Getting Ready to Return...

Coming Back to the salon after quarantine..

Hi Everybody! I miss you all and I’m looking forward to seeing you back at Studio Three. I wanted to let you know what changes I’m making to accommodate our new reality in light of COVID19. I have always maintained a high level of cleanliness and sanitation standards as outlined by the industry guidelines however, in light of the pandemic, I am sure we as an industry will be changing those guidelines to tighten up any potential for spread of this virus. 

Here is a list of what I am doing right now to ensure that when it's time to come back, you all feel safe:

• I am taking this time to deep clean the entire salon using a broad spectrum disinfectant and sanitizer (virucide). 
  

• I'm setting up systems to have in place for sanitizing all implements and areas you as a client will come in contact with while visiting between each client.
  

• I've ordered more sets of everything that touches you while you are in the salon (combs, brushes, clips etc.) so I can rotate them through a sanitizer after each client. Every client will have a fresh set of implements that has been freshly sanitized.
  

• After every visit (between each client) I will be sanitizing all common areas that are touched frequently such as door handles, bathroom, coat racks etc. I will also have gloves available for anyone who wants them and I will be wearing a mask while working on you. 
  

As our world evolves I am sure I will get word from local and state authorities on new standards of practice and I will follow all guidelines, as I have always done, to ensure my guests are receiving the highest level of service in a safe and sanitary environment. 

I also wanted to let you know that when we do get the greenlight to start doing hair again, I will be working the first few Saturdays to allow everybody on the waiting list to get in as quickly as possible and to thank you all for being so patient. Saturdays cannot be booked online, you will need to text me directly - although if you are already on the waiting list, I will contact you anyway and I will mention it. 

First, Do No Harm..

It's been a really long time since I've posted anything on this blog but I've been thinking about something and I just had to make a post.

After a few in depth hair conversations and also listening to some interesting pod-casts I've been able to sort of solidify a personal philosophy about what I think is important about being a hair dresser. I really try to listen to all my clients and collaborate with them to achieve their hair goals - but sometimes there are significant things that need to be taken into consideration.

I want to always follow the "camp site" rule... always leaving my clients hair in better condition than what I found it. Often times I slip in a deep conditioner at the bowl or on the ends of the hair while some foils are processing - I do this as a complimentary service because, lets face it, many of my wonderful clients have been coming to me for over a decade and why wouldn't I want to show their hair some extra love?

I believe that healthy hair is always the foundation for beautiful hair. If your hair isn't healthy I am always going to strategize on how we can make a plan with your color and cuts to get you to maximum beautiful hair. If you are coming in with a lot of damage, sometimes this can take a long time, 6 months to a year depending on the length. And sometimes your goals are not always going to align with what will be the most beautiful look for you.

I know the dark haired Kardashians have gone from basically black to platinum in a few days but what real-word person has that kind of money (or time - that is many hours of processing and repair processes as well)? I always strive to keep your hair in a beautiful and realistic state for your color range. That doesn't mean I'm not open to doing some really creative stuff and working with you to achieve something like super-platinum blonde, but the process isn't going to be one hour and a half appointment. It's going to take care and time and very likely 4-5 visits.

If your hair already has breakage from some other salon, the rehab process is going to take time. I'm willing to use whatever potions are at my disposal (probably Olaplex!) to help you get thru it... but what I am not going to do is apply more bleach. We will have to get thru the painful process of nursing your hair back to health together! I've yet to meet anyone with that kind of breakage who really wants to just cut their hair short and start over. I'll camouflage the damage with strategic layers and prescribe products to help rebuild your hair. And it will take a long time, I really can't sugar coat it.

Maybe I'm not the stylist for everyone, but I deeply care about my clients hair and it's health and integrity are my first priority. I want you to leave with your hair looking and hopefully feeling better than when you came in and my first consideration for any chemical service is making sure we do the least damage possible!

Anyway, that's what I've been thinking about lately.
Happy Fall!!

Book online at: www.studiothreehairsalon.com

About Studio Three Products...

