In a dull economy, Bellingham, WA is undergoing a growth-burst of sorts. Half a dozen salons have either opened or changed ownership, with each new owner intent on creating a hipper salon environment in the dowdy queen on the bay that is Bellingham. This is a part of an economic revival to its Fairhaven and old downtown district, with an explosion of coffee shops, boutiques, fine art establishments, public spaces and restaurants representing every taste and cuisine.

We focus on two such salons that were either born from an established local salon or was created by the partnership of two Bellingham hairstylists.

Tony and Lindsey Moceri opened their second hair salon, Karibou, last November. They also own Salon Bellissima, a full-service salon and spa in Fairhaven.

The salon is only 800 feet square and has six styling stations, all on wheels. The stations are mobile so the space can easily be cleared out and used as an art studio and to host events such as fashion shows featuring items from local boutiques and clothing designers.

"It is going to be a high-end boutique salon," Tony said. "It's going to feel more like an art studio in there than a hair salon." Lindsey, who is a hairstylist, designed the salon to be edgy and hip with clean lines and bare walls, except for mirrors and a large white porcelain caribou head. The clean walls make a perfect surface to hang local art and to fulfill a desire to attract a clientele interested in art.

This is inline with the environment created by our second salon:

Honey, a new hair salon, opened Dec. 4, 2010 in the heart of old Bellingham. The salon has unique exposed brick on most walls, sleek furnishings, and an open artsy feeling. The salon is on the Downtown Bellingham Art Walk and, in May 2011, will have artist Kathryn Hackney's work hanging on the walls. Owners Elizabeth Azzara and Marisa Parrault designed the 2,800-square-foot salon to have "a SoHo feel," Azzara said.

Honey offers a variety of hair services and is planning to add a waxing parlor soon. They are positioning themselves to be in line with a New York SoHo, Greenwich Village or Williamsburg-type salon and their hip website underlines that effort.

Both salons are responsive to the artistic youth movement abounding in Bellingham. This author misspent some of his youth in that attractive city on the bay and graduated from her Western Washington University. It is a perfect place for young married persons to raise kids and build businesses which does not require a large customer base pushing through the doors. On-line companies, software developers, and boutique manufacturers all love locating in Bellingham.

We predict success for these two new salons, as well as the others who came up with them. Bellingham is a city that fosters a bigger-city bohemian attitude and yet carries a small-town sensibility in a manner both charming and instantly attractive.

Capelli d'Oro 2011