August 13, 2025 • 23 mins
The age-old struggle between brassy and ashy hair tones affects everyone who's ever colored their hair. From that moment of panic when you catch your reflection and see orange instead of blonde, to the disappointment of flat, dull color when you wanted rich dimension—these color challenges can leave anyone reaching for a hat.
Brass isn't just an accident; it's actually warm tones like red, orange, and yellow that naturally exist in your hair and become visible during lightening. Those "hot roots" that glow a bit too warm? That's brass in action. But here's the revelation many don't understand: brass isn't inherently bad. Those golden, buttery, caramel tones are simply warmth by another name, and they can be absolutely stunning on the right complexion. The problem only arises when you're aiming for something cooler.
On the opposite side lives ash—those cool blue or violet tones that neutralize warmth. When used strategically, ash creates those sophisticated, muted, or even icy platinum looks that can be breathtaking. But pure ash can sometimes leave hair looking flat with that grayish cast nobody wants. The magic happens when you balance ash with warmth, creating multidimensional color that looks rich and natural.
The key to perfect hair color is understanding your skin tone, communicating clearly with your stylist using reference photos, and recognizing that dramatic color changes take time. Trying to go from brunette to blonde in one session almost always leads to that dreaded pumpkin outcome. Remember that proper home care—heat protection, color-safe products, and occasional toning treatments—will extend your color's life dramatically.
Whether you're drawn to warm golden hues or cool platinum tones, it's all about finding that sweet spot where the color enhances your natural features. So next time you're heading to the salon, think beyond just "brassy" or "ashy" and consider what combination of tones will create your perfect, personalized hair color. Have you experienced your own color disaster? Share your story and join our conversation about embracing the right tones for you!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Have you ever walked out of the salon expecting that
perfect creamy blonde, only tocatch a reflection and see
something closer to a trafficcone orange?
Or maybe you asked for richchocolate brown and ended up
with a flat grayish tone thatmade you want to throw on a hat?
Yeah, brass and ash are totalopposites in hair color, but
(00:24):
here's the twist Neither one isautomatically bad.
In fact, they can both bebeautiful when used on purpose
and a total headache whenthey're not.
So today, I'm going to breakdown what brassy and ashy really
mean, how to know which oneworks for you and exactly what
(00:45):
to do if your color crosses overinto that uh-oh zone.
Welcome to All About Hair,where we talk shop, share
stories and spill the secretsbehind great hair and a great
career.
I'm your host, denise Kylitz, aformer salon owner, educator
and a lifelong hair crusader.
(01:06):
Whether you're a new stylistbuilding your book or just
someone who loves learning aboutall things hair, you're in the
right place.
Okay, let's start with brassyor brass In hair color.
Brass refers to warm tones likered, orange or yellow that are
(01:31):
especially visible when youlighten your hair.
You've probably heard the termhot roots.
That's when your roots lift butdon't get light enough, then
that leaves them with a glowingand a little bit too warm.
It's the same story a lot of uslived as teenagers.
Do you remember this Bleachingyour hair in the bathroom,
(01:52):
dreaming of platinum because,you know, on the Miss Clairol
commercial that's what it showed, but you ended up with bright
orange hair instead?
Or if you sprayed sun in inyour hair when you were a kid,
you know, thinking you're goingto get these beautiful
highlights in your hair and itjust turned orange.
And side note sun in ishorrible for your hair.
(02:14):
The truth is, lifting pastthose super warm layers means
you need to push past yournatural undertones and that's
not always possible in oneappointment.
So brass can sneak up on youover time.
And I've talked about thisbefore sun exposure, heat
styling and harsh shampoos.
(02:36):
It causes oxidation and whatthat is.
It's when the cuticle opens andthen those color molecules
escape out of your hair shaftand then you're left with those
underlying warm pigments.
And I think I did a wholeYouTube episode on that.
I will leave the link in theshow notes, so don't worry.
And it really does break downthe oxidation process and why it
(03:00):
happens and how you canalleviate that.
It actually means using goodproducts on your hair that lay
the cuticle down, in case youwere wondering.
But now let's talk about isbrassy bad?
Not necessarily, if you lovegolden, buttery, caramel tones.
Brass is just warmth by anothername, because all of those have
(03:24):
warmth in them, right?
It only becomes a problem ifyou're aiming for a cooler look
or an ashier look.
Okay, how do you fix it if yourcolor went too brassy?
