Gwacheon hair salon magic volume setting for frizzy hair: One & Only

Why a magic volume setting at a Gwacheon hair salon before returning to work

With my return to work coming up soon,, I went to the hair salon for the first time in ages to transform into a working mom who actually knows how to style her hair ^^. Ever since having Haerin, I really hadn't had the time to worry about my hair and was just tying it up to get by, so I was excited to see how much of a transformation I could pull off!!

The place I visited was One & Only Hair Gwacheon Government Complex Station! I heard there's a designer here who's really good at magic perms, so I booked right away hahaha

I booked through Naver Reservation and chose Senior Designer Bom! When booking, you pick a date and time and can also select the treatment menu you want — cut, perm, color, etc. — so I could decide exactly what I wanted ahead of time. Since I wanted to tame my frizzy semi-wavy hair while adding waves at the ends, I booked a magic volume setting!

Dropped Haerin off and headed straight to the salon! Personally, one of my favorite views in Gwacheon is this view of Gwanaksan Mountain... and that day too, the wide-open scenery was so nice..😝 There's a Gwacheon art festival coming up soon... (I heard Kim Jang-hoon's performing, hey~)

Where One & Only Hair Gwacheon Government Complex Station is and how to get there

One & Only Hair Gwacheon Government Complex Station is located on the basement floor of the Hanyang Suzianne officetel near Gwacheon Government Complex Station! I told my husband the location and he didn't quite know it, but when I said 'the Grace Hotel,' he was like ah~ that place... (30 years together still counts for something)

It's within easy walking distance from the station, so it's very accessible, and since the building itself is newly built, the whole place had a clean, tidy feel.

I booked for 10am and there were already quite a few customers waiting, more than I expected. Seeing customers there even during opening hours made me think this must be a popular place — One & Only Hair Gwacheon Government Complex Station!

Inside the salon: atmosphere and styling chairs

As soon as I opened the door I was surprised by how spacious it was. My usual mental image of a salon is just mirrors and chairs and a 'yep, this is a hair salon' vibe, but here the individual treatment chairs were set up with plenty of space between them and didn't feel cramped at all (I loved that each spot had its own partition!). In particular, there's a counter and a beverage bar-like space in the center of the store, which somehow really sets the mood. The overall interior was clean and calm, so it felt less like a hair salon and more like a nice-vibes café (nice-vibes café, you know).

There were also multiple shampoo seats and several shampoo rooms, so overall it felt very comfortable and uncrowded!

Consultation about semi-wavy hair and the shoulder-length cut

Finally it was my turn, so I moved to Senior Designer Bom's chair hahaha

Sitting in a salon chair for the first time in ages..ㅎ_ㅎ Is it just me, or does sitting in a salon chair make your real face show up in the mirror looking worse than usual?ㅎ Somehow it looks even uglier lol

Before starting, she took photos of my hair's current condition. My hair was a combo of semi-wavy + frizzy + neglected + below shoulder length + basically hopeless (my own opinion), and since I usually just tie it up I never really noticed, but seeing it in photos, it really was a mess (a knockoff Hagrid situation ㅎ). When tied up it looked okay, but let down, the frizz was on full display!

So I asked for the length to be cut to about shoulder length, without much layering, just enough so the hair wouldn't look heavy, kept natural hahaha. Senior Designer Bom checked the condition of my hair directly while helping me match my desired style piece by piece, and I liked that she took my preferences as the starting point for the direction!

First up was the cut! She trimmed the length down to roughly shoulder length. She explained that after perming, the curls can make the hair look a bit shorter, so it's better to leave some length if you want natural waves! (I always thought my hair looked thick just because it was frizzy, but once it was cut, it turned out I really do have a ton of hair;;;ㅎ)

How the magic volume setting went, plus the drinks and toast

After the cut, we moved into the real treatment. First she applied the solution to my hair and started the heat processing!

While waiting during the heat processing, she asked what I'd like to drink, and I ordered a cold peppermint tea! Then a little later... wait, what? I thought only the drink would come, but toast came along with it lolol I love this kind of service ㅠㅠ Since it's a newly opened salon with a clean café-like atmosphere, and they actually bring out drinks and toast, it genuinely felt like getting my hair done at a café?ㅎ

And the toast was seriously delicious...(sorry)lolol I'd already eaten but it was so good I just polished it off... honestly I really wanted more toast ㅠ,,, I was too shy to ask for a second one though ㅎ,,, but little treats like this really do put you in a good mood 👍🏻

Once the solution had soaked in enough, I had a first shampoo and moved to the next chair! She cleared away my leftover peppermint tea and asked what I'd like to drink again, so I went with an iced Americano!ㅎㅎㅎㅎㅎㅎ

Straightened on top, C-curl and S-curl waves underneath

Since the roots were quite wavy, she used a straightening iron to smooth out the top section, while the lower section got a natural mix of C-curl and S-curl waves, just as I'd wanted!

Getting my photo taken at this point was pretty funny lolol I looked kind of like Cleopatra, kind of like a weird alien ㅎ. I also tried taking a selfie of my own face but it looked better when she took it, so I deleted mine ㅎㅎㅎㅎㅎㅎ Also.. Senior Designer Bom really put effort into taking good photos, changing angles here and there so I could document the whole process — so thoughtful and on point... (I said it out loud and she just laughed, which made me happy ㅎ)

After the heat processing and curl work were done, I moved back to the shampoo room! This is the neutralizing step, so a bit of solution was applied, left to sit, and then shampooed out!

The finished hair and how to style it at home

My treatment, which ran over two hours, was finally done! Haha I wasn't wearing my glasses so I couldn't see that well lolol but the designer explained which direction the curls were set in and which direction to pull the hair while drying it! I thought she was just going to explain it, but she had me try it myself lolol so I said okay and gave it a go lolol (thanks to that, I actually have a feel for how to dry my hair at home now!!)

My finished hair... it's clean and neat enough that people looking at me from behind will probably notice how pretty it turned out — exactly what I wanted!!! Getting my hair properly done after so long was such a great reset.. Honestly, because of the frizz I used to look like a knockoff Hagrid all the time and hated wearing my hair down, but now I feel like I don't have to tie it up anymore! So satisfied ㅠㅠ this is so my style!!!!!!

Honest review of One & Only Hair in Gwacheon

What I was most satisfied with was the one-on-one consultation and treatment. When I described the style I wanted, she looked at my hair's actual condition and gave me a specific explanation of what approach would work best!

And the toast^^ On top of drinks, having a snack prepared too was extremely satisfying..! For anyone working near the Government Complex, it seems like a great spot to visit after work, and since parking is available, it's also convenient to visit by car!

For anyone looking for a hair salon recommendation in Gwacheon, I genuinely recommend One & Only Hair Gwacheon Government Complex Station!! (I think I'm going to make this my regular place from now on...!! For real ㅎㅎㅎ)