Things to Consider While Reinventing Your 2022 Fall Hair Colour

While you may be going into fall thinking about back to school, the trending Halloween costumes, and pumpkin spice lattes, I am over here dreaming up recipes which include coppers, auburns, mahogany, and chocolate browns. This is one of two times a year I typically see my clients want to change it up. (The other time is the New Year).

This year particularly, the trend is moving away further away from the ashy and grey/silver tones while investigating more warm and lustrous colours.

 Here are my tips to consider when thinking about adding warm dimensions into your next highlight and lowlight appointment or going for an all over colour using some of the mentioned colours are:

Copper has a yellow-orange base. Think of what a brand-new penny looked like. Shiny, warm with the base looking more orange than red. Something I love about copper is that it can be as light as blonde, easy to change to and from for those who like to alternate from cool to warm tones of blonde. The lighter the copper is the more yellow, darker is more orange in tonal value.

Auburn, like copper, has orange to it but also red. A more rich and darker to the eye look. This is not a common colour in nature as only one to two percent of people are born with auburn hair. If one is pondering, I suggest starting with copper and graduate to auburn if you love what it does for your skin tone as well as your overall attitude.

Mahogany is more than likely what comes to your mind when you hear it. Think rich, dark, plum, burgundy in tone. You may have doubts if they can pull off such a captivating colour, however, mahogany can suit any skin type as well as age. That said, if you have grey or blonde natural hair colour, I recommend pre-booking a touch up at every four weeks. The grow out can leave you looking thinning at the scalp because of the contrast with grey. I would say that mahogany is the highest maintenance in the red family.

Chocolate Brown is rich in tone because there is a red base to it. This is a beautiful way to introduce a shine and lustrous look to the hair because it leaves a transparency that you do not see-through ash or matte browns. The chocolate brown is easy to maintain as it is the most subtle or natural in appearance. To the skin it will leave a warm glow.

My final tip is this: When looking at any of the red family of hair colour, ask yourself if you want a dramatic or more subtle look. It is my experience that the darker in depth the more subtle, the lighter will be brighter and more dramatic. Whatever you select, whether it be in the copper, auburn, mahogany, or chocolate family, always seek the advice of a professional. It takes years of experience coupled with extensive and ongoing education to become an expert Hair Colourist. You owe it to yourself and the health of your hair to ensure optimum results. Read my blog on Three Great Finding a Hairstylist Ideas That You Can Share with Your Friends for further insight on that topic.

Thinking about growing out your grey hair?

The pandemic is not the ONLY reason to grow your natural hair colour out if it is grey.  It can be many reasons including the commitment of time, the constant planning to ensure the demarcation line is not making an appearance during times you want to look and feel your best and over all wanting to embrace yourself in a more natural way.  This should, in my opinion, not be looked at as someone “Letting themselves go”!  When I hear clients, friends or family suggesting it is, I wonder if it once again societies way of creeping into the heads of both men and women suggesting that it is aging which of course is a curse these days for many.  There are a few ways of growing the grey out from subtle to extreme, just as it showed up to begin with.  Some started seeing grey from an early age (I have seen teenagers with up to 25% before the age of 19).  If one starts covering it up so young, even twenty or thirty years later, they become so accustom to colouring that they often simply cannot imagine life without haircolouring or should I say life with grey hair. 

Based on how long you have been covering the grey, I would like to suggest this:

If you are youthful, enjoy playing with your hairstyles and consider yourself to be a trendsetter: Try some fun highlights, why not? Life is short! It has become so acceptable to have fun colours in the workplace and is not considered unprofessional or “over the top” at all.  These colours could include some of my personal favorites such as: lilacs, pinks, purples, platinum’s, maybe some blue, orange, or green.  If your hair that is not grey is dark, try the latter, if your hair is lighter, try the first ones.  The grey hair will pick up these fun colours without the use of bleaching or pre lightening and gives a non-comital look that can be changed up as often as you feel like without any damage or dryness. Many people would like to play with these creative colours but choose not to because of the expense of the double process as well as the integrity of the hair afterwards.  All the sudden your grey is really working for you!

If you are a bit conservative and would like to “ease into it”, wait until your hair grows about an inch and a half of root and get some fine blended highlights that are light enough to tone with a combination of silver and grey tones.  The reason I suggest more than one tone of grey is because it will help to ease into it when you see the light and dark shades of grey.  There are so many beautiful shades Professional Hair Colourist’s having to work with, maybe not 50% of the entire head, but enough to break up the demarcation and give a slight taste of what would look best while pairing the highlights with the rest of the hair.  If seeing the demarcation will drive you nuts, a semi-permanent colour can simply “blend” them, disappearing over about 10-15 washes.

Start slowly around the hairline and parting.  Get use to seeing the light around your face and in the parting. This does not have to overwhelm your look; it is merely a preview of what you could work off moving forward.

If you are comfortable with a “shock value” or do not mind the opinions of others, because let us face it, our family, friends, and co-workers love to provide feedback or opinions when we do something dramatic (typically the ones to judge are the ones who do not have the nerve to do the dramatic things themselves; remember this). Have a complete removal of the artificial hair dye in your hair and replace it with toners with all shades of grey and maybe a bit of blonde, brown or black depending on what percentage of grey you have in the natural.  Once the hair dye is removed, the new shades can be replaced with bold streaks or fine ones, depending on how bold YOU feel.  Either way when your own starts to grow in it will blend.

