Paul Mitchell The School

Got my hair cut here last week by a phase two student. She did an excellent job! I showed her a couple of pictures of the look I wanted and she told me exactly what she was going to do. The instructor approved her plan and then she cut, shampooed, and conditioned my hair, all for $ 20! My stylist was Shannon and I highly recommend her! I will definitely go back to get my hair done again!

I came into town for a wedding. Since we were staying at the Benson hotel across the street I decided to treat myself to an updo. Then the airline lost our luggage with all my makeup. The only way I was going to be ready in time for the wedding was if they could do my makeup too and they made it happen. Go here and find Gwen for hair (vintage updo)‘s are her jam!). and Kim for makeup (she transformed me completely)!! All the people were blown away and I got compliments all night! Even the bride was a little jealous of my amazing hair and makeup. So affordable too! 25 for the hair and 15 for makeup (it was a little extra because I added lashes!)

Was very very slow… I came in asking for a dark blue all over color. came out with a real green with yellow highlights. I live in portland so it’s something I can get away with and it actually came out looking ok. that’s why I have 3 stars. but it’s NOT what I wanted or asked for. I came in at 1 to get it started and around 5 they were just starting to put color in. she was trying very hard to do a good job. all in all I walked out not very happy. and it’s fading very fast!! the color was super vibrant and is filling fast.

It was the worst expirence of my life! I have very fine and fragile hair. the poor student working on me asked instructor after instructor for their expertise. the second day another student was to try to fix my organe hair stopped in the middle and rinsed because she knew it wasn’t correct (same intructor as the day before) This nstructor who mainly worked with us should not be an instructor! It took a total of 4 colors and i lost count of how many toners and I had to come back! My hair was so damaged! breakage and dry. They did do a conditioning treatment a month latter. But that was like pulling teeth with them!
Bottom line! I will never go back!

I know that beauty schools can be hit or miss, but I had a great stylist here, and I felt a good sense of security from all the supervisors walking around. I went with two other friends, so I feel like I can give a overall review based on the shared experience. I wasn’t a fan of the loud pop music, but the space was clean, well-​lit, and smelled great. The customer service was excellent, so if the music makes them happy, I’m not going to complain. All three of us saw Phase 2 students — two of us for haircuts and one for a bang trim.
Getting a haircut from Tiana Duncan was AMAZING. She listened to my concerns, didn’t need any supervision, and styled my hair afterwards for free. After the last haircut I had (see reviews) I really needed the confidence boost of a good cut. Unfortunately, she’s graduating in two weeks. I got answers to all my general hair upkeep questions and felt completely at ease. I wish her the best of luck!
My friend Holly had a positive experience with her haircut, although it took a bit longer to get done. She requested a medium length trim, with some long layers near the end to help balance the coarseness/​weight of Asian hair. The stylist did a fantastic job with the trim, but required input from the travelling teacher on how to actual thin out ethnic hair properly. (Hence the added time — it was essentially two haircuts.)
Bella, on the other hand, had a less than stellar bang trim. Her initial stylist listened to her concerns and did a great job starting out. However, when she stepped away from the chair for a moment, a supervisor swept in and botched the job. The supervisor kept telling Bella it would look fine after a shampoo, but that was both not reassuring and not true. Her stylist was apologetic, and it definitely wasn’t her fault, but I know Bella won’t be coming back to Paul Mitchell.
The school isn’t going to be perfect for everyone, but the Phase 2 haircuts were $ 20, and the bang trim $ 10. If you re-​book afterwards, you can get a discount on the next cut or a free deep conditioning post-​balayage. I’d still give this place my recommendation. (Tips are cash only!)

Disappointed. Not good as what I expected. The student to serve me still need more practice.

The good: My sister and I were able to schedule haircuts for the next day, and we both were really happy with the stylists we were given– Lizzie Posey and Stacie Montgomery– they both did a fantastic job (would rate them 5 stars) and we were in and out within an hour and a half, so we didn’t have to refill the parking meter. It was confirmed that senior stylists provide haircut and style for $ 19.95. Cuts were done, hair was styled, I purchased the suggested styling product ($ 22.95), and checked out.
The bad: After realizing I was overcharged ($ 82.79), I called the school the next day and explained the mistake, and was promised I would be credited the difference (~$ 20). Today, I checked my bank account and it wasn’t credited to me, so I called back, and was told that because my sister and I had our hair flat ironed before leaving, there was a $ 10 charge for each of us, on top of the cut. When I told her that neither of us had been informed of the extra charge for straightening and that online, their menu clearly states «Cut & Style — $ 19.95,» I was told she couldn’t do anything but let the stylists know to inform clients in the future of the extra charge for straightening, and that «styling» consists of just a blow-​dry. False advertising? Yep. Charged for services I was never informed would be an additional to the base rate I was paying? Mhm.
Pretty unimpressed with the shady customer services and blatant lies.

