Ena Salon Review, London

It’s no secret that I’m a bit vain. Annoying, as vanity is one thing that isn’t too compatible with motherhood as Elfie helpfully demonstrated recently when she smooshed my red lipstick into my face with the palm of her hand. I like to do my bit in the name of grooming though as it makes me feel more of a human being on those days when I’m running on four hours sleep. So that’s pretty much every day, then.

When I did some mental arithmetic last week and realised it had been a whole 8 months since my last haircut (two children being even less conducive to pampering that one child, you see) I was shocked. And not just at the state of my split ends: the last time I went this long without a cut I was a student and ended up cutting my own hair over the bathroom sink. Not recommended, choppy chic it was not.

My beautiful friend Charlotte

So when I was invited to a baby-friendly morning of pampering by Mothers Meeting I was thrilled and hopped off to London on my old friend the commuter train with Elfie in tow. Girls day out, oi oi!

We were late (as is the way these days) so missed the first part of the tour of the beautiful Ena salon but it truly is one of the most tasteful, lovely properties I’ve ever seen. The bathrooms were full of a gorgeous Italian plaster, there were maximum Farrow and Ball on the walls and plenty of lovely light fixtures. All this in a quiet unassuming townhouse a 5 minute walk from Holborn. Amazing!

Peppa Pig on the iPad means you win in the toddler popularity stakes

It was quiet, peaceful and relaxing. Just what you need for a morning with 10 mummies and their babes! Thankfully they’d closed especially for us and were able to masterfully entertain the kids as the mamas were pampered to within an inch of our lives.

 Lovely Jenny from Mother’s Meetings, with Elfie and I in the mirror (image captured by Amelia from Amelia’s Magazine)

I was asked to try their threading treatment first. Now, threading is something I used to try to do on a regular basis though I gave it up about a year ago. I may have had two kids but that shit HURTS and I wasn’t brave enough to smile through the pain. Waxing isn’t as precise but at least it doesn’t leave me weeping like a baby. I gave it another go anyway, and it was truly the least painful threading experience of my life. My eyebrow technician was brilliant: she talked through the shape of my brows with me beforehand, discussing the areas she’d be concentrating on and how the results would look. She even replaced my eyebrow pencil afterwards and was kind enough to do the same for my under-eye concealer that had all smudged off with my eyes watering. Plus her own eyebrows were brilliant: the best advert possible.

Before: A Bit Bushy

After: a bit swollen but perfect! Pre-getting made back up, obviously

Then onto my haircut with Sam, who was lovely and didn’t once  ask me if I was going on holiday this Summer (every time a hairdresser asks me this I do an inward eyeroll). I told Sam I wanted a subtle trim as I have been growing my hair out for a while – and thanks to post-partum hair loss I will be doing so for a good while longer. He did the best thing possible though, by getting a mirror to the back of my head and showing me just how much of my hair was dead. Erm, about three inches. He said that it was up to me what we did but to get my hair back in a healthy state I’d need to lose all those crappy bits. I don’t think a hairdresser has ever been so honest and it was totally refreshing.

I did what I was told and we lost those three inches, and you know what? My hair has not felt in such great condition for a long long time. And it doesn’t feel much shorter at all. In conclusion: Sam knows his hair. I was absolutely thrilled with the results and I don’t think I was the only Mama leaving ENA that day with a little bit more confidence and a spring in my step – despite the vile weather that left me more than a little windswept.

I took my best pal off to lunch at 32 Great Queen Street – somewhere I used to frequent in the good old days for after-work glasses of wine in the basement bar. We had a lovely lunch of duck and pork rillettes and cauliflower cheese before heading home. Elfie had the most wonderful day, if only for the SIX TRAINS we got to go on (she effing loves her trains and has been talking about the ‘choo choo’ ever since).

When we got home my Mother-in-Law had not only looked after Hux but had cleaned the kitchen, hoovered the house and cooked dinner. Can anyone say PERFECT DAY?

I want to say another big thank-you to Jenny for organizing such a fantastic day for us all: that woman is a superstar. Thanks also to ENA for having me and giving me one of the best haircuts and eyebrow makeovers of my life. I had a wonderful time and can’t wait to come back!

If you want to try ENA for yourself (and you definitely should!) they are offering 20% off for all new clients on all Hair and Beauty treatments. You can see more photos of our lovely day at Mother’s Meeting and some fab pictures of the salon at Amelia’s Magazine. 

Ena Salon, 5 Great Queen Street, Holborn, London, WC2B 5DG
020 3301 5451
www.enasalon.com