On the Road with John Simpson: Color Stories

“I have a client that the grey still won’t cover. What do I do?â€
“I have a client who is a level 3 and wants to be a pale cool toned blonde. How do I get it there without damage?â€
“How do I clean up a canvas that has multiple banding without using bleach?â€
“My reds turn brassy … My brunettes are too dark … What about dimension?â€

Sound familiar? Read on.

js_9365a-copyRecently, I had the privilege to present a wicked program called Correct It Creatively at the Goldwell Academy in Baltimore with my BGF Deb Gavin. Together we told the full color story about how to take everyday questions and problems and conquer them easily and intelligently. In this two-day course, we uncovered and explored the tools that we use daily and learned their total potential. Most often, we need to ask the question: “How much of your work is a corrective situation?†More than likely, it is about 90% of your daily services.

Most clients have some sort of color in their hair, so how do we make the changes without the easy thought of a mini foil at the part line and around the face to camouflage the inaccuracy of matching tones? Also, if a client wants to flip into another shade or tone, how do you change it easily without always running for the bleach? By looking deeper into the color tools, you can take a canvas to a lighter shade with blonding tools or even the placement of a contrasting or reflective shade to give the illusion of lightness.

When approaching a canvas, don’t run into it blind, or with the same old ways. Step away and think about where you are now and what tools would best conquer the problem.

A situation you may encounter is thinking that your level 4 client that wants a level 7 range gets stuck in the “brassy†or “blorange†range. You try to neutralize without taking them too dark or making it opaque and you are so over using the “band aid†foil on the part to hide the “off†tone.

Advance your tools while incorporating a high lift and a target shade mixture together at the new hair with double the developer to achieve the lift! You may be thinking, “Great, then what about the ends that have color on them?â€Â  Well, with a blonding cream or low ammonia cream system, paint into the shaft this mixture with double the developer and process. Clean off some of the old paint and after, finish with a neutral level overlay. This ensures an even clarity of color and has amazing durability!

In Goldwell speak……Use a mixture on the new hair of 40 mls 40 vol 15 mls 11G 5 mls 7MB. Through the ends…30 mls 40 vol 15 mls Blonding Cream Ash. Process then a color wash of colorance lotion 40 mls 15 mls 9BN 5 mls 7MB

Sound interesting? Well, through the ever-changing Correct It Creatively program you can find endless possibilities. Just when you then thought you pushed your knowledge and tools to the end…there’s more! Correct it Creatively 2 takes you into a deeper journey of seeing and thinking of color and color placement differently. Let down the barrier walls, and explore a whole new world of color!

I want to give a special thanks to all of the amazing participants who packed our full house of the Goldwell Academy @ Baltimore. It is always a pleasure to take a trip around the world in one room with every unique story and every individual style. Thanks for letting us all learn from each other and opening your mind and creativity to new creative ideas! Hope to see you soon. Remember complacency is the evil to creativity!

Knowledge is key, so don’t get caught in the same old situations. I truly enjoy sharing the ideas that drive me and my tools every day! Drop by to johncsimpson.com and leave a comment or a question.

I am off to Hawaii next, so more adventures on the way! Lets see what Oahu and Kona have in store for me? Remember that life is not a dress rehearsal…live it, love it and create it! WWJSD?

John Simpson is a Goldwell platform artist and salon partner at Lewis’ Hair Salon in Pittsburgh. He won the 2008 NAHA Colorist of the Year award, and was a finalist in 2009.