March 28, 2016

2 Products w/ Same Ingredients. . .Why is One So Different Than Other?









        How can 2 products with the 

                       same ingredients be so different ? ?

              FORMULA  QUANTITY  VARIATION


2 Products can have the same ingredients BUT....they can have "different quantities of the same ingredient" (you never know how much of an individual ingredient is IN 1 product - that is not required  … it is the QUANTITY of those ingredients that can completely change the :  feel, design, reaction, hold OR shine, color, look or just about anything ...  ......... depending on which product you are making. 

Think about it ......... HAIR COLOR PRODUCT #50  is a hair color product both have the same exact ingredients EXCEPT the ingredients of just a long list of ingredients are different ONLY IN THE RED & WHITE GRAMS - Total.

BURST   Product #A : has 4 grams of red Tint  & 50 grams of White........
WHILE
BURST  Product #B:  has 50 grams of red Tint with 4 grams of White pigment 

Product A looks like this  :


Product B Looks Like this:

      

LOOK AT THE DIFFERENCE !  

They both have the exact same ingredients and finally I can show you very simply what I mean E-X-A-C-T-L-Y with these 2 photos. This is a visual  demonstration of what I am referring to as an EXTERNAL "Formula" VARIATION that has the exact same ingredients only DIFFERENT amounts of those 'same' ingredients.   It cannot only be a VISUAL demonstration....it can also be an INTERNAL Variation differential treatment. MEANING : what it actually does to the internal & external structure of your hair is and can be completely different.

  EVERYTHING regarding the outcome of a product can be changed dramatically merely by the change of the amount of a certain ingredient that is added or subtracted.
 The Absolute #1 most important topic for THE RESULT of any Hair Color or Product AT ALL????  . . . . . . . .is. . . . .:
                                    THE FORMULA 

There are thousands of OILS out there on the shelves, but not one of them creates the results of our GLEAM . . . . . . . 
  
                          . . . . . . . . . why is that ? 

Killerstrands uses massive amounts of the most expensive Oils on Earth, 2 in particular !  Which makes GLEAM, completely cure hair damage + Create Shine & Solve Frizz in frizzy hair.  Personally I have battled my own frizzy / dry hair.....therefore for a lifetime I have battled this horrible trait personally which creates a completely different set of rules when formulating a hair product to help cure your OWN hairs'  problems.  There is NOTHING like being able to formulate hair products for your OWN HAIRS' faults and problems !! 

 I simply tried to solve this one problem........  It really does and I have not ONE hesitation saying that.

Just give yourself DAILY - HOT OIL (lots OF)TREATMENTS (using the Soft Bonnet Hair Dryer to take advantage of heat) which drives conditioners INTO hair strands....and then at night apply overnight Treatments of THRIVEN for the complete HAIR DAMAGE RESCUE TREATMENT of the Year ! ! ! ! 

If you want every single trick I have you would also need to Add INTENSIVE,
using it after Color Treatments to LOCK in Color and to be used as much as you can after your daily shampoos as a daily conditioner if needed. 

Remember....do NOT use a daily conditioner solely because you think you need one.

Add the SECRET SUPPLEMENT { Google it.... } daily if you struggle with health, growth or thickness of hair... OVER 80% of people who begin this habit of taking 1 SS/per day will give you an extraordinary amount of hair growth, it changes the hair thickness / hair density per day....give it 45--90 days if nothing changes in that

  It's the QUANTITY of ingredients not the fact that its on the label, they can put 1% of Rosehips Oil in a product & then are allowed to put the name "ROSEHIPS OIL" in the label. . . . . just the same as if we added over 50% of the TOTAL formula.  

So there are many MANY tricks to creating hair products, and until you really learn how to create a hair product from the ground up its very difficult to understand the whole world. I accidentally grabbed a chance to learn how to formulate hair products from a very famous MAX FACTOR Cosmetic Chemist....which was the true "KEY" to 
KILLERSTRANDS HAIR CLINIC
                                              SUCCESS

I was so very lucky.....unfortunately the man died about 3/4 of the way thru his training(in his Lab at 5 in the morning just starting his day!), but that is the key to my knowledge bank...( many people ask me that one!!!)




March 26, 2016

Brand New Sulfate-Free Shampoo Balls = Nohbo: Available Now on Indiegogo - Its Time To Start Paying Attention!



 Why Nohbo Shampoo Balls?


As the human race continues to exist on this planet, we have to take into consideration our environment. Nohbo is one small step to help reduce plastic and waste making the world a cleaner more livable space. 

