5 Tips For Decorating A Salon Studio

Decorating a small salon space requires a bit more thought. With a little planning (& some creative shopping!) Shaila Paredes, of @BrowsByShaila shows how she transformed her Sola studio into a welcoming space for her clients and an environment that totally reflects her brand.

Tip #1: Keep it light.

Small salon spaces present a unique decorating challenge because they can quickly become closed off and claustrophobic. One way to fight the tight space feeling? Keep everything looking light and bright.

Shaila went with bright white walls and opted for a space with light gray flooring to keep her suite feeling airy. This color combo also serves to set her clients’ minds at ease about a common salon concern: cleanliness.

“I wanted to keep things primarily white because it makes everything look very clean. I feel that’s very important for when a client comes in—they want to see and be in a space that is very clean.”

Tip #2: Design a flow.

Moving around in a small salon space can be another challenge, when it comes to decor. The combination of bulky equipment and furniture makes it imperative to consider placement and flow.

“It’s funny because when I first got my Sola space, I was like, ‘Oh decorating this is going to be easy,’ because it was a smaller, but it took some thinking to figure out where I was going to place furniture and everything.”

Shaila shows off her decorating chops in this area by creating two defined spaces in her open-concept floorplan. Her station keeps a low profile against the wall with her chair close by—allowing her enough room to move around her client while working.

Color plays an important role here as well. By keeping her furniture white and clear, it takes away any bulky, heavy feelings that can come with large furniture pieces.

Tip #3: Create a focal point.

Keeping everything monochromatic can seem a little clinical, but too many pops of color can leave a space feeling cluttered and overwhelming. The solution? Create a main focal point.

Shaila combined this idea with another great small space decor idea: designing up.

“I’ve always really been into black and white stripes, and when it came to decorating my space, I knew that I wanted to do everything in white, with an accent wall featuring those black and white stripes.”

Shaila’s vertically striped wall creates a graphic focal point, infuses a bold style and makes her space feel larger. Win. win. win.

Tip #4: Take cues from your personal style.

The decision to create a focal point in her small salon space that was an extension of her personal style is one of the things that makes Shaila’s salon suite unique. She takes this idea even further by incorporating an aspect of of her signature look into her salon decor.

“I have always worn red lipstick, and a lot of people and clients know and remember me by that. So since red is my favorite color, and because I have this thing for red roses, and because clients know I always wear red lipstick, I knew I had to include this pop of red in my space.”

This pop of red scattered throughout her space creates visual interest and makes her suite identifiable as hers, to her clients. An important feature to consider when designing a salon suite, since there are so many independant salons occupying the same space.

Tip #5: Stay organized and clutter free

It may seem like a no brainer, but cutting down on clutter is the fastest way to make a small salon space feel larger than it is. That can be harder than it sounds when you think about how much stuff a salon needs to stay in business!

Tools, products, accessories, all of these small pieces can add up to a lot of wasted space, if you don’t put some thought into how you’re organizing and displaying what you need to use everyday.

Shaila shows that a little creative shopping in this area can go along way.

“When it comes to the glass shelves and the glass jars on my station that I store my Q-Tips and cotton rounds in, I got all that kind of stuff at The Container Store. Some of those items are meant to be used as bathroom storage, but I just removed the lids and made them work for my station.”

While decorating a small salon space and infusing it with loads of style may seem like a tall order, in the end it comes down to designing smart and keeping a few key tips in mind:

• Keep main colors light and bright to create an illusion of more space.
• Make sure you create a flow of movement through your space.
• A bold focal point can anchor a small open space and provide interest.
• Think about your personal style and choose an aspect of it to highlight in your salon.
• Stay organized and clutter free!

Shaila did all of this and created a totally unique space that reflects her both her brand and her style.

“I love my space, and I have tried hard to make it to where it represents my personality. I’ve incorporated everything that I love and what my clients would love as well.”

To get your own Sola Salon Studio, contact the Sola near you today!