Hair Tutorial Blog

today we’re going to walk you through how to take someone that’s already blond, BLONDER.  jessica is completely redoing her look by going lighter AND getting some bohemian bangs.

we’ll use a variety of lightening techniques to lighten her ends and break up the ombre she currently has.

step 1: SECTIONING the hair

like most cut and color jobs, the process begins with SECTIONING the hair.  

we want to break up the ombre on the top of her head and keep a shadowed root at the bottom. To do this we are going to section the head into 5 sections, a HORSESHOE section on the top of her head and the rest of the hair into 4 even quadrants.

step 2: LIGHTENING the hair

with the hair all sectioned.. it’s time to get LIGHTENING!

PROTIP: it’s important to note that we are using a different developer for the lightener in each section. We also remix the bleach after each section. we’re doing this for 2 reasons:

1. we want the bleach to STAY FRESH. It oxidizes as it’s exposed to air so it’s less effective at lightening the hair
2. we’re making the bleach a little stronger in each section to make sure we can wash out all sections AT THE SAME TIME.

with that said, let’s dive in.

we’ll start at the bottom of the section and work our way up. PROTIP: BACKCOMB the hair before applying the lightener to diffuse the line.

as we PAINT on the lightener, we’re making sure not to touch any of the hair that has already been lightened. we’re holding the brush VERTICALLY and FEATHERING the lightener on to ensure that we get a diffused line without any overlap.

NOTE:  you DO NOT want to overlap the lightener on to the hair that has already been lightened enough. this is VERY important for avoiding damage to the hair.

we STAGGERED the amount of dark we left on each section. alternating how much brown you leave will allow the color to flow naturally from the darker blonde to the lighter blonde.

for the first section, we left about an inch an a half.  for the second, we left 2 inches.  for the 3rd, we left the hair as it was and the repeated this STAGGERING PATTERN throughout the rest of the section.

we’ll repeat this process on the 3rd QUADRANT (the other back section) before moving on to quadrants 1 & 4.  

PROTIP: there’s more than one highlighting pattern that will give you the same result. make sure you make a mental note of whatever you are doing to make sure all of the sections to follow the same pattern. this will ensure that your color has flow.

2. quadrant 1 + 4: the sides of the head

for these sections in the front, we incorporated BABYLIGHTS! we added a lot of blonde to the horseshoe sections so the babylights will prevent it from looking stripy.

Use the same staggering lightener placement you did in the back sections and and add a babylight every so often.

jessica’s has a coarser hair texture, so a babylight weave for her has to be a little more dense than if the client had fine hair.

PRO TIP: you’ll want to determine the size of your weave by the texture of the person’s hair. if the person has very fine hair, you’ll want to do a fine weave (and so on).

3. the HORSESHOE: the top of the head

now we’re ready to do the TOP of the head, we’re going to separate the top section into 3 smaller sections. towards the forehead, we created a half moon around the fringe. with the remaining hair, we created 2 even sections.

we’re going to use a combination of DIFFERENT WEAVE SIZES to get very blended highlights throughout.  we’ll start with the HALF MOON section.

with the HALF MOON done, we’re ready to finish the 2 back sections of hair.

we started at the bottom of section and alternated the pattern of FINE to BABY FINE weave. it’s important to note that we’re took small sections that were close together. we really want to break up the brown in her ombre well. we’ll repeat the process until we’ve finished both sections.  

step 3: WASH and TONE

at this point, start checking the foils in the sections you started in and work your way around the head.  if you need to wash out the back while the front sections are still processing, please do so. 

jessica’s hair was ready to be rinsed all at the same time.

you can see the hair was ready to be WASHED.

step 4: lighten AGAIN

as you can see, jessica’s hair is about an 8 on the top. it was then time to move onto lightening the ends.

because she wants to be even BLONDER, we’re going to use a paint on technique with schwarzkopf BLONDE ME bond enforcing paint on lightner to lighten the ends of her hair. the result will be a darker blonde melting into a light blonde. 

to lighten the ends, we’re using the a hand painting technique to lighten the portions of jessica’s hair we’ve already lightened. when using the BLONDE ME, it’s important to remember that it’s still a lightener. make sure that you wash your hands in between sections to avoid getting lightener where it doesn’t belong. if you get it on the unlightened portions of the hair, you’re going to have brassy colors to tone out.

make sure to feather the lightener on higher on the sides of sections and again make sure to stagger the amount of blonde you see from section to section.

start at the back of the head and create a BRICK PATTERN. continue to work your way around the head.

after the lightener processes, you’re going to wash it out and TONE the hair.

step 5: TONE and STYLE the hair

on the TOP of the head where the color is a darker blonde, we’re going to tone with a level 8 ash. on the BOTTOM of the hair, we’re going to tone with a 10 pearl.