 These balls are the size of a quarter. Absolutely ZERO packaging, don't just think of you.....think of your children and your children's children.

Well, I happened upon one of the most innovative products in hair shampoo that I have ever seen. Being as the majority of you ask us about shampoo's every single day of every week, we figured you would be as interested in this as much as I am. But...NO, it is not quite available yet - which believe me I found frustrating as well..But, lets help the kid out and start talking about it. We are 6,000 people strong here at Killerstrands Blog and that is THANKS to all of you ! Now I rarely ask anything of all of you but I am going to this time.


YUK - plastics

 I feel I have finally found the answer to everyone's questions and the funny part is a 15 year old boy developed this and it was presented on the TV show SHARK TANK ( which I don't watch) I happened upon this idea from my Cosmetic Chemistry magazine, which is saying a LOT that the editor of the magazine wrote a small review of the product and the fact that a 15 year old invented it - - AND I AM SO VERY HAPPY THAT THIS KID DID THIS ! ! !  and the one developer that I truly admire, " Mark Cuban" took a huge interest in this idea/shampoo and invested $100.000. and acquired 25% of the company. That was all I needed to know to make my own small investment and we will carry it as soon as its available (they say some time next month). 
 I LOVE THE MESSAGE, the formula, the idea, every single thing about the company


NOHBO is name of a small ball which is a shampoo ball
With all the plastic we use ( just check out every single hair product shelves in every single store you go in now. { no longer is it just the Salons - companies have figured out that people are obsessed with their hair and they will buy expensive hair products even if THEY DON'T WORK ! ! 




Above is a list of the features of NOHBO Shampoo Balls to give you an idea of what is important to the company it gels alongside my ideas about hair care as well, which you can see.




 So, for the very first time I would like to ask all of you to do a little Social Media spreading for me and for the kid, I think the product will be the answer to many of your requests for a wonderful shampoo. I promise as soon as I get my first one, you too, will hear about it.....




Thank you so much for listening and reading my little story.

KC
March 19, 2016

Lots Of You Want Perfectly Platinum Hair Lately ! !




Listen, the most gorgeous transition in the world is taking someone with BLACK hair all the way through the entire spectrum of color - beginning with BLACK HAIR and removing ALL signs of pigment.......ending up with the absolute gorgeous color : PLATINUM HAIR . It has always been my absolute most favorite application to do. Most Stylists hate it, but that is because they do not know how to get PLATINUM hair, they can only achieve Yellowy/Brass  and to do that is not rewarding AT ALL.

It takes a lot of dedication, a lot of patience and a LOT OF OIL BLEACH LIghtener to apply the correct amount of times, in order to achieve Platinum.

What is every hair Stylists' and every CRIB COLORISTS' main fault when trying to achieve Platinum hair color? ? ? ?  
  • NOT Applying Enough Applications. Unless you are a VIRGIN Level 8-9, you will need multiple applications of Oil Lightener always lightening the lengths FIRST - then the base - LAST. Oil Lightener means: Lightener in the Oil which is then added to Oil in the Creamy Oil Base. Make the investment and purchase our Oil Bleach Kit, it is worth every teeny tiny penny.
  • Be sure you read every Post on this Blog that deal with both going Platinum. . . .


Pitch Black Asian Hair Turned Snow White


a bit of a side note here . . . . . . . . .
a Salon trade magazine ran a pertinent article on Taking Asian Hair.......... Blond. Its funny, when I'm working on a post, I will see a million things along the same line ... in the weirdest places....Send out good energy . . . it WILL come back to you

anyway . . . .

Trends throughout Asia and with Asian-Americans all come from Japans Harajuka district and the tweens there. While practically needing dynamite to get Asian hair - - blond , super blond is the hottest color to have. SILVER & PASTELS are very popular.

That was printed in our top Salon magazine. I have a couple of my own comments towards her theory of bleaching Asian Pitch black hair in that manner:

  • When bleach is applied the majority of its lifting ( Lightening) ability is done in the first 55 minutes...it still works for another hour or 2- but at such a snails slow pace that it is worth it to take the first application off rinse - INTENSIVE......RINSE....DRY. RE- apply a brand new batch! ...
  • I discovered if you rinse and re-apply a brand new batch, the process is much more effective. Re-applying a NEW batch, helped speed the process a long.  I f you REAPPLY (approx) 3 times in one day (using our Oil Lightener Kit ONLY!!!) .  You will be very close to perfectly platinum!
  • Once you remove the hair color (if needed) you may use 30 Volume on the ends with the first batch if hair was a Level 1-2 3 and it's needed - then OK go-for-it!
  • You can get an Asian -- Blond in one day, is my theory - if you use my tricks. I've done it many times, and with nicely conditioned hair, as well. The most important trick to accomplishing this....is so the hair remains in superb condition, is the use of ONLY an : OIL LIGHTENING KIT
  • If you have put your hair through too much in one day.... wait a week. Do that very last bleaching a week later and then apply the toner.... the best time to apply a toner is when the hair is freshly bleached.
I see no reason to take 5 days to bleach hair. I've heard of a few people doing it over 2 or even 3 days but never...5. If you follow my directions you won't have to do that either.

