I’m a hairdresser AMA

[LorelaiRoryEmily]

Since there have been a few hair related threads lately I thought people might have questions.
Totally prepared for tumbleweed

Hi Op 👋🏼
What hair care (that you can buy online) do you recommend for coloured/thin hair? I've tried numerous over the years and none have left my hair feeling/looking shiny or soft. I wash (and blow dry) my hair daily which probably doesn't help.

What a great thread! You are being great answering so many questions so well

Mine is... I have very thick hair that's over 90% grey according to my hairdresser. I get my colour done every 5 weeks and I cover my roots with colour spray for the final 2 weeks.

I'd love an undercut to take some of the weight out of my hair. Is there anyway to do this without it just being grey stubble after 2 weeks?

My hair is long and dark brown and I have started to get very thick white hairs growing around the front, only single strands but more and more of them. I have a sensitive scalp and I am wary of regularly colouring it, however have recently relented and put a colour on so its OK for the moment. Would I be better getting some highlights in those areas to mask them, or even going lighter overall? I have been blonde in the past but my natural colour is dark. If you answer my question I will be so grateful!

@flowerpower I don’t like cutting above the hairline either. It gets messy because you have to cut or shave away the hairs in the neck and they’ll grow back really quickly and the hair doesn’t tend to sit well if it’s cut over the hairline. She could have graduated it in shorter though and taken more of the coloured hair away

@newyoiker I haven’t used it so it wouldn’t be fair to say. I will say I think the hairdryer is rubbish and I have a client who bought the air wrap and finds it hard to use

@Bluelonerose pictures!! Don’t hat keep asking for shorter. Find a picture of a shorter style that you love. Back and front pics and bring them with you. Google!

Don’t just. Not hat

@Newyoiker it’s totally normal after chemo to have completely different hair to what you had before. You can absolutely colour it now. Try to find someone who uses ammonia and ppd free colour and go crazy! Hope you’re well now😊

@hungryforsnacks if it’s changing that quickly I’d say it’s a toner that’s giving you the ash look. Ask to look at the chart and see what colour they’re using on you. It’s probably got warmth in it. You could use a toning shampoo to Kermit at bay but I’d talk to the hairdresser first. Tell them you’re not happy and why. They’ll want to keep your custom so they’ll figure it out

Also as I’ve said before, a lot of the time hairdressers will just say something isn’t possible because they can’t be bothered changing it or they don’t have the knowledge to do it. Challenge the responses they give you. Don’t just accept it’s not possible because they say so. Sometimes things aren’t possible but your request sounds simple enough to me

@sanmiguel I love Schwarzkopf BC products. They cover every hair type, alter ego Italy is fab and Moroccan oil products. You’ll find ones to suit your hair type if you browse these brands online. Think volumising for your fine hair and avoid anti dandruff and clarifying to mind your colour!

Why does it seem
Impossible to get the water temperature right to wash hair? Most of the time it's scalding. Can't those who wash the hair test it/let it run for a while to establish consistency of heat?

My main question though is to ask how typical it is to use brushes that have other people's hair on them? I go to a reasonable salon but stylists seem to think it's okay to do this. Turns my stomach and I have been brave enough to ask if they could clean them (though just the once, mind).

@contrarytopopularbelief thank you! Honestly, I had a client ask me the same thing a few weeks ago. My reply to her was find me a photo online of a nice looking undercut and I’ll do it for you. She couldn’t.

It’s not the solution you imagine it to be. You’d find it just another problem to contend with and it would take so long to grow back!

Try some long layers to reduce weight. There is no magic cure for thick hair. Thinning scissors I’m not a fan of but fine in short hair. For yours I’d layer and maybe consider a weekly Blowdry or blowdrying lessons to help you manage it

@bobstersmum I would start having hilites done. I’d you go lighter the grey will blend better and be less noticeable when it grows. Don’t mess too much with it yourself. Find a good hairdresser and they’ll help you to camouflage it and hilites don’t touch your scalp so better all round for you. If they’re white you’ll be a great blonde in a few years!!

Hi op,
I have a blow dry question.
I have curly hair, Loose medium sized floppy ringlets, not particularly coarse, just thick.
I was wanting to get a blow dry , sort of swishy with lose curl at the ends.
One of my friends told me she thought my hair might be too curly to blow dry. Is that a thing?

@curtintrail I always test the water and run it on to my hand the whole way through washing before it touches a head. I’ve never scalded or frozen anyone. It’s not rocket science! Maybe they’re lazy or have an unreliable system?

Re the brushes, it’s my habit that every time I pick up a brush to start on a new head I clean it first. Every time. I remove all the hairs. My brushes are spotless. Washed and sterilised regularly. That said, a few random hairs wouldn’t bother me if I was using the brush on my own hair. In 99.9% of cases we only Blowdry clean hair so it’s usually no big deal but I get why you don’t like it and it’s fine to point it out.

I found a long hair in my dinner once in a restaurant and just picked it out and carried on eating. Dh was green

Oooh great thread-I really need your help!! I'm rubbish at this stuff

I'm 40 & very grey especially around temples (rubbish genes...DF was 100% white by 30). I have dark roots, probably v dark blonde/ mouse but have mucked about with colour for year so don't really know what natural is now. Was blonde as a kid and have used various aah blonde dyes for ages

A year or so back grey bits stopped taking on colour and just stayed grey. Went to salon and was advised best way to deal with stubborn grey is to dye it all vvv blonde (like Scandinavian child but yellowed) so it's hidden

But I look awful- it's v fake looking and doesn't suit my skin tone. Makes me look older too

Can I go a sort of caramel or mid brown from hectic Blonde and / or will it just make roots look worse and grey more obvious? And will dye stick??

Thanks!!!

@ohyesiam 🤦🏻‍♀️ Your friend is talking rubbish. No that is not a thing. Off you go and enjoy your Blowdry! What a mad thing to say to you!

Yay! Thank you op. Here comes a new swishy me!

@msrosewater.
Ok so yes you can go a bit darker, what you’re talking about would be maybe a 7-00 tint. The -00 gives extra coverage for resistant hair. So get them to do the roots with that and then add a caramel tone to it for the mid lengths and ends and then pop a few really fine blonde hilites through it, just a scattering of them to break it up. It’s not complicated at all. I usually pop in the hilites first then apply the colour around them. Saves time and gives a lovely result!

I have dyed hair that is very white around the front. I used to have lots of different highlights/low lights but last time my hairdresser persuaded me to have more vase colour with some lighter slices. The colour is fine but the roots are awful. I'm considering going grey/white and can't seem to make her understand that I don't actually mind. Showing some white & what I'd really like is some blond highlights in grey hair. Is this a thing or would it look awful?

Brilliant thread

What would your number one choice of hair mask be for a weekly treatment? And did I read this right, you still need to use conditioner afterwards?

@cafetierecoffee thank you😊 Schwarzkopf Bd repair rescue and yep always condition after a treatment!

@mustbetimeforanamechange blonde hilites in grey hair would be lovely. Much easier to keep and more natural looking. Ask her to stop doing the base colour and break it up with hilites to help you grow it out and get where you want to go with it.

Schwarzkopf BC! Not BD🤦🏻‍♀️