SNOHOMISH — As the sunset sparkles over the river in historic downtown Snohomish, there’s no prettier place to sit back and enjoy a glass of wine.
And to get prettier while you’re at it.
Patrons at The Vault Hair Lounge sip red or white wine as their hair gets coiffured and colored.
Raise your glass in a toast to the folks at the Legislature.
The state law, effective last June, allows qualified day spas to give a 6-ounce pour of wine or a 12-ounce beer to customers at least 21.
But there’s a catch: It’s not a guzzle-and-go. In order to imbibe, clients must get services lasting over an hour.
In other words, women are the main benefactors of this bill.
That’s right, fellas. Beer won’t be flowing at the barbershop, at least not anytime soon. To qualify, a spa must offer at least three aesthetic services: hair care, nail care, skin care or body care (massage, wraps, waxing).
Clients get one glass at no charge. They can’t buy a second glass nor can they BYOB.
Washington State Liquor Control Board spokesman Mikhail Carpenter said about 30 day spa permits have been issued so far. The annual permit fee is $125 and each employee serving alcohol must complete the limited alcohol server training program.
At The Vault Hair Lounge, bottles of wine are kept in a safe in the vault. The salon is in the old city hall and jail built in 1927. A vault door leads to an office and storage.
Co-owner Angela Mahlman opened the salon last spring with intent to add wine as a perk. “With the river view and just being downtown Snohomish it’s a nice place to do it,” she said. “There’s a lot of shopping on the street. Especially on Friday, it sets the mood.”
Clients tip their glass to it.
“It’s nice to be pampered,” said Teresa Busch as she relaxed under a hair dryer with a glass of red wine at the ready. “It’s a fun atmosphere at the salon. Then you walk out of here looking beautiful.”
“I love it. It’s amazing. Come and relax and get away from the kids,” said Leslie Anderson.
Sometimes there are truffles or treats to go with it.
Occasionally a beer comes out of the vault.
“We don’t serve very much of it,” Mahlman said. “Mostly men like it, but men’s haircuts don’t take an hour.”
Not to worry, though. It’s doable. Guys just have to up their beauty game.
“We can add on a conditioning treatment or another service,” she said.
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.
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