Complacent Stylist: Using heat and additives during the color process – PART 2
Last week, we broke down the science for what causes a formula to dry out and why hair would fry even when using a bond builder. If you haven’t read these yet you can find them here.
This week we will continue our focus on heat and additives during the color process but with 2 new scenarios.
1. “I added drops but it still didn’t cover.”
I shake my head every time at this question. The short answer, check what the base of your color line is. Compare that with which drops you are using to see what base it’s adding. You are more than likely recreating an “N” or neutralized color and missing the actual pigment you need to cover.
A bit of a warning, I’m going to get on a bit of a soapbox now… We seem to forget the color wheel. There is also a misunderstanding of what the base of color lines are. Some are warm bases, some are cool.
Additive drops usually give additional primary yellow pigment or gold when added. If the hair is missing the balance of primary pigments in red, yellow, blue and you are just adding more yellow (or gold) then the color is going further from balance. There will be no coverage or wanted color achieved.
If the base of the color line is cool or ashy, then adding yellow is going to get you a neutral result in the formula, not in the hair. You just canceled your own formula from being able to do anything… so basically, the client sat there with color for 30-40min for nothing but some conditioning from the color.
Anyone that has sat in on an All-Nutrient color class with me has heard this rant and understands the ever importance of primary bases in color. If you want to know more, sign up for the next class.
2. “I let her sit with color and 40vol and it didn’t lift enough.”
This one is tricky. Did it actually lift enough to what it was supposed to? Or did it just not lift enough to what you wanted it to?
The short answer, the color will never lift as much as bleach. You have to use higher levels of color and developer to achieve similar results as bleach. Remember, using higher levels of color on naturally darker hair will not give you the exact level you are using. It will give you a result somewhere between your clients natural level and the level you used in your formula.
Remember when we mix color, we get half of what we are mixing. For example, to make a level 6, we mix equal amounts of level 5 with level 7.
Another example… the client has natural level 4 hair and wants caramel looking highlights which would be equivalent to a level 7 golden brown. There are a lot more variables and factors to consider when formulating this. Like, we could use level 10 color with 30vol or 40vol developer and that would get us closer to what we are looking for. Level 7 is 3 levels higher than the natural level 4 of the client. Level 7 is 3 levels lower than the level 10 formula.
Bottom line, the porosity, density, and texture would dictate the developer. That’s the simplest way to get the result without me writing a novel.
So don’t be a stylist who gets lazy and comfortable. Instead, stay creative and use chemistry to give your client the exact color they want.
- Published in Hair Care, Hair Coloring, Hair Salon, Hair Tips, science
Complacent Stylist: Using heat and additives during the color process
To start, I need to stay that science works the way science works. It doesn’t work the way we want it to, it works the way it’s supposed to. Chemistry doesn’t know all the variables from behind the chair, that’s where we come in. We adjust the formula accordingly so the chemistry can do what it’s supposed to do.
This past month has been a busy one with a ton of questions. I’ve realized that even though the situations are different, the questions have an underlying thread… we as stylist don’t care how science works, we just want it to do what we want it to do lol 🙂
I am no chemist. I enjoy science and find it really interesting. I can’t pronounce 75% of the words, but I’ve come to a basic understanding of how chemistry contributes to why things aren’t working at the salon. This is the reason I make the recommendations that I do and is why I started writing these posts.
I know that with a bit of insight, we can tackle these repeating scenarios. With that said, let’s start with these heat and additive related issues.
1. “I put her under the dryer for 40 minutes and she barely lifted.”
The short answer, the oxidation process is the release of oxygen. Heat sucks up all the oxygen in that area. Your formula dried out and could not do its job anymore so it stopped working.
Moisture is water or other liquid diffused in a small quantity as vapor, within a solid, or condensed on a surface. Thank you dictionary for that. When we are waiting for color to process, the process is only as good as the amount of moisture the product has. During the oxidation process, oxygen is being released naturally over time, which is causing the formula to dry out. Adding heat sources such as
2. “I used bond builder with bleach and her hair still fried.”
You must properly evaluate the condition of the client’s hair before moving forward with a process that is aggressive such as high lift,
So, have an intervention. Improve the condition of the hair first and then move forward with the service and bond builder.
I do have a point of contention with bond builders. I know the point of bond builders is to strengthen and improve the quality of hair, especially during the coloring process… it does work. However, I also know that there
Try and think how many deep conditioning treatments and repair/restorative products are out there. Over 9000! Why is there so many? We know the hair is going to get wrecked by the client at home after we painstakingly took the time to achieve the look they wanted while trying not to compromise the condition of their
Tune in next week for 2 more scenarios for us to work through.
- Published in Hair Care, Hair Coloring, Hair Products, Hair Salon, Hair Styling, Hair Tips, science
All-Nutrient 2018 Collection
Today and every day, All-Nutrient is proud to say that they manufacture their products in America. Presenting their summer 2018 collection! A series of timeless color and style interpretations that celebrates their commitment to green technology and healthier hair. This is their story.
