Colour Wheel

Let’s revisit the fundamentals of colour and the colour wheel.

We start with the primary colours – RED, YELLOW, and BLUE. When mixed, they create a neutral brown. The secondary colours, ORANGE, GREEN, and VIOLET, are created by mixing two primary colours, for example, RED and YELLOW make ORANGE. Finally, we have tertiary colours, which are created by mixing two secondary colours and provide tonal variations.

The depth of colour is indicated by the first number in a colour chart. The International Color Chart (Depth) ranges from 1 for BLACK to 10 for the LIGHTEST BLONDE.

The tone of a colour is indicated by the second and third number in a colour chart, although not all colour charts use the same numbering system. The second number usually represents the major tone, while the third number represents the minor tone.

There are different types of hair colouring products: temporary colours or toners wash out quickly as they only coat the outside of the hair shaft; semi-permanent colours last 6-8 washes as they contain small molecules that penetrate just under the cuticle and sit on the cortex; demi-permanent colours last 12-24 washes and contain small and medium-sized molecules that penetrate the hair shaft and cling to the cortex and cuticle; and permanent colour is exactly what it sounds like, as it contains small molecules that enter the hair shaft with peroxide, oxidising the natural pigment and trapping it in the hair shaft.

Peroxides: 3% or 10 vol darkens or adds tone; 6% or 20 vol provides one level of lift and covers 100% of white hair while darkening and adding tone; 9% or 30 vol provides 2-3 levels of lift depending on the natural depth; 12% or 40 vol provides 3-4 levels of lift depending on the natural depth.