Had the best experience here! I paid more for a Phase 2 student, who was completely amazing. I showed her some photos, she told me her plan (and told me the cost of each part), then went and got her instructor. Together they went over the plan again, making some changes. The instructor then told me the cost change, and briefly explained the changes to me. It was totally reassuring.
I LOVE my hair, it turned out a beautiful plum color, exactly what I wanted. I’ve got to say, this is the best color and cut I’ve ever had…
The place is fun and lively, everyone was friendly, and it was a total bargain! Also, they didn’t push products on me like a normal salon! Took about 3.5 hours for a color strip, wash, more color, another wash, and cut. No waiting since I booked the first appointment of the day
My only complaint is that the chairs are kind of uncomfortable, but whatever. Totally coming back!

I booked an appointment for color, all-​over lightener, and a trim with a Phase 2 student (because they’re more experienced). What I ended up getting was uneven highlights, toner, and the worst blowout I’ve ever seen with a Phase 1 student. I had been to a Paul Mitchell School before, though in a different state, and my color turned out amazing, so I expected similar quality. I didn’t realize my stylist was Phase 1 until it was time to pay, but I should’ve known because of how my roots turned out. I won’t name my stylist because even though she messed up, she was really sweet.
I didn’t panic while I was in the salon — the lighting is low, at least one other student was saying it looked good, the instructor didn’t go «WTF DID YOU DO!?» — but when I got home and looked in the mirror, I cried. Parts of my roots are my natural dark brown color and other parts are a yellow-​orange-​blonde color. I went in with a photo of Tess Holliday’s hair color and expected something similar, if not exact. I just wanted a natural red and my ends were already the right color from a previous lightening. My hair is now bright orange and extremely patchy.
Because I’m a very trusting and generally calm person, I gave her the go ahead to do a blowout and slight trim. My blowout was extremely frizzy and flat. She asked me beforehand if I wanted a layered, round cut or a straight across cut and I said rounded out. She cut it straight across as far as I can tell from the front. I’m scared to see what it looks like when I wash it (because my hair is curly).
I finally couldn’t take it anymore and I called the school to schedule a fix (we had scheduled it for 4 days from now) for the next day. I tried to explain my frustration with the fact that I was put with a less experienced student who also gave me the worst dye job I’ve ever seen when I requested a higher level student. The receptionist (or whichever student answered the phone) was defensive and had quite the attitude when I’M THE ONE WITH THE MESSED UP HAIR. I didn’t cuss at her, but I was on the verge of tears while talking to her, so she could have been more understanding.
All in all, I’m going to let them attempt to fix it tomorrow because I can’t afford to go anywhere else. I hope it turns out better so I don’t have to shave my head.

About every few months or so I booked a hair appointment at PMSP. Booking is relatively easy, especially the online booking, I LOVE that feature, because it is so hard to find the time with school and work to call to book an appointment and find a good spot. Just recently I had trouble with the online booking and got the email that said I would get an appointment confirmation shortly. For over 2 weeks I never got that email so I simply thought it was not booked. I finally found the time to call to see what happened. Sure enough, I was booked, but never got the confirmation email. Not a problem, but glad I called and didn’t miss my appointment. Then just this last Monday, I called, because i never got the confirmation email again. Now, I work customer service so I am 150% understanding and completely nice while I am talking with the person over the phone. I called on ¹⁰⁄₁₂ to see if the same thing had happened as last time and explained my story. I don’t remember what the gal’s name was, I think it was Claire?, but she cut me off and was completely rude saying that she shouldn’t have even answered the phone since they aren’t open on Monday, but they have been having internet problems all weekend, so they came in to fix everything. I simply explained I was not upset at all, i just wanted to make sure I wasn’t going to miss my appointment. Still she was very rude to me, but in the end I got my appointment.
For the most part, every person I have run into and talked with at Paul Mitchell has been extremely nice and helpful, but that last experience put a really bad taste in my mouth.
This is the reason for knocking off a star.
WITH THAT ALL BEING SAID:
I LOVE JESS D. AT PAUL MITCHELL!!! I fell into her lap — or should I say chair– by random selection, and I have never been happier. She is a little firecracker which is awesome, because then I am not sitting bored out of my mind for a few hours. I went from dark brownish hair to almost completely ashy blonde in a matter of 6 months and I LOVED IT. And now I’m back to extremely dark. She does it all and really knows her shit. I will definitely be following her when she graduates to whatever salon she ends up in.
If you’re looking for someone who knows what they are doing, book with Jess!
The prices are amazing, I never leave feeling like I was robbed. I have never done any other treatments that they provide (like makeup or nails, etc.) so I don’t know the experience on that, but my hair experiences have been amazing! Also, don’t be scared, because it is a school, they are checked on frequently and have to be signed off to move on to the next step by one of their teachers.

