hair color terms from the salon explained!

deciding what service you want at a salon can be intimidating, maybe you know what you want but no idea what all of the choices on the menu mean or which one is right for you. i'll break down some of those terms so that you know what to ask for at the salon. some terms may vary from salon to salon, and some even make up fancy names, but this should give you the general idea.

permanent hair color - this is color that lasts the longest and is the hardest to get out incase you want a change later on. permanent hair color is mixed with a developer to open the cuticle of the hair and then deposits the color molecules. permanent color fades the least and in most cases covers gray very well.

demi-permanent hair color - demi-permamnet hair color is also usually referred to as a glaze, shine or gloss depending on the color line. demi colors are mixed with a low volume developer to gently open the cuticle so color and be deposited lightly. demi-permanent colors are less harsh and usually give more shine than permanent color, however you can't go lighter when getting a demi, only darker or the same color with a different tone. it fades a little bit every time you wash it and is good for someone who's nervous about change their color or who likes to change their color a lot.

semi-permanent hair color - semi-permanent does not use a developer, it only stains the top layer of the hair, therefore it washes out the fastest. most fashion colors are semi-permanent (not Aveda though, theirs can be demi or permanent) and can have the tendency to rub off and stain on clothing, sheets and even your shower. other semi-permanent colors are shampoo and conditioners with tint in them, spray on color or powder and dyes like manic panic.

lighten - lightening your hair is done by opening up the cuticle and removing some of th pigment, this is usually done with lightener or "bleach". lightening your hair can be very harsh on the hair and cause breakage, so always see a professional if you want to go lighter.

foil – a foil refers to a technique in which sheets of foil are used to separate small sections of hair. it is used to create dimension in the hair by lightening or darkening the foiled portions of the hair.

partial foil – partial foil means to foil only the hair on the top sections of the head. yhis is great for a more natural, “darker underneath” look, or in between appointments for full foils to refresh the most noticed areas. if you don’t have layers in your hair, a partial foil will make it look fully highlighted when you wear your hair down. if it is layered, you will see the color of the underneath section of hair poking out underneath.

full foil – full foil means to foil the hair on the entire head, including the underneath sections. if you want to see highlights underneath your hair when you wear your hair up, this is the way to go.

balayage - this is a way of freehand painting the hair to give a grown in natural looking highlight.

base color – this is your main hair color, which highlights or lowlights would be added to. it can be your natural color, or an all-over artificial color.

highlights – highlights simply refers to lighter pieces of hair within your base color. this is most often achieved by foiling the hair, but can be done with balyage too.

lowlights – lowlights are the opposite of highlights, darker pieces of hair in a base color. this gives the hair more depth.

block coloring/creative coloring – block coloring utilizes more than one color. larger sections of hair in different sizes are colored to achieve a variety of different looks. block coloring is kind of a blanket term for any coloring technique in which the stylist is creating a multi-color look other than highlighting or lowlighting.

retouch – to retouch means just to color just the growout or “roots” to match the existing color on the midshaft/ends of your hair.

single process – this refers to an all-over application of haircolor, which processes and then is done.

double process – this refers to a two-step coloring process, such as lightening and toning, or lightening to a certain point and coloring over it with haircolor. any time you want a color which is considerably lighter than your current one, it will be a double process.

toner – toner is a very light color which is used to “tone” pre-lightened(blonde) hair. for example, if you want platinum blonde hair, your hair must first be lightened to the lightest possible blonde, but it will still have a yellowish tint to it. a violet toner is applied to the hair to counteract the yellow, leaving you with a nice, cool, platinum tone.

xo.