Mistakes happen, it’s how you fix them that count. Whether your client has had a mishap at the salon or tried coloring their hair at home, chances are a color correction is in their future. Color corrections aren’t always from stylist error and can also just be a part of the hair coloring process. A client may wish to change their tone or level drastically, love it in the salon and hate it as soon as they get home. It might not be what they expected; it may clash their everyday lifestyle or even their wardrobe! From updating hues for highlights to a full-on color placement overhauls, color corrections are a part of every colorists daily life. To learn our top 5 tips for color corrections and how to win a chance for an all-expense-paid trip for a class at the Redken Exchange in NYC keep reading!
Placement
If a color service has gone epically wrong, it is often because of color placement. Foils may have bled or there may have been a miscommunication between what the client wanted and how the stylist achieved it. There is a big difference between babylights and balayage – a common problem that should be thoroughly communicated during a consultation. When a color correction is needed due to placement, a stylist will go through the hair – often with foils – to weave out sections individually to redo placement and repaint the hair.
Tone
Tone is often the most common service of color correction. Luckily with Redken Shades EQ, it can easily be remedied. Color corrections with tone happen more often than not and usually have to do with hair turning brassy or a client not receiving the final shade they are looking for. Whenever hair is lifted during a highlighting service it has the chance to turn brassy. After pre-lightening, unwanted tones are then fixed using Shades EQ of complementary colors. After time, this tone can often fade naturally from the hair. This can be fixed by using a color correcting shampoo and by keeping up with regular maintenance in the salon. Be sure to communicate with your client the importance of getting a gloss on the regular or how a simple Shades EQ toner can completely correct a shade gone wrong.
Products
From the color you use to following up with the proper hair care, the success of corrective color services also come down to the products you use. During a color correction, further damage can actually be caused by using the wrong products. Redken recommends using the following to ensure flawless results every time.
- Flash Lift Bonder Inside – This lightener provides a helping hand during lifting services. With built-in bonder technology to lift and protect in one step formulations is a breeze.
- Shades EQ – This cult-favorite demi-permanent hair color has an acidic formula to correct unwanted tone and add depth without lifting and causing further damage.
- Color Gels Lacquers – Similar to the simple application of Shades EQ but with a permanent result. This liquid permanent color provides maximum saturation and unbelievable shine to each strand with the same characteristics of the classic Shades EQ.
- Extreme CAT Protein Reconstructing Treatment – For use in salon and at home, this treatment restores protein in fragile hair to create the perfect canvas for color and a solid home care regimen for your client.
Time & Price
Some color corrections are more complex than others and can take a great deal of time to complete. If you are dealing with an in-depth fix, you’ll want to make sure you schedule enough time to dedicate to this service – never try and fit these between appointments. During the consultation and prior to starting you should discuss the price with your client excessively so that they understand the process. You might want to consider pricing color correction services as a package or hourly for differing situations.
Communication
From beginning to end, consultation to finished result clear communication with your client is key! We cannot stress this enough. All too often clients end up with the wrong shade due to an error in the communication process. When it comes to color corrections you want to rely on the consultation even more heavily. It is important to discuss the history of their hair, what their expectations are, and have a solid understanding of the desired end result. You must communicate with them that it may take more than one session to fix and also discuss with them the steps they will need to take at home.
If you enjoy performing color corrections, you will want to take the service one step further and begin marketing yourself on social media. Taking before and after photos, showing the steps and branding yourself as a color correction expert will help build your clientele. Instead of tearing apart someone else’s’ work, aim to be informative to your audience and give realistic advice to clients who are seeking this service.
Next Steps & Education
As with any service, education is the key to success and as a stylist, you should never stop learning. For more education be sure to visit http://bit.ly/2WFhSSE to learn more about the upcoming Sweepstakes!
To learn more about Brand Ambassador and Color Correction Expert Cassandra McGlaughlin favorite tips and tricks for color corrections be sure to check out her Color Correction Class this fall at the Redken Exchange!!
Her class will cover salon-reality color correction situations such as High Contrast Canvases - cased where extreme regrowth and lightened hair has resulted in banding and unwanted warmth and Botched Highlights such as inconsistent lightener application, foil bleeding, splotchy and poorly blended highlight placement.