Well, if you're at home, youcan use products with purple or
(03:46):
blue pigments like a shampoo.
Purple balances out yellowtones, and it's really used for
more of the blondes, and bluepigmented shampoos actually
counterbalance orange tones,which is more of the brunette
family, balance orange tones,which is more of the brunette
(04:07):
family.
If you're in the salon, you canjust apply a fresh application
of color to redeposit morepigment.
A colorist should know that,but if you don't, when we
release the color theory 101classes, I'll talk all about
that.
So that's our next YouTubeseries is all about color.
So how do you prevent brassinessin the first place?
(04:29):
Well, don't go too light, toofast.
Keep up with your regulartouch-ups and always use always
use color safe products toprotect your vibrancy and always
let your colorist know whatyour preferences are.
Okay, they might see somethingin their eyes and you might have
(04:52):
some some other idea of whatyou want in your hair.
Discuss this with them.
If you want caramel highlightsor if you want really warm color
and your skin tone can'tsupport that, that needs to be a
conversation with yourhairstylist.
They can look at you in anon-biased way because you know
(05:14):
we get used to seeing ourselvesin the mirror every day and
sometimes we forget oh yeah,I've got cool skin tone or warm
eyes and we see a picture onPinterest of hair that we just
really like and we want it, butwe don't realize that that
probably won't look the best onus.
So, discussing this with yourhairstylist, they could tweak
(05:35):
the formula just a little bit soit will look good on you.
Okay, now let's talk about ashy.
Ashy is kind of a yucky word, Ithink, but ash is just the total
opposite of brass.
It is like cool tones like blueor violet, and this is added to
the hair to cancel out anywarmth.
(05:58):
So just the opposite.
And if you think about it, it'sthat subtle grayish cast that
makes color looks more muted andmatte.
On its own, ash can actually bereally unflattering, but when
you balance that with warm toneslike beige or copper, it
creates a gorgeous, naturallooking blend.
(06:20):
I absolutely love to take an ashtone and a beige tone.
Put those together and you getthe most beautiful shade on your
hair.
I do it to my hair all the time, but I also do it when I'm
toning blondes.
I'll take an ash in a level 10and maybe a beige in a level
nine or an eight, and it oh it'sso beautiful.
(06:42):
On platinum hair, ash canactually make it look silver or
even icy, which is stunning ifthat's what you're going for.
You've seen pictures of theplatinum blondes that almost
look purpley gray.
That is ash.
So how do you fix unwanted ash?
This is actually way easierthan fixing brass.
(07:05):
Let me just tell you.
You just add a little bit ofwarmth back in with your golden
or your copper tones, or youcould even do a temporary toner
or rinse, and it will warm upthe hair tone.
It is a lot easier to addwarmth than to take warmth out
of the hair.
So how do you prevent it?
Well, steer clear of cool toneformulas and stick to neutral or
(07:30):
golden shades and refresh yourcolor when it starts to look
dull.
The color line that I useactually has an ash tone base
color.
It's like a blue green basecolor that actually makes it
more neutral.
So when you are lifting youdon't get as much underlying
warmth.
(07:50):
It's kind of nice, because mostcolors don't have that in there
.
There's only one or two, maybethree, that I can think of that
have a ashier tone in theirneutral colors.
If you have questions aboutthat, just reach out.
So here's the bottom line.
Neither brass nor ash is bad initself.
(08:10):
They're tools in the colorist'stoolkit.
When you understand how theywork and what you want your end
result to be, you can make themwork for you instead of against
you.
So whether you're team warm orteam cool, it's all about
balance maintenance andcommunicating your vision with
(08:31):
your stylist.
Takes lots and lots of picturesto your stylist when you are
communicating a new color.
You can just put them on yourphone or you can start a
Pinterest page, but you wantyour stylist to see what it is
that you want your hair to looklike.
Take all kinds of pictures.
(08:51):
If it's a base color, so maybeyou're going brown and you want
some highlights in your hair puta picture of the base color
you're kind of looking for,cover up the highlights, or, if
there's highlights in the hair,cover up the face, because
sometimes we just like the face,wouldn't you agree?
We want the face of the modeland the hair of the model, but I
(09:12):
think if you just have goodcommunication with your stylist,
you'll be all right.
I'd love to hear your own brassyor ashy hair stories the good,
the bad and the ones that madeyou grab a hat on the way out
the door.
