Hair highlights - confused

[Jmangel]

I've had highlights in past in decent salons and regardless of what I've asked for, they've just ended up all being one tone and kind of a generic yellow blonde colour.
What I would really like is a darker base with honey and caramel highlights done in a balayage technique. But if the hairdresser has to use bleach as my hair is already dyed, is it just the toner after the bleaching process that adds the tone of the highlight and if so, how do hairdressers put two different coloured toners onto different strands of bleached hair? Or does the bleach used already have the tone within it?
What should I ask the hairdresser for to get honey and caramel highlights? thinking of something like JLo's

The prelightener just lifts out the artificial pigment. A toner gives your desired tone, brings acidity back to the hair and adds shine. To have two different tones, the stylist would have to prelighten, then dry of your hair and foil or balayage again as opposed to just one colour wash at the basin. If your natural depth and midlengths aren't to dark, your stylist could use a hi lift alongside the prelightener when hilighting to give a variation of tones. Can u post a pic of your target colour and existing colour?

I used to go to Toni & Guy for my highlights and they did a nice job with 1x bleach and 2x hi-lift tints. It came out the most gorgeous caramel colour and I was really happy with it - £££ though!!

J lo type hair plus mine
Not sure if they will upload.
Mine is all permanently box dyed - virgin hair is level 5-6 with 20% grey and the variations in colour are due to decision to go darker in last few months - so ends are 9.16 and going up towards roots 8.1. As I only use 20 vole, only really get a lift to a 7. Hair always looks really auburn/strawberry blonde\yellow at ends which is driving me mad. Would love a chocolate brown base - maybe a 6? with honey caramel highlights. It all sounds expensive doesn't it with a double process and having to dry in between - would it be well over £100-150?

Just seen that photo of my hair and it's a lot brighter in real life - also excuse bedhead - my mad wavy hair takes more taming than I have the energy for!

It seems u have the prefect base. If you came to me with that request I think I would foil level 6-gold. Level 8- blue ash gold. Then balayage the prelightener. I would tone with a level 9 natural blue ash at the basin. So I would book it as a full head foil job + toner at £110. It's a lovely pic- did u show your hairdresser?

Thanks MoBro this is sooo helpful. Yes have shown picture to my hairdresser but she thought it would be very tricky to achieve. Will take your expert advice back to her and see if she will do it other wise need a new hairdresser! You're not in Manchester by any chance ??!!!

I'm in Cambridge :-( what brand is the hairdresser working with? Ask her to concentrate the level 6 gold chocolate colour beneath the crown with chunky weaves. From your crown upwards I would do the 8 ash gold in foil and the prelightener balayage did with the occasional 6.gold fine weave to blend. Are u going to work with your natural root for that grown out look? Jlo's looks like she doesn't have colour at the root and it makes it much lower maintenance as opposed to putting the chocolate colour on the root i mean.

Find a different hairdresser OP,what you are asking for is pretty standard for an experienced colourist.

Hello, sorry to hijack but can anyone comment on my highlights?

I don't understand the warm/cool, ash/gold stuff.
Thanks!

I like Kim Sears look - what does she have?

Or this is gorgeous!

Sorry OP!

My salon uses Wella and Matrix nut I prefer Wella as Matrix on me comes out very drab and darker than expected so I trust Wella better. I wish I could work with natural root but have the grey issue so I will probably continue to dye base root myself prob a 6 then have lowlights and highlights as you've advised then over time, may not need the lowlight at all as I will have taken the overall base colour down a notch. Sound like a plan?

Chicken no advice - hopefully MoBro will help but just wanted to say your hair is gorgeous already and not far off Kim's at all. If it ain't broke!!

Thanks OP!

Sorry MoBro, just wanted to check the number system for Wella
So the gold darker lowlight and root would be 6.3?
The level 8 would be 8.13 or 8.83?
And the toner on the pre lightened areas at front would be 9.8?
I get confused between ash, blue ash, green ash and cendre.
I think I do need a new hairdresser don't I as I really don't trust my current one to choose the shades.

I am so confused by all that. 5.2, 8.13 talk. My hairdresser says things like that to me and all I hear is white noise. It mostly seems to come out ok though.

I also get confused about the differences between layered /graduated, chunky/blunt and other hairdressing jargon. It is like a foreign language. I comfort myself by thinking that they would probably be just as confused in my workplace.

I work with L'Oréal so different tonal numbers. I've actually just got a second opinion from a colleague lol, so 6.3 = 6 gold for lowlight. 8.13 = 8 blue ash gold for muted caramel. Prelightener for lightest blonde but toned down to 9.01 lightest natural ash blonde. The root colour isn't warm- U should maybe go for a 6.1. 6 blue ash just on roots.

Thanks MoBro - you sure know your stuff!

Kim sears looks like she is a similar base to you so better to go with that pic. The second pic is a shade darker so very high maintenance. Kim's got highlights and lowlights toned to a biscuit shade. Her skin tone can take warmer shades than yours. I would probably suggest asking your hairdresser to tone your hilights to an ashy beige tone and possibly breaking up the midlengths with a lowlight up to one shade darker than your natural. TBH I really like your hair, I just think it's a tad warm for you and a simple toner after your normal high lights will fix that.

Wow, thanks MoBro

No worries. The lighting in the photo might be making it look more golden to me than it is in real life. If that's the case, I would just add a couple of lowlites to the midlengths :)