Alternative Ombre

With the ombre being a massive trend for 2012/13 we wanted to experiment the 'alternative' looks we can achieve for each individual clients looks using the ombre effect..

With the Liverpool Tattoo Convention 2013 coming up this Bank Holiday Weekend we invited "2012 Best Newcomer" tattooist Beki Sanderson, who is the perfect model, to show how else to make the ombre look cool.

Firstly Beki's roots needed lifting from a Base 4 natural. We used Goldwell Dust Free Bleach Powder with 9% peroxide which is one of our favourite products when it comes to lifting the roots. When lifting this we were careful to not overlap the bleach and left with a cap on for 20 mins until the roots were the same colour as the ends and then applied the Goldwell Bleach throughout from root-to-ends and left for another 10 mins under the cap just to lift the head as light as possible.

Once we washed the hair we were left with a full head of white blonde hair (base 11). We dried the hair and then coloured 3/4 of the hair Silver.
To make the silver we mixed 1 tube of Goldwell 12BS with 1/2 tube of Goldwell PMix applying this from the root to 3/4 down the hair...

Now to create the Ombre effect we then needed to finish off the colour which usually in ombre means going from dark roots to lighter ends, however to show other and alternative looks, we have decided to go darker on the ends and lighter roots. To do this, we applied a simple Goldwell Base 3 colour to the ends of the hair and combed it into the Silver to show a gradual colour difference and not a defined line.

This process overall was a success and Beki had told us before we did the colour how she had tried to get her this colour before but couldn't get the silver to take in her hair using other brands. Taking this into consideration, we decided to use the Goldwell colour range to achieve this. The PMix colour was what we felt the best product to use to give the silver the depth we wanted and show the grey tones off in full. We are happy with results knowing that with only using a half ratio of the PMix tube we dare say that we could have made it ever darker by adding more PMix if required.

Now this is just a quick and easy way to show you all how to have fun with the fashion at the moment and make it suit your clients as we have with Beki and i think you will all agree that this looks fantastic and we and Beki are EXTREMELY happy with the results.

Product of the week; Osis Dust It

This weeks product to Start the page off has to be Schwarzkopf Osis Dust It. This is a Mattifying styling product in the form of 'Dust', that for both male and female clients can perform miracles.

I use Dust it to style most lads hair at the moment as the bigger the quiff the cooler the guy seems to be the trend. A small amount will hold any fringe for hours, the hardest part is deciding how big you dare wear it. As for the female cliental it is the perfect product to show that you DO NOT need short layers to get body and lift in your hair, there is no product that gives u an instant result like this one.

Applying the product to yourself is a little more difficult than to a client due to sectioning the hair and pouring the powder, but don't let that put you off! The product in my eyes is one of the best designed as the design and shape of the bottle does make it easier to hold  in comparison to similar products on the market.
I personally apply this product in 3 or 4 sections from back to front direct to the root with the smallest amounts adding more if needed.

If you have ever had that morning after feel to you hair when u wake up and think you hair looks better than when u styled it...then this is the product for you. Its so dry that its even good to put in your hair at the end of a working day before you go on your evening out; sprinkle, style and go.....Simple!

Retail - This is a product that sells its self which for an sale price of between £14 - £19 is quite impressive. You can purchase this from Salon Services for less than a tenner and they do have offers of 3 for 2 at times so that is always good to look out for.

Product Of The Week; Redken CAT Treatment

Product of the week has to be The Redken Extreme CAT treatment!

"Instantly replenish your hair's moisture levels with Redken Extreme CAT Protein Treatment. Redken's patented taurine technology and cationic proteins help reconstruct and fortify your damaged hair leaving you with soft, silky locks.

Redken's 3D Repair Complex builds long lasting strength and conditioning into your hair leaving it healthier and more manageable. The Extreme CAT Protein Treatment is specially formulated to provide a triple line of defence; proteins penetrate deep into the core of your hair helping build internal strength; ceramide enters the cuticle layers to reinforce the structure and help repair any damaged areas; and natural lipids, like those found naturally in your hair help to resurface your hair leaving the cuticles shiny, smooth and protected."  (www.lookfantastic.com)

I used this treatment on my Ombre client and then let them carry on using the product. I advised them to use the product twice a week and found that when looking at the same hair 3 weeks, the results speak for themselves.

Using this product is very simple! After shampooing your hair, simply apply the product to the hair and leave on for 3-5 minutes then rinse off.When i used this product it was on dry hair which was sticking together at the ends. It was generally over processed hair. Now looking at the hair 3 weeks later it has become stronger, it can be brushed through easily, drys in half the time as it did and doesn't have the 'chewing gum' like texture. The hair looks soft, shiny and overall, healthy hair.

This product can be bought from most salons who stock the Redken range; for example one salon which stocks this is called Supercuts. You can find this salon in most towns in the UK. Supercuts is where i bought the product from and i paid £16.95 and the product lasted roughly a month for my client. The product was used generously too! When u compare the Before and After of the hair,  CAT treatment is an absolute bargain for the price when you see how well it restored the hair back to healthy and shiny looking. This is why i called it 'Miracle in a bottle'!

