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Shampoo Train ... to Vanish... to Re-Color

So many of you lately are taking the plunge and have been on the Shampoo Train....for weeks and have just ordered your VANISH to finish it off. I cannot tell you how proud of you all I am.

The idea that light hair color may not be put upon dark hair color and be expected to work, that just is not part of today's technology. I can tell you that I know that is the number 1 thing all Cosmetic Chemists are working on day in and day out. They are trying to make it become a reality for all you Crib Colorists out there...but to date it just has not happened ! ! 

So even once you have hopped on that shampoo Train and shampooed the living hell out of your hair....followed that with 1 -2 -3 Vanish Treatments...your hair that is underneath is NOT going to be your virgin hair -- I want you to know that. The hair underneath was changed forever that first day you applied whatever color you did by the developer that was mixed with that color.

Some of you think that after all of that you will reach your virgin hair....this is just to tell you the hard but necessary news that ....you will not. You will reach some odd form of brassy Blorangey - Bronze. Then you may make your plan for where to go from there. Be very careful in your decision, because you want it to be something beautiful which you have the power to do now.

If necessary join our group talk to fellow members who have gone through similar Hair Color disasters and most have come through the other end very happy and with a smile on their puss ! ! Permanent color has only the capacity to lift VIRGIN hair, not hair AFTER Color is removed.

You possibly may get a little lift, but if its blonde you are looking for you must choose: oil-bleach, creme bleach, or powder lightener for your weapon of choice.

Do not let this discourage you from the process though, because I never hear more complements than I do from this protocol. I hear the following sentence (or some version of it) over and over :

" I finally feel my own hair back again, 

it is soft and light, like it used to be. . . ."

. . . and I have been hearing that for every week of my entire 7 years on the Internet !

KC

Tonal Qualities in the Level System of Hair Color (yes, finally)

 Level and Tone are the basis of the Level System of Hair coloring and understanding the difference between the 2 must be clear, before proceeding. I missed teaching this in all these years. I should have taught the difference between "Level" and "Tone" and reviewed the entire category of Tonal qualities, but somehow I didn't and am sorry. It is a hard subject to teach online for 2 reasons :

1. each hair color company has different tones.............remember no one regulates the billion dollar hair color world, they just fly by the seat of their pants ( & you know... men run all of these companies...which is ridiculous, don't get me wrong I love me some men - but what do they know about hair color or for that matter, what do they care?)  
2. color settings & quality on computer monitors..........sometimes the difference between 2 tones are slight and it would be almost impossible to show the difference because we all have different brands and different monitors of computers. Which doesn't mean I'm not going to try, I just want you to be aware of that fact.

In the last 17 years, I have watched companies jump from 6 to sometimes over 20 various tones...and again each hair color line is different. A great example of 'Tone' is to look at a black white photograph:

you are seeing only LEVELS of Color not tones.If you were to wash this image with Gold, then you have a Tonal Series. It would show light gold, medium gold. dark gold..etc. 

Level simply refers to the lightness or darkness of a haircolor. Words such as light, medium, dark, palest, darkest and very light tell you about a colors LEVEL. Level, is how light or dark a color is.

TONE
Refers to the hue of a haircolor...the main tones and where haircolor started : Neutral, Ash, Gold & Red. So they began with the letters for Tones A-Ash...etc..., but then later came the numbers which correlate with Tones as well which go like this:

• A. Ash : 1 stands for Ash so 8/1 is a level 8 Ash or 8/1A is how you'll see it as well.
• G. Gold :  3 stands for Gold so 10/3 is a Level 10 Gold or 10/3G
• N: Neutral : 0 for Neutral or Natural so 4/0 is a Level 4 Natural or 4/0N
• R: Red : 4 in most lines stand for Red so 6/4 is a Level 6 Red or 6/4R

Any color really, haircolor or not can be described in terms of Level & Tone. Say you are painting a wall and you are trying to decide which color to paint it.... you choose Blue. You go and look at paint chips and they range from lightest powder blue to deepest navy ink  and all of the shades in between- those all could be called Levels of Blue!

Any Questions leave them in Comments section below...they will be answered shortly. We carry a Color wheel and a Peroxide wheel to help once you get the basics down...I love them and still glance at them occasionally.

