Monday 14 May 2012

Hair to dye for


“The old version of luxury was about needing a whole head of the best colour possible to feel empowered; whereas now all you need is a streak,” says Josh Wood, global creative director for Wella Professionals and a familiar face backstage at the catwalk shows.

Today’s colour is about working with your own natural shade and enhancing it with complementary tones to create a multi-dimensional effect. The look is soft and feminine.  “This is about looking real. Yes, it’s sophisticated, but it doesn’t have to look old and overdone,” he adds. 


DKNY spring/summer 2012
Courtesy of Wella
                                                    
Dean Slack, senior technical director at The Nicky Clarke Hairdressers Leeds salon suggests  that anybody having highlights should go for the blushing technique. “A slightly lighter semi-permanent is used in between the foils to soften any dark regrowth so it makes unsightly roots appear softened,” he says.

Brassiness is a common problem for those with dyed hair, especially in summer. Dean’s remedy is chalking. “This is a great in-between highlights service. This application of glazing returns any brassiness into beautiful, shiny blondes and can be achieved in your lunch break as it is a speed service,” he adds.

I’m sure that this is a problem that has happen to lots of you who had highlights. You start off with the perfect colour and each time you have them done your hairdresser manages to add a few more until you end up with too many.  “When highlighted hair becomes over highlighted, sometimes we need to give the hair a bit of a holiday and bring it back to reality,” says Dean. “Applying a gloss in between new highlights can make the hair appear much more glamorous and expensive.”

A good trick from Dean for adding depth to the hair is a technique called Tonal Drifting. “This is where we see the roots darkened and the ends lightened giving slide of depth through the hair. The ends should still contain separation to avoid the dip-dye effect which is so last season!”

Looking to inject some colour into your life this summer? Dean’s recommendations for blondes are: midsummer mauve, Inca gold, fuzzy apricot and sand blushed suede. Brunettes should think muted mink, espresso brown and cafĂ© latte.

By Daralyn Danns