 Now with all the positives of this product,  i do have one small criticism if you can call it that. Its the shape of the bottle. I believe people who have this product will also agree with me that this makes it very difficult to apply to yourself in the shower due to the pump spray and shape of bottle, it simply just slips out of your hand. Although this is a slight criticism, don't let the shape put you off as its the product within the bottle which works wonders.

Overall, I am very pleased with the results so far (3 weeks in). I would say however you would benefit from purchasing a good conditioner to go with this product as it just makes your hair feel that bit nicer when u come to dry and style it.

 I would recommend this product to anyone who's hair is looking for some "TLC" due to heat/colour damage or split ends. 

Summer 13

This summer colours are what i like to call the 'washed out' look, these are your pinks, blues, turquoise basically all your pastel colours.
For this look i have taken inspiration from hair that i have seen in 'Pro Hair And Beauty Magazine' that i think is the perfect example for what Summer 13 colours are all about...

To get this look there are lots of ways to achieve it but most are over complicated and un-realistic for most salons who don't have a full colour range in stock. Mixing 2/3 tubes to get the required colour is all an expense and that can put the clients off. I have come up with a way to achieve this look using as minimal products as possible making it more affordable also. Below is a before picture of the client who's hair i have created the look on.

So to get this colour i started by applying Goldwell Oxycur Platin bleach with 9% peroxide to the root and left it for approximately 15/20 mins checking the scalp throughout. For anyone who has not used this bleach please don't let the price put you off as the extra pennies go along way in helping you achieve the highest lifts for this look without causing as much damage....and its smells nice.
   After 15 mins i checked to see that the roots had lifted and applied the rest of the bleach throughout the rest of the hair and left that for 5/10 mins.
Now we have our hair as light as we can with bleach, we have a solid platform to build on to get the best results for our pastel colours.
   Once I dried the hair, i then applied L'oreal Luo P01 colour to the roots using the Luo Colour Developer. To help from getting the solid line of colour difference after applying the root colour (P01) i lightly combed it through before applying the next colour to the ends. I then added the Crazy Colour by Renbow in the colour MarshMellow to the ends but there are 3 other colours to choose from, all with great results. (I will add a picture of all products used at the end of the post)
   Even though i have chosen a blonde client to do this colour on, don't be put off using this on clients with anything from a base 6 downwards as the Crazy Colour range are all strong colours so it will still show.
   Once the colour is rinsed of you can then style it however you want. My client had short hair therefore i decided to dry it with volume so it didn't look flat. I then used Osis Dust It to add even more volume at the roots to finish off the look. Below are two separate finished looks created.

Products used...

The Ombré Look

The ombré hair trend needs no introduction as it is a much loved style this spring. The name "Ombré" has developed from a french term and is simply darker, natural roots which gradually blend into a dyed lighter colour on the ends. The hair trend has been seen on many A-list celebs including Rihanna, Lauren Conrad, Miley Cyrus and many more. (see images below)

As this is a highly requested style at the moment, we at OneFreeChop thought it would be beneficial to share with you how we created the look including steps on how yourself can achieve this at home.

Today i have made decided to do this from BLACK hair to show you that it is possible to achieve this from the darkest base......

 Firstly this is a lengthy procedure that takes its toll on your hair so make sure that if you are starting with base 1 hair, the hair is strong enough to cope with the lifting.
Right here we go... I first took the hair into 4 simple sections as the first application is best to get this on as quick as possible. Using L'oreal Efassor Colour Remover, i applied this roughly 2 inches from the roots all the way to the ends using 9% peroxide due to how much we need to lift the hair. Once this is on i left this for 20 mins but keep checking your clients hair to make sure there is no breakage every 5 mins and if not watch the hair become ginger....

 After the first lift we got achieved a base 6 but as you can see this is VERY red so to lift the red out of the hair i used normal blue powder bleach and applied this to the same area as the first time for another 15/20 mins.
After using bleach when i rinsed the hair i sprayed in Redken CAT treatment. It states that it restores the protein in your hair, which after all the stress our hair has had it needs all the strength it can get. This product i have to say is a miracle in a bottle for anyone who is having trouble with the hair snapping and breaking at the ends.
Then i had to lift the hair AGAIN for the final time using the colour stripper Efassor but this time i covered all of the hair... this gave a base 6 colour and the ends a base 8 but a slightly coppery tone.

In the final stages, I chose to use L'oreal Majirel 5.12,  half a tube mixed with Majirel base 4 half a tube and applied this to the roots approx 2 inches at the back of the head but pulling the colour 4 inches through the front of the head.
With the outcome of the colour i then had to highlight the ends of the hair for this i used L'oreal Majirel 8.1 as the ash helps to tame the copper we have from using the colour stripper.
Leave the colour on for 40 mins and then rinse. Now its important to use products at this stage as the hair will feel like a little dull and limp due to all the products used on it. The Redken CAT treatment 2 times a week and Moroccan Oil will work a treat to make the clients hair feel soft and look like its not even had any bleach on it. Below this is the result of the Ombre hair from black in half a day.