PRO TIP: formulate the toner according to the tones that you have to tone out in your clients hair.

after we allow the toner to process, we’ll wash and dry.

and then.. the masterpiece is revealed!

jessica will also be getting straight across bangs-- but we’ll show that in an upcoming blog :) so stay tuned!
what did you think of this style? do you use any of these highlighting techniques?  tell us in the comments.

we’ve all gushed over instagram models with luscious long pony tails. unfortunately, very few of us have the hair required for those looks or the money to get extensions.  which is why today we’re going to share a #hairhack for making your hair look longer WITHOUT extensions.

the BIG SECRET to this style?  you’re actually going to create 2 ponytails.

PREPPING the hair

FIRST, we’re going to the prep the hair with nvenn’s ‘clean,’ a dry shampoo that will absorb excess grease as well as prep the hair for a day spent tied up.  

SECOND, we’re going to do is BACKCOMB the top section. we want to make sure that we’re adding some volume to the style.

you want to take even sections into your hand when backcombing. make sure that you backcomb the same amount of strokes for each section.

making the PONYTAILS

with the top section backcombed, you’re ready to make your FIRST ponytail. you’re going to gather all of the hair in the center of the head, leaving a perimeter around the head.

take the time to smooth out the hair before you put the hair tie in your hair.  if you try to smooth it out afterwards, it will cause your ponytail to fall.

with the FIRST PONYTAIL FINISHED, you’re ready to make the second and finalize the style.

leave a small portion at the very back.use a comb to smooth the hair (and loosen if you see fit).

now you should have 2 PONYTAILS in a line on your head:

last, you want to hide that second ponytail.  take the small portion you left on the back and wrap it around the bottom ponytail.  fasten the hair with 2 bobby pins, using a criss-cross format.

you’ll repeat this process for the top ponytail, but you’ll use a portion of the top ponytail to do so.

the end result is a LONGER ponytail that looks gorgeous at holiday parties or in the office:

if you’re looking to add a little more the look, try curling your ends for a romantic touch to this gorgeous style.

would you try this #hairhack? tell us in the comments :)

we get asked a lot how to get natural LOOSE WAVES that showcase relaxed curls, so today we’re going to show you.

what you’ll need for this style

1. nvenn’s ‘fix’ flexible hair spray
2. nvenn’s ‘protect’ pre styler and heat protectant
3. nvenn’s ‘smooth’ split end mender and flyaway tamer
4. 4. a 1 ¼  -  1½”  curling iron

PREPPING the hair

if you’re starting with clean hair, you may find it difficult to hold the wave.  misting in ‘fix’ all over the roots will really help to prep your hair before you start styling it.

after you wash your hair, follow this process:

1. mist a layer of nvenn’s ‘protect’ through your hair before you blow dry.
2. spray nvenn’s ‘fix’ flexible working hair spray throughout the hair as you blow dry.

work nvenn’s ‘protect’ through the hair a second time before you start curling it.

HEAT PROTECTANT is a must-have for anyone who uses heated styling tools.  nvenn’s protect creates an invisible layer between your hair and the styling tools. it’s vital that you make sure to coat your entire head with it- not just a few areas.

your hair might be a little moist after using the protectant, that’s okay.  it’ll have time to dry as your curling iron is warming up.

CREATING the curls

with your curling iron heated up and ready to go, it’s time to section your hair.  divide it into three even sections; (the nape or “the basement”, the middle or “the main floor”, and the top of the head or “the roof”)

keep in mind that the sections you curl need to be pretty big because we’re going for those LOOSE WAVES.

the key to ensuring the waves look NATURAL is alternating the directions your curling the hair in. you’re going to alternate the direction from section to section and also from the top to the bottom of the strand. for the first section, you want to start towards the root and curl the top part of the section away from the face and the bottom part towards the face.  for the second section, you’ll want to do the opposite.

you’ll repeat this process throughout every section on the head.

