Chattanooga has many options for your hair and beauty needs, especially downtown. But there’s a new salon and barbershop in town that brings a whole new experience to the hair and beauty scene.

EV1 Barbershop & Salon, owned by creative director Lisa Stephenson-Jones, opened in December 2016. Lisa brings more than 25 years of experience with English-style cutting and coloring to Chattanooga, after spending time working in Manchester, Scotland, London, New York and Atlanta. Alongside Lisa is Brittany Holmes, a Vogue recognized master barber who specializes in traditional men’s shaves. Lisa and Brittany met at the renowned Ludlow Blunt in Williamsburg, and now Brittany brings a touch of Brooklyn to Chattanooga.

EV1 Barbershop & Salon brings sophisticated, English-style precision cutting and coloring to the continually growing Southside neighborhood in Chattanooga.

The salon is located on Cowart Street, next door to The Blowout Company. The space itself looks and feels like a warm hunting lodge, with handcrafted wood furniture and decor, with sheepskin and cowhide fur accents. The decor and openness of the facility create a relaxed but professional environment and comforting atmosphere, and that’s how a salon and barbershop should feel, if you ask me.

Services at EV1 include women’s and men’s hair cuts, coloring, highlights and men’s barbering. Men’s shaves include a hot towel treatment, facial massage, straight-razor shave, and beard and mustache trims. Women’s treatments include a wash/cut/dry/style, full process coloring and highlights.

I stopped in on New Year’s Eve Day to get my hair done before heading out to ring in 2017. This was a perfect way to kick off celebrations for the New Year. It’s the little things that add to a salon experience, and EV1 gets that right from the start. Each guest is offered English tea and cookies to enjoy during their treatments (or before it begins). Tea and cookies make everything better. That’s a fact.

I’ve never done anything super drastic with my hair; I tend to prefer simple and low maintenance, but nice, of course. When I described my usual style to Lisa, she knew exactly what to do and what would look best for my face shape. And we both agreed that my ends were in desperate need of some cleaning up. It had been more than six months since my last cut, after all.

Also, random side note – can we talk about how I used to rock the side bangs in high school? So glad I grew mine out.

The whole process–wash, cut, dry and style–took about an hour. It didn’t feel rushed or like anyone was in a hurry to get my hair finished. My hair had tons of volume and body without getting a true blowout. It’s the precision over everything. I loved the products Lisa used: Kerastase, which is based in Paris, and EV1 is the first salon in Chattanooga to carry and use this product line.

My hair felt fabulous.

In addition to salon and barbering treatments, Lisa will introduce an apprenticeship program in February that is rooted in her Sassoon Academy background and education. She and Brittany also hope to launch a continuing education program for aspiring stylists in the Chattanooga area.

Lisa maintains a following of devoted clients in past cities, and still travels back to New York and Atlanta to work with them. That’s a true testament to her skill, and she’s incredibly likable, personable and knowledgable about all things hair, beauty and style. EV1 Barbershop & Salon perfectly blends an English salon experience with the Southern charm of Chattanooga to create a salon atmosphere unlike any other in town.

And my hair still looked fabulous hours later as the clock struck midnight on 2017.

Walk-ins are welcome, but appointments are always recommended. For more information and updates, follow EV1 Barbershop & Salon on Facebook and Instagram. Pricing and appointment information is available on the EV1 website.