Vibrant hair color is my passion, so I am incredibly excited to write this one today. I invited this sweet lady to take part in a color makeover contest last year but she had previous color on her hair that made it difficult to lift up nicely. I proceeded with the vibrant color deposit and we were both elated at how the jewel tones just subtly popped.
The remaining pigment she had in her hair was really brassy so the blue overlay neutralized where it should. I was still surprised when she returned six weeks later and her hair had faded to the most beautiful beige blonde. In the days leading up to her second appointment, we consulted through facebook messenger and she let me talk her into GREEN! It's not often I get to stretch my color brush in the earthy hue so i was excited to get to add it to my portfolio.
The first appointment I had with her, I basically did a half head color lift to save time. The hair was enough to cover her underneath, and retouching the roots wouldn't be too difficult. Applying vibrant colors are best done by a professional anyway so I wasn't worried. Every other appointment, I tend to lean toward not bleaching. It saves the client both time and money, and there would be just about a half inch of regrowth anyway.
So the Green palette was a beautiful hit, but not her taste. When she came back for the next appointment, her roots were still blue, thanks to salon quality products and cold water for shampooing, and thank the Hair Gods, the green had all rinsed away. Her next desired shade was blue with purple. Her regrowth was long enough to need lifted but vibrant colors have come a long way; Matrix, the underdog in the vibrant color game, created a permanent line of rainbow shades. Meaning I didn't have to lift her natural color and perform a double process. I retouched the roots with one formula and painted down the strand that was previously lifted with two other ones. Her hair came out so seamless and glossy. I'm still not 100% sold on that line over my favorite, Pulp Riot. Between you and I, using permanent color, then having to remove it to color differently seems like it would do more damage to the cuticle. Each client should be taken case by case because of this.
I'm grateful that my clients trust the process and trust me to keep doing their vibrant colors. Full Disclosure: I creep my clients selfies to see how well my colors are holding. I had been keeping up with her too, so when she came back yesterday, I'm thinking, 3 hours max! Except there were new instructions. And a new inspiration photo. Baby blue, ice blonde and lavender pieces, oh, and bleach out the whole head.
Her amazing hair products kept her purple so vibrant, I was praying to the hair gods in the back room, mixing up two bleach formulas. The previously colored hair underneath was now outgrown about 5 inches and was a strong red brown. Plus, the meticulous work of weaving out the crown where I bleached back in August so I could gently remove the vibrants without driving them further into the hair, while simultaneously attacking that stubborn color with formula #1. The first application took about an hour and 15 minutes to apply, then 20 minutes to sit.
Just as I suspected, the remaining pigments were all over the place. Coral colored mids to ends on the underneath, yellow roots and the purple had lifted to mint green. So I did what any educated stylist would do. I called my mom and said I was going to be late getting the kids. And then I got to work mixing up the formulas that would bust these weird colors outta there!
My client turned on Amazon and started watching a movie! Another 1.25 hours of application, weaving through orange and green. I have used these colors for long enough to trust the process so when the green turned pink, I was not worried. The orange processed to grey and still I waited. I wanted that navy to have 30 minutes of contact on her roots.
Once time was up, I took her to the bowl and scrubbed and rinsed and shampooed. Her hair was in remarkable condition. Seriously, have a professional perform your color makeovers, it makes all the difference in the world. In the bowl, her wet strands weaved together beautifully. Silvery pastel hues were so dreamy cascading from that navy shadow root.
Back at the chair, we decided on a quick scrunching blow dry. It had been 4 hours, she was hungry, and we both needed to get back to our kids. What a day.
Finding a stylist to safely lift the color of your hair is crucial to maintaining your length. With more time, we could have lifted her underneath a shade or two lighter, but thanks to the magic of Pulp Riot toners and extensive color theory, we didn't have too. And the last two inches of her hair were salvaged.
Vibrant colors are a lifestyle, just like blonding. You have to be comfortable living in that space and understanding that mermaid dreams are possible with time and money. Like I said before, rainbow tones are my most happiest place of all.