5 Copper Formulation Mistakes & Smart Solutions

How To Create Vibrant Copper, Cover Grays & Slow Fading

Copper canvases can be tricky: Between at-home touch ups to manage fading or fast-growing grays, an even base is a rarity. 

Below, KEVIN.MURPHY COLOUR/STYLE.MASTER Carmen Waltz (@carmenwaltz) breaks down five common scenarios stylists run into everyday at the salon. Learn her smart solutions and formulation strategies when working with tricky copper canvases.

Mistake No.1: Ignoring Color Buildup & Uneven Canvases

Our copper clients want long-lasting, vibrant results—sometimes, without visiting the salon. If your client touches up their faded copper at home or has fast-growing grays, you might be dealing with dark banding, overlap or hollow pockets of color.

Here’s Carmen’s fix: “I love to lean on KEVIN.MURPHY+CODE Clear with 10-volume,” Carmen spills. “Since we’ve got color buildup on the hair, which happens a lot with our coppers, Clear is going to help shift out a little bit of that extra depth, so then I can go in and gloss.” 

Pro Tip: Be very intentional with your Clear application. “Sometimes the hair is more porous or we see more color overlap from at-home touchups in the front,” Carmen explains. That’s why she strategically picks out and applies color to the areas that have visible depth to achieve an even canvas.

Mistake No.2: Using The Same Formula for Different Concentrations of Grays

It’s common for our clients to find high concentrations of grays around the front hairline, with less concentrated grays near the nape or back of the head.

Here’s Carmen’s trick for even deposit throughout: “In that case, I would create two separate formulas because I wouldn’t want to have as much natural where I already have a lot of existing natural. I would go down to a third of my formula being natural versus two parts—that’s also going to prevent the color from going brown around the nape,” Carmen explains.

Mistake No.3: Failing to Consider the Porosity of Gray Hair

Gray hair can be naturally resistant to color because the cuticle layer is tightly compacted, making it difficult for dye molecules to penetrate. This can result in uneven or insufficient coverage—but, Carmen’s secret weapon is going to be your new go-to…

CODE is KEVIN.MURPHY’s latest addition to their color portfolio, but this is not your average permanent color. “As colorists, we also want products that are multitasking, and this technology takes care of those multi-process steps [like evening porosity or clarifying heavy metal buildup], solving those obstacles that all hairstylists relate to,” Carmen explains.

For Carmen’s client with 100 percent grays, uneven bands and hollow pockets of color, CODE was the perfect solution to cover grays, even porosity, remove heavy metals and create a vibrant, shiny end result. Click the beaker to get her formulas:

• Formula A (color remover):

  KEVIN.MURPHY +CODE CLEAR + 10-volume KEVIN.MURPHY CREAM.ACTIVATOR

• Formula B (roots):

  KEVIN.MURPHY +CODE 6.4 + 8.4 + 7.0 + 20-volume CREAM.ACTIVATOR

• Formula C (mids to ends):

  KEVIN.MURPHY GLOSS 10.4 + 8.44 + GLOSS GEL.ACTIVATOR

CODE features KM.LAMELLAR Technology, a ground-breaking technology inspired by advanced skincare delivery systems for improved color evenness, elevated vibrancy, increased durability and enhanced shine and repair—despite differences on the hair strand.

Inside KM.LAMELLAR Technology: Click for a step-by-step breakdown of how this technology works.

The power of skincare, now in your hair color—LEARN MORE about KEVIN.MURPHY+CODE!

Mistake No.4: Accidentally Browning Out Mids & Ends

Adding brown to a gray coverage formula is standard practice—but applying that same formula to faded mids and ends? That’s a surefire way to dull the vibrancy of copper and brown-out your results.

The Fix? “We had a really high percentage of grays, so I used two parts of natural and natural gold, in addition to her target color,” Carmen shares. “That natural in your gray coverage formula is creating a natural base so that the end result is the actual reflect/shade you chose. But on the mids and ends, we don’t have any gray to cover, so I’m not including that [gold/natural] in the formula.”

“If we’re just faded, choose the target color. You can even go a Level lighter to keep it a bit more lived-in—so you’ll have that deeper depth at the new growth and something a little lighter and brighter on those ends,” Carmen explains.

Mistake No.5 Skipping Proper At-Home Care Education

Reds and coppers are our fastest-fading colors, so it’s key to educate clients on proper at-home care.

Carmen recommends the EVERLASTING.COLOUR WASH and RINSE. “What’s great is that the EVERLASTING.COLOUR WASH supports the anti-metal technology within KEVIN.MURPHY+CODE. It prevents metal buildup, keeps color fresh, is pH-safe and brightens the hair,” Carmen shares.

Carmen’s must-have? EVERLASTING.COLOUR LEAVE-IN. “I recommend this to every single color client,” Carmen shares.

Product Pro Tip: “Keep EVERLASTING.COLOUR LEAVE-IN in your shower, so when you turn the water off, you can spray it right in.” Here’s why: “We know clients want to style their hair differently on different days, so if it ends up in the basket with every hair product, clients don’t use it consistently.”

What’s Inside? 

“It’s pH-sealing, locks the cuticle down, keeps color in, plus has UVA/UVB protection to prevent color fading. It even has 390-degree Fahrenheit heat protection and built-in bond protection, so it covers all the bases for color-treated hair,” Carmen adds.

Skincare for your hair: Try CODE Permanent Color for advanced delivery systems that add color, even porosity, clarify metals & add shine—all in one step.

Products Used

Hair Color

KEVIN.MURPHY+CODE

Kevin Murphy

Haircare

EVERLASTING.COLOUR WASH

Kevin Murphy

Conditioners

EVERLASTING.COLOUR RINSE

Kevin Murphy

Haircare

EVERLASTING.COLOUR Leave-In

Kevin Murphy

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