3 HAIRLINE BLENDING TIPS TO AVOID BLACK HOLES & STRIPES

3 Must-Try Steps For Soft, Dimensional Money Pieces & Hairlines

From caring for fragile baby hairs to angling your foils just right, giving your client’s money piece a POP of brightness can be a challenge. That’s why Joico Global Brand Ambassador and Artistic Director Larisa Love (@larisadoll) is sharing her go-to hairline foiling technique for flawless, intentional coverage.

Keep scrolling for Larisa’s must-know tips for kicking black holes and striped highlights to the curb.

1. Always use a middle part to create balance in the hairline.

At the start of every appointment, Larisa doesn’t ask her clients how they part their hair. Instead, she simply parts the hair down the middle every time. Why? To give balance to the end result. Every foil and tease that happens on one side must be repeated on the other.

Here’s Larisa’s middle part sectioning routine for every hairline:

1. Prep with Joico Defy Damage ProSeries 1 Bond Protecting Color Optimizer Spray and Joico Defy Damage ProSeries 2 Bond Strengthening Color Treatment to lay the foundation for even color with 80 percent less breakage and 90 percent more color vibrancy.
2. Part the hair evenly down the middle, then section out your money piece on either side from the ear to the Mohawk section.

Pro tip: Once you start foiling, be sure to start on the bottom and sides of the money piece section. This will ensure you get as close to the hairline as possible. 

Tap the beaker for Larisa’s formula:

• Formula A (lightener)

  Joico Blonde Life Lightening Powder + 5-volume Joico LumiShine Volume Creme Developer (1:1)

Photo Courtesy of Joico

Recreate Larisa’s hairline blonding technique using her go-to lightener, developer and more.

2. Gently tease baby hairs to avoid dark holes.

We know, teasing to lighten baby hairs sounds sketchy. BUT if you don’t, you’ll end up with dark holes or breakage disrupting your money piece. The secret to a happy medium? Gently backcombing.

Here’s how Larisa uses a rat tail comb to blend her client’s baby hairs:

1. Start with a babylight section—baby hairs included.
2. Using a rat tail comb, gently tease the section—you want to use very light tension. This will eliminate any super short hairs while leaving longer ones in the foil.
3. Continue along the hairline, pivoting each subsection at a diagonal-back to cover more ground.

Want to see Larisa’s entire hairline blonding technique? Tune in with BTCTV!

3. Connect the nape into the money piece for an all-over glow

When you think about a money piece, you probably aren’t picturing the back of your client’s head. However, the back sections are integral to the face-frame, especially when the client has their hair up or pulled forward.

Here’s how Larisa connects her sections to avoid a “striped” end result:

1. Once one side of the hairline is foiled, take a diagonal-back slice from the outer edge of the nape.
2. Tease with a rat tail comb and foil.
3. Repeat on the opposite side.

Keep in mind: Most back sections take form as a thin babylight. But if the client has thicker hair, Larisa recommends creating two diagonal-back foils back-to-back.

Pro tip: When lightening multiple sections, Larisa likes to up her lightener as she goes by 5-volume to make sure that everything lifts evenly.

Gentle blonding + long-lasting results: Check out Larisa’s go-to blonding products.

Products Used

Conditioners

Moisture Recovery Shampoo And Conditioner

Joico

Haircare

Defy Damage Pro-Series 1

Joico

Haircare

Defy Damage Pro-Series 2

Joico

Lightener

Blonde Life

Joico

Demi-Permanent Color

LumiShine™ Demi-Permanent Liquid Color

Joico