Sunday, January 16, 2011

Getting blonde highlights in Korea with the fabulous Michelle at The Green Turtle

Michelle and I after my appointment!

Michelle is amazing and truly has a passion for doing hair!
    Getting blonde hair color in Korea is a huge deal. Koreans have much thicker hair then foreigners so they use harsher products, and almost no one has experience with light colors. There are plenty of horror stories of blondes getting their hair done in Korea. Therefore, I strongly recommend calling many places and interviewing them about their past experience and checking on prices. There is a really great hair salon near Ewha Women's University that specializes with foreigners and they speak English well. EUNHA BNC has a great website and a posh store, but after calling and adding up the total price my hair would have cost 200,000 won! I would never spend that much on hair back home, and there is just no reason to here.

Michelle's assistants will help him throughout the appointment.
    So I called about 5 different places in Seoul, and I finally settled on The Green Turtle with the fabulous Michelle. When I asked him if he could do two colors of blonde he by far had the best answer and the lowest price. "No problem sweetie, I can do high and low lights starting at 75,000 won and a hair cut for 25,000 won" he said in his cute girly voice. The total price for my half head of highlights and a hair cut was only 85,000 won, just what I pay back home! Now that I'm back in my apartment staring in the mirror at my beautiful hair, all that I have ringing through my head is a bad version of The Beatles "Michelle my gay hairdresser, he is so amazing, my Michelle, my Michelle!"
    Michelle did two colors of blonde highligts on my hair, and he gave me an amazing hair cut. He is totally in "lala land" singing the day away and truly enjoying himself. He has two female assistants that also help him throughout your appointment. At one point I had all three of them working on my hair, it just doesn't get any more fabulous than that. The salon located in Itaewon, isn't all that flashy. But Michelle definitely knows what he is doing. Towards the end he will give you a great blow dry and style. According to Michelle, he gave me the "Victoria's Secret Sexy Hair Look!"

    I'm not sure why The Green Turtle has its own name, but it is part of Nogku Total Beauty & Massage Salon. They are the same place, and Michelle works there, so don't get confused by the website which is called Nogku Massage. Michelle simply works in the back of the salon and does everyone's hair, so you don't have to worry about getting another hairdresser the day of your visit. He owns the hair section of the salon. The beauty portion of the salon offers great prices for massages 50,000 won, manicures 15,000 won, and even Brazilian waxes 60,000 won. This is the only place I have seen that offers a Brazilian wax in Seoul. (Most Koreans don't tame their bush!)

   To get to the salon simply exit Itaewon Station any exit. Directly across the street from the Hamilton Hotel there is a Quiznos and a Cold Stone. The salon is in the same building on the third floor. 




Me waiting nervously as my highlights set!

TGT is located on the third floor.
If you have any questions or comments about "Getting blonde highlights in Korea with the fabulous Michelle at The Green Turtle" please leave them in the comment box below or email them to goneseoulsearching@gmail.com

Creative Commons License  Gone Seoul Searching by Marie Webb is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at goneseoulsearching@gmail.com.


Nogku Massage Center is The Green Turtle.

18 comments:

  1. I take it, he is gay?? A guy's name Michelle??

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  2. I think so! He was absolutley amazing!!!

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  3. do you know how he is at extensions for westerners?

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  4. Hello anonymous!

    I am not sure if Michelle does hair extensions or not. You should call them (02)790-6696 and talk to Michelle in detail about this before you make an appointment. Make sure he can give you a great explanation and ask him if he has done this many times before! I am sure he has, but confirm first to be safe!

    -Marie

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  5. Hello, I’m a stylist qualified in the UK and have 6 years working experience in England. If there is someone who wants to get hair done, please don’t hesitate to contact me. I would love to offer u free consultation. My name is Moon and mobile No. is 010 5188 0502. The salon called ‘Retro 9’ where I work for is located in Kang-Nam area.

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  6. hello :) I'm a Korean and I was looking for the right place where i can get blonde highlights and OMG it's so bad that i found this blog right after i had my hair done ! right now my hair seems to be a failure ... :( guess i have to visit that place and ask him if there's anythin he can do..
    do you know his korean name?

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  7. Awe!

    I don't know his Korean name, everyone just calls him Michelle! Good luck though!

    -marie

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  8. Hi Marie, Im looking for somewhere to get my hair done in Seoul next week, this place looks great, but do you know if he uses toner instead of bleach? Also, have you had your hair done since and if so was it as good?
    Thanks for your blog,

    Katie

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  9. Hi Katie! I'm not sure about the toner versus bleach question. I've always gotten highlights since I was a kid but I have no idea what kind of chemicals they use, as long as it looks good and my hair isn't falling out I'm ok with it. I did go back to Michelle again and he did just as good as the first time. I do think the blonde he uses is a little harsher than what I am used to back home, but just make sure to buy some good hair products to keep your hair hydrated and your color from fading. Once I started paying for the expensive hair products I never went back, they really do make a difference with color treated hair.

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  10. I can tell that the color is definitely richer as compared to what I've usually seen. Good job carrying the look!

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  11. I stumbled on your blog last week while researching the KTX to Yeosu. Someone just asked for salon recommendations on the 'Sites in Seoul' facebook page. Do you mind if I share a link to this post?

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  12. thanks for this! I just moved to seoul and need to maintain my highlights! Thank you for the very clear directions on how to get there too!

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  13. Ok, so I went to the Green Turtle following this blog post. Michelle did not disappoint! Thank you for the recommendation :) And if you are new to Seoul and to Itaewon, FYI in getting to the Green Turtle: the tenants of the building have changed a "little". There is now a big makeup store on the first floor (Olive something), instead of Quiznos and coldstone. And the Coffee Bean is no longer there. There is another coffee place instead.

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  14. I am in desperate need for all over highlights. I would like to go to The Green Turtle however, I live over an hour away. Does anyone know if you schedule an appointment orwalk-in? Also does anyone know the days and hours they are open?

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  15. Noguk - means green turtle in Korean. The foreigners just say the English name :)
    As for walkins, they need you to make an appointment.
    Michelle is awesome. I've had my hair cut many times, and highlighted.
    As for the wax - little different to what you'd expect back home, but it's Korea. After being in a jjimjilbang being scrubbed by adjumas, the waxing is no biggy

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  16. Sorry - actually, I was told that Nokgu means "Green Turtle', but that was in Korean, and I might be mistaken.... "Nok = Green / gu =Turtle" is what I was told

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  17. Your post and website have left me thoroughly impressed; both are truly exceptional. club in gwalior

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