6 New Colors by Wella - Koleston Perfect + Color Touch - Mineral Desert Shades

Wella has Added Some Gorgeous New Shades

In both Permanent & Demi

Love it when new colors arrive, wish even more would show-up sometimes

Koleston Perfect - permanent colors has added 3 new colors : 
10/97 ............ 8/97 ..................& 6/97 
These are beautiful colors ---- based on desert...& mineral shades


 Color Touch Demi-permanent colors -  are just another level down which work perfectly with the Koleston colors
9/97 .......7/97.........& 5/97

 

Fight Color-Fade ( Learn Why Color Application is Uneven? ? ?) - - the POWER of pH !

 Fight Color-Fade ! Prolong Hair Color With the Power of pH

pH value is between 0 and 14, a pH value of 7.0 is considered neutral; all values below neutral are acidic and all values above are alkaline. An acidic solution has a positive electrical charge (+), and an alkaline solution has a negative electrical charge (-).

Healthy Hair Vs. Damaged Hair
Normal, healthy hair has a pH value of between 4.5 and 5.5 and is therefore considered acidic. Hair in this state will be positively charged (+) and has a compact cuticle structure. 

The outside cuticle layer is closed and smooth, promoting a natural, healthy shine. The internal cortex is protected, and moisture levels are maintained, ensuring good strength and elasticity. 
Healthy hair has even, normal porosity and provides a good base for chemical services.... therefore your goal should ALWAYS be to have the healthiest HAIR ... POSSIBLE.
 I know it sounds odd, but to cure and repair hair you must replace lipids. The ultimate way to replace lipids is to apply pure high quality oils. Which is why I am always shouting the advantages of GLEAM, our own pure oils from nature product. . . . . .Therefore : Apply Gleam - sleep with it in the hair or even better is to use the Travel Bonnet Hair Dryer.
 
Damaged hair has a pH value above 7.0 and is negatively charged (-). 
The cuticle layer is raised with a dull/matt surface. 
The raised cuticle layer can catch, resulting in tangled hair with a high susceptibility to mechanical damage – caused by combing or other external influences. In addition, the cortex will be exposed to further damage, in danger of losing essential moisture and becoming dry or brittle. 
( Below is a sentence that may apply to all the questions I receive about "uneven hair color application" . . . .)
Damaged hair will be very porous and provides a poor surface for chemical treatments, with potentially uneven results.

I have this problem sometimes because I have always had porous hair, you 'can' be born with it, or you can 'create it'  - - - but it can be solved by a vigorous regimen of deep over-nite hair masks....GLEAM OIL Treatments........& laying off the heat appliances. 

(I'm talking to myself here as well so don't think things are lovely & rosey here at Killerstrands headquarters.... just because I know how to fix and color hair. Sometimes I get lazy ( right now) and then boom my hair reverts back to its shitty/lousy /'natural' texture - which is why I feel I have learned how to fix others hair.  My virgin texture is crap, so it needs care all the damn time. 

 I have to keep up the routine day in and day out.....AND DON'T THINK i DON'T CARE ABOUT THE PRICE OF ALL THIS STUFF BECAUSE I ... DO ! !

pH and Products
 As the majority of hair products are 'supposed to be' a solution, and therefore have a pH value, it follows that this can or cannot influence the condition of hair. I encourage everyone to keep an eye out for pH Value's on products, its the most important facts that should be printed on the bottle - yet it rarely is.

Chemical treatments, such as a lightener, perms or colors, are deliberately alkaline, or have a pH value higher than the hair’s natural value. This causes the cuticle layer to open up, allowing the product to enter the inner hair structure. It is therefore essential to thoroughly rinse the hair following a chemical process and apply a good re-structuring conditioner         ( INTENSIVE & THRIVEN )

Whereas, hair care products are predominantly acidic, and have an astringent effect on the hair, closing the cuticle layer. Shampoos will typically have a pH value close to the hair’s natural level, promoting gentle cleansing. Conditioners and treatments however, have a higher acid value, helping to return damaged, hair back to a normal, healthy condition.
When hair is colored, the pH increases from an optimum value of 4.5 – making it more alkaline and during color development, the outer and inner hair structure is loosened up in order for color pigments to penetrate the hair. For this reason a conditioner or treatment after a color service helps to reset the hair to the optimum pH value of 4.5.