Very, very expensive for a school. The fees obviously go towards the location. Which is absurd, I find the location to be extremely inconvenient. I have to give myself an extra 15 mins to find parking & then I have to pay for it. I have twice gotten a ticket because I’m not done before the meter runs out.
One of the top reasons I will no longer go there is that I have NEVER had my hair rinsed in warm water. It’s absolutely crazy that the water is so freezing cold it burns… always. I have heard that there is nothing they can do. So I’ve had to ask myself if it is something I am willing to settle for. Hell no! I go to get my hair done with the expectation that it will be convenient, comfortable & worth my money… that is not the case here.
There are so many great stylists & salons out there that are offering a Groupon. Why would someone choose to struggle for parking, get rinsed in freezing cold water & pay above average for a school?
Reduce the fees, validate parking & find a way to give paying customers warm water at the shampoo bowls & I think you’ll find that more clients are willing to return. They will probably tell their friends & family too
«A man can fail many times, but he isn’t a failure until he begins to blame somebody else. «– John Burroughs

Decent affordable men’s hair cut and coloring.
One big problem. I have been here numerous times and not once were the stylists ready at appointment time. Excuse given each time was that they were having a group meeting. If the school is supposed to be teaching professionalism, being on time and not having client wait should be the first lesson taught and supported by management’s actions.

I am a sucker for deals. I also dont spend a lot of time/​energy on my hair. Came in excited to spend less than $ 20 to trim off my split ends and essentially maintain the layers I’ve been rockin’ the last couple of years.
At first impression, this place seems like a crazy beehive of activity, but although there are a lot of people running around the check-​in system is pretty organized: Confirm your appt at the front desk, fill out some quick paperwork, have a seat, wait for your name to be called.
Expected this to take forever, but since my student (the wonderful Tanna) was toward the end of her schooling she didnt require as much supervision from her instructor as other stylists-​in-​training. In fact, the teacher only checked in twice during the whole appointment — once to confirm what was going to happen and at the end to check out my cut/​style and sign off. Tanna was super friendly and we chit chatted comfortably thruout the appointment. Hope I can get in one more time before she graduates!

The price is pretty good but… it took 6 hours for someone to do a cut and color.
After the 6 hours the color was all wrong, the stylist left dye all around my face and I had to ask her to go out and put money on my parking meter so I wouldn’t get a ticket (I only expected to be there about 3 hours max). I had to cancel my afternoon plans and I was starving and about to pee myself by the time it was done.
Usually service is good here, and they are all students so you really need to keep that in mind and be lenient with what you want. I was just so miserable this day that I don’t want to ever go back.

Turned my fingers blue when doing a manicure. No one including teachers knew or cared about how to fix it! They all seemed more concerned about how much product the stylist put in the water! Plus there were about 10 – 12 stylists hanging out as if not working! The instructor made poor jokes and left. This was a stylist that was just about to graduate. He left to find someone who could say how to fix it which took over an hour! He used polish remover, scrubs and alcohol to no avail. My hands just dried out not removing the color! Being really frustrated at almost 1−½hr I demanded they find someone who knew how to correct this! A woman came over told them to use a bleach product used on hair then do a paraffin treatment to help my hands. It did remove the blue made my hands seem more hydrated but the next day my hands were cracked and very dry! Too it off my polish chipped right away!
I know this is a learning salon but what is so disappointing and frustrating is they are to be supervised (I assumed by qualified technicians) The ones hanging out were speaking about things that were inappropriate carrying on loudly bumping me and my stylist just a party like atmosphere. That same instructor walked in at one point said who ever shouldn’t be in there should leave and walked away they all laughed and carried on!