FINISHING the style

to finish the style, use some of nvenn’s ‘smooth’ to tame any flyaways. you’ll want to warm the product up in your hands and gently work it throughout your hair, breaking up the curls.

once you’re happy with your waves, spray a layer of nvenn’s ‘fix’ to finish the look and keep the waves in place.

have you tried this stye?  how do you like to wear your WAVES?  tell us in the comments :)

sam has very CURLY HAIR.  he’s growing in his beard and he’s got a lot of red and blonde tones shining through. we’re going to mimic the colors appearing naturally in his beard his hair by HIGHLIGHTING his hair with a balayage technique and creating awesome CHESTNUT highlights.

the reason we’ve chosen a balayage is because it looks and grows in more NATURALLY. we wouldn’t recommend getting a solid chestnut color in this situation because it may be too overpowering and drastic for what sam is looking for. a BALAYAGE will work best with sam’s natural base for mimicking darker tones and lighter reds in his beard.

sam also won’t need to recolor his hair as often. since he wears his hair short on the sides and back, a solid color would need to be redone every time he got a fresh haircut. balayage highlights are much easier for men (and women) that do not want to recolor their hair as often.

HIGHLIGHTING the hair

we’re going to start at the front of the head and move backwards. stagger the amount of highlighting section by section to give a diffused line from dark to light. also incorporate different size weaves (fine, medium, and chunky) to give a variety of dimension to the highlights.

because the hair is so curly, you don’t have to be as precise as you would with straighter hair.  the curl helps it to blend naturally.

incorporate the different size weaves and alternate section by section until all the foils are applied.

with the foils complete, we’re going to let his hair process for about 10 minutes.  as he doesn’t want extreme highlights, he won’t need as much time in the foils.

with 10 minutes spent processing, he’s ready to wash out and tone.

TONING the hair

we’re going to use a 634 to give a very rich color to the HIGHLIGHTS.

once the toner has processed, we’re ready to CUT the hair.  as it dries, you’ll be able to see the CHESTNUT tones peeking through.

CUTTING the hair

we’re going to clean the sides of his hair up and leave the top full. 

the SIDES and BACK of the head  

we’ll start by doing scissor over comb around the head. .

next, use texture shears to take out the weight.

then, groom around his hairline with trimmers.

  lastly, clean the neck line with a straight razor.

the TOP of the head

sam wants to keep the top full and long, so we’re not going to do much. we’ll trim the interior of the hair towards the back of his hair to take a little of the bulkiness out.  otherwise, we’ll be doing a simple trim to keep his hair healthy.

and now his CUT and HIGHLIGHTS are all done! 

you can see that the red is peering through, but not overbearing. most guys will want to keep their color pretty natural, so you want to stick with a technique like the BALAYAGE to keep the colors flowing.

have a question? ask us in the comments.

we’re joined by melissa of raw foods romance to discuss the importance of nutrition and the health of your hair in her NEW recipe book: plant based dips n dressings.  melissa is the founder of raw foods romance and has documented her health transformation from a-z on youtube. check it out @lissa raw food romance

it’s all about BEAUTY. beauty is everything inside and out. it’s just as important to take care of the inside of your body as it is to take care of the outside. in order to have truly HEALTHY HAIR, you need to start from the inside.

our commitment to HEALTH and BEAUTY

at nvenn, we take a very holistic approach to beauty.  it took us years to create a NATURAL, and SUSTAINABLE line because we never wanted to sacrifice performance or health.  we are also committed to staying CRUELTY-FREE.

we use PLANT-BASED PROTEINS that come from responsible sources.  each and every ingredient in our products was chosen to NOURISH YOUR HAIR with the best nature has to offer.  today, we’re going to talk about 2 of our MAIN INGREDIENTS and how they apply to your beauty inside and out.

the benefits of COCONUT

COCONUT is great for your hair, skin, and nails.  most shampoos are very astringent because they are made with harsh chemicals that strip everything out of your hair.  nvenn ‘wash’ is formulated with a coconut-based cleanser that restores moisture (and cleans the hair). if you think back to your grade 8 science class, water doesn’t lift oil, oil lifts oil.

you’ll notice that your hair will feel like to conditioned it after you shampooed it. nvenn’s “wash” HYDRATES YOUR HAIR leaving it incredibly soft and shiny.

the best part? coconut is great for you internally too! in fact, coconut has less fat than an avocado is a great anti-inflammatory.  in melissa’s recipe for coconut veg salad, she uses young thai coconut to cut the fat and add beauty benefits.

the benefits of SEA KELP

sea kelp is HIGH IN BIOTIN (B7 or vit h) , otherwise known as the BEAUTY VITAMIN. biotin is necessary for the metabolism of proteins, carbs, and fat.  vitamin b7 is responsible for breaking down proteins into things that our bodies can use to make our HAIR HEALTHY. without the proper levels of biotin the hair becomes dry, brittle, and prone to breakage.

our entire line has a base of ORGANIC SEA KELP to ensure your hair is STRONG, SHINY, and SOFT.

if you want healthy hair, make sure to include biotin into your daily routine.  use nvenn products to protect your hair from the outside and seek food sources that are high in vit b7.  in melissa’s veg salad, there are 4 major sources of B7 for raw and vegan eaters.

