I hadn't woken up on the proverbial right side of bed on the morning of our August launch party last week. I'd accidentally overslept, then rushed in to work all the while completely forgetting that 200 people were supposed to pack into our offices less than eight hours later. My hair was a disaster—unwashed and uncombed. My nails were ragged and unpolished. My eyebrows looked like Groucho Marx's props if the comic had decided to go auburn. And my feet were utterly terrifying to behold. I'd even been hiding them from my boyfriend at home until I could book a pedicure.

Heading home to fix all of this was out of the question; I'm not talented in the ways of hair and makeup, and while I can manage to make myself look presentable with a lot of effort, there was no way I could wax my eyebrows and fix my bitten, cuticle-sprouting fingernails over my lunch break while also trying to tame my hair at the same time.

Thairapy Salon & Spa
1721 Waugh
713-527-7800
thairapysalonspa.com

And then I remembered seeing a special pop up on my Twitter timeline from a local salon I'd never frequented. Thairapy on Waugh had been touting a "Quick Getaway" package that promised to correct all of my problem areas in one go. For $90, the package offered a Basic Manicure, Basic Pedicure, Eyebrow Shape, and Shampoo/Blowout—all in the span of a long lunch.

I was doubtful, however, that Thairapy could fit me in for a Quick Getaway package on such short notice. Still, I called and was pleasantly surprised when the receptionist said the salon could see me in an hour. A short 60 minutes later, I was prostrate on a bed in a blissfully quiet room while Maggie, my aesthetician, put lukewarm wax on my brow and began shaping me into a more cool and collected version of myself.

Thairapy is as much a spa as it is a salon, with an aesthetic that's both loft-like and industrial (befitting its chic Montrose location) and a calm, zen-like interior full of burbling fountains and soft, muted nature tones that put me instantly at ease. Although champagne and wine were on offer, I instead took a mug of green tea and sipped on it as Maggie ran a flat-iron across my hair until its bushiness subsided.

Adding to the relaxation was Maggie herself; she was exactly the kind of asethetician/stylist/ cosmetologist/jack-of-all-beauty-trades that you don't mind spending a couple of hours chatting with. Her gentle Wisconsin accent and bawdy sense of humor were as charming as the salon itself, and I found myself hugging her when I left—with perfectly sculpted eyebrows, burnished nails, and impeccably sleek tresses with no trace of their signature frizz to be found.

I was no longer afraid to mix and mingle with a bevy of well-dressed Houstonians that evening, although as I look down at my still-polished nails a week later, I'm already desperate to get back to Thairapy for another Quick Getaway and a couple of hours of calm. Excuse me while I find a party to attend as an excuse.