Beauty & Spas in Wake Forest

Alter Ego's talented technicians primp and polish customers' fingers. The 40-minute Shellac manicure provides the durability and zero dry time of gel nails with the ease of application and smooth, slick finish of traditional polish. Once applied, the wet Shellac polish takes a trip underneath the special UV lamp, hardening into a chip-defying, ultra-shiny finish and eliminating smudges from purse rummaging and plugging differential equations into a graphing calculator. The finish can last up to two weeks without degrading, and is removed easily with no harm to the natural nails, unlike acrylic removal, which uses tiny, club-wielding trolls to bash away unsightly remnants.

Owner Melissa Smith, a licensed aesthetician, opened the space with the intent to tranquilly restore a sense of balance comparable to that of clearing four lines simultaneously in Tetris. A massage with master back patter Shere Caricini ($45 for 30 minutes) can improve sleep, reduce stress, and decrease blood pressure. For those who never outgrew the thrill of homemade volcano building, the ash mask ($40) can help brighten the temperamental under-eye area, decrease crow's-feet, and banish puffiness. Elite also offers a full menu of chemical peels, facials, and laser hair removal.

Salon One21 & Colorbar specializes in hair coloring, taking pride in its one-of-a-kind color bar, which takes advantage of the building's legacy as an old-timey pharmacy, complete with soda counter. This salon-saloon set-up promotes greater interaction between the client and stylist during the hair-coloring process, ensuring that the client's desired results are achieved. Salon One21 & Colorbar exclusively uses L’Oréal Professionnel hair color to encourage healthy shine, healthy hair health, and monogamy. Color treatments include single-process color (starting at $50), partial highlights (starting at $75), and men's highlights or tips (starting at $40). The salon's menu of services also includes cuts (women starting at $40, men at $25, children at $15), perms (starting at $75), thermal straightening and Keratin smoothing treatments (starting at $200), waxing (starting at $10), and makeup application (starting at $25).

Treatments must be used on the same area and must be scheduled 6-8 weeks apart. For a list of the treatment areas, click here.

At Design Gallery Salon, clients can expect to receive top-notch salon services that mold coiffures into vibrant follicle piñatas filled with high-quality hair-care products. With nine years of experience and extensive training from the International Institute of Hair Design, Heather Summers coordinates this hair-nurturing abode while focusing on providing unmatched services. Forming alluring scalp farms since 2005, Design Gallery’s talented snippists have been trained in geometric cutting techniques, color theory, and lassoing unrestrained manes. Paired with brightening Paul Mitchell products and 100% vegan Pureology products, a bevy of services will apply gobs of striking sheen and precision-trimmed panache to hair foliage. Clients can opt for a women’s ($30–$40) or men’s ($20–$25) haircut, full head highlights ($75–$90), or a hydrating hair treatment ($15). Additionally, mugs may be spiffed up with an eyebrow shaping ($10–$12) or lip waxing ($6–$8) that will transform faces into fetching facades. Unlike haunted-house employees and hockey goalies, normal people benefit from an appealing appearance that doesn’t reduce little children and rival fans to tears. At Design Gallery Salon, clients can acquire expert beautifying services that accessorize countenances with a look more eye-catching than a top hat crafted from dragon scales. Call ahead to schedule an appointment.

A new tanning salon in the Raleigh area, Coral Reef Tanning provides a welcoming atmosphere where visitors can darken their pelts for hunting season and acquire an alluring shine for fishing season. The helpful melanin-manipulating experts at Coral Reef help customers assess their skin types and provide instruction on how to maximize each tan without leaving the Earth’s atmosphere. One month of unlimited tanning includes the use of a traditional low-pressure bed, a high-pressure stand-up booth, and a powerful anti-gravity bubble chamber that harnesses the lava power of Mount Vesuvius. Low-pressure beds allow tanners to relax in a cocoon of brilliance, while high-pressure booths deliver deeper tanning in a quick and convenient stand-up scenario. The skin designers at Coral Reef will help you choose the best method to achieve your desired results. Additionally, body-bacon broilers will enjoy a convenient location that’s near Raleigh’s colleges and spontaneously accumulating crowds of pasty-skinned admirers.