Hair Color:
About Color Correction
There is a lot that is involved with color correction. There are so many things that can go wrong with color, from something a professional did to what you may have done yourself to your hair. A colorist needs to understand the chemistry of their products in order to utilize them correctly.
Why natural red hair is hard to lighten.
It seems light enough, a level 6 or 7, so putting a high lift tint should come out blond, right? Ok, so you use a different lightener like bleach and the color still wants to not lift very much. By the time it is light enough, it gets pretty dry. It happens every time, but why?
In all my years of being a colorist, and being trained as an educator for three different color lines, I never was told why exactly this happens with red heads. "Some people are just hard to lift." But no, the answer, I learned from a forensic website when looking to buy a microscope to look at hair with.
A cross section of a red hair revealed that the color molecules of natural red hair (not colored) is different than that of natural brown hair. In brown hair and shades of brown, the color molecules, or the pigment is spread evenly within the cortex of the hair.
In red hair hair, the color molecules are centered in the middle of the hair shaft close to medulla ( inner most hair layer) while the rest is translucent, which explains why natural red hair is so shiny. This also explains why natural red hair is virtually impossible to match with artificial pigment. Even if it is the exact color match, it will look different because the colored is opaque and the natural hair in translucent. Therefor, it has different reflective properties.
So, when trying to lighten natural red hair, the lightener, either the high lift tint or a bleach lightener has to cut through to middle of the hair to reach the natural color pigment in order to lift it out. It takes longer to get all the way in the there with natural red heads.
Breakage from over highlighting.
The main reason that I see this is from over use of a bleach lightener. A bleach lightener is different from color as it only removes color and does not deposit any color pigment. If there there is overlapping, breakage may occur. Most lighteners and permanent hair color do not belong under a hair dryer but stylist habitually do it anyway. This can lead to breakage. This will happen faster with thin and lighter hair colors. Regular in salon conditioning treatments will help to a degree, but how about being careful not to do this in the first place.
Bleach lighteners do not belong under the dryer! Most hairdressers do it, but most manufacturers directions do not advise it. There is a reason for this. Color does not usually belong under the dryer either. However, some semi-permanent colors do need heat to activate. Finer and thin hair suffers the most from overuse of a hood dryer to activate color or bleach.
I am a former color educator for L'Oreal Proffessionell. I have also seen other educators come into a salon where I work to preach about how to make a client "chemically dependent" with color as a method of creating a higher ticket and having the client come back with more frequency. I have also listened to a Gene Juarez instructor explain to me how to NOT blend color and how to purposely leave a line of demarkation to "make the client feel obligated to come back sooner." Be aware of unethical practices where colorists hook you into dependancy while ruining your hair.
With naturally lighter color, some hairdressers may not understand how to use products such as a high lift tint instead of a bleach lightener. High lift blondes can lift up to 4 levels. This can easily create desirable blond instead of bleach.
Colored too dark.
Bleach products are not the only way to remove unwanted color. There is a color remover that will remove artificial color and leave natural pigment intact.
Tint Back
This is what you do when you try to color hair back to it's natural color. It can be a new color, but the natural color no longer can exist until it grows back out. Natural color is more translucent. Artificial color is more opaque. If coloring hair darker over bleached out hair, the hair must be filled with all the necessary hues to create a natural looking hair color. If the hair is not filled the darker color may seem hollow, greyish, ashy, or faded looking. It is missing the gold or warmer tones that are normally in the base of a natural darker color.
Too brassy
The color is not lifted enough and gets stuck on an orange or orange-yellow color. This can happen when you tried for blond but it just didn't lift high enough. A store brand color will not lift as much as a professional hair color. A contrasting foil could be used in this situation. Color remover may be a step to recovery. A toner, darker, lighter, or both may work depending on the situation. Keeping away from the color isle at the grocery store may help too.
I like to go darker for the fall or winter and lighter for the summer.
This is the very back and forth thing that causes damage. Once you color darker, you have to bleach to go lighter. Color will not lift color. A high lift tint will not work on artificial pigment. If you have had lightened hair, then go dark, the lightener has to work harder to remove the darker color, as well as over processing previously lightened hair. This kind of over processing does not look nice. Hair looses it's sheen and luster. It has no shine and looks dry and dead.
Add on services and over processing
A colorist wants to sell color and add on services to create a larger ticket. This is an unethical practice. Lightening, darkening, or doing both, plus a glosser and weekly or monthly conditioning treatments is the goal for may colorists. I think it's wrong to ruin a person's hair and make them overly chemically dependent. I am aware of this practice because of my time at more than 23 or so different hair salons. I've heard educators try to teach it to me. I believe that less can be more and the long term health and good looks of a person style makes my clients far more valuable to me than a quick dollar. My clients look good for longer and that's OK if I don't see them as often because of this. Bottom line is they are looking good, not running back to me so often because their color is over done.
Banding
Banding is when you can see a line break of color difference. This can happen for a number of reason. Banding can happen by going too long between color retouch, by using a different color than you did the last time. This can happen by going to different colorists. Again, be consistent with your product and do not go too long on between color. A retouch should be done about every six weeks or sooner. The hair near the scalp, or new growth is new hair and will process warmer from being closer to the scalp. This can give you "hot roots" or create banding.
Hot roots
The new growth near the scalp is lighter than the rest of the hair and maybe warmer too. Warmer color are the natural undertones in hair color. When going darker or coloring from scalp to ends, care and special technique in the application must be followed to prevent these conditions. On virgin color, you must apply color half of an inch away from the scalp, then go back at the end to do the new growth so that the hair color does not lift too much on the new growth. Some hair dressers may claim that you need to know the rules before you can break them. Hair color and bleach does not belong under a dryer. Some semi-permanent and demi-permanent color may go under a dryer to process but most permanent colors and bleach lighteners do not belong under a dryer.
The ends did not lift but the new growth did when I highlighted.
This might happen if there was previous color on the ends. A test strand is usually advisable when you want to highlight through previously highlighted hair. Color will not lift color so a bleach lightener should be used. A higher volume of developer can be used on the harder to lift ends.
I want RED but the ends keep browning out and it's not bright enough
This is a pure tone permanent color, similar to Framesi. Gives more creative options for any level. Has the Ionene G.
The ends have gone too dark
Up to 7 levels of lift, classic lightner. The rich creme adheres to the hair, stays in place and does not swell.
Color fading
This is for controlled lightening It comes in a dust free powder and mixes to a rich creme. Lightens up to 7 levels, stays moist, excellent for on the scalp lightening.
Covering Gray
A lightener that maintains the condition of the hair. A new standard in conditioning and shine. It's Patented Technology contains Nutri-Ceride to restor and protect the hair fiber, White Beeswax to smooth and keep the hair soft, and Enveloping Lipids to help maintain the hair's natural lipid level. It is a new form of lightening with Adjust Polymers, in a paste instead of a powder, paste and nutri-developers feature 'adjust' polymers that work in synergy to create the unique creamy texture. It comes in regular and ammonia-free formulas.
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