  

Join our YAHOO Group for all things hair, hair color and/or hair products.

 End of Part 1, Part 2 shortly

thank you
KC

Mandatory Knowledge, For Screwed Up Hair Color

Far too many people throughout the years have panicked over a botched hair color job and reached for, what I call, "Box-O-Color/crap", and further destroy it. The reason I never wrote this Post before? Most look for me when its too late - but maybe this will help some of you in the future. I will tell you what you should have done BEFORE you applied the box-o-crap.

So there is only 1 disaster instead of 2.........which compounds everything.

OK 
Thousands of time since this Blog began 7 years ago, I have received emails/comments/Posts etc...with the sound of Panic in the air, 

"I was trying to color my hair_________,  BUT it turned Blorange, so I panicked - ran to drug store & bought a darker box-o-color/crap..........now what do I do?"

The trick is simple.

In the movie industry we are constantly coloring hair for a daily job on either the actor, stunt person and at times even the Extra's. 

We either wet or shampoo the hair then we grab our little secret magical bottle ............

I'm sure some of you recognize it !

Its Roux Temporary Color Rinse and it comes it 20 shades....its great for temporary uses.
Remember the different color categories?

• Temporary
• Semi-permanent
• Demi-permanent
• Permanent

No one ever talks about temporary, not even me ! ha ha. This is what you should run & get at Sally's and buy in times of hair disasters. ( I can't believe I said that, BUT, it does carry it and Sally's is in every town in our country). So its super convenient and you can get this as easily as Box-O-Color.

Why is this a good choice? You wet the hair, put gloves on ( all color that doesn't use developer is messy ) and apply straight from the bottle. I used to be a Stuntwoman (15 yrs) and I brought my own, because sometimes they would want to color your hair to match the actress I would be doubling and I was already for them with every color in my stunt bag.  They would wet my hair and kind of section and comb section and comb......applying barrier creme around the hairline then after rinsing use a Color Stain Remover around the hairline to clean up any left-over color.

Then you can go to work, school or care for the kids while you CAREFULLY plot your next move on your hair disaster. The color simply shampoos out, yep, all the way out no residue at all - so you have not compounded your original disaster. I would definitely condition with INTENSIVE or THRIVEN following it, it is a teeny bit drying, but hey, what isn't?

So isn't that great? Too bad most people don't look for me until they already put a box of color on.....but maybe I will save someone with this Post !


Here is what the company says about the product:

• Great for roots between permanent coloring treatments
• Contains its own setting lotion and conditioners
• Easy to use
• Works great

Roux Fanci-Full Rinse temporary hair color keeps hair color looking its best between color treatments. Evens tones and removes brassiness. Blends away gray. Color is instantaneous and non-damaging. Added styling lotion allows for coloring and styling in one easy step. 


Killer Chemist

That 'Bed-Head' Look .... Easier To Accomplish Than You Think !

To create that Bed-head look that is everywhere (and will not go-away), we carry one little simple product, needed to create it . Last time these were in they flew out, before I ever got to explain how to work them so lets to try again.

The answer is: 5 little words ! Jumbo vented hot roller clamps !  Let me explain how to use them to achieve this style ( which has been in every Victoria's Secret Catalogue for the last decade) !

What you will need is:
-  1 pin-tail comb
-  2 - 3 packages of vented roller clips
-  Styling product, I like:
   LANZA's Art Element Polyester : pH 5.6. 
You can regulate the curl by the amount of product used

What you do is divide the entire head into 12 small sections, when the hair is lightly-damp. More dry than wet. 

Towel dry the hair gently also works,  then... roughly take each section and wind it up into a messy curl & clip with these clamps. The messier the better and not tight, using these clamps works better than any other device on the market. You can wind those 12 sections up in 10 minutes or less. Do this before you start on your make-up. Once the hair is all clipped up - begin your make-up. Next shoot the hair with a diffuser, or if you want the method Professionals use, pull out your travel hair dryer. Having the hair completely dry is important for giving the hair that messy feel and having it "last-that-way" all day {in a photo shoot}.

