Diva Colour Studio

Some years ago I fled a hairdresser whose salon featured a TV tuned to Jerry Springer, and fortunately I found Ted Cortese’s Diva Colour Studio. Even though I now live 200 miles away in Nashville, I still come to Diva every month!
Ted is an artist whose specialty is color: he listens carefully, advises, consults … and then the magic begins. Ted and his marvelous assistant Sherita pay special attention to each client, yet manage the day’s business with a choreographed efficiency. Diva uses only organic color product, so there are no harsh odors or burning chemicals. The salon has a relaxed, respectful, nurturing vibe — where nice women across all age groups and style preferences can count on looking their absolute best when they leave.
Please know that I do NOT have a naturally great head of hair, where any colorist/stylist’s work could look good! Yet Sherita and Ted know how to nourish, treat, color and cut my baby-​fine locks to best advantage. I always receive compliments from my friends and colleagues. Without Ted and Sherita, my hair would look limp and dowdy and I wouldn’t have the confidence needed to project a classic professional look.
The salon is nicely appointed. A nail technician is on site for mani/​pedis (although I have not used her). Ted keeps up with the best hair products and knows what to recommend from his shelves for his clients’ unique needs. In summary, I come to Diva because of years of quality hair care they’ve given AND the loving relationships with Ted, Sherita and Molly/​Kendy who staff the front office and treat me so well!

I went in to get my usual amazing blowout by Chris at Diva and while I was waiting owner Ted Cortese hairnapped me and gave me a magical elixir treatment that restored my brittle, over processed locks into a luxurious silky mane! He carefully formulated a color to even out my cotton candy pink into a beautiful balanced pastel! He cut off all the awful long broken ends and I walked away with the best hair I’ve ever had! As a stylist myself, I’m cautious but Ted immediately put me at ease and did an amazing job. He is a genuine and kind spirit with a real love an talent for hair! I’m a believer. Between Ted’s careful work and the blowdry artistry of Chris– I’ve never felt better!

Saw Chris for a cut and color. Apparently Saturday is the salon’s slow day, so I was literally the only client in there, but honestly, I did not mind at all — it was quiet, relaxing, and Chris was both hilarious/​fun to talk to and knowledgeable about color. I had spent almost 2 years with my colorist in Knoxville perfecting my hair color and brought my formula with me. Chris did a great job matching it and adding his own touch to it. I will be back!

The whole staff here is amazing; and Ted is a miracle worker! I moved to Memphis from southern CA about 5 years ago. I have naturally red hair and had finally found a stylist in CA that could do a decent job getting it blonde right before I had to leave. Knowing this was no easy task, once I got here I did a ton of research before choosing a salon. I ended up going with a recommendation to Capelli, which looked like a nice upscale salon with prices to match… well, to make a long story short it was a nightmare. I’ve never had such a terrible color job! It ended up a horrible brassy– yellow with super-​contrasting chunky highlights. I wish I had taken a picture, because I can barely find the words to describe just how bad it was. I went back to get it toned and that hardly helped. I ended up attempting to get a corrective color at another salon and by the time that was done my hair was BLACK and literally breaking off and falling out! And then finally, I found Ted. I was afraid that he might not even touch the mess my hair was at this point and tell me I would just have to grow it out. I don’t know how on earth he did it, but by the time I walked out of the salon that day my hair was a wonderful, very flattering color, shiny, and actually looked like healthy hair again! I’ve been going back ever since and have never been disappointed. I have a bad habit of showing up way too early but have never had to wait even 5 minutes to get in the chair. His assistant is extremely talented, and the rest of the staff are incredibly friendly and professional. Today I finally had the courage to try blonde again and it’s the best blonde I’ve ever had! Even beats the job from the southern CA salons that probably do nothing but dye hair blonde all day everyday: P Always a fantastic cut too! After having some terrible salon experiences in Memphis, this is the only place I would ever recommend, and definitely the only place I’ll let touch my hair again!