You can only tone blonde bleached hair........remember that.

The process needs to be called the BLEACH & TONE Process...ALWAYS always Tone bleached hair. ...........................Did I say..to bleach toned hair? Good.


This Asian girl has Red Ribbons in her hair,
The process begins with bleached "ribbons" { they are 1/4"-1/2" pieces of hair} ,(which do not need to be white,- frozen butter is fine) rinse, bright Semi permanent red applied to the bleached pieces.


I put this in here to remind you of the Levels hair lightens.... With Asian Hair the first bleach may only get the hair to the RED/BROWN Level....its a lot more resistant than caucasian hair, the First bleach on caucasian hair will get to the Orange/Gold or Gold Level {most likely}.
......see why there is a lot of gold and Yellow blond's walking around ?? 
It is the single stage where hair ( anyones hair) get stuck....as it goes through the lightening stage.
From talking to a lot of you I can see the biggest problem with most -- is hesitation with putting the bleach on more than once. I can tell you from 18 years of hair in Hollywood and MALIBU....I never bleached anyone's hair once. 

Except Trevor. Remember Trevor? He is a Natural Level 9! Super Rare.






See the different "tones" of Blond here??? 

Underneath they are bleached the perfect, 'pale yellow/white'.......... then a different color TONER or BOOST AND BURST is applied.

Above has a Pale Golden Blond Toner, The second has our ZUMA BURST (tiny bit of copper in blond) . . . . the small photo below is Platinum Or "white toner" .... I used to call it the Marilyn White toner............Now can you see and thoroughly understand TONER??
Tomorrow you will learn to apply one. The Directions will double as directions for semi permanent Color  (Purchase BOOST & BURST in Violet Pilot in BOOST & Breaking Bad Blue in BURST, use it right after you have lifted the hair light enough and you will have sparkling platinum white hair.



I am going to go over the Application procedures for EVERY SINGLE type of Color
Using a HEAD SHEET ( piece of paper w/ 4 heads drawn) so you will know
  • where to start,
  • how large to make the partings
  • width of the partings for application of color
all the particulars, so your feel more secure when your buying color and developer separate - - - trying to get you all away from KITS!!!! . 

Is it working???
HOW DOES THAT SOUND?


March 16, 2016

A New FUN, FUNCTIONAL, FRAGRANT. . .Hair Tool: Re-INVENTED at Killerstrands

 Killerstrands presents a hair perfume-silicone protectant collection that invites you to care for and scent the hair in one gesture. Enjoy the uplifting power of long lasting scents as they subtly diffuse throughout the day, amplified by the natural movement of the hair. 

Each hair perfume combines one of KC's signature scents she has come up with in her Cosmetic Chemistry classes.....they have ZERO phthlates - so no worries there....incorporated into a unique silicone formula to create a light, invisible veil designed to leave the hair nourished/luminous  & protected while divinely scented. If you add the GLITTER (in any of 10 colors) you have added one more trick this little bottle produces!
Remember one of its best points as well, it protects the hair from HOT TOOLS! ( flat irons, curling irons even...blow dryers).


I subscribe to this very fancy but well worth it - hair magazine from London. I have for over 17 years and probably always will....it comes from the UK and is really a beautiful magazine. The UK is just so far ahead of us in hair (color, styling, cuts, health - they have real life Hair Doctors over there  ! ! !) They even sound very important : & are referred to as :  TRICHOLOGISTS and called "Doctors"!!!  

 Ever heard of Philip Kingsley? Well if you haven't you should check into his work , he is like the King Master Hair GURU of all time - he is the # 1 Trichologist in the world and he is getting very old so I ahve noticed I see his daughters name in place of where HIS used to be. He's a brilliasnt man & if money is no object and you need help with the HEALTH of the hair - go see him in London. But I"ve read some of his theories on hair color and I disagree with him....that is because he has never studied nor performed hair color repeatedly 12 hours a day 5-6 days a week ..........which is what I did and the top Colorists do. They have so much experience it really doesn't matter whats in the books, we learn exactly what to do in an exact situation - purely from so much practice!