So come find me on Instagramand share your pictures.
All right, so let's jump intosome listener questions.
(09:32):
I love these because they'rethe things everyone's wondering
but doesn't always ask out loud,and if you're like me, that
happens a lot.
Have you ever been sittingsomewhere and you have a
question but you're afraid toraise your hand?
That's why I do these, and I'veheard from a few of you that
you really do like this questionand answer segment at the end
of the podcast.
So thank you, thanks forreaching out and let me know
(09:53):
that.
So, question one have you everhad a brassy hair disaster?
What happened and how did youfix it?
Oh, yes, I think every coloristhas a story.
Early in my career I lightened aclient from a deep brunette to
a blonde in trying to do it inone session.
Yeah, that's hard to do, and Ididn't lift her far enough past
(10:16):
that red orange stage and sheleft kind of looking like she
had, I don't know, pumpkin hair.
Yeah, because at the time Ididn't know how to correct it
and I didn't I guess I didn'thave enough color theory in my
back pocket because, you know,fresh out of school early in my
career, I didn't know how to fixit.
So what is the fix?
(10:37):
I should have used a blue basedtoner to cancel out the orange
Easy, easy fix Plus a deepconditioning treatment because I
lifted her too much.
Okay, and just the lesson thatI took away from this is just
don't rush it.
What is that saying Underpromise over deliver?
I should have told her hey, I'lltry to do that today, but it
(10:58):
might take more than one session.
Especially from a deep brunetteto a blonde, that's really a
lot.
When you're taking somebodyfrom that dark to that light.
Sometimes the hair just can'ttake it.
Most of the time the hair can'ttake it.
Most of the time the hair can'ttake it.
Always under promise, say Imight not be able to do that.
But if you do get her there,hey, great, wonderful.
(11:20):
But if you don't get her there,she's not going to be
disappointed.
You can just say, hey, we mightbe doing this in one or two
appointments, two or threeappointments, and you know,
maybe bring her up a couple oflevels, tone her so she can live
with it.
Bring her back in in aboutthree weeks, maybe do something
again and send her home with theright product so her hair has
(11:41):
plenty of protein and moistureand the lipids in there.
Just remember healthy,beautiful, blonde.
It does take time.
Don't try to do it in onesession.
You'll end up with orange hair.
I hate that.
All right, here's anotherquestion.
Do you prefer warmer goldentones or cooler ashier tones?
(12:02):
Hmm, that's a good question.
You know, because there aretimes in my life that I love the
cooler, ashier shades.
But you know I'm really allabout balance.
Warm tones give shine andvibrancy, while cool tones bring
that elegance and they controlthe warmth.
So on me personally, I love awarm beige with just a little
(12:23):
bit of ash to it.
It's shiny, but not too goldenOn my hair, cause I'm a natural
level five, six.
I have a lot of orangeundertones in my hair.
So if I don't put in some kindof ash in there, it will go
orange really quickly.
And I'm not really trying to bea redhead If I was, it'd be
(12:43):
really easy to do, but I'm not.
So I have to put in ash.
But I don't want it all ashy,because if you look at my eyes,
I have a lot of warmth in myeyes, even though my skin is on
the cooler side.
So you really have to look atthe eyes.
If you have like flecks oforange or flecks of yellow in
there, you could probably use alittle bit of warmth in your
(13:06):
formulation.
Just a little hint, all right.
Here's another question.
If you could change one thingabout your last hair color, what
would it be?
Ooh, okay, I'd make the tonelast longer by cutting back on
high heat styling.
Even the best color oxidizesfaster if you're constantly
using hot tools withoutprotection.
(13:27):
I say this all the time Always,always, always use heat
protection on your hair, even ifyou don't color your hair.
I had a client a couple of weeksago who she just doesn't like
to use product.
I don't understand that myself.
I think it's really.
What happens is she hasn'tfound the right product for her
(13:49):
hair type and no one's educatedher on why she should be using
something on her hair, even ifit's not for control which it is
, because Lord knows this summerhas been high humidity where we
are but even if it's just tocontrol the frizz in her hair,
but it's also to control, so hercolor doesn't oxidize and so
(14:13):
she doesn't lose the color.
So every time she comes to gether hair color, she wants me to
pull that color through her ends.
And I had to explain to herlook, look, this is not doing
your hair any favor.
