Frequently asked questions.

General

  • Your first and every visit to West Side will be effortlessly easy! You will be greeted by one of our amazing receptionists, offered a beverage of your choice including coffee, cappuccino, espressos, wine, or specialty cocktails, then your service provider will direct you to their station. Your service will consist of a thorough consultation, stress-relieving rituals, and a personalized experience. At the end of the service, we offer pre-booking options, home care recommendations to keep your new look looking fresh at home and your choice of payment methods including debit, credit card, or Google/Apple Pay.

  • The health and safety of our team, guests, and community is of the utmost importance to us. We have many procedures in place to protect everyone inside WSS. Please refer to our COVID-19 Protocols to prepare correctly for your appointment and learn the steps we are taking to limit the risk of spread within our salon.

  • Appointments are recommended to secure an appointment and avoid disappointment but we will accept walk-ins if we have space for the service.

    Click here to book.

  • We guarantee the highest level of guest satisfaction, if you are having challenges with services received, let us know within 7 days and we will be happy to correct it.

  • Pioneers of holistic beauty and a champion of environmental leadership, Aveda was a clear choice for us. Not only does their core values align with the WSS philosophy they offer a wide range of cutting-edge plant-based products that help us create. Aveda provides the cleanest, most customizable, and most reflective hair colour line per our specialists. We choose our professional products based on performance and health. Let us know if you may have allergies.

    Vegan - Cruelty-Free - Ethically Sourced - 100% Post-Consumer Recycled Packaging

  • We are proud to offer the Aveda Pure Privilege Program at West Side!

    Not sure what it is? Pure Privilege is an Aveda loyalty program that rewards you with points each time you purchase products. Points can be redeemed for Aveda gifts, products, and salon gift cards! Don't forget to redeem your FREE Aveda birthday gift!

  • We guarantee the highest level of guest satisfaction, if you are having challenges with services received, let us know within 7 days and we will be happy to correct it. We strive to recommend the best home care for each guest’s individual needs, but if for any reason you are unsatisfied with a product purchased, we accept full returns within 7 days and full exchanges 7+ days.

    Please note that we do not offer refunds on service transactions.

  • We value the time of all of our guests, to ensure that your service provider stays on time, we ask all guests to be on time for their appointments.

    If you will be late for your appointment please call the salon to let us know, if you are more than 15 minutes late it will be considered a ‘no show’, a 50% service cost will be charged and the appointment will need to be rescheduled.

  • Our service providers depend on guests arriving at appointments on the scheduled date and time, we understand that things can come up at the last minute, so as often as possible we ask that all guests provide at least 24 hours notice for cancellations.

    Repeated last-minute cancellations or no-shows may require prepayment for future bookings.

    Guests that arrive more than 15 minutes late to their appointments will be rescheduled to a later date.

Hair

  • There are a few things that dictate the price of our service. When it comes to haircuts, prices depend on the level of stylists, the more experience and education they have the higher the price point.

    For colour, highlights, colour corrections, balayage, and all other technical services the price depends on the level of stylist, education, the amount of product needed to achieve the desired look, and the amount of time you’ll need to be in your stylist's chair.

  • Junior Stylists have completed a hairstyling diploma program and/or are registered apprentices looking to refine their skills, gain experience and build confidence. The level of experience varies, but all stylists at a junior level are coached by our Salon Director.

    Stylists have completed a hairstyling diploma program and/or registered Ontario Apprenticeship program, have an Ontario Hairstyling Licence and more than 2 years of experience as a junior stylist.

    Senior Stylists have completed a hairstyling diploma and/or registered Ontario Apprenticeship program, have an Ontario Hairstyling Licence, and have more than 6 years at a stylist level.

  • This all depends on the length and health of the hair. The general rule is 4 weeks for shortcuts and 6-8 weeks for longer hair. Having a thorough consultation with one of our skilled stylists will give you a better idea of how many weeks you should get your haircut.

  • Highlights are done with foil, which keeps the enlightener heated and allows for much more intense lightening.

    Balayage, on the other hand, involves painting the bleach straight on your hair, using a freehand technique that gives a more organic result.

