Fashion Coloring

Fashion colour covers vivid, non-natural shades — pinks, blues, purples, coppers, silvers and everything in between, whether as a full head, panels, a money piece or colour placed only through the ends.

Vivid shades only show properly on hair that has been lightened first, so most fashion colour involves two stages: lifting your hair to a pale enough base, then applying the pigment. How light your hair already is decides how much work that first stage takes, which is why this service starts with a consultation rather than a fixed price.

• A consultation to assess your hair's condition, history and lifting potential
• A realistic plan, including whether more than one session is needed
• Lightening where the base needs to be paler
• Placement and application of the vivid shade
• Conditioning treatment and blow-dry finish
• Detailed home care advice, because vivid shades fade fast

Plan for a long appointment — around three hours, sometimes longer, and occasionally split across more than one visit.

Your stylist assesses your hair first and agrees the plan and price with you before any product goes on. If lightening is needed it's done and monitored carefully, then the vivid colour is applied and left to develop.

Your hair is rinsed in cool water, treated and dried. Your stylist will be honest with you if the shade you want isn't achievable in one session or would compromise your hair's condition.

Anyone wanting a vivid or non-natural shade, from a subtle pastel to a full bright colour. It suits hair in good condition best — heavily processed or previously box-dyed hair may need repair or a staged approach first.

Vivid shades fade with every wash, so this is the highest-maintenance colour there is. Wash as infrequently as you can with a sulphate-free shampoo, in cool water only — heat strips pigment fast. Skip the conditioner on your scalp and concentrate it on the ends.

Ask your stylist about a colour-depositing conditioner in your shade to top the pigment up at home. Expect to refresh the colour every four to six weeks, and expect the shade to shift as it fades.

• Book a consultation first so the plan and cost are clear before you commit
• Tell your stylist every colour your hair has ever had, including box dye and henna
• Wash in cool water only — hot water is the fastest way to lose vivid pigment
• Buy a colour-depositing conditioner in your shade to keep it going between visits
• Be prepared for a staged approach if your hair is dark or previously coloured
• Pale pastels fade fastest; deeper vivids hold longer