• cauliflower
• almond
• sea kelp
• spinach

in the video, she sliced celery for the spread but you can use mini peppers or any veggie you see fit for this delicious dip. 

the importance of HEALTHY CHOICES

HEALTH and BEAUTY go hand-in-hand.  the only way to truly reach your beauty goals, is to treat your inner and outer body with the same respect.  whether you’re a super health nut or just trying to improve your health- always choose natural products and whole foods for the best results.

if you have a question for lissa or for us, leave a comment!  we’re always happy to help

today we’re going to show you how to create the PERFECT VOLUMINOUS PONYTAIL. whether you’re looking for a way to refresh your style for the office or need a simple and elegant style for a gala, this BIG PONYTAIL is perfect.

we’re going to start this blog off with giving you 2 VITAL SECRETS to good styling:

1. make sure your hair isn’t too clean.  clean hair is limp and hard to style.  if you’re going to have clean hair, blow dry it with nvenn ‘fix’ flexible hair spray. spraying ‘fix’ at the roots will give your hair a bit of grit for BACKCOMBING. 
   
   
2. use 2 ponytails.  don’t worry, we’re going to show you how.  just trust us when we say this is going to make styling your hair so much EASIER.

creating the BIG VOLUMINOUS PONYTAIL.

as you may have guessed from our secrets, BACKCOMBING is the first step in creating the perfect ponytail.  

keep in mind that the key to good backcombing is making sure that the sections are all the same size.  you want to hold each section with the same tension and start the backcombing on the same part of the strand EVERY time.

also, use the same number of “strokes” for each section. if you start about 3 inches from the root, then you’re always going to start about 3 inches from the root.  if you don’t, the body in your hair will likely look lumpy and uneven.

as you complete each section, you’ll want to set the backcombing in with ‘fix’ HAIR SPRAY. once you’ve traveled across the top section of your head (also known as the VEIL), you’re going to take that section as a whole and set it aside.

NEXT, we’re going to tie up the FIRST ponytail. you’re going to do this by gathering all the hair on the crown of the head for the ponytail and use your FIRST HAIR TIE to tie it up (leave a perimeter of hair all around the outside edges).  this is the base of your VOLUMINOUS PONYTAIL, so make sure to have it where you want your ponytail to sit. if you want a high pony, have this inner section sit high on the head.

then you’ll take the REST OF THE HAIR and wrap it around the first ponytail, and tie it with your SECOND HAIR TIE.

with the SECOND PONYTAIL in place, you can begin to loosen the front and shape your ponytail as you see fit. the first ponytail helps keep the structure of your hair as you create the style.

and now you have the PERFECT VOLUMINOUS PONYTAIL.

today we’re going to show you how to cut CURLY HAIR.

in dakota’s case, she’s looking to get rid of some of the body and enhance her curls. though there are many ways to cut CURLY HAIR, we’ve chosen the CHRISTMAS TREE CUT.  this involves internal layering without any texturizing.

the LAST THING you want to do to curly hair is to add too much texture to it. too much texture will leave the ends looking scraggly.

PRO TIP: curly hair loves texture. it gives the curls room to “play and form”. remove the bulk from the hair, and then add texture. DON’T use “texturizing” as your cutting technique.

the trick to cutting curly hair is cutting the hair in it’s natural shape. we’ll brush it out to get the knots out, but we’ll reform the hair before we start the cut. to do this you can apply replenish oil and spray it down with a bit of water to bring back out the natural curl. in dakota’s hair we used 3 pumps.

cutting the PERIMETER

we’re going to start with the PERIMETER of the hair.   we’re going to take off about 2 ½ inches.  we want to avoid creating a solid line, so we’re going to point cut into the hair. we want to play with it, see where all the curls sit and cut accordingly.

PROTIP: keep in mind that cutting CURLY HAIR is more about working with the shape of the hair, it’s more visual than a precise, structured hair cut.   in many ways, it’s like clipping hedges.

CUTTING the hair to remove excess bulk or body

this starts with separating the hair into 3 sections.  think of it as the basement, the main floor, and the roof (and cut in that order).

