean and beautifully managed. The entire staff treat you like gold, and know exactly how to make you feel pampered and glamorized. They are all fantastic, but it is Becca to whom I enthusiastically refer all my friends.
Whenever I go in, Becca knows exactly how to wash the stress of a workday right down the ceramic drain with her patented magical shampoo and head massage. Her ability to cut and style all textures of hair is incredible. My hair is baby-​fine, but I have referred friends with super-​thick hair, long hair, short hair, curly hair, dyed hair, and everything in between, and she has wowed them all. Everyone I send to her goes back. Besides her fantastic sense of humor, which makes my appointment fly by, Becca knows when to work with me on a styling concept versus tactfully inform me that my ideas aren’t the best suited for my features, and she is always right. She knows how to tame my wild bird’s nest into proper human hair; leaving Avanti after an appointment with her is like walking into the Golden Globes.
Perhaps best of all is knowing that Becca takes great care not just of me, but the people I refer. One close friend recently had her hair and makeup styled for a black tie event. As a busy mother and professional, it is rare for her to treat herself, and she did not know what to expect from a styling session. When Becca was through with her, she was overjoyed. Not just because she looked stunning, which she did, but because Becca had taken every extra measure to make her feel like royalty, and maximize her time to feel special and pampered.
Oh, and did I mention that Becca does makeup? I have used her for a professional ad campaign, which focused on a «Ladies’ Night» theme and involved 5 completely diverse, powerful character looks, all of which she nailed. The looks ranged from «Executive Director» to «Rock Star», and involved radically different hair and makeup concepts for each. Becca is basically a magical Avanti unicorn, and you need to call them right this very second to schedule with her.
Last note: I know Becca is a top colorist, and many of my friends have availed themselves of her expertise, but I do not color my hair… yet (let’s see what happens when the grays start to come in). When it’s time, you can bet I’ll be right at Avanti’s doorstep, in Becca’s chair, with my head massaged and my feet on the countertop, and I will exit that salon looking 10 years younger, and leave a trail of Becca’s business cards all the way home.

I love my hair. The staff were friendly and Betty was super nice. I would definitely recommend avanti!

My first visit to Avanti was today. Christopher was my stylist. He sat me down and analyzed my hair, what I liked and what I didn’t and he came up with a plan and explained it to me. Sounded great so he went for it. I had never had a dry cut before today so I didn’t know what to expect. He flatironed my hair first and then proceeded to cut it & style it. They don’t wash before hand or blow dry so I was all set to go when he finished. I went home & washed and styled my hair myself and I LOVE love love it!!! It was exactly how I wanted it and was much easier to handle as he said it would be! Thank you so much Christopher! Well worth the trip! :)

Disturbing for a supposedly «high end salon» comical actually, when I was there –I witnessed a frazzled front desk along with a clearly drunk man yelling at the receptionist — not really professional or classy — move to another salon plenty more to pick from on Newbury that are actually peaceful and gorgeous.

This was my first experience at Avanti Salon with stylist Christopher. I came in with high expectations after reading numerous positive reviews of him on Unilocal.I had shown my stylist a photo of the hairstyle I wanted but the end result was far from what I desired (see in Avanti Salon photos). Instead of having many light pointed layers that starts from the chin to the bottom layer of the hair, my layers are indistinguishable and hidden in a heavy bob. The most disappointing part was the the fringe. While I requested piecey bangs that just touches my eyebrows, the result was short Katy Perry-​esque bangs that is not cohesive with the hairstyle. After spending $ 75 at this salon, I am sorely disappointed with the resulting haircut. Needless to say, I will not be returning.

I also purchased the Gilt City deal for a haircut, gloss, and blow dry. It was easy to book an appointment, the receptionist was lovely, and my haircut started on time.
My hair prior to my appointment was an absolute mess– I had gotten a really bad bang trim which basically turned my hair into a modern mullet of sorts… But man, did Laura save the day.
Laura cut my hair both wet and dry, which I really appreciate, and made the best out of my wacky bangs. Growing bangs out can be unbearable, but this new cut has made all the difference. Thank you Laura, hope to see you next time I am stateside!

After spending too much time on Pinterest, I realized how badly I wanted to update my ‘do. And after taking a staycation because I was dying at work, I decided to schedule an appointment at Avanti.
I have thick, long, naturally dark brown, color-​treated hair. I hopped online to schedule a full foil, single process (to cover my greys), AND a haircut. By the magical work of the hair gods, I managed to get a 5-​hour appointment with Laura on the SAME DAY. Like, two hours beforehand.
Now, listen. I watch a lot of Bravo. I saw these guys on Tabitha’s Salon Takeover a few years ago. It crossed my mind briefly that this could be too good to be true, but it wasn’t. Seriously.
I brought in a photo of a light brown ‘do with some ombré. I walked out of the salon with a light brown ‘do & some ombré. Other stylists I’ve seen have left my hair that dreaded orange shade, but my hair is a golden, sandy, gorgeous shade of light brown. Just what I wanted. What’s more, the trim cleaned up the shape of my hair & makes the color look even better.
Yes, this salon is pricey. It’s on Newbury Street. That wasn’t a surprise. Price aside, this was the best experience I’ve had with my hair since moving to Boston several years ago.
Laura is a sweetheart whose pleasant demeanor and stylin’ skills won me over. She works here Sundays & Mondays, so I’d recommend her if you can swing an appointment on those days!

