Evolve Studio

DO NOT GET YOUR EYEBROWS DONE HERE. I went in today for a normal eyebrow wax as a walk in. There was another girl waiting to get her haircut. The first part of my experience is basically the same as Ryan D’s Unilocal review below. There were two receptionists and the one asked the other if she could quickly wax my eyebrows before she cuts the other girls hair. The girl who was supposed to be doing my eyebrows whispers something to the other girl. I don’t know what she said but it gave me bad vibes and I felt uncomfortable. We go to their waxing area that is literally set up like a little bar. There’s stools and I was sitting upright which I thought was strange. Anyways, this girl clearly did not have any idea what she was doing. She starts dabbing wax on me and only does half of my left eyebrow. Once she took the strip off she kept reapplying it and taking it off and reapplying it again until she GOT WAX ON MY EYELASHES. I was like get this off now please and she takes some but not all of it off and goes and picks up another waxing stick. I then told her that there was still wax on my eyelashes. After she gets it off, I asked her if she’s ever waxed eyebrows before. She said she’s done it plenty of time before (I hope that’s a lie) and goes to pick up the stick again. I realized that if she continues I might not have any eyelashes by the time I leave this place. So I asked if there was anyone else that was available to wax my eyebrows. Some other guy came over and he was not as horrible as this chick. Four hours later I still have a red scar on my eyebrows. Save yourself from a traumatic experience and don’t go here.

I liked this place! Cool atmosphere, very friendly but sophisticated. Whitney was great and chatty, did exactly what I asked (a trim), & I was in & out in 40 min. I’m very tender headed but it wasn’t an issue at all. They weren’t pushy about products, which I love, & didn’t yell at me for only getting a haircut every 6 months.
I obviously can’t speak for any major hair changes since I only got a trim.

Lauren is amazing. She is not only amazing with hair but a wonderful person as well. She has done my hair off and on for many years because I no longer live close to state college, but for my wedding I gladly drove there for my hair trial then she came to Philly for the day-​of. My hair was amazing! She did the cut, color, and extensions. My friends are still talking about it! My whole family wishes we had a little machine to transport us to state college once every 6 weeks. You cannot go wrong by trying evolve!

Just as these reviews state, Lauren is AMAZING. Best hair cut I have had. Unlike most hair salons she doesn’t cut too much or too less and gave me an amazing conditioning treatment that made my hair so much healthier. I plan on getting a balayage from her soon because she definitely knows what she is doing. Evolve studio has great customer service in general, someone took my coat and got me tea right as I walked in. This is the place to get your hair done for sure!

I got my eyebrows waxed here and they quite literally could not have done a worse job. I went there and asked if they could do a walk in and here is what happens. Receptionist A says yes they can do a walk in, but I could tell she was about to check the availability of whoever did the waxing. Before she could do that, Receptionist B said she could take me. Receptionist A seemed surprised that Receptionist B was going to do it, but I didn’t think much of it. B takes me into the salon and just sits me down at a little bar type area and has me sit on a stool. Any time I have ever gotten my eyebrows done I have been either in a reclined chair or lying down. Never have I just been sitting straight up. Anyway, I tell B what I want done and she starts pasting me up with wax. It was clear very early that she didn’t really know what she was doing, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt because this salon appears to be upscale. B starts going all over the place with what she is working on. Left then right then middle then back to right then left. Absolutely no method to her madness.
B goes on to completely botch my eyebrows as well as cake my eye area (eyelids included) with wax. It took me 10 minutes in a steaming hot shower once I got home to finally be able to open my right eye fully. She took an enormous chunk out of my left eyebrow and left hairs sticking out everywhere. Again, my eyebrow was pasted with wax so I couldn’t exactly tell how bad it was at the moment. After repeatedly looking in the mirror and instructing her to fix what she had done to my left eyebrow, she said that the wax was why it looked like that (hairs stuck to each other everywhere and chunk missing) and that no two eyebrows are the same. That was her explanation for my eyebrows looking completely different. That no two eyebrows are the same. Pathetic and flat out stupid. You get them waxed and trimmed so that they look the same you babbling idiot. She then brought over another woman to check it out. This woman bent down to look at B’s work and had the biggest «oh shit» face on her that I have ever seen. She gave some bull shit answer that they looked fine, but they weren’t. I finally said fuck it and decided I was better off going home and plucking whatever miscellaneous hairs were left myself.
I could live with a bad job. It happens, I can understand that. But to just completely deny that my eyebrows look awful and to give some excuse that because there is a ton of wax all over the place that is why they look bad is mortifying.
Receptionist B should be fired immediately. She said she lives in upstate New York if you read this and need to determine which employee of yours is providing such terrible service.