Came here with a couple of friends thinking that all I was going to get was my hair cut. I was not expecting to be pampered!
Call me silly or inexperienced, but I did come here to get my hair cut. I do not get my hair cut often, nor have I been here before. I knew I was going to be dealing with students, but was not expecting the time it was going to take.
I am usually critical about the places I go (look at my reviews) but this place was awesome. I was cared for, listened too, and taken care of in a very tender fashion as I was important to them. No one else has made me feel this way.
I got the exact cut that I was wanting and had asked for, and my hair choice color was not mocked but in a small way celebrated.
Everyone here could not have been nicer. No matter what, everyone loved the idea of hair style and color, and wanted to be apart of it and help out. I know that everyone was learning, but somehow my hair turned out better than expected.
My gal was unsure, worried, and nervous about my ideas, as she wasn’t used to being asked for that particular style. But the instructors were courteous and patient with them and even made it a learning experience for me as well. I loved seeing everyone getting something done differently around me, as there are a lot of stations and even more people excitedly waiting to fill those seats. I saw plenty of men getting their hair done, and was surprised to see how long it took them to get their hair done despite not having a much hair as women. They really care about looks, feel and accuracy with their jobs. And dare I say, they are perfectionists?
The prices are outstanding for what you get. I had all day, so it wasn’t an issue sitting and being pampered on (sometimes by multiple people at the same time) to get the look that I so was wanting. I have paid a hell of a lot more and have gotten a hell of a lot less than what they gave me here. I am a firm believer in ‘slow and steady wins the race’ and that’s what I got. I would much rather have someone take all day and get it perfect, than to be rushed through a session and have it come out sideways.
I will be coming back here as often as I can and am actually looking into more reasons to come here such as their nails and dermatology appointments.
Thank you everyone so much for making me feel so beautiful!

I have seen Jessica twice now. She’s done a great job on my hair… and the price can’t be beat!
I have had color and trim, but that’s actually a lot more work than you’d think, because I have a lot of white hair that won’t take up color well. The first time, she put in so much work with so many different colors to make sure the white hairs colored. The second time, we agreed to do white highlights, which I actually like better. Next time, I’ll be adding micro link hair extensions. I’m really looking forward to that!

I recently got a keratriplex done to my hair &extensions with Jessica Dzyk and I got taken care of quickly, she even had time to do my makeup and blow dry&I curl my hair within the time I was there. Amazing job she really knows what she’s doing. so happy with how soft my hair is now. Love that place !

I have been a PMTS customer for at least 10 years. I’ve read some of the other reviews on Unilocal,and, frankly, I’m shocked at what I’ve read since my experiences have been overwhelmingly positive. I have to wonder if some of these reviews are «planted» from other schools in the area. I’ve had perhaps two times that were disappointing out of approximately 60 services (every 2 months for 10 years.). Statistically, 96% (58 out of 60) of my experiences have been positive; that’s amazing when you consider it’s a beauty school.
Yes, the services take longer than regular salons: Pssst, it’s a school and these are students! Some of the stylists are friendlier than others: Again, they’re students! They’re learning customer service skills, and you’re part of their curriculum: be a good part! I’ve never experienced problems with cold water washes while there, and the stylists always ask me if the water temperature is to my liking. What I have experienced is hair artists in the making doing their best to accommodate cuts/​color I’ve requested and their instructors stepping in where necessary to show them how to to an even more excellent job. My coworkers rave about my hair after it’s been done: PMTS does quality work with quality products!
Thanks to Lily and her supervisor for giving a great color/​cut in time for my birthday! I felt like their most important client for the time I was there.
Be a good advocate for yourself, and bring pictures of the cuts and colors you’re considering. Be honest about the products you use and the procedures (color/​bleach) you’ve done so they can help you get the results you want. Speak up if you’re concerned about the direction your service is heading. Be positive, and help them help you ;)

I typically go to beauty schools for hair care since it tends to be the best financially for me. I have a regular school I usually go to, but decided to try Paul Mitchell just for kicks.
After a little mix-​up with my appointment I was seated about 20 minutes after my appt time. The girl was great and recommended perfect colors for me. I have thick hair and she did great time-​wise and was super pleasant the whole time.
The reason I don’t give Paul Mitchell more stars is for the price. Maybe I’m just biased because I’ve been to a few other beauty schools that don’t charge as much for more bowls, but here it’s $ 8 per extra bowl and I had to get 2 extra.
In the end I asked how much a root touch-​up would be for next time, and it’s the exact same price as a full all-​over color. That doesn’t sit well with me.
So, besides the pricing of this place, the girl that worked on my hair was great and she did a great job.