GROOMING: Ted's Grooming Room - Canary Wharf

I have something of a soft spot for the folk over at Ted's Grooming Room, they have been cutting my hair on and off now for about three years, always done brilliantly and without any hassle. With that in mind, when they opened a store in banker heaven, Canary Wharf I knew I had to give the place a try.

So with uber-long locks, and a scraggly-arsed beard that blew in wind I frankly looked a right state (a bit of Manc for you all there).

First all, the new store is easy to find despite being in the rabbit warren that is Canary Wharf, even I did it without the help of the usual 3 maps, Google Maps and then asking for directions. Tucked away in Churchill Place (full address below) you can't miss the bright red neon and cool Barbicide jar lighting in the window.

This is what confronted Sam, my outstanding barber for the evening.....

Grizzly Adams eat your heart out.....

After convincing the guy on the desk that I wasn't after his spare change I sat down with my coffee and watched the barbers in action as I waited my turn. As I'm sure we can all agree, I'd taken hobo-chic to new, exciting and scruffy levels. Unfazed I asked for a slapping (should that be slashing?!?) great undercut and a slight trim of the top. Sam to his credit asked if I was sure and then suggested a scissored undercut rather than a brutal clipper cut. I took his advice thank god! 

An hour in the chair and my hair was beyond compare!!!! Been dying to use that line for about twelve months!

So, a scissored undercut and then onto the beard. I had been trying to go for a Viking kind of look but it all went horribly wrong when I had to take care of it myself - thankfully Sam was a dab hand with the old clipper and cut throat razor. Precision lines and a couple of inches off the length - job done.

So, what did I look like after the £54 Full Ted experience? Bloody brilliant (I think, and I rarely think that when I look in the mirror). Throw in the relaxing massage, always excellent Turkish coffee and the option to have my brows threaded and you've got a cracking deal here.

I never had any doubts that I'd be sat here praising Ted's Grooming Room, they never let me down and the new store is well worth a visit. My cut and beard trim was down in just under an hour making the Canary Wharf store the must have for any chap wanting to look dapper. If you haven't been yet, you should, without fail.

So, along with Holborn, Charlotte Street, St Paul's (New Change Passage) and The Strand that's Canary Wharf ticked off and without hesitation I can highly recommend the store and the talented barbers available for all your hair desires.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Ted's Grooming Room - Canary Wharf
Mall Level -1
Churchill Place
Canary Wharf
London E14 5RB

Telephone: 0203 397 9966

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GROOMING: Ted's Grooming Room - Ted in the City

Anyone who has read previous posts where I get my hair cut will know that I have a rather strong and unhealthy fear of hairdressers, so much so that my hair grows out and to stupid lengths before I build up the courage to finally sit down in the barber chair. Sadly, due to illness I was unable to attend the launch of the latest Ted's Grooming Room near St Paul's Cathedral in the City of London, but managed to wangle a visit a couple of weeks ago to see the new store and what they could do to make me look respectable again after some six months of hair growth.

Before going I likened my hair to a Darth Vader helmet and to be frank, my eyebrow (there was only one) looked as though a hairy caterpillar had crawled across my face and died. The look was not a good - being blunt (am I ever anything but?) I looked a right state.

As always, I opted for 'The Full Ted' of a wash and cut, a beard trim and some much needed threading of the brow. Bearing in mind I was off work at the time I visited, I had partied a little too much the night before so was delicate to say the least. On arrival I was sat down, given a much needed strong and sugary Turkish coffee (it was lush) and had a brief chat on what sort of style I wanted to go for. I opted for an undercut, but one that gradually cut under my flowing hair on the top, with that thinned out and trimmed so that I could sweep it back and manage it easily. 

While struggling to stay awake while my hair was washed (it's so relaxing) the cut itself did take some time, about 50 minutes but that was mainly due to the massive amount of hair on my head and the care taken in trimming my barnet. At my age watching the grey hair fall to the floor is a bit scary (I'm getting old) but even without my glasses on I could see the style taking shape and about ten minutes in I was grinning from ear to ear and the nerves I'd been experiencing (read nausea) has evaporated. Good stuff, good stuff.

As the cut went on the lovely staff continued to talk to me about the theme for the new store. In the store just off The Strand there is a TV theme, but here in The City its Pearly Kings & Queens and when they mentioned that they had had real ones along for the opening I knew I'd missed out on a good night.

After the cut was finished there was another wash, a careful style and a few snips here and there as the barber searched for perfection. He found it very quickly! 

Rather than go for a full clean shave due to Movember I asked what he could do to make the moustache stand out without removing the beard (the other half says that removal of the beard is grounds for divorce). The suggestion was a tapered trim that brought out the hair around my mouth and chin while retaining a reasonable length on the sides gradually getting shorter as it approached my ear. It looked the bees knees when finished.

They say they leave the best until last, I dispute this, they left the pain until last. I may be going soft in my old age, but when I had my brow first threaded back in October 2015 when visiting the Holborn branch I hardly felt a thing, the second time it stung but this time, ouch, it battered. It felt as though my face was being ripped off. The pain was worth it and in all fairness, they did have a lot of hair to remove from the brow and then to separate them properly. The end result, two brows, perfectly shaped and looking spot on.

And here are the before and after shots - it's hard to disagree that they know their craft!

Ted's Grooming Room never fail to turn what I call my hobo-chic grooming efforts into something that looks amazing, well kept and as though I've spent hours perfecting my look. I love my hair, I was impressed with the attention given by the barber to make sure every last hair was cut and trimmed perfectly and best of all, on leaving I felt on top of the world. 

My acid test for hair salons is how I feel when I leave - in this case I felt about a foot taller, felt more confident and genuinely liked the pictures I took of myself on the way home just so that I could see the style again. That speaks volumes in my book, and means that I can't help but recommend this new store and the talented folk who work there. Top marks, top marks.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Ted's Grooming Room
9 New Change Passage
St Paul's
EC4M 9AG

Open Monday - Saturday 9 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Telephone: 0203 397 9966

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