As professional hairstylists, we know that the foundation for long-lasting hair colour starts well before you apply it and lasts long after the salon appointment. It’s a collaborative process between you and your client, beginning with the right prep work and ending with effective at-home care. Let’s dive into the best strategies, tools, and tips for ensuring your clients leave your chair with vibrant, healthy colour and the tips they need to keep it up at home.
How To Prepare Hair for Colour
Step 1: Start with a Thorough Consultation
Before any colour appointment, take the time for a detailed consultation. This is your opportunity to understand your client’s goals and gather crucial information about their hair history.
Why Hair History Matters
Your client’s hair history isn’t just about their last salon visit—it includes everything from chemical treatments to lifestyle changes. For example, keratin treatments can alter how highlights process, while changes in medication can impact how colour develops or adheres to the hair. Make it a point to ask about any updates since their last appointment. Building this habit ensures you’re prepared to adjust techniques and achieve the best possible results.
Step 2: Debunk the Dirty Hair Myth
Many clients come in thinking dirty hair is better for colour. While this might protect the scalp during certain treatments, it can interfere with achieving an even, vibrant tone.
Encourage your clients to cleanse their hair with Clarifying Shampoo before their appointment. This sulfate-free shampoo gently removes build-up and helps detox the hair without depleting moisture, ensuring hair is adequately prepped for colour application.
Step 3: Prime for Perfection
Once your client is in the chair, Aloxxi COLOURPRIME® Pre-Colour Treatment is the perfect add on to prime and protect. It gently cleanses the scalp and hair with 10 premier antioxidants designed to prime the hair and prolong colour. It does this by equalizing porosity for even colour applications. In addition to extending the longevity of your colour your clients will also appreciate how it enhances their scalp comfort during application.
How to Use:
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Spray evenly onto hair and scalp before applying colour.
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Do not rinse.
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Proceed with your colour application as planned.
Step 4: Lock It In Post-Colour
Colour services don’t end when the dye is rinsed out. To seal in your hard work, finish with Aloxxi COLOURLOCK® Post-Colour Finisher.
Why It’s Essential:
Formulated with natural botanical ingredients, this product has 10 antioxidants to lock in hair colour with durability and shine. From your colour to your cuticle, this formula protects the integrity of your strands while cleansing and conditioning the hair in one easy step.
How to Use:
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After rinsing the colour with tepid water, apply COLOURLOCK® evenly.
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Leave on for two minutes.
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Rinse thoroughly.
Step 5: Educate on At-Home Care
The work you do in the salon is only part of the equation. Educating your clients on maintaining their colour at home is key to prolonging their results.
This is exactly why we recommend sending them home with formulas that enhance hydration and repair.
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Aloxxi Hydrating Shampoo and Conditioner: Perfect for locking in moisture while protecting against UV damage.
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Aloxxi Reparative Shampoo and Conditioner: Ideal for clients with damaged or fragile hair, these formulas strengthen and renew strands.
Colour Maintenance
For clients looking to enhance or refresh their tones between appointments, suggest INSTABOOST Conditioning Colour Masques. These colour-enhancing masques deposit colour alongside CDP Complex™ to Condition, Deposit and Protect colour-treated hair in just 3-5 minutes, allowing clients to boost their colour at home effortlessly.