Every product I sell has been chosen because I have used it and believe it works well. I don't choose one particular line to follow, but rather the needs of clients and what product will be best to meet that need. I also have looked every product up online for prices and based my pricing on that rather than giving them the standard mark-up. In other words, I am taking the large profit margin out of the equation and choosing my favorite products and offering them to you at the most reasonable prices. I make $1-$5 in profit (full disclosure). I do this because I want my clients to have the best looking hair they can at the best value available.

Love your hair!
Book today. www.studiothreehairsalon.com

Layers in Fine or Thin Hair

This is an example of what can happen with layers in fine or thin hair. It's my opinion that a blunt line is better for this hair type. Layers are possible but an experienced hair stylist will consider the hair density carefully and only cut what I call 'surface layers' to avoid this kind of thin wispy see-through look.

Philosophy on Hairstyling and in Life

I don't like to make blanket pronouncements about what is good and bad in matters of hairdressing and style. I believe these narrowing words can dampen creativity. Perhaps what is "bad" for one clients is "perfect" for another. So you will rarely hear me use judgmental statements when discussing anything hair related. I like to work from a positive place based in creative collaboration rather than from a negative place based on insecurity. 

It's not always easy to carry this attitude over to everything else in life and not make negative judgments, but I make a conscious effort. I never feel good saying something negative about other people's looks or actions because you never really know what that person may be going thru or have gone thru on any given day. I think negative judgments say much more about my own state of mind than anything about whatever the object of those judgments may be. 

I like to work with my clients to achieve hair that looks great on them and fits in with their lifestyle. I believe good hair is within everyone's reach!

Experience is a comb which nature gives us when we are bald. ~Proverb

I love styling hair for a special event.

My long-time client asked me if I wouldn't mind giving her a blowout on the day of a networking event for her company. Of course I went one step further and fashioned an up-do based on her dress... duh!


We were pressed for time and she was working on the presentation while I did her hair, but we got her out the door both hair and presentation looking great!

I wasn't able to take a whole lot of photos but I was able to snap a few.. here's the highlights:

In case anyone is interested in my "process" I had her txt me a picture of the dress and I sent back a few ideas for hairstyles which she ok'd ahead of time. Then, I sketched my intentions and the above photos are the result. Maybe she will be able to send me some pictures taken at the event and we can see how my sketch compared to the end result. It's always a rough idea... you can't get an updo nailed down until you actually working on the hair itself. I say it takes two tries -minimum- to find a way to engineer a formal hairstyle. And in a perfect world you'd get three... A first time trial for the basic idea. A second to try out your "engineering" (for me that's the plans in my sketchbook) .. and a third to re-work after you run across all the quirks of everyone's individual heads... density and texture of hair etc.

Of course, according to this very client, I am a bona-fide "hair nerd" ...and I think I could actually be quintessentially, THE bona-fide hair nerd, if that were possible. So.. I probably over think this stuff.

Ha!

“I think that the most important thing a woman can have- next to talent, of course- is her hairdresser.” ― Joan Crawford

I had the best time last night making someone who had a really bad experience with a haircut (not at my salon) feel like her hair looked even better than before the miscommunication happened. It was one of those times when you meet someone and really get to see them completely light up because they are happy with what you do - and THAT is what I love about my work!

This client is the sister of a long-time client and she had gone in to a walk-in salon for a trim. They discussed layers and I guess there was a miscommunication. One very aggressive snip later this clients hair was what I would categorize as "extremely" layered and not blended at all. As she had one length hair that was about 14-16 inches long this was a very dramatic change. Unfortunately, when she washed it herself and tried to style it at home, the un-blended layers coupled with the extreme difference in the shortest to longest lengths made things quite difficult. She couldn't even really wear it in a ponytail because it just accentuated the 'shelfiness' of the new layers.