Now, when hair is completely dry, let down the hair gently as you want the hair to remain in that form till you check to see that it is completely dry thru & thru ! If necessary use a diffuser on the end of a dryer to completely dry sections. If you don't completely dry it, the curls will fall -- but more importantly you will lose the VOLUME. Then take a hot curling rod and wind JUST A COUPLE pieces of hair around it to give the look of a few - formed - curls.

 Poof ! ! the perfect Bedhead Look 

SOMETIMES IT'S THE EASIEST TRICK ... 
THAT'S USED TO MAKE THE BEST STYLE

 

The theory is very similar to making pin curls....you know those curls they wound around their fingers??? Before there were such-a-thing as "ROLLERS" ! ;) !

Regulate the amount of curl you get by the dryness of the hair. The dryer the hair the LESS the curl.

Tint On Wet Hair OR Dry Hair & Pulling Thru

A great couple questions asked by a group member, that just had to be make it to the Blog

 

1. Always Tint Permanent Hair color on DRY hair
2. Always Tint Demi-Permanent Hair Color on Wet hair

 When Pulling Hair Color thru at the end of processing, what do I use?
 
Pulling thru: always mix up more than you need at the beginning so there is left over....just when you are getting ready to pull thru, squeeze a shot of 20 Volume ( or the developer you just used if that is all you have) into the old color........mix really well and begin putting it on quickly all over the hair NEATLY in quarters, being sure to get it even and using a giant wide tooth comb (we sell plenty great ones) comb that thru quickly

"No Ammonia" in Hair Color Means, What?

 Well, one more line in Hair Color, has sent me a notice stating they have produced a "non-ammonia" line of hair color. I know a lot of you may think, OMG - that is what I must look for. I want you to try to remember that any type of beauty product that is sold to you in 'words' and 'sayings' ... are fully tested before you ever see that product on TV or in print. So if 'ammonia' doesn't "TEST" well, they take it out of a product. 

Big companies like Matrix, Redken, L'Oreal are now advertising hair color claiming they are 'ammonia-free'... do you know what I think as a Colorist? 
Oh geez, not going near that one. Why? ? I have standards.  

Ammonia is what one needs for hair color to work at its optimum..... years ago when this 'ammonia-free' idea was brand new, I tested multiple new lines out........the result? Just average.Not a lot of shine, not great gray coverage and those are the 2 main points colorists look for in their Hair Color Lines. First of all, you need to understand what ammonia does in hair color ? I think everyone has a false idea of what it is and what it does. It's not that tart 'scent' that is in a Hair Salon, that smell is almost always from:

• Perms
• Straighteners
• Relaxers
• Acrylic/Gel & all other NAIL product ingredients
• and then any combinations of all them !
  
  
  

The only smell that may bother you while getting hair colored is when you combined powder bleach "with" developer....and that comes from mainly the powder bleach. Developer has no scent, so I truly feel 'ammonia' gets a bad rap. Ammonia, technically "opens the cuticle". Opening the cuticle is how the hair color gets IN the hair strands. There are other chemicals that open the cuticle, although none of them worked as well as ammonia, so that is why ammonia has always been used, to be frank. That is why they were never used prior to today. So it is almost comical to me, that they are reverting back to the prior element used to opening the cuticle MEA. That and putting in ingredients to these new hair color lines so the scent will not be quite so offensive to people ( which is what will cure the main problem) SCENT. Just look at this advertisement for INOA a L'Oreal professional hair color line that was brought out as "ammonia-free" about 3 years ago....down to the right. You see the girl, her hair color and "SCENTED FLOWERS on her nose......for their main advertisement !! (which by-the-way : did not succeed, well).The problem with all of this to me, again, is the "quality" of the hair color and the results. 
No one has produced a 'quality' line of hair color without ammonia and from my experience, people do not want to sacrifice one for the other. But, if you would like to try one of these new lines, I will be happy to carry them in a trial-phase type form. So in the testing faze you can order 1-2-3 tubes of any one of these new lines by writing the store with the line and the colors, and we will order them for you and if we find that many of you are interested in one of these lines, we will be happy to carry it for you ! 

Hows that for 'customer service' 

Killertrinity3@aol.com 
is our email, so please - drop us a line with your request, it will take 1 week to get your color!

Killer Chemist
Killerstrands Hair Clinic

Happy Birthday to Killerstrands, Which Turns 6 Years, April 15!

