At The Tease, we’re always looking to highlight cool salons, barbershops, and spaces. This month, we’re spotlighting Lace Xclusive Salon, Barber, and Spa, a hidden jewel in the heart of New Orleans, specializing in hair, beauty, and grooming services.
Nestled away on Desire Street, just minutes away from New Orleans’ buzzy French Quarter, lies Lace Xclusive Salon, Barber, and Spa, a pretty pink oasis for anyone looking to indulge in a moment of beauty. Owner Brittany Penn set out to create a unique hidden jewel in the neighborhood that would encompass all elements of beauty in one centralized location — think hair, beauty, nails, and grooming — while still delivering a stylish yet warm and welcoming atmosphere.
From its vibrant pink paint job to the bold black-and-white checkered floors and elegant damask wallpaper, every design decision for the salon’s interior was made with the utmost care by Penn, who designed the space herself from the exterior to interior.
“I wanted to specifically focus on the interior of the building because since I chose to build my salon in an area that had a history of being known as a low-income area, I wanted the interior of the building to be an entirely different look and vibe,” she said. “[That way] when I market the salon, clients and potential clients would choose the salon based on the look, description, and wide variety of services versus just passing on the idea of giving us a try, based on the area the salon is located in.”
Naturally, Penn required quite a bit of help in bringing her vision to life. As her building was newly constructed, she came up with the overall design and layout of the space herself and was highly selective about the more intimate details such as the color scheme and furniture.
“My wonderful architect Lynette from Spectrum Designs helped with the actual plans, permits, and making sure my ideas and building designs were executed properly when submitting to the City of New Orleans,” she said. “I also have to credit my wonderful construction company Bryant Brothers Construction for building my building and ensuring my entire vision came to light. Both of my parents helped with assembling the salon furniture and my mother installed the wall designs in the entire salon by herself.”
According to Penn, the pink, black, and white color palette “was a bit of a no brainer.” Along with being a salon owner, she also runs Lace Xclusive, a virgin hair extension and wig company, which shares the same feminine color theme. For her, it was only right that her salon and parent company align on that central aspect.
As for the French influence that Penn leans heavily on with the decor and furniture —the glamorous crystal chandeliers, white scroll mirrors, and tufted salon chairs — much of the inspiration came from her childhood fascination with French Provincial furniture.
“I was so meticulous in planning the furniture. I reached out to a ton of salon furniture companies to see if anyone could match my vision and at the time, French Provincial salon decor wasn’t popular in the United States, so I had to reach out to a company based in the U.K.,” she said. “After communicating my ideas and sharing my layout ideas with them, we agreed to move forward and after several months, my custom designed salon furniture was on its way from the U.K. to the port of New Orleans via sea!”
But if the salon portion of the space is a pink paradise, the barbershop portion is the exact opposite. Instead, Penn went for a more masculline look and feel — leaning heavily on black and white tones with rich pops of red, while still keeping in line with the overall Lace Xclusive branding.
“I didn’t want to deter males from feeling like they were welcome because of all the pink. So, although the barbershop is pretty masculine, I still wanted to keep with the same wall design but without the damask and I opted for a black chandelier instead of a pink one,” she said.
While there is so much to love about Lace Xclusive’s interiors, for Penn, her favorite part of the space is without a doubt the “Gold Room” — the only room in the salon that isn’t pink, white, or black.
“I purposely designed this room in pink and gold because I wanted it to be set apart because many of our clients that are seen in this room suffer from either hair loss or some condition where they don’t want to be serviced in the main salon, in front of all the other clients,” she said. “It’s a place where they can feel special and safe, while still keeping with the overall upscale design of the salon.”
Despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Penn says that the space has miraculously been able to avoid any drastic changes to accommodate social distancing.
“We currently have four stylists, so we’re able to space everyone out six feet apart,” she said. “We’ve only had to make changes to the way we service clients and limit the amount of clients we have in the building at one time and increase cleaning time between clients.”
One thing that hasn’t changed? The warm response from both long-time and new clients each time they enter the space.
“Everyone who walks in the door for the first time is initially wowed by the chandeliers and also the fact that you would never guess the salon looks like how it does on the inside based on its location,” said Penn. “I think the meticulous design as well as the closeness of the stylists and barbers creates a family unit, so when a client comes into the salon, they leave feeling like a family.”
To learn more about Lace Xclusive Salon, Barber, and Spa, be sure to follow @lacexclusivesalonbarberandspa on Instagram.
*Editor’s Note: Previous photos of the barbershop portion of the space have been replaced to reflect Lace Xclusive’s updated signage.