Here is what her hair was like before the bad experience at the other salon:

Here are some photos of the ponytail that really show how choppy these layers from the other place were:

And then the fun starts!! We agreed we wanted to keep it as long as possible.. but make the layers more manageable. So I washed and flat-ironed it using Keratin Complex Anti-Frizz Creme (for added conditioning.. since, why not?). Then, I took down a section and determined the minimum I should cut to make the bottom as healthy and full-looking as I could, while still maintaining really long hair. (Sure we could have cut 6-8 inches off, but what's the fun in that?) This photo is that first section and I decided to start at about 2 inches to even it all up:

Now this photo is the super exciting photo of all the hair trimmed, section by section (after flat ironing w anti-frizz creme)  but not yet blended. You can see even here, though, that meticulous layer cutting pays off over one big snip and letting them fall... especially with fine textured hair! My peronal opinion is that being meticulous in a haircut is the only way to be sure that hair cut is going to hold up over time and grow out well. I love my clients but I want them to be able to go a really long time between visits. That's why I do a really precise cut, every single time, that I know they can count on to have built in structure and style! Anyway..here's the photo (pre-blending): 

At this point I was feeling really good about the cut because the over-all foundation was solid again. The rest was details.. blending the layers, taking out weight here and there so she should get height and volume... here's the photo's her sister took as well as some I took myself:

And then I did a quick curl with the flat iron to show her another 'look' she could get with the layers. She was really happy - and so was I! 

Such a fun evening!! And so much more fun than just throwing in the towel on that length and cutting a bob to start growing out. With regular one inch cuts every two months her hair will be easier than ever with solid, manageable layers and she wont have the pain of the "growing out short hair" feeling to go thru. I'm so excited for the evolution of her hair! I just love it when people walk out loving their hair...

Singing That Same Old Song...

So everybody knows I really love long hair. But let's face it, your hair needs to be long AND look good, right? Long hair that is scraggly and wimpy on the ends is not doing anybody any favors.

Even if you don't want a haircut at the time of your color appointment (to me this means, done wet, sectioned out and then styled afterward) I will always at least try and talk you into "dusting the ends" (to me, this means I've dried your hair out smooth and then I "whisper trim" the perimeter to make it all look sharp and even and sometimes if you have layers I do the barely-taking off-and-cleaning-up-just-the-ends and everything is just nice and happy.)

Please, know that when I say you should get a haircut at the change of every season I am not saying we need to take 5 inches off or anything major. It's just a maintenance thing for the health and well being of your hair. It will look better! (not to mention longer and healther, without the thin wispy ends.)

Ok. I'm getting off the soapbox.

Book your appointments today either thru the website or using the links on this blog that say "schedule now"

See, no one is going to notice the little bit that's gone but they will notice the bottom looks thicker and healthier. Plus her hair will grow longer and stronger without the splits traveling up and breaking.

Trust me on this one. Get regular trims!

Studio Three Yelp Video Prep Questions...

So... as part of making the video the director gave me a questionnaire to fill out to prepare. I thought it was pretty interesting since almost none of it was used in the actual video but I thought I might share some of the information with you all since it really highlighted what my guiding principals of hair are.

Give a short description of your business (15-20 sec)
Studio Three is a boutique Seattle hair salon. My name is Lynn Caldeiro and I am the owner and sole stylist of Studio Three and I opened the salon to provide my clients with luxury hair service in a beautiful and relaxed space.

How long have you been in business and what motivated you to start
I’ve been doing hair in Seattle since 2004. First as an employee at a big salon and then moving on to renting a chair at a well-known space close to down-town. In March of 2014 I decided to make the leap and open my own place. I wanted to create something private and relaxing that made people feel really pampered.

What are you best known for and why?
I think I have a reputation for being a perfectionist... it shows through in everything I do.

What sets your business apart from others in the field and keeps clients coming back?
I think my clients keep coming back over the years because they really love their hair. I really try to work with them over time and really get to know them and their lifestyle, what will work for them and keep them looking and feeling great. I think they like how much I think about their hair so they don’t have to. They trust me and I work hard to keep that trust.

Anecdote about the business that summarizes what you are all about
It’s hard to think about just one thing that summarizes what I’m about. So many people come to mind.. I think it’s because what I’m about is building relationships. Every client is an anecdote, every visit is a step on a journey we are taking together to love their hair.

Studio Three has a Yelp Video!

