We were lucky to catch up with Evelyn Darling recently and have shared our conversation below.

Evelyn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

My most meaningful project thus far would definitely have to be a collaboration that I did with Wonderland Photos Studios in downtown Savannah. I would say it’s the most meaningful project in my catalog currently because I got to do hair for my lovely friend Christine Bishop, who has supported me since beauty school. Christine has incredibly long, natural gray and white hair, and because she is former stylist herself, we worked together to create a rainbow look that blew us both out of the water. It had a groovy 70s tie-dye vibe to it, and the photo shoot only made that vision more of a reality. The wonderful photographers captured us in a truly beautiful light, and we got to share a moment that we will remember forever.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Evelyn Darling! I am a native Savannahian, a licensed master cosmetologist, and the owner of Widow’s Peak Salon and Body Art Collective. I have been a cosmetologist for going on five years and it is my deepest passion in life. I started gaining interest in the field of cosmetology in middle school, when I started styling and coloring my own hair and doing my makeup to try out new looks. I realized that I had a natural talent for cosmetology, and I really enjoyed learning more about hair and skin the why behind beauty.

After high school and practicing on many friends’ heads, I attended Empire Beauty School and graduated in 2019, receiving my master’s license. Since then, I’ve been devoting my time to working on my craft and giving back to my clients and my community. I now specialize in vivid colors, texture and curls, extensions, blonding, alternative and gender affirming hair cuts and styles, and alternative makeup.

My main mission in the realm of beauty is to make every single client in my chair feel beautiful and cared for, without fear of judgment. My salon is a registered safe space with Strands for Trans, an international LGBTQIA+ ally group that works to support and promote gender affirming care in the beauty community. I aim to work closely with all marginalized communities of Savannah and the surrounding areas.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I think that I’ve built and maintained my reputation in cosmetology because I confidently believe in caring for the people in your chair. Clients are the backbone of your business; without them, you wouldn’t be able to stay on a successful path. My clients are not just that, but they are also my friends and my family. Building rapport and expressing genuineness with these people keeps my business strong, and I feel an equally strong support system around me at all times. In my salon, I make sure that everyone feels comfortable enough to ask me for things they want/need to feel at ease, and I honor their desires every time they come to see me. On top of everything, I make sure to deliver my best possible service every single time. This makes a world of difference with clients, and they definitely notice when you go the extra mile for them.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Right after graduating beauty school, I worked in several salons where I was basically told that I would not succeed or get anywhere in the beauty industry whatsoever. At one salon, I was even told by a former boss “you need to go back to beauty school and tell them that they did not teach you how to do hair.“ At first, these remarks crushed my spirit and gave me a bad case of imposter syndrome, feeling like I didn’t have any place in the field of cosmetology. However, I started to realize that the people saying these hurtful things to me didn’t want to see me succeed because of their internalized insecurities and jealousy. They were trying to break me down to a point where I wanted to quit, and I knew that quitting would only prove them right. I’ve managed to shirk off all of the people in my work life who were holding me back from my fullest potential, and it has landed me where I am now: a successful HMUA and business owner.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://widowspeakstudio.glossgenius.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/evylthehairenchantress?igsh=MWg2NGd3YXZnbzY1Zw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/czqwwrqR7JMqaFm5/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Image Credits

Ari Lawrence
Jay Crnkovic
David Turner of Flash Factor Photography