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HOW-TO: Natural Blonde to Platinum With a Fresh Shape
Meri Kate O'Connor and Annie Rush offer a fresh makeover to one of their favorite clients. Here O'Connor shares her platinum formula and Rush breaks down the cut.
May 4, 2014
2 min to read
Colorist MeriKate O'Connor and stylist Annie Rush, both of the Eva Scrivo Salon in NYC, are no strangers to dramatic makeovers. When offered the opportunity to transform one of their favorite clients, they jumped at the chance.
When asked about this look, O'Connor said "She has been getting highlights and we decided to just go for it and go white blonde. There was a lot of yellow in her hair from the previous highlights. Her natural base is a 7, so I chose to bleach and tone to create an all over even blonde. I considered aggressive highlighting, but this technique and formulation is just more effective." O'Connor used the Shades EQ 9B and Clear instead of using the traditional 9V (that most people would use to counteract yellow) because she wanted to give her a more silver tone. She did consider neutralizing the yellow with violet but felt the 9B and Clear would offer a better finish. "The blue has more gray in it," she says. "and therefore creates more of a silver. The Silklift lifts blonde fast, so i knew I would need to watch it. I also always leave the color on for five minutes longer, once i achieve the result i want, to ensure that it is fully processed."
Base: Goldwell Silklift with Silk Drops with Care and Comfort Scalp Protector. 20 volume developer on scalp for 20 minutes until roots are white.
Midshaft to ends: Goldwell Silklift with Silk Drops and 15 volume developer until hair is white.
Toner: Glaze all over at sind with Redken Shades EQ 1/2 Clear and 1/2 9B for 10 minutes.
THE CUT:
When Annie Rush considered the silhouette, she looked at the shape of this client's face more than the dramatic color. "The cut is a one length bob starting about an inch down from the nape of the neck, just long enough below her chin line so it is not to harsh on her jaw bone," she says. "The crown, in a horseshoe shape, was squared off at the top ever so slightly to soften the harshness of the bob line. The bangs were cut with the same pattern and intention of our lovely Betty Paige bangs. A perfect triangle is sectioned from the highest point of the head to the outer corners of her temples. The length is cut perfectly straight from temple to temple and then brushed to the side. Then I point cut slightly shorter from the left to the right to bring some asymmetry to the look. To finish the cut, I graduated with point cutting to soften the line into a pixie bang."
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