    The difference between ombre and balayage is that ombre usually involves the ends of the hair having an all-over colour different from the roots, whereas balayage will allow your natural colour to peek through and there won't be a demarcation line.

  • We can easily help blend the grey hair in with your natural colour using our customizable Grey Blending line by Aveda. Aveda’s Grey Blending service is a five-minute add-on service that Joy can perform right at the shampoo bowl. It is a 95% naturally derived, demi-permanent colour that fades out gradually over the course of four weeks, without leaving a harsh line of demarcation and obvious roots.

Spa & Aesthetics

  • Mini-manicures/pedicures include nail filing, cuticle removal, and polish, service is 30 - 45 minutes.

    Signature manicures/pedicures include hand/feet soaking in an Aveda Rosemary mint bath, nail filing, cuticle removal, Aveda exfoliating scrub (pedicure only), massage, hot towel wrap (pedicure only), and polish, service is 60 - 75 minutes.

    Deluxe manicures/pedicures include everything in the spa pedicure + a hydrating mask and paraffin.

  • Shellac is a power polish, produced by CND, its breakthrough, patent-pending technology combines the appearance of regular polish with the performance of a gel. 14+ day wear, zero dry time, no drills or aggressive filing, and no nail damage (when removed properly) makes it the most popular option at West Side. Please, allow your service provider to remove the shellac when you are ready, free of charge. If that is not an option let us know so we can walk you through the proper steps of removal.

  • Acetone is used to remove Shellac nails, the process, when done properly by one of our experienced estheticians, will not harm the nails.

  • Henna is a long-lasting brow dye that remains on the skin for up to 2 weeks and hair for 4-6, resulting in a powdery filled in brow! It's a great solution for guests wanting a darker brow than their natural colour without having to use makeup or a brow pencil.

    Henna also effectively covers grey hair and comes in a variety of colours, allowing us to customize it for each guest's unique needs.

  • A lash lift is a perm for your lashes that shapes them into the perfect eye-opening curl. Approved by Health Canada, Sugarlash has created a cream formula to allow the application and guests experience flawless! This service is perfect for guests with straight, stubborn lashes, who have damage from lash extensions or who want a non-invasive alternative to false lash extensions.

    Brow Lamination is a semi-permanent treatment that realigns the brow hair and creates an instant look of added volume and fullness. Approved by Health Canada Brow Lamination is formulated specifically to perfectly shape brow hairs without over-processing and maintaining a PH level that remains gentle on the sensitive skin.

  • Waxing is done by soft & hard Azulene wax, a gentle wax suitable for all skin types. Threading is only done on the Face.

  • We recommend showering before waxing services, showering after can irritate the skin and may cause ingrown.

  • All of our massage services are done by our skilled estheticians. We do not have registered massage therapy, therefore we cannot provide a receipt for insurance purposes.

Hydrafacials

  • Hydrafacial Treatments use a unique, patented Vortex- Fusion delivery system to exfoliate, extract and hydrate, and the spiral design delivers painless extractions. They use glycolic and salicylic acid to exfoliate the skin while using boosters to target specific skin care needs.

  • Definitely! Hydrafacials address all skincare needs including: fine lines + wrinkles, elasticity + firmness, even tone + vibrancy, skin texture, brown spots, oil + congestion, and enlarged pores.

  • It's recommended to receive a hydrafacial monthly, this will continue to improve skin tone, and firmness while addressing any unique skin concerns you may have.

  • Contradictions to hydrafacials are:

    • Accutane - you must wait 6 months to year after using accutane

    • Active sunburn - please wait until the sunburn is no longer red to receive the hydrafacial

    • Pregnant women and women breastfeeding - due to a lack of research regarding pregnant women, we do not recommend getting this treatment while pregnant and breastfeeding

    • Fillers / Injections - please wait 7- 10 days after receiving injections

  • The spiral design of the Hydropeel Tips, used in conjunction with the Hydrafacial proprietary vacuum technology and serums, creates a vortex effect to easily dislodge and remove impurities while simultaneously delivering hydrating skin solutions.

  • Boosters are specifically designed for the Hydrafacial system and are formulated to address unique skin concerts such as pigmentation, fine lines, and lack of firmness. Boosters can be added to any hydrafacial treatment to instantly cure skin conditions.