FAQ: Hair Vs. Features

Question:
I have a question about coloring my hair. I wanted to go black but I started thinking it was too dark for some of my features. I wanted to do an ashy red but it wouldn't work with my eyes. I'm stuck, I'm Czechoslovakian and Greek. My eyes have a flap and are very dark brown, I have high cheekbones and almost an olive complexion. I don't know what to do with my features. Please help.

Answer:
For some people, a black color may be too dark, unless the person is fairly young, has a milky skin, has great features, and dresses in such a way that the black hair color is a fashion statement. I have never heard about "ashy red" color. There are all different reds, but the ash color usually has green base. The red color has red base, with different shades - orange-y, purple, red, and so on....

The olive skin color looks great with reds, browns, blonds. Your eyes would look great with red, brown and blond shades of hair color as well. If you are very stylish, you probably could get away with soft black.

I would recommend going to a wig store and try wigs of different colors on. Now, usually "fake" wigs will not really be exact, but you can see which color looks interesting next to your complexion and then you can have a colorist help you chose closest color to the wig that looked great on you and apply the color. Remember, many dark and red artificial colors (= "hair color from the bottle") are hard to remove from the hair, so choose carefully just in case if you do not like your hair color and  look.

Regarding your features - those you were born with and I cannot do anything with that. I bet your features are great, and if you choose a hair color (and hair cut) that will go with your skin color, they will go with your features, also :-)

Good luck.

Note:

This post should be taken as a first step for a discussion with your hairdresser and/or colorist about your ideas, desires or problems with your hair. Under no circumstances, you should act upon this post ONLY. I strongly advice you to have your hair done by a skilled and reputable hairdresser/colorist in your area.

FAQ - Question About Highlights

Question:
I usually have my hair tinted 2 to 3 shades lighter than my natural color then highlighted for a more natural blonde shade. I went to a new colorist who put the tint on my roots and then highlighted right over the tint. I had never had this done before. Usually they wash the tint, dry my hair, then highlight with foils. My hair looks fine but I am concerned about the condition of my hair. What do you think?

Answer:
I think that your colorist "cut the corners" (as they say in America). He/She wanted to save the time, and did two procedures at the same time. He/She probably didn't really highlighted the root area, just the area that was not re-touched with color. For the best color outcome it should have been colored first, washed/rinsed and then highlighted. However the condition of your hair is most likely just fine. The only problem I would see with this technique is that he/she didn't get as close to your scalp with highlights as he/she should for longer lasting highlights.

Credit: I found the above image on http://www.pinterest.com/pin/215469163393619142/


Note:

This post should be taken as a first step for a discussion with your hairdresser and/or colorist about your ideas, desires or problems with your hair. Under no circumstances, you should act upon this post ONLY. I strongly advice you to have your hair done by a skilled and reputable hairdresser/colorist in your area.

FAQ - Clairol Color And Developer

Question:
I have a new question which requires your expertise. I use Clairol Nice And Easy in blue black which I love. The problem is, the box does not specify what volume the developer is and when I called they would not tell me. Can I use the boxed drugstore hair color with my own 20 volume developer? (It\'s clairol professional). Thank You so much!!!:)

Answer:
The drugstore's product (Nice and Easy) should come with its own developer. If this product is a permanent color then you should use 20 volume developer. You should always mix color and developer from the same company. So if you have at home Clairol's 20 volume developer, I would think that you are very safe mixing these colors together.
Do not mix for example Clairol's color and Wella's developer. I've done that once (I run out of Wella developer and used Clairol's and the color was just very runny, and was dripping down the client's forehead entire time. I had practically an assistant stand next to a client to wipe her all the time. Her color processed same, but it was a horrible messy experience. From this "unfortunate event" I learned, that companies like to sell as many of their products as possible, so they "tweek" their colors and developers in such way that they are compatible with their own kind only.

Credit: The above image is the property of www.ulta.com


Note:

This post should be taken as a first step for a discussion with your hairdresser and/or colorist about your ideas, desires or problems with your hair. Under no circumstances, you should act upon this post ONLY. I strongly advice you to have your hair done by a skilled and reputable hairdresser/colorist in your area.

FAQ: Pre-softening Gray Hair

Question:
I was wondering, when presoftening the hair before dying the resistant grey roots, should I use shampoo when rinsing out the 20 vol peroxide used to pre soften? Thank you.

Answer:
I never shampooed the hair. Just rinsed it, dried it (cool setting) and then applied the color.


Note: Click HERE for the "coloring resistant gray hair" post pertaining this question.

FAQ: Excessive Dandruff On My Cornrows

Question:
Can you help me to prevent dry scalp for my African american hair? Whenever I get my hair cornrowed I take it out in about two weeks. I notice that my scalp is really dry. What should I improve on my diet to make sure this doesn't happen any more? Also how often should I grease my scalp whilst it's in cornrows?

Answer:
I think it doesn't matter what kind of hair you have. It's all about shedding skin. In other words, your skin starts shedding, and if you do not wash your hair everyday or every other day, then after a couple of weeks you can see a build up of your dead skin in the form of dandruff. That means you need to give your skin a good scrub to get rid of all that "dead skin build up".  I think that you do not need to change your diet, because most likely there is nothing wrong with your health or scalp. Greasing your scalp will not help to get rid of your natural skin shedding either. It will only camouflage it.
Perhaps, you could give yourself 3-4 shampoos after you take your cornrows out, and then condition your hair. Scrubbing your scalp with cornrows in, will get your hair frizzy. So, if I would be you - I would give myself a good scrub in-between my cornrow sessions. And I would make sure my cornrows are not too tight. Otherwise the hairline could shift too much back.

Note: the image above is from this website