by Rhonda Piraino

Created on: May 13, 2008   Last Updated: May 14, 2008

Take the fear out of coloring your hair by arming yourself with some basic knowledge. I'll be your tour guide for a painless journey.

FOLLOW A ROAD MAP

If you're going on a road trip, you need a road map. First you need to know where you are. Think of a mall directory, where a little red dot says You Are Here'.

Your colorist will determine your hair's level, which refers to lightness and darkness. We use the numbers 1 through 10 to represent the hair level from darkest black to lightest blond.

Your destination refers to the level of lightness you want, e.g., you want your naturally light brown hair to be medium blond. This also takes into consideration the tone you want (red, gold, etc.). When you and your colorist determine where you are now and where you want to be, your colorist will choose the easiest, safest direction for results.

TRANSPORTATION

When you know where you're going, how will you get there? Here are your options.

1. Temporary or semi-permanent colors stain your hair without affecting your natural color. These work well when you want to stay the same level, blend gray hair, or add shine to your hair. Another benefit? No regrowth. The color will gradually shampoo away.

2. Permanent color is necessary if you want to be lighter than your natural color or if you want to completely cover gray hair. Permanent color removes your hair's natural pigment and replaces it with artificial color molecules. This color needs to be retouched after 4-6 weeks. In the hands of a skilled colorist and with the advances made in hair color, damage to your hair is minimal.

3. Highlighting is a terrific way to introduce color without the shock factor. Highlights are usually placed in foil or paper in sections of the hair, or they can be painted directly on the hair. Your colorist should know, through the consultation, how light you want to be, the effect you want (i.e. subtle or chunky), and what tone you'd like. Maintenance depends on the amount of color (the ratio of colored hair to non-colored hair) and on how far you stray from your natural color.

ARE WE THERE YET?

It's your colorist's job to make sure you understand your route. Beware of pretty buzzwords. For one technique, there are 10 different words that can be used to describe that process. Your colorist should speak in plain English.

If you hear words you don't know, DON'T be afraid to ask for clarification!

If it's difficult finding descriptive words, don't sweat it. Pictures are another tool you can use to get your point across.

LAST STOP - GREAT COLOR!

What we do as colorists is 50% of the result; your maintenance produces the other 50%. Your colorist needs to show you which products to use at home, give you do's and don'ts, and tell you how often you need refresh your color.

Now you can confidently sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.

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