What is the pH of the Hair and Scalp?

Maintaining the correct pH value of the hair & scalp is essential for the overall health of hair. Hair products can control the pH of hair.
What is Neutral pH?
A pH of 7 is chemically neutral. Hair care products with a pH value in between 3.5 and 5.5 are considered beneficial for hair care products.
Variations in pH
When pH value drops below 6.0 the cuticle layer contracts and tightens. A mild acidic conditioner (lower than pH 7) can help to add shine to the hair, as a smooth surface is able to reflect more light; strong acids will however damage the hair. Acid conditioners should not be used when red/orange tones have been added to the hair, instead use a color-specific care range.
When pH value becomes more alkaline (above 7.0) the cuticle layer softens and expands like a pinecone. This is necessary as part of the coloring process in order to deposit pigments within the hair structure, however if the pH becomes too alkali, damage will occur. Also many form products make use of the effect of alkali pH values on hair.
Hair with a very alkaline, porous structure will not retain color effectively. In this instance the cuticle will fail to hold the new pigments, which will ultimately rinse out prematurely.
You can help prevent damage and keep the hair looking fantastic and pH balanced.

In this post we explore how to understand and care for, the typical range of hair and scalp types.

The sebaceous gland plays an important role in determining hair and scalp type. The production of sebum is a natural process that adds strength and lustre to the hair strand. However, diet, blood circulation, emotional distress and drugs and the aging process can all influence production. Salon products are designed specifically to compliment individual needs and work toward producing strong, healthy, naturally beautiful hair. Hair and Scalp types fall into the following broad categories:

Oily
Over-active sebaceous glands produce an excess quantity of sebum, which can make hair limp and lank. This may be due to hormonal changes, often evident during puberty or menopause. Many people have a naturally oily scalp, which can result in greasy hair. Fair hair is much finer than dark hair, hence is more susceptible to excess oil.

High quality - SULFATE-FREE shampoos cleanse without stripping the hair of essential moisture and nutrients.

Dry
Dry hair looks dull and lifeless and is also more susceptible to breakage. Dry hair can only be stretched 15% of its overall length before breaking, while healthy hair can be stretched up to twice this amount, more when wet! A common cause of dry hair is dehydration; water retention can measure between 4 and 13% of overall hair volume.

A change in lifestyle can make all the difference, and there are many products available to help nourish the cortex and smooth cuticles...beginning with GLEAM. Gleam is a little bottle of magic if you ask me - it has fixed more problems on my clients than any other 1 product we carry. It maddens me that there are so many "copy-cat" oils out there, that everyone thinks all OILS are the same. You can't find an oil on the market place that does not have silicone in it, but GLEAM has none of that type of thing , it is 100% Oils from Nature!

Normal Hair
Normal hair is shiny, supple and good looking and is the result of a well-balanced, healthy lifestyle, combined with good hair care using the right products.

Mixed Condition
Over-active sebaceous glands and poor scalp condition may create a glut of sebum; this can be absorbed back into the scalp, preventing essential oils from traveling the length of the hair strand. The scalp in this condition is a common cause of Pityriasis steatoides.

Pityriasis steatoides is more severe case of dandruff characterized by an accumulation of greasy or waxy scalp scales, mixed with sebum, that stick to the scalp to the scalp in crusts. When accompanied by redness and inflammation the medical term is seborrheic dermatitis, which I have seen GLEAM cure more than a dozen times, along with the Scalp Scrub and the Malibu Scalp treatment pack.

. Mixed condition hair types have dry, frizzy ends that are prone to breaking, with oily roots. In this scenario application techniques are very important when applying products to ensure the problem area is targeted. 