When I first began studying Cosmetic Chemistry I was going to take all of the classes needed and become certified myself. I though that would really lend credibility to my Resume, being as I had no clue my career was going to be SHUT-DOWN, so un-expectedly by a cancer diagnosis. I was not prepared, I had not gathered photos and films and everything one must do to promote yourself when you kno longer can do hair....PLUS, This was just before the Social Media INFLUX, but still poor timing all around.

It has baffled me for years how much better the British are in this field than we are. We lead them in just about everything else. But, it doesn't matter... that is the reason I pay a small fortune to receive this magazine once a month - they even have to hide the way it is shipped to me because people steal it, which I find quite funny.


Regardless, last months magazine had quite the spread on the newest hot item on top of all the other tricks we have implemented over the years.
 A 2 in 1 COMBO ! ! ! 
 in a multitude of scents....so after some research and back to the mini lab I screwed around  - we now have a spread of 2 & 4OZ. Glossy Hair Fragrances for everyone to choose from. We'll see how you all like them and if they go over well we will be happy to expand the line....everyone here has fallen in love and I will pick a day this week to send everyone who orders a complimentary 1 ounce bottle and we'll see what everyone thinks.

The Base is Cyclomethicone, ...........and yes, I know some people have a hard time with.....I have never found a study, I believe, that proves silicone's on the hair are bad, I know --- I know there is a whole troop who do, but I have frizzy hair and prefer it smooth and straight so I have used them since they first came out over 10 years ago. I just give my hair a light spray and A VERY QUICK-OVER (very quick) with the Flat Iron, I have the fat-est hair in the world - so I just always like to be UIt really is soooooooo small that just the right amount comes out the nozzle when you spray the hair Gloss onto the hair either to use as a LIGHT FRAGRANCE..... protect it from the heat of the HOT TOOLS.  add shine to dull hair.....or even all 3 ! 


ZCENTS - SCENTS - ZCENTS - SCENTS - ZCENTS
by Killerstrands


GARDENIA/FIG.....with a main single note of Gardenia, this fragrance does have just a hint of rose and tender orchid to accentuate the Gardenia and make it just a bit deeper and more complex.This fresh and green scent features top notes of leafy greens, zesty grapefruit and herbal cassis, with middles notes of Mediterranean fig with floral and powdery nuance ...Gorgeous. Phthalate-free
LEMON VERBENA MOSS..... its taken me a long time to find all of these and this one has stood the test of time I love as much today as I did the day I first caught a whiff. Who doesn't love lemons. Italian Bergamot, Lemon Verbena mixed with sultry Primrose and Violet. Rounding the blend out is a dry down of Amber and White Musk. Awesome.
AMBER/ CINNAMON......Our Amber blend also contains notes of Vanilla, Patchouli, Sandalwood - Cinnamon and Musk. KC's All-Time Love + Timeless.
BLUE ANGEL STAR - The most intoxicating scent of a lifetime.


March 8, 2016

3 TerrificTricks From Tube To Application - Drop Your Tint Brushes !



Recently it hit me that I have not efficiently - if ever -  gone over a couple of these very small subjects that truly DO make a difference in the hair coloring process. They are EXTREMELY important and I think many of you don't even realize it is something that helps the entire process AND your hair color results.
This Blog is so old and there are so many Posts sometimes I cannot find any history of a subject....so if you read this and/or already knew it.....just know that refresher points are ALWAYS excellent in the education of Hair Color. Hearing tough to understand points explained in different ways - helps you understand better as well. So, onward and upward......all of these points will very probably ruin your hair color results and they are little tricks

1st.......CAP YOUR DEVELOPER
When you either get your small bottle of developer or litre, just remember this very important fact : the liquid that is in that bottle, which is what makes the magic work in the art of hair coloring, can lose its 'punch' (I like to call it). Or in other words there is nothing more important than keeping the top on that bottle - (securely) otherwise it will lose its ability to work to its potential. A handful of you will sometimes contact me with pics of your 'failed' hair color, when according to all facts you have given me, it should have worked just fine. This is one option (sometimes right off the bat I don't think of) So I am trying to implant it into my brain as well as yours ! I constantly forget to go over these 3 aspects which are all very powerful ESPECIALLY if you have not done all 3 of them, let alone just neglected ONE!   
BUT, truly this one little tiny mistake can ruin your entire color application. When the 'air' hits Developer its strength (which is needed) dissipates.
SO: Keep Your Top TIGHT at all times, I panic if I notice it off for 20 seconds, yep its that important. These items are top quality so keep them in top shape for top results! Your developer should only be in the air without mixing for less than a minute any more than that and you are risking the quality of your results and its potency!
 