First time here & will definitely be back! Wonderful client service from the moment you walk in. Upscale salon that offers every service you could want to feel & look your best from nails, skin, & of course hair styling. Being an upscale modern salon it had a very cool & relaxed atmosphere unlike other salons in the area no snooty stylist or receptionist attitudes here. Everyone is welcoming & fun. I saw Christopher & he took my look from ok to WOW! I did have quite a bold look when I left but it was exactly what I was looking for! If you are looking for a change & want someone with mad skills in color & style definitely book with Christopher! I told him to do whatever he wanted & he blew me away. I felt like a million bucks when I left.

Christopher at Avanti is a master of his craft! He colored and dry-​cut my hair and turned my disaster hair into something completely modern and beautiful! I highly recommend him. He will tell you what color and style looks good on you if you want a change or just make you an improved version of what you already have. 10 stars for Christopher and the whole crew at Avanti! Avanti is all talent and upscale service with no snottery.

I made my first trip to Avanti using a Living Social deal for a cut, gloss, and blowout. Definitely fun for a girl on a budget like myself to get to go down to Newbury Street and hit a salon above Armani :) but I am always wary of «deals». It turns out the receptionist who booked me didn’t know the LS deal was for a specific stylist only, not the person she put me with, but the manager running the front didn’t make a big deal about it and I was quickly shown to my chair.
Michelle, bless her, was totally receptive to everything I poorly articulated («I want to keep the length but lose all the dead ends – which is a lot – and not make any major changes but want something different, you know?»). But she got me and didn’t give the judgmental stare that my nonsensical babble rightly deserved. She also talked to me about the gloss, explaining it, and helping me decide to go with one that would even out the tones in my hair.
Michelle is fantastic, there was no frustrating waiting, and it was a comfortable environment. Great wash and blowout, fantastic conversation, super happy with the cut and gloss, and loving my bouncy hair freshness. Worth the purchase and I hope to be back!

I went to Avanti last week for the first time after purchasing a Gilt City deal for a haircut, gloss treatment, and blowout.
The salon itself is conveniently located at the beginning of Newbury Street, tucked away on the 4^th floor. Everything is clean, bright, and fresh. Everyone at the salon from the receptionist to the hairdressers floating around the styling stations were friendly, welcoming and upbeat.
Rebecca provided my services — she did an amazing job! I asked for her to just clean up my cut — I’ve had issues in the past with stylists thinking this means «give me bangs and cut off 6 to 8 inches.» Rebecca did exactly as I asked and I left with my signature long hairstyle perfectly intact. For the gloss treatment, she helped me choose a gold tone to help bring out my natural highlights. I like the color, but found that the treatment weighs my hair down pretty heavily — not a big deal, as it’s only a demi-​permanent treatment. It was worth trying something new. The blowout she gave me was out of this world gorgeous! Perfectly smooth, bouncy, and sleek. On top of all this, she is a total sweetheart and I didn’t want to leave the chair because I was having such a great time talking to her!
Prices are more than fair for the location and quality of service. I will definitely be back!

An update just to say Chris still gives like the best haircut EVER. Wearing my hair less curly now again, but even with my change of style, Chris knows exactly what to do with my hair. I literally tell him to do whatever he thinks would be best and it always looks great.
I had a not great experience with the front desk the other day, but I’ve been going here almost a year and that was a first. Since the actual cuts are so awesome, I’d still highly recommend.

This is a 2-​pronged review for the salon and for Louise Jarick.
The salon itself is beautiful and clean but I think the brushes are not well-​maintained. Staff is generally friendly and yes, their services are expensive but that comes with the territory; anyone coming to a nice salon on Newbury Street expecting a cheap haircut and dye job is on drugs.
Now for my main review on Louise Jarick whom I have gone to for hair straightening services. I naturally have frizzy, curly hair and have been chemically straightening it for about 12 years now, using different methods at a bunch of salons, so I hope people looking to get this done will find my review helpful.
After years of getting the Bio-​Ionic done, I visited Louise for the first time in 2006 to try the Yuko and although it cost an arm, leg, butt cheek, my first born, and 5 hours of my time (just kidding — I don’t have a child), it was the best straightening job I have ever had. In fact, I still remember it as the best my hair has looked when straightened. I moved away after that and continued to get my hair straightened but no one compared to Louise. Having moved back to Boston, I was happy to find that she still worked at Avanti and I visited her for Keratin treatment. She books her own appointments now so the salon will provide you with her personal number to set up a time and she is very accomodating and good about getting back to you if you leave a voicemail.
I have now gotten the Keratin treatment twice with Louise and she is both efficient but very thorough, ensuring she does a nice job. She definitely knows her product well, is pleasant and fun to talk to, and I think her pricing is comparable to most other salons without being egregious ($ 325 — I have long hair). I was bummed she does not accept credit cards but she was really nice about mailing her a check if need be. I decided to hit up the ATM since I hate debts hanging over my head so make sure you take checks or enough cash with you if you make an appointment with her.
Bottom line: I highly recommend Louise as she is fabulous but if I had to complain about something, it would be that I need to wear a mask during the procedure due to the fumes of the product. I’m not sure if the chemicals are more concentrated in the product they use at Avanti but I have never had to do that at other salons. That being said, my hair looks and feels healthier than after any other Keratin treatment I have done elsewhere.