For the coffee and hair lovers out there

Some can relate to this cold Alberta morning with the snow blowing outside my hotel room window. By my side sits a large double double since I couldn’t bring my beloved Nespresso with me and Timmi’s was the closest option this early 5:30am morning. This coffee brings me all of the comforts and warmth of home.

Brewed at home or ordered to go, coffee is a constant for many. Trust me, I know my favorites and exactly where to find them whether I crave a long pour dark espresso, a large double double, a caffe mocha or a Grande skinny vanilla latte blonde roast. So many coffee favorites that connect with my routines, emotions or the start of each day. A necessary boost before early morning meetings or when leaving on a road trip with the music turned up. Coffee is my “must have” behind the chair around mid afternoon to recharge and become a badass when double booked or watching the magic happen on a blended and rich toned balayage.

Those words alone resonate with the same expectations of my coffee fix – RICH, BLENDED perfection!

For as long as I can remember hair colour hues have been verbally expressed in relationship to coffee. Hot or cold brews like espresso, caffe mocha, caramel macchiato, café au lait or iced cappuccino instantly open our minds to descriptions resemblant of polished perfection after a colour service and smooth blow out.

At a glance, the overall finish clearly defining the colour hue and coffee category but when taking in the nuances brought to life through each strand of hair, this takes me to a place of much more than what my eyes see. I explore the luminosity, warm reflections and varied depths as the hair moves and I can feel the same satisfaction when taking that first sip of coffee. The experience, the feeling and rich tones combine and come together like meeting your bestie at Starbucks for a coffee catch up.

These nuances along with the names and descriptions come alive with the finished result and may be viewed with slight differences through our unique perception or creative minds.
Each of us can relate to the subtle warmth of coffee tones and can adjust the desired hue or saturation with this known analogy used many times during daily consultations. When we think of the depth of levels in hair colour ranging from a level 1 – black to a level 10 – lightest blonde, we have many times used the example of a cup of coffee. A black coffee would refer to a Level 1, which is the strongest and darkest of them all. Now consider adding a touch of cream which now makes the coffee no longer black but lighter, a higher level and not quite as strong. You continue adding more and more cream until reaching a lighter level 10 result. Now you have more cream than coffee. This is a great way to identify with all of the different natural hair levels that we encounter each day. Each morning my coffee target is set higher than most by adding my most guilty pleasure and love – French vanilla creamer.

Coffee is such a natural and easily identified way to express and relate to hair colour selections by creating instantaneous pictures of coffee toned hues in our minds. Once these hues are achieved, we know how good we feel leaving the salon with our fresh new hair colour but let’s not forget the entire experience and emotional connection we appreciate from energizing to soothing us. So, whether we are indulging in our favorite coffee flavor or customizing rich coffee hues, both are equally satisfying!

Here are two of my favorite coffee inspired tones.

Caffe Mocha with a touch of cinnamon

Before or existing base: 
Natural level 5 with less than 25% white hair. Mid lengths to ends previously coloured and faded to a warmer toned level 6. Pre-lightened Balayage pieces framing the face.

Formula used: Beautiful even toned global application using Calura permanent shine hair colour for maximum coverage and durability. New growth, Calura 6-318/GAB 20ml + 6 Neutral 20ml + 6%/20 volume Mid lengths to Ends, Calura 6-318/GAB 45ml + 6 Neutral 15ml + 6%/20volume

Iced Cappuccino

Before or existing base:
Natural level 3 with fine, naturally curly texture with grown out pre-lightened blonde areas.

Balayage Formula used: Brighten and balanced balayage application with Blacklight Lightening Cream 40ml + Cool Toned Blonde 20ml + 6%/20 volume Smart Developer. Note: Quadraplex was a MUST because the hair was compromised and delicate. 4ml of Quadraplex was added to the 60ml formula for application.
Toned with: New growth, Calura 8-32/GI + 3%/10 volume Mid lengths to Ends, Calura Pastels P-32 45ml + P-12 15ml + Demi Effect developer lotion