It was so exciting having a film crew come out and shoot the video. Big thank you to my lovely model who also happens to be one of my long-time clients, Lindsay. She looks so amazing it looks like I hired her!! Now my Yelp listing features this little 'commercial' about me and I have to admit I'm pretty proud of myself for going through with it.

If you'd care to watch it, here is a link: http://www.yelp.com/biz/studio-three-seattle

Also, feel free to share your love of Studio Three by writing a review!!

Thank you all for being such wonderful clients over the years. It means so much to me!

Two Toned vs. You Toned

So, this is a photo I took off of Instagram and I don't who she is or who did her hair but the photo was a portfolio type shot to showcase the stylists work.

If you notice the area near the crown of the head is darker, it's because that's where the grow-out line from the previous color wasn't properly blended with the foiling. It's a pet peeve of mine.

Here is an example of work *I* did on a heavily grown out client, similar to the case above. The first photo is what she came in as (several months of grow-out on an all-over blonde).

To achieve the finished result, I did micro slices on the diagonal of highlights and lowlights for an even blend. This avoids that ghost shadow of darker hair where the hair had grown out from the previous color. It's a challenge to any hairdresser to make this work and look natural but I was very pleased with my results.

It's so very rewarding when my client leaves with glorious, natural looking hair and there's no ghost line advertising she wasn't just born that blonde (wink-wink)..

What a Difference a Trim Makes

A picture is worth a thousand words, right? This is about a quarter inch trim -length you won't miss at all- but look at the difference it makes in how thick/healthy the hair looks. I admitt a two inch cut would work wonders in that department but sometimes you have to go in increments because you really want that length for a special occasion or event. Being a long hair lover myself I totally get it. But I like to give all my long hair clients at least a complimentary dry dusting of the ends every time I see them. I think a full-on hair cut should be done at least every three months (seasonally) and the right products at home make for great length instead of just long hair that doesn't really do much for you.

Enjoy the sun everybody! 

Big News Sometimes Comes in Small Packages...

Many of my clients already know this, but I have been going through a major life transition. After 8 great years at E*Clips I finally took that step and am venturing out on my own. About 6 years ago I read an magazine article (Elle? Allure? Bazaar?) where various "Beauty Reporters" went to different salons around New York and wrote in depth about the experience and what values they perceived at the various price points. One of the highest price points ($800 for a day of beauty) jumped out at me (but don't get scared dear clients... we live in Seattle not New York lol).

The writer of the article explained she came to this woman's space which felt very much like a condo in an upscale building. She was listened to, and the stylist assessed her needs and gave various treatments, did a cut and color as well as an intensive conditioning treatment and treated the time they were together like a special time to just focus on that young writers beauty concerns. This writer was quite effusive in the article about how thoroughly happy she was with her experience.

The seed of my dream was borne.

Whenever I thought of what I wanted to do, it had to feel it understated and customer focused with a lot of glamour and elegance. Reading that article resonated with me on a deep level. One woman's private sanctuary, as well as her skill and expertise as a stylist, shared with her clients. It had my name written all over it!

When my husband and I found our house two years ago with the mother-in-law (a separate apartment) built into it, it was one of the major reasons I fell in love with it. I immediately saw myself and my clients in lovely little sanctuary where I could provide them with all the love and attention to detail (ok obsession) I have for doing hair! It's not a Soho loft.. but it's an exclusive environment I get to share with my dear and wonderful clients doing what I really love: hair!

I have been so fortunate to have so many wonderful people in my life who have helped make this dream a reality and I'd like to get a little sappy here and thank them.. and any one I leave off this list, you know I'm grateful to you too!

Josephine Morales, thank you for eight wonderful years of friendship and a wonderful salon environment to build the foundation of my business around.

Ross Taylor, thank you for being a wonderful friend over the years and lending your services on my Logo, signage and graphic design work.

John Higgenbottom, thank you for making order in our house when there would otherwise be chaos.

Chris Shroyer (CLS Renovations), thank you for all your help and input in the build out.. anyone looking for a contractor I can't recommend him highly enough.

