If you haven’t taken a seat in this man’s chair at the Germantown Elan location, you’re missing out. Take a moment and find out why Adam Barnes is a cut above the rest.

Congratulations first on this year’s Gay Faves nomination and win. Can you talk a bit about your style philosophy?

Thank you so much!  I feel so honored.  My clients voted for the salon and me and that feels amazing.  I’m so very appreciative. We work really hard for our clients’ experience—that’s always been the goal.  Even if I do it with a little song and dance . . .which usually happens at least a few times a day.

I have always loved making people smile; they are then much more open to appreciating their own pretty.  It’s inspiring.  Alongside them, I gain inspiration from images from all kinds of magazines, runways, and social media like Pinterest and Instagram.  People are constantly posting new and incredible things to encourage creativity.

We all know the cliché eyes are the window to the soul . . . what would you say hair is?

That’s easy.  Hair is the ultimate accessory!

Can you talk a bit about your journey as a stylist? Maybe a bit about pre-Elan?

I started my journey through style like any other lil’ boy, with a fascination of pretty things.  It wasn’t long before I was doing girlfriends’ makeup and hair to go out.  When I moved to Nashville, I made it official and got my license.

I did some freelance work with CMT while working at Elan in Green Hills.  I got to work with stars like Taylor Swift and on video shoots, and commercial spots.  One other highlight of my early career was getting to tell my dad that I worked on CMT’s show Making the Team.  He went back to the plant telling all his friends that his son did the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders!

I happily owned and operated my own salon for four years here in historic Germantown.  A year into my salon ownership, I started educating with Davines on the weekends.  I started traveling between 10 states teaching color education and styling to salons.  It keeps me on my toes traveling to so many different areas.  And I just got promoted to being just two steps away from the creation of all the new trends. I love that my career is always evolving. There is never any boredom!

I see your email address AdamsHairTips@gmail.com –do you have a website or advice column that I couldn’t find?

I’m trying out a new thing for me.  Blogging.  Maybe telling everyone about it will light that fire under me. So visit me online at www.adamshairtips.me and I’m also on Twitter and Pinterest with the same name.

Do you prefer a certain type of client? Maybe one who allows you to experiment vs. already knowing what they want?

My ideal client is one that wants to come in, sit down, and tell me about their life.  Maybe I would get a few bad hair stories or some wishes that their hair might perform, but mostly I want to design that perfect style for them.  Creating someone’s total look is my favorite.

Three words to describe Adam Barnes . . . GO!

These questions always throw me.  Sometimes I feel I’m a talker for a living.  Anyone could tell you I’m much too long-winded for three little words (laughs). Let’s try .  . ambitious, attentive and creative.

What’s next for Adam Barnes?

I’m going to start focusing on my career here. Nashville’s an amazing city with lots going on right now especially.  I can’t wait to build my personal brand further by taking on different projects in Nashville’s fashion scenes.  I would also love to create more inspiring support for the amazing stylists I work with in town.