PROTIP: the number of sections is determined by the amount of bulk the client wants removed and the density of their hair. dakota has really thick hair and wanted a lot of bulk removed.

the first section is the BOTTOM of the head. dakota hates the layer underneath because it sits fairly straight, so we’re going to cut it shorter than the above layers in a very slight undercut. this will be hidden by the rest of the hair by giving the rest of her curls more room to form.

since we’ll be using a slide cutting technique, you want to make sure that the hair is really wet before hand. this will ensure that the shears are creating a CLEAN CUT to the strand and not tearing the cuticle. tearing the cuticle will cause splits in the hair which will make the hair frizzy.

take sections starting in the center back and work towards the front on each side. we’re going to layer the hair on a steep angle to make sure there's enough hair is left at the perimeter. make sure your tension is gentle enough to preserve the natural curl in the hair (remember, we want to cut the hair as it would sit naturally).  then you’ll take the next section and over direct it over it to the previous section.  we will always overdirect on to the last section to maintain some of the length towards the front.

PRO TIP: if you want to maintain lots of length around the face, over direct everything behind the ear straight back rather than the previous sections.

with the bottom section done, we’re going to move on to the MIDDLE section. but before we do that-we’re going to spray the hair with water again to get some of the natural curl back. use the bottom section as a guide while we cut her hair. we want this section to fall over top of the bottom section creating a ‘CHRISTMAS TREE’ effect. (make sure the bottom length of the middle section is longer and falls over the top length of the bottom section - internal layering).

as we get closer to the area behind the ears, we’re going to pull the hair straight back as if you want to PRESERVE more LENGTH around the face. if they want a rounder shape, continue to over direct the hair to the previous section. we’ll be able to frame her face exactly how she likes it after the sections are all done.

we’ll repeat this process for the TOP of the head.

FRAMING the face

we’re going to layer her hair around the face and pay careful attention to where it falls. each and every head of CURLY HAIR is unique.  you’ll need to cut carefully and make sure the hair is sitting in its natural curl shape before attempting to cut it. again, think of cutting the hair like hedge cutting where you would visually look at where the hair sits and cut accordingly.

STYLING the hair

to style dakota’s hair, we’re going to use a combination of oil and twisting.  first, we put a little bit of oil onto our hands and twist her hair into spirals.

we’ll REPEAT this process around the entire head and allow it to air dry this way.

her style is COMPLETE!

BONUS: CURLY HAIR tips

with a lovely head of CURLY HAIR in our chair, we decided to ask dakota for her top 3 maintenance tips for curly hair.

1. get GOOD PRODUCTS. quality products are important for everyone, but they are VITAL for those with curly hair. leave conditioner in to contain the MOISTURE. curly hair needs a lot of moisture to defeat frizz.

2. DON’T COMB it when it’s DRY.  always comb curly hair when it’s wet.  otherwise, it will be incredibly frizzy.

3. find a STYLIST who can cut curly hair.  if the stylist feels uncomfortable cutting curly hair, find someone else.

we’ve gotten a lot of requests with the same question: how do i choose which FOILING TECHNIQUE to use? as there is no perfect answer, we decided to do a video demonstrating what each foil technique would look like when done. we also explained the things to consider when choosing a foiling technique.

when it comes to choosing a FOILING TECHNIQUE, there is no rule book that will tell you which style requires what.  in fact, that’s where a lot of the creativity in styling hair is born.

what to consider BEFORE choosing a FOILING TECHNIQUE

5 FOILING TECHNIQUES

we’re going to show you 5 different FOILING TECHNIQUES you can use to craft your styles:

a FINE weave
a MEDIUM weave
a CHUNKY weave
SLICES
how to USE SHAPES

doing a BABY FINE weave

first things first, consider the texture and density.  if we’re doing a baby fine weave on someone with coarse hair, it needs to be a little thicker so that you can see it.   vice versa, if a person have very fine hair you’ll want to make sure that your weave is smaller or it will look blocky and unnatural.

we use BABY FINE WEAVES a lot when we’re doing balayages and ombres to help break up any harsh lines making the style look natural.

with the BABY FINE WEAVE, you can see different colors breaking through.

the MEDIUM WEAVE

keep in mind that the size of a MEDIUM WEAVE is dependant on the density and texture of the hair. a “medium weave” on someone with really fine hair might actually look more like a “chunky weave”. this is why it’s so important to take the time to examine the texture and density of the hair.

with the medium weave, you can see how it looks a bit more streaked. this technique is great when you want to control or vary the amount of highlights that you see. It’s also a great technique to use on top of the head to prevent any stripiness.

the CHUNKY or THICK WEAVE

as mentioned before, you’ll want to consider the density of the hair.

this is a great technique to use to give cuts a flash of color. it’s a modern spin to the “peak-a-boo” technique from the 90’s

PROTIP: to keep your foils tight to the root, start applying your color from the mid-shaft down to the ends. secure the foil at the roots and then paint right to the top at the very end.  this will prevent your foils from bleeding everywhere.

doing SLICES

on top of the actual density of the hair, we also must consider the density of the foils. we do show you in the video what it looks like when you slices closer together vs. farther apart. you’ll notice the red will look more solid when the foils are closer together.