None of my recommendations are to discourage anyone from having your hair coloured (always by a Pro of course!).  I have been classified as a Professional Hair colourist and am a Master of my trade for many years and many reasons, all based on experience and expertise.  I will always have a way of freshening up my client’s hair, leaving them feeling amazing and confident.  Everyone desires a change sooner or later and everyone deserves a Hair colourist who will have the right recommendation for them.  What I would like to achieve by giving these suggestions is to lose the idea that one must “cover” the grey for anyone or anything but themselves or feel that natural grey hair says that one is “letting themselves go”.  Going to the salon is fun, fashionable and can give you the change that makes you feel like a million bucks when you look in the mirror and smile at yourself with confidence.    Next time your roots are coming in, ask yourself if it is time for a change.  If it is, give me a call and I would be happy to consult with you on which route to take!  

Communicating with your Professional Hair Colourist does not have to hurt!

I was consulting with a new colour client when she asked me to “Mix Level 3”. I was confused so I asked what she was referring to by Level 3. She said she always has three. I realized that she was talking about the level of depth she likes her hair. You see, Professional Hair colourists use a level system to determine how dark or light a client’s hair is prior to formulizing a recipe as well as to determine how dark or light the client would like the result to be. In this case, the client is very happy that I did not do as she requested. The reason why is because I figured out that she was saying Level 3 and meaning Level 7. It is my many years experience as a Professional Hair colourist, coupled with having good consulting skills that led to me figuring this out. This blog is in no way to teach how to colour your hair, I simply want to share some insight with you, so you do not make the same mistake my client almost did by not having the tools to assist in asking for what you want out of your colour. It is a simple concept but can be the difference between having dark brown or black hair, or light brown or dark blonde hair. Here it goes:
Hair colour is seen by Professional Hair colourists on a level scale from 1-10. Level one is black, ten is the lightest blonde (that said, some colour companies may have a “level 11”). Colours also have a light, medium and dark aspect. When you are wanting a brown hair colour, think: “Do I want light brown, medium brown or dark brown?” Think of the darkest brown being close to the lightest black. Level 1 is dark black, Level 2 is medium black, Level 3 is light black. Level 4 is the darkest brown, Level 5 is medium brown, and Level 6 is light brown. Level 7 is dark blonde, Level 8 is medium blonde, Level 9 is light blonde and Level 10 is the lightest blonde. Yes, blonde has always been high maintenance, deserving of the “extra” Level! Knowing this, when considering being blonde, you now know that there are many levels of blonde from dark to light. Photo reference is always helpful for your Professional Hair colourist, but also having an idea of how we see the levels of depth to light is valuable as well. Look in the mirror at your hair colour and ask yourself what level you are. If you ever have questions about your hair colour or other beauty questions, just ask and it is my pleasure to educate you!

To Tone Or Not To Tone, That Is The Question!

I want my clients to know what a toner is.  Sometimes I get asked: “Will I need a toner?”  I have also heard: “Does a toner cost extra?”  The later leaves me feeling like the client may think I am going to try to “upsell” her or “supersize” her colour appointment.  If after reading this, you are comfortable enough engaging about whether you require a toner during a hair colouring consultation I have achieved my goal! 

I like to think of toner like a liquid make up or a mineral powder foundation you may use to cover your face.   Think about why you would wear a cover up liquid or powder….

You either want to:

A.: Cover up/ Neutralize what you do not want to see.  It may be to neutralize unwanted red, orange, or yellow. 

B.: To enhance what you would like to see.  After lightening darker hair, you may want to add some gold or red to it to emulate being kissed by the sun or to add some dramatic reds or vivid to the look.

Typically, after either a full bleach out or a classic/modern day highlight/balayage/ombre; your hair is made several levels lighter than it is naturally.  In this process your hair is left with an underlying tone you may not like such as “brassy orange” or “yellow”.  In this case, we would use a toner mentioned in A.  To Cover up/ Neutralize what you do not want to see. 

You may have dark or black hair to start and wish to B. Enhance or add a lighter very warm, chocolate brown or a red tone to the look; typically, the modern balayage or ombre style.

Maybe even a colour melt where the hair is first made a little lighter to be toned at the scalp dark, painted down to the middle of the hair with a medium, ending with the lightest toner on the ends.  Hair must be “Pre-lightened” to use a colour that is a few shades lighter than it currently is.

The desired result will determine whether one will require a toner.  When the natural or previously dyed hair is lightened, a toner will balance it out to create a more even or flowing colour.  It will have a “seamless” appearance to the highlight for the one who does not want to see any lines or stripes in the highlight (especially on the sides), but mostly for eliminating the warm tones after lifting hair to a lighter colour.  Note that ALL drugstore colours basically require a toner.  You simply cannot colour your own hair in between a Professional and expect it to fall right back into excellence. *sorry

Do not mistake a toner your Professional Hair colourist will do at the salon for any services you may do yourself at home.  The Professional Hair colourist has many years experience and hours of education to support that experience.  We understand the Colour Wheel, the Underlying Pigments and what to do with them, and we understand all fundamentals of the hair structure and what happens both physically and chemically with the hair during the process and after, ensuring that one leaves with the products to maintain their colour with at home. 

We all feel great after a little change.  Perhaps the next time you feel like having your hair bleached out or highlighted you take into consideration a new tone to it.  Perhaps you are currently an icy or cool blonde…try some gold or lovely rose gold to bring some warmth to the hair.  If you are already a warm or golden blonde, why not try some cool shades of blonde, think platinum or silvery and see what happens.  Either way, I sincerely hope that this gives you some insight into what a toner is.