Pretty in Platinum - The Advantages of Becoming Blonde in 2017 { A Shopping List for Turning Blonde - Via the Healthiest Method }

A great idea just came my way via a multitude of questions regarding one particular subject, by many calls regarding the exact same subject. All in the same week ! 

I can always tell when Spring is near, even if I had no idea when it was, this same thing happens year after year. Its amazing to me that people associate lightening their hair with Spring or a SEASON ....it fascinates me. That may be because being a born and bred tomboy from L.A. ...... I have lived in the most boring weather on planet earth all my life, I know - I know many people think this place is the closest thing to NIRVANA, but I beg to differ with every single one of you. I lived in the mountains at 9,000 feet for nearly 10 years and THAT was exciting, actually paying attention to the weather because it 'mattered' in your livelihood - not L.A. you can pretty much assume it will be sunny and warm most days of the year including Christmas  . . .  super duper BBBBBORING & terrible for the climate change problems we are encountering as well ! So everyone is on the "how to become a blonde train and I want to make it very very easy for you.

I can promise you if you go to Sally's and listen to the Bullshit they feed you that comes straight from corporate's mouth, you will end up looking for a website like ours very soon afterward. How do I know? You guys all tell me so ! 

If you go to a Salon , it takes a highly trained Colorist to perform a "healthy".... "bleach & tone (as the process is called). Many try and many fail. If you want to go this route, be SURE YOU FIND SOMEONE who has a portfolio of photos full of brass-free blondes. There is not a reason in Hell that any Colorist today should not have a full portfolio of hundreds of photos of their work. They do not need a professional photographer for this, not when every single one of you is walking around with a 8G Camera attached to your phone that can be used inside of 20 seconds every single time a client leaves.

 If they don't have a portfolio full of their OWN work with NO ONE Else's name attached - of at least 40 heads of blonde hair that is just what you want......Thank them and leave. DO...NOT....BE...ANYONE'S...GUNIEA PIG for BLONDING....unless you are desperate - broke or a bit off your rocker ! Do something else if you cannot afford it, otherwise you will have one big mess on your hands and it takes a very long time to come back from a mess of this kind -- I promise you I have had to cut inches off of peoples hair with blonding gone wrong.

How to become a brass-free....healthy + shiny haired ...tow-Head ?

 I am always happy to map out this road for you....but it hit me today to help even more people who are passing by quickly as well as you Crib Colorists . . . trying to accomplish this - by making a SHOPPING LIST in 1 post. Now I will have something to point to and Know that  you have all been given the proper directions. 

I really worry about that because I know everyone has ended up here after some tiny or gigantic screw up by someone..... Killerstrands has become the landing page for Hair Color Correction in about every sense of the word and every color imaginable..  

To become a brass-free..........healthy & shiny haired......... beautiful Blonde BOMBSHELL - coming from a brunette who has been coloring  and covering up her gray for many years, well that is not something that can be answered in a few sentences.

Not if you want it to come out correctly.  blonding exactly as a highly paid Hair Colorist would do  - - - needs a whole Post and some links for you, to find everything. Most of you that inquire have the exact same set of history that you are starting from so we will go with that for this Post. If you have a different set of statistics then you will need to either make a comment at bottom.....email me.....(or our new method of getting answers from me - TEXTING) .....or call if you really  want to start on this project as soon as possible. 

 Being blonde is where the term "HIGH MAINTENANCE" was formed, so if you have no interest in anything high maintenance, I would suggest changing your goal.  This is a high maintenance operation - when I was in the Salon ( its been many years now...but I charged $750.) my colleagues today are charging well over $1000. The way we do it at the top......... most often it is at least a 2-day affair...........It can be 2 days in a row or 2 days apart within the same week, it simply depends on the issues and people schedules. The statistics we are working with for these directions are the following:

The directions for a bleach and tone are completely different if you have VIRGIN Hair color or if you have previously colored hair in a Level 6 or darker. So this Post is aimed at a person who has the following issues with their hair presently
:
Virgin Level hair Color: Level 1-8,
Gray percentage: 0 - 90% &
Previous Hair Color on hair in any level 1-9  

 
Today the big advantage of having  brass-free - healthy Blond hair is ............ you have a gigantic range of pastel colors that you can either wear or shampoo out. So the fun and the excitement I hear from people all day every day....has given me a whole new insight into the advantages of being Blond in the year 2017!