I moved to state college after living in New York and I was trying to find a hair salon that I can trust with my hair. I used to work at a salon when I lived in New York so I have high expectations. I know how to give a proper wash and blowout. So before I trusted them to dye my hair I figured I would get a simple blowout. If I liked the blowout I would be a little bit more comfortable with them dying. I went into the chair to get my hair shampooed. He gave me the most uncomfortable and painful shampoo I have ever gotten. He seemed like he tried to massage my head to give me a nice wash but he ended up squeezing my head to hard I started to get a headache. When I got into the chair I had to tell him the kind of blowout I wanted. There’s different types so a stylist should always ask. But he just grabbed the blow dryer and started going at it without any idea of what I wanted. I told him I wanted a little wave, something to give me volume. I do this to my hair all the time. At the end, my hair had absolutely no wave to it. My hair was completely flat and he didn’t ask me what side I part my hair so he did what he wanted and it looked even worse. He ripped out my hair the entire time. Terrible experience. Ended up having to pay $ 35 for a headache and a blow out that I could have done way better. Wouldn’t recommend

I got a very good haircut here today. The stylist was a very friendly and attentive person. The salon was very nice as well.

I had one of the best haircuts of my life at Evolve. My stylist was amazing– kind, friendly, listened to what I wanted and knew how to achieve it flawlessly. I hadn’t gotten my hair cut in over a year after a bad haircut so I really shopped around to find a good place in State College to go to and I’m so glad I picked Evolve. Not too pricey and the service was great!

If I could give it zero I would. Holy Crap. Girl took thinning razor to my hair and completely destroyed it. Half of my hair was ripped out leaving the little that was left on my head covered in split ends. Girl who cut my hair doesn’t work there any more but if this is type of people they hire I would say NO NO NO… stay away.

I am the first to admit that when I walk into a salon with a photo, I have no idea how the results will (or should) be achieved. That being said, for my first visit I scheduled a partial foil over the phone with expectations that the hair I had been dreaming of for months wouldn’t truly come to fruition. When I showed Lauren my photo, I said, «This is the hair I want, but I don’t expect I will leave with it today.» Lauren surprised me by letting me know she could give me the hair I had been drooling over. The only catch — to take my dark and thick hair blonde, Lauren would need more time than a partial foil would allow. She helped me reschedule a new appointment and I left excited that blonde hair was a possibility.
When I came back for my new appointment, Lauren was excited and explained she had done research to find the same formula as the star in the photo I showed her. The salon environment was relaxing and the staff was happy and complimentary. It has been a month since Lauren worked her magic and I am still in love with my hair. I am so grateful to have found Evolve and Lauren!

I first tried this salon after being frustrated with many of the other salons in town. I like edgy styles and am willing to play around with my hair, but could never find anyone who would do that… until now! Lauren is really great at funky styles and cuts and listens to what I say I want to try. She also explains how she’ll cut it and offers ideas for future styles. I’m happy with the service, everyone is friendly, and the price is very affordable and fair. They don’t try to push products which I really appreciate (as I have a stockpile of random stuff at home and really don’t need anything else)!

This should actually be a 1 star review. If the actual hair and makeup result had been anything like the service I received before my appointment it probably would’ve been 5. Unfortunately, it was not and I cried on my wedding day (not happy tears).
I live in North Carolina but was having my wedding in State College, PA which meant that I had to do most of the planning via Internet and phone. I really wanted to have my hair and makeup done all in one spot so I booked Evolve. I coordinated with Lauren who was great. She was super on top of everything and was quick with a reply. I wasn’t able to come in for a test run on the hair and makeup (which I really regret) so I emailed some pictures in advance to convey what I was looking to achieve.
I’ll just cut to the chase. The hair was good, not great but good. I’m sure if I had come in before hand for the trial run the kinks could’ve been worked out and it might have been perfect. My sister also had her hair done here and she looked great.
The real atrocity was the makeup. The girl who did my hair/​makeup was actually really sweet so I don’t want to bash her by name but if you’re thinking about having your makeup done here message me and I’ll pass it on. She should really be avoided.
It started while I was waiting at reception. I saw a wedding party finishing up and noticed that one them (presumably a bridesmaid) looked fairly awful. There was no noticeable shadow on her lids so her eye had no shape and the liquid liner wasn’t doing her any favors. The rest of the makeup was forgettable. I noticed who had done her makeup and then realized that she would be taking care of me as well. Based on what I had just seen I decided to just have my eyes done, instead of a full face of makeup. I really wanted to wear fake lashes and I really suck at putting them on. I figured even if her makeup job sucks I can just alter it when I get home. How wrong I was.
Here is why it was bad:
*This girl is white and I am Mexican. I’m not sure if she didn’t have a wide enough color palate or if she’s never done darker skin makeup before but the base foundation that she used around my eyes was so white I ended up looking like a raccoon in reverse.
* It looked like she only used 1 shade of eye shadow so my lid looked totally flat. I paint so I understand the the concept of tone, definition and shaping. These are hard to achieve when using only 1 color.
*The color she used was this brown coppery shade which did not do me any favors. I said I wanted a smokey look but one that was appropriate for daytime. I assumed she would go with some grey or something. She didn’t, she just used the same flat brown color and it looked awful.
*Towards the end, I took a look in the mirror and was not happy. I thought maybe the lashes would help so she put those on and it just looked worse. I was really trying not to cry at this point. I asked if she could just take off all of the eye makeup and leave the lashes, which she did to the best of her ability.
I ended up going home and running to the bathroom so no one could see me. I did the whole thing over again and unfortunately lost the lashes (the one thing I wanted!) in the process. I started drinking wine at this point and that helped.
My wedding ended up being happy and amazing! I was surrounded by all of the people I love most in the world and married my best friend (and that was, after all, the point). But pictures are starting to roll in and every time I see one of me I cringe because that is not how I wanted to look on my wedding day.

