6 Wet Balayage Tips For Blended, Rooty Blondes

How To Brighten Blondes With A Wet Balayage Service

Want to learn how to brighten blondes and create dimension in ONE service? We thought so. That’s why Carly Zanoni (@the.blonde.chronicles) shared her wet balayage technique for creating soft, blended blondes. 

Check the video for the full application and keep scrolling for six tips to take back to the salon NOW! Don’t forget to check out the finished look and tap the beaker for the formulas!

Prep With This Treatment Spray For Even Lift 

Metal particles in water can cause serious damage to the client’s hair and even affect color results. That’s why Carly preps her clients with the L’Oréal Professionnel Metal Detox Spray. It isolates metal particles in the hair and breaks them down, preventing breakage and allowing the hair to lift evenly and safely. 

Want To Win A Full Set Of Metal Detox? Click Here To Enter!

1. Avoid Harsh Lines With A Wet Application

Painting on wet hair allows Carly to achieve seamless blends and avoid lines of demarcation. “Since this is such a fast service, you can do it right at the shampoo bowl or wet the hair down at your station to keep the client comfortable,” she explains. 

2. Use A Teardrop Placement To Achieve A Lowlight Effect 

When applying the root melt, Carly goes by a “drag and tap” application. Here’s how: 

• In the back sections, she drags the color lower on the section to about the mid area. 

• Then at the top and around the face, she only taps the color at the root. This teardrop placement will keep most of the depth in the back of the head, brightness around the face and create dimension for the balayage to pop. 

Pro Tip: For clients that are looking for 100% gray coverage, Carly suggests applying the root color first on DRY hair. Then, she will wet the ends and apply a wet balayage while the root color processes. 

3. Muddy Color Result? Try Tweaking Your Formula

If the client is a cool blonde but wants a more lived-in look with a darker base, adding a small amount of warmth to their root melt formula will replace missing pigment and avoid a muddy or gray result, Carly explains. 

Click The Beaker For Carly’s Formula Breakdown!

• Formula A (root melt)

  L'Oréal Professionnel DIA Light Demi-Permanent 5.0 + 6.3 (2:1) + 6-volume DIACTIVATEUR developer

• Formula B (lightener)

  L'Oréal Professionnel Blond Studio 9 + 30-volume Blond Studio 9 Oil developer (1:0.75)

• Formula C (global gloss)

  DIA Light 10.21 + 6-volume DIACTIVATEUR developer

4. Use A Wide Tooth Comb To Blend

When blending the root shade down, Carly suggests using a wide tooth comb to avoid any splotches. “Also, when you’re blending, only blend once or twice,” she says. “I think as stylists we get too in our heads and we want to touch the root melt a bunch of times, that will mess with the saturation and also lead to a splotchy result.”

5. Start The Wet Balayage In the Front For A Brighter Money Piece 

A wet balayage is a more gentle application, so it is perfect for blonde clients looking to brighten up their dull color. Carly likes to start her balayage application in the front, because the money piece is what the client sees everyday and it avoids shell-shocking blonde clients that are afraid they will be too dark.

6. Avoid Unwanted Warmth With A Transition Area

Carly suggests leaving a small area clean between the root melt and the lightener. Why? “I don’t like my two applications to touch because it will create a lot of unwanted warmth and possibly a harsh line,” she explains. “Also, I’m not too worried about blending because I did drag my root melt down with the wide tooth comb so there should be a nice, soft blend between the two areas already.”

Products Used

Conditioners

Metal Detox

L'Oréal Professionnel

Demi-Permanent Color

DIA Light

L'Oréal Professionnel

Hair Color

DIACTIVATEUR

L'Oréal Professionnel

Lightener

Blond Studio 9 Lightening Powder

L'Oréal Professionnel