Actually, what's happening ifyou, every single color
appointment, if you pull thatcolor through the ends of her
hair, because her last coloristused to do this, so she thought
(14:36):
that's what you do.
If you pull that color throughthe ends of your hair every
single time, what are you doing?
You're just making the cuticlecome open every single time and
it's going to get weaker andweaker, and so after a while
you're just going to lose thatability for the cuticle to even
lay back down and you're goingto lose your color molecules
(14:57):
faster and faster each time.
So what I proposed to her washey, let's just do your touch-up
and then let's send you homewith a color shampoo or a color
treatment.
Um, because Euphora has a colortreatment that actually is not a
shampoo, not a conditioner, butit actually helps to lay down
(15:17):
that cuticle.
It puts in some color moleculesback into your hair.
You do not need to apply colorevery single time you go to get
your roots done.
So there might be some peoplethat don't agree with that, but
that is my experience.
That's not always the best,maybe every fourth, fifth time
that you're getting your colordone, but not every single time.
(15:39):
It's just too much on your hair.
Okay, here comes anotherquestion what's your go-to
product for keeping color freshbetween visits?
Ooh, well, my go-to productwould be the Sculpture and
Illuminate by Euphora.
Yes, the links in my show notes.
These are my two favorite,favorite favorite products
because it actually helps tokeep your color in 30% longer
(16:02):
and it's wonderful forprotection for your cuticle, for
your hair.
It makes your hair shiny.
It's enough styling productthat you don't need anything
else on your hair.
If you don't want to putanything else on your hair, you
can blow dry it.
You love it.
Okay, but if you're not usingthat, I would probably suggest a
purple shampoo for the blondesmaybe once or twice a week, and
(16:22):
for brunettes a blue shampooonce or twice a week, maybe
every third shampoo.
If you don't shampoo everysingle day and always, always,
always, use a color safe,sulfate free shampoo, then you
put that leave in UV protectionand your color will last,
Guarantee it.
Okay, all right.
(16:42):
Here's another question have youever gone too light too fast
and how did the color react?
Yes, and it led to uneven liftand way too much warmth showing
through, and it took multiplesessions to even it out.
That's why I tell my clientslightning is a journey, not a
(17:02):
race.
We protect your hair first andthe color comes with it.
Do not try to lighten the hairtoo fast, especially, especially
if your clients have coloredtheir hair darker in the past,
because you don't know what'sunder there.
So I would go slow and low,meaning low with peroxide, when
(17:24):
you're using lightener.
All right, somebody asked haveyou ever tried silver or icy ash
tones, love it or regret it?
Well, I've done it for clientsand it could be absolutely
stunning on the right skin tone,but it's really high
maintenance and it can wash somepeople out.
When it works, it works, butwhen it doesn't, you can look
(17:48):
dead.
What do I mean by this?
Well, here's what happens is,you know, as we age, as we get
older I'm in my 50s, so you know, as people get older, their
skin actually changes colors too.
So it used to be that maybe youhad a lot of warmth in your
skin, but as you get older, youlose a little bit of that
(18:09):
vibrancy in your skin, so youalmost have to make up for it in
your skin.
But as you get older, you losea little bit of that vibrancy in
your skin, so you almost haveto make up for it in your hair.
Think beige.
It doesn't have to be gold, butthink of beigey.
You got to put a little bit ofwarmth in your hair to make your
skin look alive.
What happens is people aresaying, hey, I want to grow out
my gray, and so they're thinkingthis gray hair.
(18:29):
Well, gray hair is actuallyvery ashy, and so if you have
ashy hair with ashy skin, it canwash you out.
And I've seen that happen on afew people and they're like yeah
, but I don't want the highmaintenance of color all the
time.
That's fine, you can go in andask for a gloss, but just have
(18:50):
your stylist just put a hint ofa beige color in the gloss, just
a little bit.
So say, I don't know, threequarters of the formula is just
clear gloss, and then a quarterof the formula, or even less, is
like a level eight beige.
What that's going to do, it'sgoing to be very translucent.
(19:10):
It almost works like atranslucent fingernail polish.
You can still see thefingernails underneath, meaning
you could still see the hairunderneath.
It just changes a little bit ofthe tone of the hair and it
gives you enough warmth in yourhair that you don't feel washed
out.
Okay, so love it or regret it,neither.
(19:32):
You just have to know whatworks, I guess, all right.
So what's the secret to makingcolor last without going brassy
or flat?
