Hair by Allie Taylor

Sometimes you get really lucky as a stylist and a client sits in your chair and says those 4 magical words. “I have virgin hair”! This girl had all natural, thick, long, black hair. I had a lot to work with and thankfully my client gave me a lot of creative freedom. We first had to discuss that although her hair was natural, it doesn’t mean she can be lifted all the way to a platinum blonde in one session. As a cosmetologist, we classify hair color by its level. For reference, blackest black is a level 1 and palest blonde is a level 10. My client started at a level 2. Her hair ended around a level 7. That means we lifted the hair 5 levels!!!

What if her hair wasn’t virgin? Could we still get this light in one session, if she had previous color or box dye on her hair? As much as you all might want me to say yes, the answer is no. That doesn’t make it impossible, it just means it’s gonna take a little bit longer. Coloring your hair adds artificial pigment to your naturally existing pigment. When you want to lighten your hair, you now have to break through the artificial pigment AND the natural pigment. This means lightening and removing that extra pigment is going to take more time. When your stylist tells you “this is going to be session work” trust them and trust the process. Your hair goals can happen, it just might not be today.

How about this before and after??? I love how daring my clients are and I love all the amazing new ideas they bring me. This girl has a Disney trip planned and wanted her hair to make her feel like a princess. I’m getting major Merida vibes🦁

If you’re ready for your Disney princess transformation, send me a DM or book an appointment with me online!

I don’t know about you, but I LOVE DIMENSION!! While I love doing my beautiful heavy blondes, the strong contrast between dark and light will always have a special place in my heart. Dimensional and high contrast color can also make your hair look fuller and thicker. That’s because the multiple tones in the hair create depth which gives the appearance of more volume in the hair. Dimensional color is also great for anyone looking for something with lower maintenance but still give high impact! Since her roots were left natural and blended, those bright highlights will grow out seamlessly and she won’t be left with any harsh lines. My clients with dimensional or lived in color can go 10-12 weeks in between appointments and their hair looks great the whole time!!

Natural, Beachy Highlights🏝

My client told me she loved her highlights to look bright but very natural. In order to achieve that look we kept most of the brightness around her face and on her ends while keeping depth throughout the back. Imagine you put your hair up in a ponytail on a hot summer day, what part of your hair is exposed to the sun? All around the hairline and throughout the ends! That’s exactly what inspired this placement. Subtle changes can really make the biggest impact.

Foilyage✨ This is hands down one of my favorite techniques to use on clients that want a rooted, balayage look but need a little extra lift. I still paint the hair the same way I would when doing a traditional open air balayage but I place the hair in a foil. Foils help to produce extra heat which allows the lightener to lift the hair to a lighter shade of blonde. Open air balayage is perfect for clients looking to go a few shades lighter than their natural color, creating soft, sun kissed results. Foilyage is perfect for clients looking for a lighter and brighter end result. Both of these techniques are highly customizable to fit whatever look you’re trying to achieve!