2nd..... RATIO OF HAIR COLOR TO DEVELOPER
Now here is another topic that would completely ruin your hair color results ..... getting the "ratio" wrong. Every single hair color on planet earth has a certain ratio of color TO developer. Can I tell you all of them right here, right now? No, I only have memorized the best hair color on planet earth : Wella Professional Line. Every single line of hair color has their RATIO either on the insert OR the directions ( which on professional hair color was : ON THE INSIDE OF THE BOX. Which is a little secret to keep the public from finding the recommendations by the company on Ratio/ processing times, etc...! Since many of peoples complaints about ''incompetent Hair Stylists'' have become so widespread & public with the rise of the INTERNET and social media I feel the company's are now putting enclosures in almost all professional hair color. But, still......if you don't read the enclosures OR the inside of the box you will not know what the ratio of Developer TO color is. Now, what am I talking about you ask??? I hope you all know, but if not.....here is another reason your hair color might be turning out weird colors when it should be turning out beautiful.  Ratios will look like this:
  • 1:1.....1 part Color to 1 part Developer (for ex:1 oz.hair color mixed w/ 1oz. developer.
  • 1:2..... 1 part color to 2 parts Developer (for ex.1oz.hair color mixed w/ 2oz. developer - EVERY Level 12 or High-lift Blonde is this ratio using 40 Volume)
  • 1:1.5... 1 part Color to 1.5 parts Developer (ex: 1oz. Color mixed w/ 1 1/2 oz. developer - some rare colors use this ratio....a lot of powder bleaches use this ratio. So ALWAYS - ALWAYS - ALWAYS find out what the ratio is on the color you are using.
If you use too much developer ( for lack of a better term) it waters down your hair color, so you won't get as brilliant of color, it will NOT cover gray as well, it will fade quicker, the shine will not be as brilliant................need I say more? 
If you don't use enough , if you are going for blonde and you only use 1:1 and don't use 40Volume

The better hair colors I have found through my own personal use is that when the ratio is 1:1 You have richer - more brilliant and better coverage hair color. So, stop now and check your box on whatever you are using ....... all of Wella's lines are 1:1 EXCEPT Color Touch which is their DEMI Color, which I have found helps with shine and sheerness which is what Demi's should do in my opinion.

The 1:2 ratio on permanent line is usually the lower quality lines unless there is some secret line I don't know about.....which there could be. My absolute favorite line which died when the owner died........ RENBOW.......which was 1:1 which is where I learned what high quality hair care was.

3rd TRICK: MIX Color PRIOR to adding Developer : Now the very last little trick which is also what will make a difference in your hair color result is when you are using multiple colors WITHIN a single color line - THE WAY IT IS MIXED - TRULY DOES MATTER. 

Lets use one of the most common hair color formula's in Wella's Koleston Perfect line for a Level 6 - light brown hair with 20% Gray :
(remember Wella runs 1 full level darker than all other lines or than the color chart appears)...so the formula would be:
7/0N
+
7/2M
+
7/7B.....................+ 20 Volume


This is how pro-hair color is made to be used. The "neutral" or the " /0 " is used to cover gray. The MATT color which is the 7/2 is made to fight gold/ Blorange type tones and the 7/7Beige - Gives the mixture a wonderful Brown Tone. This is how these lines are designed to be used. It doesn't matter that you are using 3 tubes.....just use a 1/2 ounce of each color - which . . . once it is mixed with developer should be more than enough to do your base.  Then you will have this for 2-3 sometimes even 4 more base applications !
But what this point is............is how you mix these 3 colors. {I will always always encourage you to purchase a scale...... I find the best scales are MY Weigh's they last forever.}
So MEASURE your color into your tint bowl, then BE SURE TO MIX IT TOGETHER FIRST, so the raw color is mixed together FIRST. Then & only then, add the developer. 



A F T E R    T H E    C O L O R    I S   M I X E D   T O G E T H E R   F I R S T , then add the developer


Preferably measure developer as well if you are going to use our measure cups, then use them for both the color & the developer.

Now those are my 3 most important oddball rules that everyone should apply every single time they mix up their hair color to apply at home !  

love to all of you, you have been so heartwarming this month, its all so very much appreciated


                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

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