(You!) My fantastic clients, thank you for coming back over the years and for those of you who I've already seen in the new space, thank you for being understanding about a little bumpiness in the transition. For those of you I've yet to see.. I know you are going to love it!

And last but not least, my amazing husband, who always has faith in me. How did I get so lucky?

So... if you've taken the time to read through all that. Here's the nitty gritty:

My last official day at E*Clips was March 31, though I have been taking some of you in the new space. I didn't mention anything to you all while the build out was happening because it's not a good vibe to put out for everyone at E*Clips so Josephine and I agreed I would just put out an announcement after I was officially done there.

I was hoping to have an official opening on April 1 but I still have some furniture and stuff that's being delivered so the official opening will be May 1, 2014.

I probably have more news to share with you on various little things but for right now I think that's all I can think of to "Officially" announce my new venture.. oh and btw, I've been working like a fiend on my website and it may or may not be up by the time you read this but it's: www.studiothreehairsalon.com

Let's Keep it Real..

A friend of mine posted this on facebook and I thought I would share it here as a reminder that real beauty is imperfect and to continually strive for anything even close to Hollywood perfection is just silliness.


Fotoshop by Adobé from Jesse Rosten on Vimeo.

How to Fit Deep Conditioning into Your Life..

As a hairdresser, one of the things I hear myself telling people over and over is that deep conditioning is an essential for healthy hair, especially as it starts to grow longer. If you have hair that is 7 inches long or longer you technically have "long hair."

At 7 inches your hair is at a length where the natural oils, essential for the health of your hair, are not able to reach the ends of your hair. You may experience dry ends and splitting as a result. I tell people "put a tiny drop of olive oil in the ends of your pony tail" but maybe 5% of the people whom I've suggested that to actually do it, most don't. I don't even do that myself anymore so I can't really wag my finger at anyone. I know how hard it is to take care of long hair, I struggle with it daily! I have found something that seems to be working for me and I thought I would share it. For me, it's the ultimate solution to the long hair/dryness situation. Deep conditioning, hair masks.. who is able to consistently deep condition on a weekly basis?  Come on, disrupting your shower to wait a half hour for your hair to condition is ridiculous! I just never found a way to make it work.. until the idea came to me..

Drum roll please...
Wait for it,

wait for it..

PUT THE CONDIDIONER IN YOUR HAIR BEFORE YOU HEAD OUT THE DOOR TO THE GYM!

Personally, for me it's the best solution. I feel like I am 'accomplishing' more than just using the eliptical, bike or treadmill and watching old episodes of "Ugly Betty." Plus it's keeping me working out every day (and conditioning my HAIR for god's sakes!) so it really works for me!

I kind of debated even writing this post thinking it might sound kind of stupid but I figured it might inspire someone. Feel free to share your own experiences of how to fit taking care of your hair into your life.. it might help someone else - go ahead.. go for it!!

This photo is my hair - sorry for the poor quality. I have all kinds of color in my hair but it's still in pretty good shape thanks to my regular deep conditioning!

Best Options for Rainy Weather..

With the rainy weather, hair in Seattle presents certain styling challenges. Why bother blowing your hair silky smooth and/or curling or flat ironing it if you are going to walk twenty feet to your car and get it all wet anyway? People here really need a lot out of a haircut.

A good haircut for the Pacific Northwest needs to have the style cut into the hair with a good foundation rather than having the style put into it with heat tools and product every day. Optimally, every haircut should hold it's shape but let's be honest, not every haircut really does. A stylist really needs to know how to build in a foundation with the cut, a basic structure and then know when and where to use texture appropriately. Not every head of hair will really work with the shredded, highly textured haircuts that make up most of the hair magazines right now. Some texture is always nice, but my opinion is that it is the foundation work that makes or breaks a haircut, especially when put to the rigors of this Seattle climate. I've been looking at some celebrity photos and come across three looks I think work particularly well in our weather here.

