Beauty & Spas in Sacramento

As the sun sets over the dome of the California State Capitol, the Neoclassical building casts a shadow across the immaculately manicured lawn of Capitol Park. The beauty of this scene is unrivaled in Sacramento, but just a few blocks away in the hip district of Midtown, a profusion of boutique spas are giving it a run for its money. In these Sacramento spas, stylists and aestheticians pool their talents to create looks that stand up to the scenery of California’s capital city. Mecca Salon, which minimizes its ecological footprint in some simple yet effective ways. The salon’s stylists use natural hair products from Davines, a company that plants trees in Costa Rica and Italy to offset the carbon emissions from its factories. The stylists at Salon Bravissimo opt for a more high-tech approach, combining classic cuts and coloring treatments with the latest methods of texturizing hair. With digital perms, they can give hair a tighter curl that actually gets smoother and wavier as it dries. To achieve pin-straight hair, they use Yuko Japanese straightening techniques and a keratin formula that strengthens and relaxes strands. Upon entering Honey Salon, it’s hard to ignore the shelves filled with Bumble & Bumble and Oribe products. The salon spotlights these and other high-end products, using the ones best suited to each client’s hair during cuts and coloring appointments. They also helpfully show clients how to replicate the styles at home, drastically reducing the possibility of a bad hair day. Of course, some salons and spas stand out in a different way: by catering exclusively to men. The barber pole outside of Barber Blues lets passersby know that the shop specializes in traditional, manly cuts and straight-razor shaves. The cuts and shaves are worth the price of admission on their own, but you’ll also have the chance to hang with the barbers and set the high score on the shop’s pinball machine.