A Quick Guide to Hair Colour
In 1909 – a French chemist by trade – Eugene Schuller was the first to produce safe commercial colour for hair. He named his company the ‘French Harmless Hair Dye Company” which was renamed a year later to L’Oreal – the product of choice at Moreno Hair Design – independent boutique salon at Sloane Square.
What exactly is hair?
Hair is mainly dead tissue that consists of a shaft (the part we can see outside the skin) and the root (the part inside the follicle) underneath the skin. At the very base of the root are the only few growing cells.
Hair is made up of keratin and other related proteins. Pigments are responsible for the colour in hair and when there is no pigment left, hair turns gray or white.
What are the main ingredients in hair colour products?
The oxidizing agent in hair colouring products is Hydrogen Peroxide that assists the colouring process and helps it to last longer. Ammonia is the alkaline which separates the cuticle so that the colour can penetrate the hair. The level and kind of hair colour product you are using will affect how the peroxide and ammonia react with your hair.
The three major hair colouring product levels
- Semi-permanent colour (Level 1) – contains no peroxide or ammonia and covers up to 50 percent gray and could last for up to 12 shampoos. (If hair has already been coloured or permed, semi-permanent colours may become permanent.)
- Demi-permanent colour (Level 2) – contains no ammonia and a small amount of peroxide, which allows for a noticeable enhancement in colour and covers gray and could last for around 25 shampoos. (If hair has already been coloured or permed, demi-permanent colour may become permanent.)
- Permanent colour (Level 3) – peroxide and ammonia are used. The natural pigment of your hair is lightened and a new permanent colour is added. This may cause the same product to appear different on different individuals. The colour cannot be washed out and have to ‘grow’ out from the roots as your hair gets longer. I strongly recommend making use of a specialist colourist when using permanent colour.
Patch Test
The process of hair colouring is very safe and even more so when done professionally. However, some people may have an allergic reaction to a product. If you have never applied hair colour products before or if you are concerned about anything, I would advise a simple patch test. A little product is applied behind your ear and we wait up to two days to check for any allergy.