We talk about this a lot, butit is a mix of good formulation
from the start, and then youhave to tone regularly, protect
it from heat and sun and don'tstretch your touch-ups too far
(19:53):
apart.
The longer you wait, the moreyour undertones start peeking
through.
So hey, great questions.
And if you have your own brassor ash story, send me a DM or
leave it on the comments onInstagram.
I might share it in a futureepisode and remember when you
know better, you do better.
(20:13):
Thanks for tuning in to AllAbout Hair.
If you loved this episode, hit,subscribe, leave us a review
and share it with a fellowstylist or hair-loving friend.
You want more tips, tools andbehind-the-scenes goodness?
Follow me on YouTube or head tomy website at denisekeilitzcom.
Yes, I know it's hard to spell,so don't worry, the link is in
(20:35):
the show notes.
Until next time, keep learning,keep creating and keep loving
what you do.
Have you ever walked out of the salon expecting that
perfect creamy blonde, only tocatch a reflection and see
something closer to a trafficcone orange?
Or maybe you asked for richchocolate brown and ended up
with a flat grayish tone thatmade you want to throw on a hat?
Yeah, brass and ash are totalopposites in hair color, but
(00:24):
here's the twist Neither one isautomatically bad.
In fact, they can both bebeautiful when used on purpose
and a total headache whenthey're not.
So today, I'm going to breakdown what brassy and ashy really
mean, how to know which oneworks for you and exactly what
(00:45):
to do if your color crosses overinto that uh-oh zone.
Welcome to All About Hair,where we talk shop, share
stories and spill the secretsbehind great hair and a great
career.
I'm your host, denise Kylitz, aformer salon owner, educator
and a lifelong hair crusader.
(01:06):
Whether you're a new stylistbuilding your book or just
someone who loves learning aboutall things hair, you're in the
right place.
Okay, let's start with brassyor brass In hair color.
Brass refers to warm tones likered, orange or yellow that are
(01:31):
especially visible when youlighten your hair.
You've probably heard the termhot roots.
That's when your roots lift butdon't get light enough, then
that leaves them with a glowingand a little bit too warm.
It's the same story a lot of uslived as teenagers.
Do you remember this Bleachingyour hair in the bathroom,
(01:52):
dreaming of platinum because,you know, on the Miss Clairol
commercial that's what it showed, but you ended up with bright
orange hair instead?
Or if you sprayed sun in inyour hair when you were a kid,
you know, thinking you're goingto get these beautiful
highlights in your hair and itjust turned orange.
And side note sun in ishorrible for your hair.
(02:14):
The truth is, lifting pastthose super warm layers means
you need to push past yournatural undertones and that's
not always possible in oneappointment.
So brass can sneak up on youover time.
And I've talked about thisbefore sun exposure, heat
styling and harsh shampoos.
(02:36):
It causes oxidation and whatthat is.
It's when the cuticle opens andthen those color molecules
escape out of your hair shaftand then you're left with those
underlying warm pigments.
And I think I did a wholeYouTube episode on that.
I will leave the link in theshow notes, so don't worry.
And it really does break downthe oxidation process and why it
(03:00):
happens and how you canalleviate that.
It actually means using goodproducts on your hair that lay
the cuticle down, in case youwere wondering.
But now let's talk about isbrassy bad?
Not necessarily, if you lovegolden, buttery, caramel tones.
Brass is just warmth by anothername, because all of those have
(03:24):
warmth in them, right?
It only becomes a problem ifyou're aiming for a cooler look
or an ashier look.
Okay, how do you fix it if yourcolor went too brassy?
Well, if you're at home, youcan use products with purple or
(03:46):
blue pigments like a shampoo.
Purple balances out yellowtones, and it's really used for
more of the blondes, and bluepigmented shampoos actually
counterbalance orange tones,which is more of the brunette
family, balance orange tones,which is more of the brunette
(04:07):
family.
If you're in the salon, you canjust apply a fresh application
of color to redeposit morepigment.
A colorist should know that,but if you don't, when we
release the color theory 101classes, I'll talk all about
that.
So that's our next YouTubeseries is all about color.
So how do you prevent brassinessin the first place?
(04:29):
Well, don't go too light, toofast.
Keep up with your regulartouch-ups and always use always
use color safe products toprotect your vibrancy and always
let your colorist know whatyour preferences are.
Okay, they might see somethingin their eyes and you might have
(04:52):
some some other idea of whatyou want in your hair.