PRO TIP: in fine and thin hair, slices can make the hair look like a solid color if the foils are spaced too closely. that being said, they are great to use in when you want to add panels of color for dimension. color corrections are also a great time to use this technique.

using SHAPES in FOIL TECHNIQUES.

in this case, we’ve chosen to use triangles.  when we’re coloring, we like things to be asymmetrical yet balanced as we feel it looks better.  all we did was take lightener and color over these entire triangles.

as you can see, you can see a beautiful cascade of color shining through.  when using shapes, you can use any shape you see fit.  just consider how it is going to fall and visualize the effect you are trying to create.

there are certain looks that just aren’t the same without HOT ROLLERS.  this week, we’re going to teach you how to use hot rollers to get LUSCIOUS CURLS without damaging your hair.  as busy stylists, this is one of our favorite ways to get lovely locks with minimal effort or time required.

the best part about hot rollers?  you can use them when you hair is damp.  just plug in your rollers, put in some heat protectant, and ROLL IT UP!  for most of us, the hair is dry and curled by the time we’re done with makeup.
ready to do it yourself?  watch the video & read the blog to harness the power of hot rollers for yourself.

STEP 1: PREPARE your hair

before you do anything, plug in the HOT ROLLERS.  you’ll want to make sure that they’re ready to use by the time you’re done prepping the hair. 

in today’s example, jessica has already blow-dryed her hair with ‘fix’ flexible working hairspray.  this is our go-to product for hold, as well as getting a little more VOLUME into the hair before we style.  whatever you decide, make sure you use a HEAT PROTECTANT on your hair before you start putting rollers in.  there is nothing more important than protecting your hair from heat damage.  we use ‘protect’ heat protectant.  it’s WEIGHTLESS, INVISIBLE, and PROTECTS the hair from damage.

STEP 2: SECTIONING your hair

as always, SECTIONING is an important part of the process. start the process at the bottom of your head and keep the rest out of the way.

make sure that the pieces of hair you grab aren’t too big for the roller. you don’t have to be super clean or straight, but you want to make sure that your sections are about the diameter of the hot roller you’re using.  

STEP 3: using the HOT ROLLERS

once you’re confident in your HAIR TO ROLLER ratio, take the section you want to start with in your hand. use the hot roller like a COMB and pull it to the end of the hair, holding the end of the hair with your left hand. make sure the tension in the hair is even throughout the section.

ROLL the end of your hair underneath the rest of the hair you’re wrapping around the roller.  make sure that there isn’t any hair sticking out or you’re going to have bent ends.  then, complete the curl by putting in the pin to your roller.

PROTIP: when you’re working on the back of your head, pull the sections out to the side so that you can see what you’re doing.

REPEAT this process up the head.  when you get to the front of your head, it’s important to note that you can choose to roll towards the center or roll your hair to the side.

this depends on your style as well as your preference. in jessica’s case, she prefers to let her hair fall naturally and thus- rolls to the center of the head.  

once your LAST ROLLERS are in, all you have to do is let them COOL.  this typically takes about 5 minutes.

most rollers will have an indicator that tells you when they are cool, but if you’re working without- simply use your fingers to determine when the rollers are cool.  (to be safe- give yourself at least 5-7 minutes)

STEP 4: taking the rollers OUT

take your hot rollers out and let those locks fly!

once all your rollers out, the only thing left to do it SHAKE YOUR HEAD!  this amazingly technique will leave your hair looking relaxed and NATURALLY full of VOLUME and BODY.
 

to finish the look, we use ‘smooth’ split end mender and hair defrizzer to tame flyaways and complete the look.

last but not least, we seal the deal on ALL-DAY style and spray a light mist of ‘fix’ flexible working hairspray. then we’re done!