I have taken my son and daughter to get their hair done a few times and the experiences have been great. Ashley and the staff go out of their way to make them feel welcome and the stylists always do a great job. Getting a good hair cut for a 9 and 12 year old is not as easy as it should be but they have always done a great job. On a side note whoever did the design work DID AN AMAZING JOB!!!

I have not got my haircut there, so if you are looking for a haircut then this review may not be useful. I went there for eyebrows. The place looks awesome and you feel you are gonna get the best job done here. The girl who did my eyebrows was very polite. But she asked me too many questions, which I liked at first but then I am not an expert and I was hoping to see an expert who would know better than me. And I got BURNS! I was leaving for a weekend trip on the same day and next day morning I found my skin was burnt below my brow. Thank God it was not too much and that skin came off in two days. I would not go there again for brows. May be for a haircut.

I am originally from State College and have been planning my visits home for the past several years around my hair cuts with Lauren. From New York, Philly and now all the way from North Carolina! I even take off work to come home a day early at holidays just so I can get in with her! I have impossible, super thick, curly hair and she has given me my mornings back by taking my styling routine from almost two hours to around 20 mins! I’ve paid $ 100 for haircuts and have never gotten results like this.

I checked out Evolve tonight. I had heard good things through friends, so I wanted to experience it for myself. The salon is well-​designed and sleek (without being pretentious.)
The staff was friendly and professional. My stylist listened to what I wanted and used several interesting tools to achieve texture and versatility in my cut. (I like really funky, fun cuts, so I was super pleased with her skills!)
The sinks were comfortable, and the stations are spaced out well so that you feel like you have some privacy (and you’re not listening to the person next to you blab through their entire appointment.)
At the end, my stylist didn’t «push» products on me – I hate when someone tries to pressure me into buying something! I was happy from start to finish, so I felt inspired to commit to a follow up appointment. I’m excited for my next «evolution!»

I got a haircut at Evolve Studio a few months ago, and it was amazing. Lauren is a true master and I loved the haircut that I got. I will definitely be back!

I have been a customer of Lauren’s for the past 6 years, and travel from New Jersey a few times a year to get my hair done. She has taken me from brunette to blonde to brunette to ombré, before ombré was big. She is one of the few people I would trust to try anything on my hair.
While I have been loyal to Lauren for many years, what really blew me away was how accommodating she was for my recent wedding. Lauren and Debbie traveled down to Baltimore to do hair and make-​up for myself and five bridesmaids. We were all thrilled with how our hair turned out for the big day. Even more impressive was the impression that Lauren and Debbie left on my bridesmaids. One even announced that she would be hiring Lauren for her wedding– whenever that may happen.

I got my hair done this weekend and I LOVE my hair!!! Jennifer did an amazing dye job on me and I highly recommend going here and asking for her! I’m sure the other stylists are just as great but this was the first time I really, really loved my hair leaving any salon. She created EXACTLY what I had pictured in my mind and it is the best my hair has ever looked! I am very picky and finicky about my hair and who touches it and I have NO complaints! I love this place and I will definitely be back (with others!)!

Lauren (the owner) is absolutely amazing. For realz — I’m talking hair guru, and for anyone who has read any of my previous salon review you know that I’m annoyingly paranoid/​high maintenance-​bordering on worst client ever– picky about my hair.
She’s so amazing that I followed her like a faithful disciple from her former salon to her newest venture and have recruited just about everyone I know (and, ahem, like) with hair to do the same.
I can only assume that she’s handpicked an equally amazing staff for the new place.
Call. Go in. You won’t regret it (but I might regret telling everyone once the place is more bumpin’ than Empire Records was back in 1995. Seriously. If evolve ever has Rex Manning Day, I’ll blame Unilocal).