Discuss this with them.
If you want caramel highlightsor if you want really warm color
and your skin tone can'tsupport that, that needs to be a
conversation with yourhairstylist.
They can look at you in anon-biased way because you know
(05:14):
we get used to seeing ourselvesin the mirror every day and
sometimes we forget oh yeah,I've got cool skin tone or warm
eyes and we see a picture onPinterest of hair that we just
really like and we want it, butwe don't realize that that
probably won't look the best onus.
So, discussing this with yourhairstylist, they could tweak
(05:35):
the formula just a little bit soit will look good on you.
Okay, now let's talk about ashy.
Ashy is kind of a yucky word, Ithink, but ash is just the total
opposite of brass.
It is like cool tones like blueor violet, and this is added to
the hair to cancel out anywarmth.
(05:58):
So just the opposite.
And if you think about it, it'sthat subtle grayish cast that
makes color looks more muted andmatte.
On its own, ash can actually bereally unflattering, but when
you balance that with warm toneslike beige or copper, it
creates a gorgeous, naturallooking blend.
(06:20):
I absolutely love to take an ashtone and a beige tone.
Put those together and you getthe most beautiful shade on your
hair.
I do it to my hair all the time, but I also do it when I'm
toning blondes.
I'll take an ash in a level 10and maybe a beige in a level
nine or an eight, and it oh it'sso beautiful.
(06:42):
On platinum hair, ash canactually make it look silver or
even icy, which is stunning ifthat's what you're going for.
You've seen pictures of theplatinum blondes that almost
look purpley gray.
That is ash.
So how do you fix unwanted ash?
This is actually way easierthan fixing brass.
(07:05):
Let me just tell you.
You just add a little bit ofwarmth back in with your golden
or your copper tones, or youcould even do a temporary toner
or rinse, and it will warm upthe hair tone.
It is a lot easier to addwarmth than to take warmth out
of the hair.
So how do you prevent it?
Well, steer clear of cool toneformulas and stick to neutral or
(07:30):
golden shades and refresh yourcolor when it starts to look
dull.
The color line that I useactually has an ash tone base
color.
It's like a blue green basecolor that actually makes it
more neutral.
So when you are lifting youdon't get as much underlying
warmth.
(07:50):
It's kind of nice, because mostcolors don't have that in there
.
There's only one or two, maybethree, that I can think of that
have a ashier tone in theirneutral colors.
If you have questions aboutthat, just reach out.
So here's the bottom line.
Neither brass nor ash is bad initself.
(08:10):
They're tools in the colorist'stoolkit.
When you understand how theywork and what you want your end
result to be, you can make themwork for you instead of against
you.
So whether you're team warm orteam cool, it's all about
balance maintenance andcommunicating your vision with
(08:31):
your stylist.
Takes lots and lots of picturesto your stylist when you are
communicating a new color.
You can just put them on yourphone or you can start a
Pinterest page, but you wantyour stylist to see what it is
that you want your hair to looklike.
Take all kinds of pictures.
(08:51):
If it's a base color, so maybeyou're going brown and you want
some highlights in your hair puta picture of the base color
you're kind of looking for,cover up the highlights, or, if
there's highlights in the hair,cover up the face, because
sometimes we just like the face,wouldn't you agree?
We want the face of the modeland the hair of the model, but I
(09:12):
think if you just have goodcommunication with your stylist,
you'll be all right.
I'd love to hear your own brassyor ashy hair stories the good,
the bad and the ones that madeyou grab a hat on the way out
the door.
So come find me on Instagramand share your pictures.
All right, so let's jump intosome listener questions.
(09:32):
I love these because they'rethe things everyone's wondering
but doesn't always ask out loud,and if you're like me, that
happens a lot.
Have you ever been sittingsomewhere and you have a
question but you're afraid toraise your hand?
That's why I do these, and I'veheard from a few of you that
you really do like this questionand answer segment at the end
of the podcast.
So thank you, thanks forreaching out and let me know
(09:53):
that.
So, question one have you everhad a brassy hair disaster?
What happened and how did youfix it?
Oh, yes, I think every coloristhas a story.
Early in my career I lightened aclient from a deep brunette to
a blonde in trying to do it inone session.
Yeah, that's hard to do, and Ididn't lift her far enough past
(10:16):
that red orange stage and sheleft kind of looking like she
had, I don't know, pumpkin hair.