Killerstrands alone has over 40 amazing colors in the various products like BOOST + BURST + BLAST + BLASTED - which are tinted hair conditioners, shampoos that  and have PIGMENT and or MICA dissolved in them......you can actually have one color in the daytime.................and a completely different color at night time, because you SHAMPOOED the one from the daytime out then put the other one in yourself (its so fricken easy!) -- with absolutely ZERO damage, because the hair color is in the hair conditioner....which makes it come out 100% .................by simply SHAMPOOING IT ! !

  The admiration of platinum locks also stems from years of adulation on lightened tresses. I happen to believe the reason everyone wants lightened locks, stems from how rare it is in natural hair. The # 1 hair color in the world id black! So, this is the complete opposite, its the "grass is always greener"  theory to some extent.

There is a very teeny tiny percentage of VIRGIN BLOND adults walking around, the number is under, way under 10% even !. Sure there is a decent amount of little kids with blond hair, but as we all know as they age and at the very latest when puberty sets in............. those blonde locks have darkened to at least a level 8, if not a lot darker.

In order to be on the same page when we speak about hair color in levels as I have shown you many times before here, below is a Level Chart. The Level Chart coincides with the Level System of Hair Color, which is a scientific protocol of how to properly formulate hair color, this chart enables you and I  to speak in "levels", so then it makes it easier for me to help you. If you said "dark brown hair and I said it, we would both talking about completely different colors. This system keeps everyone on the same page.

The Level system is in place worldwide so it is not a tiny thing us Californians came up with  ! Know these 3 particular Levels about your own hair to make your next color adventure successful.....and especially if you want to go Blond along with us as we make up your shopping List. 

  You need to know these 3 levels:

1. The Level of your Virgin Hair________
2. Level of your Current hair ________ (99% of you have hair color on your hair - the fact is pretty likely it is a different color than your virgin.) and lastly 
3. The Level YOU DESIRE ____! 

Use this chart for those answers:

  
The reason so many questions need to be asked, (I ask you to answer the Killer 18 Questions which you may "GOOGLE") before I will help you. I want to give me the 'right' answer, not just an answer to sell something. I'm too old for that shit....I am more into giving you the correct answer for YOUR problem than anything.  I don't do that to sound like a big-shot.......I do it because it is the one and only way I can legitimately analyze how you can achieve your goal in your hair color adventure....especially if you are going blond. The most challenging of all hair color formula's.

 The reason so many questions are needed is because there is one set of rules for going Blonde if you have :

1. Hair That is VIRGIN ( never been colored) and another set for:
2. Hair That is Colored...and even another set of rules for :
3. Hair That is Brassy Blonde - desires brass-free blond - which is the only way to go really.

This particular post is for -- "going Blonde for those with color on your hair "--  whether it is Crazy colors (any brand),  Demi-Permanent color ( any brand) or permanent Color (any brand).




This might seem crazy to you, but I am just going to make the entire shopping List, for going from Point a to Point Z...............after that I will explain things if I feel they need it.

 #1.) Color Removal. - Everyone dislikes this step, I even dislike it as it is tedious and non-rewarding as a Colorist. But this step is absolutely essential which 80% of hair stylists simply do not give credit to............nor do they perform. I hope all of you Stylists who read my Blog will consider adding this step to your lists of services, it is a great service and removing old hair color is one of the KEYS to having Blond hair look shiny/happy/healthy when finished ! 

For those of you at home, my Crib colorists.............you MUST remove all of the old hair color..........if not all .......close to "all". The absolute best and most thorough way to accomplish this is by purchasing 3-4-5 (I've had people purchase 8 Kits of the product called VANISH ! - (she had pitch black waist length hair & had been coloring her hair that way for 20 years WITH BOXED HAIR COLOR ! ! !  