For short hair I like this photo of Carey Mulligan which illustrates a deconstructed bob. The texture is good because the rough ends will work with weather that is not conducive to something sleek anyway yet it can easily be dressed up with heat tools into a polished look that can also be styled up for more formal occasions:

Now, this photo of Drew Barrymore is a great medium length layered cut that has the same nice properties of the photo above (lots of layers can be worn messy for a rock-and roll look. It's versatile because it can also be blown dry or be heat styled as shown for polish and sophistication):

Jennifer Lopez has the perfect example about what to do with the long hair quandary in Seattle.. the low bun! As far as haircuts, when your hair is this long all you need to worry about is getting it cut frequently enough that your ends are healthy and not too uneven. You may want some layers in there but in general people with this kind of long hair (I'm speaking of myself as well) just don't get it cut that often. Personally, I think 3-4 times a year is reasonable. Styling the hair in a low bun or pony and moving the part around to change up the look is a great go-to for a quick style fix. Sometimes I even use conditioner as my styling product to keep it from getting fuzzy (just a little mind you, you don't want it dripping all over you in the rain!). You can move the bun or pony to either side as well as the usual back of the head. Side anything is really in right now!:

Update.

First of all, I want to thank each and every one of you for being such wonderful clients over the years. I also want to apologize for any inconvenience with scheduling the coming months may pose.

My family situation is such that I will need to be in California most of my free time. I have my schedule open for on-line booking but have had some calls because the next open appointments may be a few weeks out. I will not be able to change this at this time but if you are in dire hair straights, please feel free to book with Josephine Morales, Lamberto Laggio and Jim Jennings. Jim uses Keune color and has access to all my formulas. Please call the salon at (206) 322-9280 if you need to get in more quickly than my current availability will allow. My colleagues are all wonderful and talented stylists who I feel lucky to have the privilege to work with.

Also, I want to say to all of you that I have appreciated your loyalty and regard for me beyond measure, but none of you should have any reservation whatsoever should you feel the need to go see someone else! Whether you go to someone at e*clips or elsewhere I will absolutely not be upset or offended and I hope you do not feel awkward about it. Should you wish to come back to me at a later date when my schedule is open again - please don't hesitate! I will never make you feel guilty for needing your hair done when I was/am unavailable. (I only mention this because I have had a few apologetic emails and I don't want anyone to feel the need to apologize!!) As always, I just want you to love your hair!

In addition, I will not be taking any new clients over the phone until my personal situation resolves. However, on-line booking is still available for first time clients.

Thanks to all for your kind wishes and support.
I appreciate you and all you do and have done for me.

Highest regards and in humble respect,
Lynn Caldeiro

A Good Comment...

I want to share this comment I received today as well as my response.

Comment:
"Dear Lynn, it's great to know that there are some conscientious professional's in the hair care industry such as your self, willing to take the time, to avoid unseen dangers from carcinogenics in the products were often exposed to.
I also have a great deal of concern regarding manufacturers promoting their hair product's with out any significant and honest data to back their claims. Ultimately leaving the consumer, and operator as well as our environment at risk.

Still though, I can't help but wonder how someone, generally speaking... Of whom may be lacking that degree necessary in chemistry would be able to safeguard them self's from falling prey to using such alternative based product's known of making safe claims? Only to later find that NOW (a year later), a NEW study has deemed them dangerous as well?

There is allot that schepticism envolving how the FDA and other governing bodies regulate what is considered safe for human concumption, and that doesn't end here.
I believe that even being a chemist isn't always enogh to be able to distiguish what some chemicals are, or how they may react under certain conditions.
Take for instance that... There are chemical that when they combine with other factors, will morph into, or mimic particular chemicals that would inadvertently might at some point in time may be deemed unsafe, but since they cannot be categorized the same, they manage to slip under the radar, that is until eventually someone raises a red flag.

One of these so called alternative based chemicals know as Aldehyde [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldehyde[/url] may be just that, and is often found in many of the Keratin based thermal straightening systems.

So when is safe really safe?"



My response:
You raise an interesting question. I am not a chemist, that is true. I only have the information provided to me by the companies I choose to work with, which is one reason I am very selective about that process.