Yeah, because at the time Ididn't know how to correct it
and I didn't I guess I didn'thave enough color theory in my
back pocket because, you know,fresh out of school early in my
career, I didn't know how to fixit.
So what is the fix?
(10:37):
I should have used a blue basedtoner to cancel out the orange
Easy, easy fix Plus a deepconditioning treatment because I
lifted her too much.
Okay, and just the lesson thatI took away from this is just
don't rush it.
What is that saying Underpromise over deliver?
I should have told her hey, I'lltry to do that today, but it
(10:58):
might take more than one session.
Especially from a deep brunetteto a blonde, that's really a
lot.
When you're taking somebodyfrom that dark to that light.
Sometimes the hair just can'ttake it.
Most of the time the hair can'ttake it.
Most of the time the hair can'ttake it.
Always under promise, say Imight not be able to do that.
But if you do get her there,hey, great, wonderful.
(11:20):
But if you don't get her there,she's not going to be
disappointed.
You can just say, hey, we mightbe doing this in one or two
appointments, two or threeappointments, and you know,
maybe bring her up a couple oflevels, tone her so she can live
with it.
Bring her back in in aboutthree weeks, maybe do something
again and send her home with theright product so her hair has
(11:41):
plenty of protein and moistureand the lipids in there.
Just remember healthy,beautiful, blonde.
It does take time.
Don't try to do it in onesession.
You'll end up with orange hair.
I hate that.
All right, here's anotherquestion.
Do you prefer warmer goldentones or cooler ashier tones?
(12:02):
Hmm, that's a good question.
You know, because there aretimes in my life that I love the
cooler, ashier shades.
But you know I'm really allabout balance.
Warm tones give shine andvibrancy, while cool tones bring
that elegance and they controlthe warmth.
So on me personally, I love awarm beige with just a little
(12:23):
bit of ash to it.
It's shiny, but not too goldenOn my hair, cause I'm a natural
level five, six.
I have a lot of orangeundertones in my hair.
So if I don't put in some kindof ash in there, it will go
orange really quickly.
And I'm not really trying to bea redhead If I was, it'd be
(12:43):
really easy to do, but I'm not.
So I have to put in ash.
But I don't want it all ashy,because if you look at my eyes,
I have a lot of warmth in myeyes, even though my skin is on
the cooler side.
So you really have to look atthe eyes.
If you have like flecks oforange or flecks of yellow in
there, you could probably use alittle bit of warmth in your
(13:06):
formulation.
Just a little hint, all right.
Here's another question.
If you could change one thingabout your last hair color, what
would it be?
Ooh, okay, I'd make the tonelast longer by cutting back on
high heat styling.
Even the best color oxidizesfaster if you're constantly
using hot tools withoutprotection.
(13:27):
I say this all the time Always,always, always use heat
protection on your hair, even ifyou don't color your hair.
I had a client a couple of weeksago who she just doesn't like
to use product.
I don't understand that myself.
I think it's really.
What happens is she hasn'tfound the right product for her
(13:49):
hair type and no one's educatedher on why she should be using
something on her hair, even ifit's not for control which it is
, because Lord knows this summerhas been high humidity where we
are but even if it's just tocontrol the frizz in her hair,
but it's also to control, so hercolor doesn't oxidize and so
(14:13):
she doesn't lose the color.
So every time she comes to gether hair color, she wants me to
pull that color through her ends.
And I had to explain to herlook, look, this is not doing
your hair any favor.
Actually, what's happening ifyou, every single color
appointment, if you pull thatcolor through the ends of her
hair, because her last coloristused to do this, so she thought
(14:36):
that's what you do.
If you pull that color throughthe ends of your hair every
single time, what are you doing?
You're just making the cuticlecome open every single time and
it's going to get weaker andweaker, and so after a while
you're just going to lose thatability for the cuticle to even
lay back down and you're goingto lose your color molecules
(14:57):
faster and faster each time.
So what I proposed to her washey, let's just do your touch-up
and then let's send you homewith a color shampoo or a color
treatment.
Um, because Euphora has a colortreatment that actually is not a
shampoo, not a conditioner, butit actually helps to lay down
(15:17):
that cuticle.
It puts in some color moleculesback into your hair.
You do not need to apply colorevery single time you go to get
your roots done.
So there might be some peoplethat don't agree with that, but
that is my experience.
