Studio Elan

Hi, I just wanted to do a review for Studio Elan, I booked Studio Elan for my cousin’s reception along with my five other girl cousins. Overall I was very happy with my makeup, the young girl who did it did not rush even though she had another booking to get to and made sure I liked my makeup and she was willing to make any changes as I didn’t like the initial lip colour she chose. However, as I have very heavy hair I really didn’t want it being very big or crazy during the reception night, the artist who did my hair didn’t really follow what I wanted and when I had told her I did not like what she had done she was rude and said that it was just the volume of my hair although I’ve had it done from other places and they’ve been able to do it the way I like. I was shocked at the lack of professionalism from her part after hearing so many good things about Studio Elan, she was almost bitter than I did not like the way she had done my hair and she was also bitter when I had asked her to fix it. Although my makeup was nice, my sisters and cousins did not like their makeup, my sister didn’t have eyeliner on half the inner corner of her eye and it looked very sloppy, overall not a good experience at Studio Elan and I do not recommend using them for special nights especially when you’re required to look good.

I spoke mostly with Fathima, she was awesome through the whole process. From picking my artist to me letting her know of the cancelation. Sukhi was very understanding and worked with me in regards to returning my deposit in full.

Studio Elan did my wedding makeup, she’s super talented and sooo nice, plus she’s really quick, my makeup and hair stayed in place for 16 hours so glad I chose her.

Just wanted to share my experience with Studio Elan for non-bridal hair and makeup for my best friend’s wedding this past week. I had an absolutely terrible experience with them pretty much from the moment I enquired about getting my hair and makeup done.
I was told via email that after I sent my non-refundable deposit, I would receive a confirmation email. I sent my deposit of $100 and never heard a thing for several weeks although the e-transfer was accepted right away, finally I had to reach out to them to ask them what was going on and if my booking was in fact confirmed. This made me feel uneasy but I brushed it off thinking, it’s wedding season they must just be very busy.
Through my email interactions and upon my arrival, I was never informed of the people who would be working on me. Wasn’t introduced to the artists when I arrived, and never before the booking. Had the names of the artists been communicated, I would’ve been given the opportunity to look at their instagrams and stayed far far FAR away from them but instead I didn’t (and still don’t) have any idea who they are.
My appointment was for 5:00AM and I reiterated in my emails that I needed to be ready for 6:30AM. The emails I received made it very clear not to be late which is completely understandable, hence why I arrived at the studio at about 4:45AM and waited until 4:55AM to knock on the front door. I was greeted by the owner of Studio Elan, and was guided to the studio where three other women were also getting ready. Sukhi informed me that they were running 15 minutes late, I asked her if I would still be ready for 6:30AM to which she responded “yeah, you should be.” I informed her that I absolutely needed to be done by 6:30AM. I sat in the studio for roughly 20 minutes before the woman (who I was never introduced to) started my hair. Keep in mind that my appointment started at 5:00AM and I lost 20 minutes on my appointment because of whatever issues they were having. How is it fair that I showed up on time, and yet I lost time on my booking and still had to pay the full amount although I was no longer getting the full appointment time? If I had time to spare I would be okay with waiting but I simply didn’t have any time or patience to sit there watching other people get ready during my appointment.
When the woman started my hair, I explained what I wanted. Two tight french braids from the top of my head going back into a sleek bun. She didn’t do exactly what I wanted and instead of giving me a sleek bun she just did a bunch of braids in the back and pinned them to my head. She used no products to de-frizz my hair so my hair was sticking up from the top and sides because it was so frizzy. While this woman was doing my hair, she answered several phone calls from Sukhi and stopped to answer text messages as well. I was so frustrated because she knew I was in a rush and had to leave by a certain time but instead was talking on the phone and answering texts. My hair was so poorly secured that shortly after my appointment and all throughout the wedding, my hair was falling out of the “bun.” The morning of my best friend’s wedding, a fellow bridesmaid had to unpin all my hair just to re-pin it all.
Moving on to the worst part of it all, the makeup. Firstly, the makeup artist (who also didn’t introduce herself) didn’t bother to wash her hands after her previous client and before my makeup. She spot cleaned her brushes on piece of paper towel which grossed me out as she had been working on someone just minutes before me. I believe most makeup artists have several sets of brushes if they’re going to be working on people so back to back. She took some bath and body works hand sanitizer, rubbed it on her hands and proceeded to slather a bunch of moisturizer on my face with her fingers. She didn’t even bother to prime my face although I told her I would have the makeup on all day and wanted it to be nice and waterproof and long lasting. It was early in the morning, I hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before so I had pretty dark circles under my eyes and have some discolouration on my face in general, the “artist” didn’t even bother to colour correct my face whatsoever and instead went in with a thick goopy layer of foundation and concealer. I’m not a makeup artist but have gotten my makeup done enough times to know that that is just wrong. After gooping all the makeup on my face, she continually rested her unwashed hand on my face while working on my eyes. Though my eye lids looked decent, my lashes were an absolute monstrosity. I wasn’t given any option on what type of lashes I thought would look nice. The woman pulled out a plastic package of lashes which looked super ugly and cheap. I absolutely don’t require super expensive lashes but when paying $200 for hair and makeup, I would at least like the lashes to not look like plastic. While at the wedding, several people informed me that the lashes looked like they were from the Dollar Store. The lashes weren’t even blended with my natural lashes which made them look even worse. I was so embarrassed by the way I looked and had no desire to take any photos whatsoever. I told her I didn’t want caked on makeup but that for sure went in one ear out the other. By the time I got to the Gurdwara, my makeup was completely cracked around my lips and extremely creased under my eyes. When out in the sun, I was also informed that the foundation was far too dark for my skin and looked pretty bad. Perhaps the worst part was the fact that one of my cheeks was completely unblended. Visible in the photo, you can see theres is a completely straight line dividing the contour from the rest of my face. I had to pull away the bride’s sister from taking pictures with her sister on her wedding day to give me some of her makeup to try to fix the clown makeup on my face.
I emailed Studio Elan several days ago about my experience and have yet to hear back so I figured the best thing to do was to post here and share my horrible experience and try to help others from avoiding booking with them. I thought I was booking with a good, reputable and a reliable company but I was absolutely wrong. I didn’t like the way I looked whatsoever and that absolutely impacted the way I felt while at my best friend’s wedding. I didn’t want to take any pictures, I felt insecure and uncomfortable in my own skin which was a horrible feeling. I was happy to pay the $200 because I thought Studio Elan would do a good job but whatever clownery was done to my hair and face was worth no where near $200. I literally can’t express enough how bad the experience was.
Going forward I will only ever book with Gursimer Kaler or Makeup By Jot for all my makeup needs. They were both so easy to talk to, did everything they could to recreate what I wanted. Listened to all my concerns, had impeccable hygiene practices and were so courteous, respectful and punctual.
UPDATE: About 15 minutes after this review was posted, I received a phone call from Sukhi. She apologized, assured me that this is not how Studio Elan operates and refunded my full booking. Though I do appreciate the refund, I still don’t recommend them and will never book with them myself again. The refund doesn’t change the fact that I looked like a clown at my best friend’s wedding.