Most hair stylists across the country use BLEACH to remove old hair color .............. BIG .... BIGGER ....GIGANTIC MISTAKE.  The #1 goal here is to have healthy shiny blonde hair.............anyone can have dry damaged-- breaking off -- blonde hair. Just apply bleach leave it on forever and boom you have dry-damaged breaking off BUT BLONDE hair. that soon you will have to cut off.

Hair Color Remover is used for removing color ..................
Bleach is used for Lightening hair.
Follow those first 2 Rules and you will at least START your blonding adventure on the right foot.

There are only 4 methods that you can use to remove hair color that will keep your hair healthy.Any short-cuts or products not on this list, will ruin your hair, I was the hair color remover queen fopr Malibu for 10 years, its a weird thing to be popular for, but it eventually pays off. Why?
Because slowly - very slowly people learn why it has to be done that way.

• #1.Shampoo Train - A little method I came 
• up with for people who change their color often ( models, rich people, teens, artists, retiree's,poor people who want to be blonde not a good idea btw.,etc..). Process involves using a whole bottle of cheap -crappy shampoo with lots of Sulfates inside - PRELL is on of the best. Shampoo hair - rubbing suds into lengths adding more shampoo creating gigantic lather + clip-up hair on top of head . ADD plastic or even better FOIL Cap. let process for 1-2-3-4 hours....rinse and repeat.  Read posts on Shampoo Train  .
•  
• #2. VANISH -color remover - This is the single best product on the market. It is the most effective the least damaging and if I had my choice this would be all anyone used. Disadvantage? Its expensive. Of course everything wonderful comes with a
  
  price. You can use VANISH up to 4 times in 1 day and if we needed to do hair color for an event this would always be what we would use. it works the best if you remove the color one day and on another day you lighten it. But, that is not mandatory especially when using VANISH. Why is this such a miracle product? ...it reverses the manner in which the hair color got into your strands to begin with, by shrinking the molecules so they may slip back out the strand the same way they came in and that my dear friends is the single most gentle and effective way of removing the color you MUST remove in order to become that banging BLOND you have in mind ! In almost every case, 1 box in not enough. Read up about Vanish color remover - PLEASE 
• #3 Wella Color RENEW - Packets that when mixed with the activator will take out a large portion of your hair color. This product is brand new, it came out 8 days ago and I have not tried it but I have read and studied all about it and have full confidence in it. I have always felt that a combination of all 4 of these methods is your best bet for color removal, so go pile some shitty shampoo on your head right this minute because
  
  honestly you can start this process this very minute you need nothing but shitty shampoo for the Shampoo Train and that gives you a head start, people always remark, that they are shocked at how much color comes out with that method alone. It also teaches you the power of a crappy shampoo. I would start with one of these packets..........then move onto VANISH. If you have lots of Crazy colors in your hair I would use more than 1 of these packets, or the Malibu CPR or DDL PACKETS...I am imagining that they and the color RENEW are almost one in the Same.
• #3 MALIBU C - COLOR PIGMENT REDUCER or CPR packet.......or DDL packet DIRECT DYE LIFTER...........  - I have been using these for 20 years and they come to me from the QUEEN of Hair color ANNIE HUMPHRIES - I assisted her one very expensive evening when she gave one of her last MASTER classes...and she was doing blondes that evening and called ahead to see if we had the malibu PACKETS ALL READY TO GO ( we had zero!! - so it was a keystone cops episode of everyone falling all over each other trying to find some of the damn things) To her, she could not even think of lifting a level 5 brunette (with previous color on as well) without VANISH, Malibu packets and OIL BLEACH !). The other 3 that you should also purchase are QF {Quick-FIX Color Correction} + CP - Color Prepare & MALIBU C the very first one. All of them get the crap from everyone's lousy water out of the hair to give you a
  
  clean-clear  CANVAS on which to place your hair color process. Use one these packets prior to using BOOST, BURST, BLAST & BLASTED for the most vivid results ever.They are inexpensive and worth their weight in gold.  An easier cheaper way of doing this often? Purchase UNdooGoo Shampoo , it has the crystals in the shampoo, so you can shampoo in leave suds on hair for 5-9 minutes, rinse well and POOF a CLEAN CLEAR CANVAS+ + + Ready-To-Color!