That's not always the best,maybe every fourth, fifth time
that you're getting your colordone, but not every single time.
(15:39):
It's just too much on your hair.
Okay, here comes anotherquestion what's your go-to
product for keeping color freshbetween visits?
Ooh, well, my go-to productwould be the Sculpture and
Illuminate by Euphora.
Yes, the links in my show notes.
These are my two favorite,favorite favorite products
because it actually helps tokeep your color in 30% longer
(16:02):
and it's wonderful forprotection for your cuticle, for
your hair.
It makes your hair shiny.
It's enough styling productthat you don't need anything
else on your hair.
If you don't want to putanything else on your hair, you
can blow dry it.
You love it.
Okay, but if you're not usingthat, I would probably suggest a
purple shampoo for the blondesmaybe once or twice a week, and
(16:22):
for brunettes a blue shampooonce or twice a week, maybe
every third shampoo.
If you don't shampoo everysingle day and always, always,
always, use a color safe,sulfate free shampoo, then you
put that leave in UV protectionand your color will last,
Guarantee it.
Okay, all right.
(16:42):
Here's another question have youever gone too light too fast
and how did the color react?
Yes, and it led to uneven liftand way too much warmth showing
through, and it took multiplesessions to even it out.
That's why I tell my clientslightning is a journey, not a
(17:02):
race.
We protect your hair first andthe color comes with it.
Do not try to lighten the hairtoo fast, especially, especially
if your clients have coloredtheir hair darker in the past,
because you don't know what'sunder there.
So I would go slow and low,meaning low with peroxide, when
(17:24):
you're using lightener.
All right, somebody asked haveyou ever tried silver or icy ash
tones, love it or regret it?
Well, I've done it for clientsand it could be absolutely
stunning on the right skin tone,but it's really high
maintenance and it can wash somepeople out.
When it works, it works, butwhen it doesn't, you can look
(17:48):
dead.
What do I mean by this?
Well, here's what happens is,you know, as we age, as we get
older I'm in my 50s, so you know, as people get older, their
skin actually changes colors too.
So it used to be that maybe youhad a lot of warmth in your
skin, but as you get older, youlose a little bit of that
(18:09):
vibrancy in your skin, so youalmost have to make up for it in
your skin.
But as you get older, you losea little bit of that vibrancy in
your skin, so you almost haveto make up for it in your hair.
Think beige.
It doesn't have to be gold, butthink of beigey.
You got to put a little bit ofwarmth in your hair to make your
skin look alive.
What happens is people aresaying, hey, I want to grow out
my gray, and so they're thinkingthis gray hair.
(18:29):
Well, gray hair is actuallyvery ashy, and so if you have
ashy hair with ashy skin, it canwash you out.
And I've seen that happen on afew people and they're like yeah
, but I don't want the highmaintenance of color all the
time.
That's fine, you can go in andask for a gloss, but just have
(18:50):
your stylist just put a hint ofa beige color in the gloss, just
a little bit.
So say, I don't know, threequarters of the formula is just
clear gloss, and then a quarterof the formula, or even less, is
like a level eight beige.
What that's going to do, it'sgoing to be very translucent.
(19:10):
It almost works like atranslucent fingernail polish.
You can still see thefingernails underneath, meaning
you could still see the hairunderneath.
It just changes a little bit ofthe tone of the hair and it
gives you enough warmth in yourhair that you don't feel washed
out.
Okay, so love it or regret it,neither.
(19:32):
You just have to know whatworks, I guess, all right.
So what's the secret to makingcolor last without going brassy
or flat?
We talk about this a lot, butit is a mix of good formulation
from the start, and then youhave to tone regularly, protect
it from heat and sun and don'tstretch your touch-ups too far
(19:53):
apart.
The longer you wait, the moreyour undertones start peeking
through.
So hey, great questions.
And if you have your own brassor ash story, send me a DM or
leave it on the comments onInstagram.
I might share it in a futureepisode and remember when you
know better, you do better.
(20:13):
Thanks for tuning in to AllAbout Hair.
If you loved this episode, hit,subscribe, leave us a review
and share it with a fellowstylist or hair-loving friend.
You want more tips, tools andbehind-the-scenes goodness?
Follow me on YouTube or head tomy website at denisekeilitzcom.
Yes, I know it's hard to spell,so don't worry, the link is in
(20:35):
the show notes.
Until next time, keep learning,keep creating and keep loving
what you do.
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