As a hairdresser who works with chemicals every day, I have made a choice to expose myself to certain risks. I inhale fumes from hair color, perms, this procedure and other types of relaxers on a regular basis. Anyone who colors their hair or pursues other chemical means of altering their appearance is making a similar choice. I think the best I can do is be as informed as I can. I have written a lot about my experience with the Keratin Smoothing product/procedure because I think it helps other people make their own choices. I will reiterate: I am not trying to push this product or this service. I only offer it.

In regards to the portion of your question about 'Aldehyde.' Again, I am not a chemist. I have been through many hours of training though. I have explored Keratin Smoothing by Coppola, Thermafuse Ammino Smoothing, Grund and Brazilian Blowout. What I have learned from these training classes in regards to the chemistry is that while the early smoothers used the Formaldehyde molecule as a carrier for depositing the smoothing treatment into the hair shaft, the smell was an issue. The safety concerns were similar to concerns in Nail Salons and not so much for the client. Ventilation was stressed (and again more for the repeat exposure of the operator.) After a lot of bad press about the formulas using Formaldehyde these companies switched out the carrier molecule. However they switched it to another 'Aldehyde' which is a "cousin," if you will, to Formaldehyde. Again - I am not a chemist. I only know what I've been told. My current salon is extremely well ventilated but, even still, products that have a heavy smell of any kind are unpleasant for the other clients as well as myself and my colleagues. The current formulations of the Smoothing Treatments do not have a strong smell. Once the smell was no longer an issue, I was willing to assume the operators risk of fume exposure. I was not willing to assume this risk when these treatments first came out because of the unpleasant formaldehyde smell. Once the smell was no longer an issue I was very interested because I knew there were many people who wanted this service. Again, I do not solicit this service, the clients that want it do their own research and seek it out. It's an added bonus that it’s fun to do because it can make such a dramatic impact on a clients appearance and in their lives! If people do have any concerns about the safety of this or other chemical services, I would suggest they check with their doctor before having them done.

When I perform this service I do a very meticulous job. I don’t cut any corners. I take my work ethic very seriously and it is my personal philosophy that this is what will bring me referrals and keep clients coming back. I do hair because I love to do it and it’s fun. So far as I can tell, this philosophy has served me well. I don’t know if people use the links much on the left side of the page, but you can see all the photos of the before-and-after of some models as well as feedback on their experiences. I hope that this helps people in making their decisions and that the information is useful.

The beauty of the color gloss!

I am really loving this Seattle autumn weather.. and I think people are really gearing up for the coming fall. I've been doing a lot of dark hues these last few weeks. Lot's of people wanting richer colors and a hint of warm.

The color gloss is my number one choice for a rich, natural color that leaves the hair feeling silkier and looking shiny. What makes it different from a regular all-over color is that it does no lifting of the hair cuticle or the hairs natural pigment, it only deposits color. Regular oxidative color does both (lifting and depositing).

A while ago I had a client come in for a gloss. She was a natural dark blonde but prefers dark hair so she'd been coloring her long hair with box color on her own for a long time. Her hair was starting to look damaged and feel brittle and dry on the ends. I freshened up her dark hair with an all-over color gloss and it looked great! It did all the things I hoped it would and left her shiny and no-longer dry looking. Win!!

Unfortunately, the next time I saw her about 6 weeks later for another gloss she told me the first one faded and she went over it again with a box color. There must have been a miscommunication. I thought I explained to her that if it fades in a week or two (which would not be unusual with the porosity of her hair) I would be happy to go over it with a second gloss at no charge. I think maybe she thought I was going to charge her. Sadly, by putting box color over it again it just put us 2 steps back. It's completely normal for really porous hair that has had repeated box dye on it to not hold onto color. By using box dye again she was only making the porosity worse, her hair more brittle and doing needless damage. It's to be expected it would probably take a few times to fill properly.  I felt really bad for not making it clearer when I did the first gloss.

So anyway, today I did another (beautiful rich brown) gloss and then I heat sealed deep conditioner and she left looking like a model.. I told her to call me if it fades too fast, and this time she promised she would!