The Beauty Parlour ★9.9

The Beauty Parlour — a clean-air, ammonia-free hair salon in Old Strathcona

The Beauty Parlour was built as a deliberate alternative to the chemical-heavy salon experience. It is a clean-air salon and a Green Circle member, working with ammonia-free colour that carries little to no scent, in a second-floor room in Old Strathcona.

Services

The salon offers a full range of gender-neutral hair services — cutting for all hair types and lengths, colour from single-process to lightening and grey coverage, conditioning treatments, blow-dry styling and occasion work. Service names and pricing are not split by gender; work is quoted by what the hair actually needs. Because the colour lines are low-odour, the salon suits expectant mothers and people with allergies or scent sensitivities.

Technology and brands

The technical foundation is ammonia-free colour with minimal chemical emanation, combined with clean-air practices so the room does not fill with fumes during a lightening service. As a Green Circle salon, hair clippings, foils, colour tubes and excess colour are diverted from landfill and waterways through a certified recovery program rather than going down the drain. Tools and stations are sanitized between guests.

Team and stylists

The salon does not build its identity around celebrity names — it is a small professional team working to a shared standard, with the emphasis on consultation before any colour service, since ammonia-free lightening behaves differently and is often planned across more than one visit.

The Space

The room itself is part of the point. It was designed and built largely from recycled materials: the floor is reclaimed wood salvaged from a local grain elevator, and most fixtures and furniture are refurbished or original vintage pieces. The result is a welcoming, shabby-chic upstairs space flooded with natural light — quiet and far removed from a mirrored chain interior.

Who it’s for

For anyone who reacts to salon fumes, is pregnant, or simply wants low-odour colour; and for Old Strathcona locals who want a gender-neutral salon with no scripted upsell.

Questions and answers

Can I book online? Appointments are arranged by phone and through the contact details on the salon website.

How long does an appointment take? A cut is quick; ammonia-free lightening is slower and may be staged across visits.

Do you cut men’s and children’s hair? Yes — services are gender-neutral and priced by the work, not the client.

Is it suitable during pregnancy or with scent sensitivity? That is exactly what the clean-air approach is designed for; raise it at consultation.

Do you sell gift cards? Yes, gift certificates can be arranged and used against any hair service.

Opening hours