to match the crazy ZIPPER FACE MAKEUP, we’re doing a video on how to get BIG HALLOWEEN HAIR.  if veronica’s makeup is a total mystery to you, check out this video.  we recently did a guest-post on Dollar Eyelash Club showing how to get this creepy ZIPPER FACE look.

otherwise- take a seat and learn how to get BIG HALLOWEEN HAIR. .

the most important part of doing BIG HALLOWEEN HAIR is making sure that you don’t damage your hair.  most people will tease the life out of the hair, causing breakage that takes a lot more than 1 night to fix.  in this week’s video, we’re going to show you how to get BIG HAIR that LASTS ALL NIGHT without damaging your precious locks.

before we started the backcombing, we PREPPED the hair with ‘volume’ heat activated volumizer.  while the hair is damp, we worked ‘volume’ through the hair before blowdrying.  this gave the hair a really good base of BODY and VOLUME.  afterwards, we used ‘protect’ heat shield before CURLING the hair.

step 1: HAIRSPRAY and BACKCOMBING

as you may have guessed, the first step is HAIRSPRAY and BACKCOMBING.  we’re using ‘fix’ flexible working hair spray.  this hair spray is THE BEST.  not only is it very strong, it is soft so it won’t damage your hair.

go section by section, beginning with spraying the section down with hairspray.  then, pick up your comb and begin BACKCOMBING.  we’re going to BACKCOMB all the way from the bottom of the strand to the top.

we’ll REPEAT this process for the ENTIRE HEAD.  remember to be VERY GENTLE and always hold the tip of the hair as you backcomb.  you never want to rip or tear your hair.  which is exactly why it’s so important to use a SOFT but STRONG hairspray like ‘fix’.  with a hard hairspray, you are 10 times more likely to damage the hair.

once you’re finished with backcombing, you need to use another layer of HAIRSPRAY to make sure that all your hard work stays in throughout the day.

step 2: SETTING the STYLE

now we’re ready to use ‘texture’ molding hair wax.  this will help add a wispy element to the ends of the hair, as well as add more texture to your hair.  gently massage it into your hands and work it in o your hair, taking note to not pull out the backcombing work you’ve just done.

for those of you that are doing the ZIPPER FACE for your halloween look, ‘texture’ is a great way to get glitter to stick to your hair.

time for another quick layer of hairspray!  

last, we’re going to use a few bobby pins to PIN UP the loose ends and finish the look

and voilà! you have BIG HALLOWEEN HAIR that’s just crazy enough to turn heads all dayand night.  if you’re looking for the products we used, you’re in luck! we’ve got every product we used on sale in the HALLOWEEN STYLING KIT.  (the best part?  it’s on sale!)

let us know what you think in the comments and share your crazy halloween hair with us @nvennhairbeauty :)

RED PLUM color blend

this week we’re doing our new talent madison’s hair.  as a new member of the nvenn team, the only way to give a warm welcome is to do a video!  we’re taking her from copper with a brown shaded root and creating a beautifully blended RED PLUM color that’s perfect for fall.

both of the colors we’re using are level 5 colors.  we’re going to stagger the dark to make sure it’s BLENDED and fades into an INTENSE RED color, as well as add a veil of dark to the crown of her head.

SECTIONING the HAIR

as always- the process begins with SECTIONING the hair into 4 quadrants.

 we love using shapes to create DIMENSION in the hair.  this can be easily done by envisioning the shapes you want to utilize while sectioning the hair.  because we want to create this dark veil, we’ve left a crescent moon at the front of madison’s hair. the dark hair will fall over the red panel in the fringe creating dimension between the colors. 

we’re going to use a 3.5 for the roots for the PLUM and on the ends, a 5.666 for the INTENSE RED.

COLORING the ROOTS

we’re going to use our 3.5 to color the roots.  you want to remember to STAGGER the dark from section to section.  not only will this help the COLOR BLEND, it will make sure that your color looks NATURAL. 

start from the bottom.  we typically extend the root on the very bottom section to help define the color.  make sure you hold your brush VERTICALLY and FEATHER the color.

with each new section, variate the length of dark color down the section.  where one will be 1 ½ inches, the next 3 inches. take a mental note on each section’s length to make sure you can replicate the results on the other side of the head.

PROTIP: keep your gloves clean! color bleeds and in order to keep the integrity of the style, you don’t want to put dark plum where it doesn’t belong.  if you need to, switch to a new pair. 

with the ROOT COLOR all applied, you’re ready to color on the INTENSE RED.

COLORING the CRESCENT MOON

we’ve talked quite a lot about this veil and now it’s time to do it!  as you can see, we’ve pulled the hair back and painted the pulled back crescent moon section DARK PLUM.

for the front towards her bangs, we’re using the RED.

