Olaplex Treatment in River North, Chicago

River North clients have one of the most direct relationships with our Olaplex chair of any neighborhood we serve. The salon is at 223 W Erie. If you live in any of the River North towers north of the river or along Wells, Franklin, or Orleans, you are walking distance away. Olaplex shows up in our day in two ways. Most of the time it is built into a color service. Sometimes it is the entire appointment because your hair needs recovery without color on top.

What Olaplex actually is

Olaplex is a bond-builder. The active molecule, bis-aminopropyl diglycol dimaleate, repairs disulfide bonds in the hair shaft that get broken during bleach, color, heat styling, and mechanical stress. That is what separates it from a conditioner. A conditioner coats the cuticle, smooths the surface, and rinses out. A bond-builder reconnects the structural protein bonds underneath the cuticle, which is what holds the strand together at the chemical level.

This matters because almost every appointment where we lift hair, whether that is a balayage, a foil highlight, a bleach-and-tone, or a virgin tint, breaks bonds. Pairing Olaplex with the lift means the hair leaves the salon structurally closer to where it started. Without it, repeated lift services compound damage visit over visit.

When we add Olaplex to a color service

Standard practice at 3rd Coast Salon is to add Olaplex to every bleach, balayage, foil highlight, and bleach-and-tone service. Kevin builds it into the formula at the bowl. It does not change the lift, it does not slow the appointment, and it does not require a separate booking line. If you are coming in for color that lifts, Olaplex is in.

For single-process color, deposit-only color, gloss, or tonal correction without lift, we will discuss whether Olaplex makes sense. Many clients add it as insurance. It is not necessary if no bonds are being broken, but it does not hurt.

When Olaplex is the standalone appointment

Sometimes a client walks in with hair that needs a reset before the next color service. That is the standalone Olaplex appointment. Common scenarios. A client who just survived a bleach correction at another salon and needs to rebuild before any further lift. A client who has been heat-styling daily for a year and feels the breakage at the mid-shaft. A bride who wants the hair to be at peak condition for a photographed event in three weeks.

The standalone treatment runs about forty-five minutes to an hour. We do not pair it with color. We do not pair it with cut on the same chair time unless you book the cut separately. The hair gets the bond-builder, time to process, and a deep wash and finish. This is the same treatment family as the in-salon work described on our conditioning treatment page, applied as a standalone visit.

Who needs an Olaplex appointment

Three groups in particular. Anyone post-correction. Anyone who heat-styles daily and feels mid-shaft snap. Anyone with prior bleach history about to undergo another color service. We will tell you at the consult whether your hair is in a state where the standalone treatment is the right move, or whether you should just add it to your next color visit and skip the dedicated booking.

Visit us in River North

3rd Coast Salon is at 223 W Erie Street, Suite 1E, in the heart of River North. The Brown Line stops at Merchandise Mart, two blocks south of the salon. From there it is a five-minute walk north to Erie, then a half-block east. The Chicago Avenue Red Line stop is six blocks north, an eight-minute walk down State to Erie.

If you live in the residential towers around Erie, Huron, or Superior, you are walking. If you work at the East Bank Club or theMART, we are three blocks away. The Riverwalk is half a block from our door. Many of our River North clients walk in their gym clothes during a lunch hour, which we have built around with our Tue to Fri 10am to 7pm and Saturday 9am to 5pm schedule.

Who this isn't for

Olaplex is not a substitute for a haircut. If you have several inches of split ends, the bond-builder will improve what is left but cannot reverse split ends. We will recommend a cut in addition. Olaplex is also not a relaxer or smoothing treatment. It will not change your texture or fight humidity. For that, see our texture services.

Frequently asked questions

How close is 3rd Coast Salon to me in River North?
We are at 223 W Erie, half a block from the Riverwalk, two blocks from theMART Brown Line stop, six blocks south of the Chicago Avenue Red Line stop.

Is Olaplex a conditioner?
No. Olaplex is a bond-builder that repairs disulfide bonds inside the hair shaft. Conditioners coat the cuticle. The two do different jobs.

Do I need to book Olaplex separately from my color appointment?
No. We add Olaplex to every bleach, balayage, foil, and bleach-and-tone service automatically. It is built into the color appointment.

When should I book a standalone Olaplex treatment?
Post-correction, after sustained heat-styling damage, or before an upcoming color service if your hair needs a reset first.

How long does a standalone Olaplex appointment take?
Forty-five minutes to an hour for the bond-builder, processing, deep wash, and finish.

Can I do Olaplex at home instead?
The at-home Olaplex products are useful for maintenance but they do not match the strength of the salon treatment. We carry maintenance-grade options and Milbon Repair for between visits.

How often should I get an in-salon Olaplex?
If you are coloring every six to eight weeks, the built-in Olaplex covers you. Standalone treatments make sense every three to six months for high-damage hair.

Will Olaplex change my color or fade it?
No. Olaplex is colorless and does not deposit or lift pigment. Tone stays where it was.

Book at (312) 929-2627 or Book Online. Read our conditioning treatment page, the color menu, and our full services list. Serving the River North towers and also downtown Chicago, Lakeview, and Highland Park.