That is really the hard part..............be sure you do all of the reading and the remaining items are the OIL BLEACH KITS. AND READING.

Shopping List

• VANISH - color remover - multiple boxes
• Malibu CPR or DDL or QUICK FIX or color prepare packets
• Wella - Color RE-new packet & activator 
• Killerstrands : GLEAM (4oz) + INTENSIVE + THRIVEN (get the Kit save $$)
•  Violet /Blue Oil Bleach Kit (4) - If you can swing it purchase the Salon Size...... over-all it saves a ton of $$. if not purchase minimum 4 KITS. DEPENDS ON MANY FACTORS AS TO HOW MANY YOU NEED.
• DEPENDS ON: DARKNESS OF HAIR, THICKNESS OF HAIR, LENGTH OF HAIR, POROSITY OF HAIR, DENSENESS OF HAIR
• I  RECOMMEND 4 MINIMUM UNLESS YOU HAVE SUPER THIN, LIGHT ,SHORT HAIR. 
• THE MOST COMMON PROBLEM i HEAR AND SEE ARE 2 THINGS....(1) PEOPLE DO NOT APPLY ENOUGH APPLICATIONS, THEY STOP WHEN THEY STILL HAVE TO BATTLE WITH TONERS. THAT IS NOT THE POINT OF GOING BLOND AND USING TONERS. TONERS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE OPTIONAL NOT MANDATORY. THINK ABOUT THAT PLEASE. ...........AND (2) THEY APPLY THE LIGHTNER TO THE ROOTS(BASE) AT THE BEGINNING. YOU BEGIN BY LIGHTENING THE LENGTHS ---FIRST! ! ! ! ! ,,,,,,,,,,,,LAST , YOU LIGHTEN THE ROOTS, BECAUSE THE HEAT FROM YOUR SCALP WARMS THE BLEACH UP AND MAKES IT WORK TWICE AS FAST WHICH WE DON'T WANT, OR THE ROOTS AND LENGTHS WILL BE DIFFERENT COLORS ! !
• TONER- for the 1st time use either PERP or Violet Pilot, but again....... NOT...the...point! 

You must do all of the following reading there are 4 sections I want you to read all Posts, if you do it will give you the confidence you need to follow through on the Oil Bleaching of your hair as there is a DEMO in there I shot photos of which shows you exactly what to do....

One of the trickiest part s of applying the Oil Bleach kits is knowing that Bleach itself only really works for about 75 minutes, after that it works at a SNAILS PACE 

SO IT IS WORTH IT TO TAKE THE OIL BLEACH OFF THE HAIR AT 75 MINUTES.... RINSE VERY WELL...RINSE 5 MINUTES LONGER THAN YOU THINK.... APPLY INTENSIVE FOR 5 MINUTES.......RINSE AGAIN.

now towel dry............then either air dry or blow dry as the hair MUST BE DRY to apply the oil bleach application again. 
remember to bleach the lengths first...............

While you wait for your order to get there - please do all of this reading it will fly by - besides you WANT to learn how to do this correctly.

reading part 1
reading part 2
reading part 3
reading part 4 
reading part 5

OK there you go,
 now remember when you bring up those links there will be over a dozen posts on every link but you will only see about 6 on the first page, when you get to the bottom click on the arrow or turn page link and keep going until there are no more posts.

The better educated you are on this subject the more perfect your color will turn out. It is not really that hard, it is just a matter of having the proper education under your belt before beginning.........and all the information is here.....

An even better recommendation is to read the entire Blog start to finish it is a mini-cosmetology course and it will help you for the rest of your life.

Enjoy and get that reading under way.......

KC