We Always Have a Birthday Sale For You

Choosing April 15, 2007 to begin a project such as Killerstrands was not intended by any means. It seems like it has been 20 years to me... all the information I have had to tug from my brain, spit through my fingers to come out on your screen... has not been an easy task for me. I hope everyone has benefited from all the posts and stories over the years, we always offer a Sale on our Birthday which is tomorrow Monday, April 15, 2013

So please check into the front page of the store for the various discounts and Codes you will need to check out.

Thanks for all of your support over the years and here is a direct link to the front of the store, where you will find the discounts and codes.
Killerstrands Store 

Killer Chemist

Can Boxed Hair Color Truly Produce Highlights and Lowlights ?

One of the more absurd boxed Hair Color commercials shows a beautiful woman "Kate" with her

supposed husband in a Voice-over roll speaking about her beauty "remaining the same" over the years (with supposedly this boxed hair color being the reason for her still youthful beauty - I GUESS!!). He is explaining how his life has changed so much......" 4 moves, 3 kids & 2 jobs"......but she has always remained the same. As if, his wife's hair, never got gray because she uses this ridiculous Box of Hair Color. First of all, I want everyone to know, that this is NOT HIS WIFE. TV commercials are cast, just like movies or TV shows are (see below). They look long and hard for the 2-3-4, etc.. people (the child is an actor too) that are cast in a national commercial like that .... and why? ..... because a helluva lot of money is as stake. P & G has to pay these actors every single time this commercial plays, it is a "national ranked commercial", which means that from 1 or 2 days work these actors put in to shoot the commercial, they could bring in a high 6 figure income! A TV commercial in hair color is never an honest endeavor, I hope everyone realizes that.....but this one stuck out more than most to me so I felt I must at least explain ...'why', for those that are new to Killerstrands.

So this boxed Hair Color's main point was that this $8.00 Box-O-Crap could give your hair both

highlights and lowlights similar to this 'woman's hair' when she was younger (is the premise).  Which is scientifically and chemically impossible to do. So, the fact that they boldly advertise this box to be able to pull off a Coloring trick that takes a highly skilled Colorist to accomplish, when false advertising is illegal in this country, infuriates me.  The next time you are confused by what politicians in Washington are getting paid off for ... remember this to relate it to your life. 

I'm sure many of you at one time or another may have had foils in your hair, or if not, may have seen them in someones hair, right? There is a very specific reason we use foils, which is to apply different colors inside those foils, so the result is....a multitude of colors giving a more authentic and youthful appearance when finished. Before foils there was a weird apparatus called a cap and hook...where they would yank small bits of hair thru to also impart color differences, which hurt peoples head too much so, foils were developed. No one has developed any further technique's because foils are as close to painting on individual colors as we have found.  But, here is where the art gets tricky........you know how there are rules for coloring the hair? Well, all of those rules pertain to individual foil work as well. Which means you cannot just apply any color on top of another hair color or it won't work. All of the hair color rules that pertain to the Killer 14 questions still need to be applied to the foils in order for the colors to end up the same. You still need to have a lighter hair color underneath if you plan on applying a lighter color on top, and so on. The Art of Hair Color and looking natural is no small feat.

So, it is insulting to my career and to the art of hair color, that this commercial gives false hopes to women who don't have access to possibly foils and foilwork. If you are going to advertise quit giving false hope when you know for a fact that it is not chemically possible to give both highlight and lowlights when you apply one color. I mean listen to how ridiculous the sentence evens sounds. 

Come on P & G, GET WITH IT.

KC

(Full disclosure: I want to say that I support P & G in one facet of hair coloring, as I support Wella : Color Touch and Koleston Perfect Professional Hair Color, which they bought from a Private owner about 2 years back, I tried a couple other brands and none were as good as Wella, so I returned.)

About This Commercial

Description	This commercial shows a man talking about his wife Kate. He says that although he has aged, his wife still looks more beautiful than ever. In one step, with color blend technology,    ________ is proven to give more blends of tones versus untreated hair.
Advertiser	Facebook Twitter YouTube  (Airing Rank: 248)
Agency	Grey Global Group Inc.
Mood	Active
Tagline	“The Color Experts”
Screenshots	Previous Next

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