Color Crash Course
When a new season arrives, for women it feels like a new look is over due. Color is a wonderful way to feel brand new. Coloring can transform and enhance a woman’s beauty by complementing her complexion and adding depth and shine to her hair. Changing your hair color can be an exciting experience but lets all face it, none of us want to look like Ronald McDonald or reap horrendous results. Here are a few tips to help you on your journey to vibrant, beautiful color.
To color or not to color…
Before you even consider color, it’s important to evaluate the condition of your hair. If your hair is in a fragile state, or extremely damaged, it’s not a great time to explore with color. Seeing a professional will makes this process much easier. He or she will look at your hair and make suggestions on what would be best for you, taking in consideration your hair type, texture and condition. If you want to obtain shiny, vibrant hair color with a high gloss finish, you must start with a healthy cuticle layer, which is the outermost layer of the hair follicle. When the cuticle is smooth it reflects light. An open or damaged cuticle should be repaired through conditioning treatments before it can achieve exceptional color. A healthy, conditioned head of hair is the key to maintaining long lasting color.
What are my options??
Temporary or Permanent
Temporary hair colors are simple rinses that coat the hair’s cuticle. They don’t penetrate the hair shaft and are great for adding shine and luster. Temporary rinses are just that, temporary. The color will fade each time you shampoo. It can be used for a text run before you apply a more permanent hair color. However, for my glorious grays, there’s no such thing as temporary hair color. Temporary color will permanently stain grey and white hair.
Semi-permanent
Semi-permanent last eight to ten shampoos or four to eight weeks and it also coats the hair shaft, but some contain a small percentage of peroxide and can deposit color or an activator. Activators add the boost that gives the color its staying power. The activator penetrates the cuticle. Activators add the boost that gives the color staying power. The activator penetrates the cuticle. When you keep in mind that any semi-permanent color you apply will be darker than your natural hair color, your expectations of the kind of look you can achieve will be more realistic.
Permanent hair color
Permanent hair color is combined with 20 percent or more peroxide. This type of color is for women who have more than 20 percent gray or want a more dramatic change in their appearance. With Permanent hair color various colors can be applied. Your colorist can match and/ or enhance any and all colors and also add dimension (highlights, lowlights, tipping, and beliage techniques). It’s best for permanent hair coloring to be done only to healthy hair that’s in its natural state. Be sure to leave permanent hair coloring to the professionals, because the long-term beauty of permanent hair coloring depends so much on the hair’s prior condition, it’s upkeep, and maintenance. It takes a lot of work to keep permanently colored hair looking it’s best.
I have colored my hair…now what??
Use shampoos and conditioners specially formulated for colored hair. Both will enhance and preserve the color. Color conditioners preserver freshly applied color, especially in the summer and in the sun. When shampooing and conditioning colored hair, treat you hair as though it were extremely dry. Every four to six weeks do a deep conditioning and/or steam treatment.
When you feel confident with the process of color, you can have more fun. There are so many color options from rich, warm burgundy and copper tones to beautiful hints of orange and blonde colors. With a little guidance, color can be your hottest accessory this summer.