COLORING the ENDS

now you’re ready to pull out the 5.66. go section by section and MELT the color into the ends. make sure you’re really BLENDING where the colors meet by pulling DOWNWARD with a VERTICAL BRUSH.

you’ll repeat this blending process for every section on the head until the head is entirely covered in color.  let the color process for 20 MINUTES and then WASH the hair out.

BLOWDRYING & STYLING

BEFORE WE BLOWDRY, we’re going to make sure we protect madison’s newly colored hair from the heat.  we’ll start with ‘replenish’, our hair restoration oil.  this lightweight oil restores hair’s MOISTURE and PROTECTS the hair from heat. then we mist in a layer of ‘protect’ throughout the hair to protect madison’s hair from the heat of the blowdryer.

 next, we’re going to apply ‘fix’ flexible hairspray to her roots to add a little volume and body while we blowdry.  now we’re ready to BLOWDRY her hair.

with her hair dry, we’re going to add a little ‘smooth’.  this is one of our favorite products! not only does it smell delicious, it’s a HAIR DEFRIZZER and SPLIT END MENDER. (and it smells AMAZING.)

and now madison’s RED PLUM hair is COMPLETE!

would you try this color?  let us know what you think in the comments <3

crystal had a bright blue color in her hair. it faded to a greenish color, so she decided to use a color remover to take out the residual color. the result was less than desirable. the product she used probably contained peroxide or some other bleaching agent which LIGHTENED some of her NATURAL DARK COLOR and left her with this band of warm orange in her hair.

what we’re going to do today is pull up all of the BLONDE and make a seamless transition to incorporate her dark roots as well. we're going to put in all of the foils and then color in between to ELIMINATE the warm orange band, otherwise that's going to show through the color.

we’ve SECTIONED her hair into four. she has a very deep part on the right side of her head which we are going to follow for that specific section. we split the back into half and we are going to start at the back and work our way forward.

first we BACKCOMB the hair.

we're going to start at the bottom and leave out the first little section so we're incorporating her dark root color into the foiling pattern.

we are going to turn the brush sideways and FEATHER into the BACKCOMB to create a  diffused line. we're also going to STAGGER the amount of dark we have section by section because that's really going to break up the fade from dark to light. this incorporates varying amounts of her natural root which created a diffused BLENDED OMBRE.

the first section was a section left out completely to incorporate all the dark. the second section was was about 1.5 inches away from the root. for the third, we're going to do about 2 to 3 inches away from the root. lastly, the fourth is 4-5 inches away from the root.

we're making sure not to touch any of her PREVIOUSLY LIGHTENED white hair. we want to make sure that we are not getting any bleach on it because it's will DAMAGE the already   processed hair.

when we do the COLOR we’re going to go back in and get rid of  all of the orange band.

once we’ve hit the o-bone, we incorporate the BACKCOMB and BABYLIGHT technique. first section out a fine babylight weave on the top of the section and clip it away. on the remaining bottom portion of the section, we continue to backcomb in the same way as the previous foils. now pull down the babylight weave.

make sure the bleach extends closer to the root then the bottom backcombed section. this acts as a veil to further diffuse the fade from dark to light. again we want to turn the brush and FEATHER the lightener on. continue to use the same STAGGERING PATTERN for the dark root.

we’re going to continue this process all the way to the top of her head.

we are still incorporating left out sections that use the full amount of her natural root. these sections will not have a backcombed portion, but will still incorporate a BABYLIGHT on top of the section.

we are all set. now we just have the last section.  

PRO TIP #1: for every section that we do we want to make sure to RE-MIX the bleach, as it has begun to process. the goal here is to keep the bleach fresh and strong.

Now that we have all the foils in, we are going to go back and COLOR IN BETWEEN the foils to eliminate the orange band. once again we’re starting at the bottom and working our way up.

PRO TIP #2: remember to use your towel to keep your hands clean!
once again, we don’t want a harsh line so make sure to FEATHER the COLOR into the blonde.

now that we have all the foils in and the COLOR applied, we’re going to do a COLD RINSE before removing the foils. this will prevent the dark color from bleeding into the blonde.

this is what it looks like BEFORE TONER.

FIRST TONER

and the SECOND TONER with CONTINUUM treatment.

we’re all done! we’ve gotten rid of ALL the orange, and incorporated her natural dark root as well.

because we moved her blonde up so much, her hair looks even LONGER than when we started!

just beautiful!