Learn more about All-Nutrient and bring it into your salon: https://hairsthebling.com/brands/all-nutrient-professional-haircolor/
- Published in Hair Coloring
Berry season is here…so is #BlackBerryHair!
Rockville, Maryland based hairstylist Megan Schipani created a new haircolor trend inspired by blackberries! Schipani is no stranger to creating food-related hair colors, she was the colorist behind the peanut butter- and jelly-inspired hair color on Instagram a few months ago.
“My client came in telling me that she was a busy mom who needed low-maintenance color that was still fun. The day before her appointment, I had received a few packages of a new direct-dye line and knowing that my client was in the market for purples, it just clicked,” Schipani told Allure magazine.
Though she considers the end result of this look to be low maintenance, the technique to achieve it wasn’t. Schipani spent around eight hours lightening her client’s hair with a balayage technique, making sure to lighten only the strands that would be covered in purple. Once she created the perfect level 8 blonde-balayage base, she applied Purple color with a hint of Blue over the blonde.
- Published in Hair Coloring, Hair Trends
This colorist is going vertical?!?!
In a video that colorist Caitlin Ford posted, at first glance the client’s hair (shown on a side view), looks like a rocker-style mohawk. But take a closer peek and you’ll see a piece of clear, crescent-shaped plexiglass holding the hair in place. This is a color board Ford created to show how the rules of elevation and direction apply to color placement. “I like this method because it allows me to better visualize where all of my colors are going to fall in the finished result. I also like that I can take bigger sections during the application, so I can move a little faster with it,” she says.
Some of most incredible hair transformations I’ve ever seen!
by @caitlinfordhair
IG: https://goo.gl/YLoE8c
- Published in Hair Coloring, Hair Trends
Hot hair trend: #flamboyage!
A fresh new take on summer color popped up on Instagram form summer 2018: flamboyage! As refined as it is chic, it combines balayage and ombre into a an elegant look that works for any hair color and type.
- Published in Hair Coloring, Hair Trends, Uncategorized
Well it happened…meet #Glitterage!
…the combination of balayage and biodegradable glitter!
The oddest trend this summer has to be the return of glitter. Not since the 90s has the sparkly accent of hair (and body) been so popular on social media, at festivals, and with celebrities. One enterprising stylist pondered what would happen if she applied glitter with balayage technique in a hair gel base and the results are surprisingly interesting.
Asteria Salon’s Danielle Wade is *blessing us* with her new “glitter balyage” technique. It’s called “glitterage” and WE WANT IT NOW. ???
- Published in Hair Coloring, Hair Trends
A 3 Step Fix
Through use of product, the environment, sebum and even medication…hair can absorb quite a lot and before you know it, it becomes flat, dry and lifeless. All-Nutrient has a 3 step fix to increase elasticity, shine and infuse the hair with essential nutrients.
- Published in Hair Coloring
Kick out the Polar Vortex with Hot Chocolate!
With record freezing temperatures comes a desire for greater warmth. Mimicking the rich, soulful and depth found in a steaming glass of hot chocolate, All-Nutrient presents their take on the perfect formula and technique for the client who wants to “warm things up” a bit and take the chill out of her tresses.
TO BEGIN:
Correcting super-dark color build-up on the mid-lengths and ends can be a challenge. You can run lightener through wet hair, but if the client wants to maintain length, avoid using a permanent color after removing the dark build-up. To add long-lasting warmth, use ammonia-free Keratint. Three formulas within a level or two of one another will create a softened light-to-dark transition.
THE FORMULA:
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- Mix 1 scoop of All-Nutrient White Lightener + 1 tsp. All-Nutrient Pure Oil with equal parts 20-volume developer. Section out the darker hair from the occipital down. (At the sides, the parting should occur about one inch over the ears.) Brush the formula onto the damp hair and wait until warm undertones appear—about 10-15 minutes. Then rinse thoroughly, shampoo and towel blot.
- Mix 20 grams Keratint 4CH with 20 grams of Demi Developer (Zero Lift.) Apply to all the previously lightened hair below the occipital.
- Mix 20 grams Keratint 5CH with 20 grams of 10-volume developer. Apply the formula from the apex down the top, back and sides, stopping when you reach formula 2. Leave the hair in front of the apex untouched.
- Mix 20 grams Keratint 6CH with 20 grams of 10-volume developer. Apply to the front, from the apex toward the front hairline. This is a wide triangular area with the base of the triangle toward the front. Process all three formulas for 25-30 minutes. Then emulsify with water to soften the lines between formulas, rinse thoroughly and finish with All-Nutrient Colorsafe Conditioner.
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THE CUT:
If the hair is longer in back, use it as the basis of a diagonal-forward cut to thicken ends and add movement. Chip into the ends randomly for a fringed effect, then add a long, asymmetrical side bang. Blow dry with All-Nutrient mousse, then flat iron, misting each section with All-Nutrient Kiwi Freeze hairspray before applying heat. Alternately, create random curls using a 1-inch conical curling iron.
Credits: Color by Michael J. Kunz, Regional Education Director for All-Nutrient. Cut and styling by Frances DuBose, London Hair, Charleston, SC.
- Published in Hair Coloring, Tutorial
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