Breaking Bands: 4 Corrective Color Tips

Color Corrections: 4 Tips For Breaking Harsh Banding
Here’s the deal, a color correction isn’t a one size fits all service. It’s important to have a range of color skills in your arsenal that can help win the battle of the bands. Lucky for all of us, BTC spent two days with Schwarzkopf Professional for all things color education—and we picked up these corrective color tricks! BTC Team Member Ami Bulaon (@createdbyami) and Schwarzkopf North American Color Director Rossa Jurenas (@rossajurenas) are breaking down their best tips and formulas for softening lines and getting rid of banding below. Scroll down for everything you need to know! 

Products Used

Hair Color

IGORA® VARIO BLOND PLUS POWDER LIGHTENER

Schwarzkopf Professional®

Hair Color

tbh – true beautiful honest Permanent Hair Color

Schwarzkopf Professional®

Demi-Permanent Color

tbh – true beautiful honest Tone Softener

Schwarzkopf Professional®

Hair Color

IGORA VIBRANCE® ACTIVATOR LOTION

Schwarzkopf Professional®

#1 Blending Bands? Consistency Is Key

When trying to blend through lines of demarcation, the power is in the product—Ami will sometimes tackle banding by color melting multiple formulas, so workable consistency is extremely important. That’s why she adds tbh – true beautiful honest Tone Softener by Schwarzkopf Professional to all of her color formulas. “The color pushes into the cuticle easily,” shares Ami, which is the KEY to pushing through bands. 

Not only does Tone Softener shift tbh – true beautiful honest permanent color into a demi-permanent gloss formula. “It creates an even creamier consistency, making it easier to melt color from mid to ends,” shares Ami. 

#2 Don’t Reach For The Lightener—If You Don’t Have To!

Breaking up bands with lightener might be the first thought of plan of attack, but if the client’s hair is compromised, lifting it again may cause excessive damage. For example: Rossa’s client came in with multiple bands and harsh warmth, so she used the same color formula with THREE different mixing ratios to add dimension back into the hair and fight through unwanted (and uneven!) brass. Here’s how she formulated!

Here’s the breakdown:

• 1:1 for the base to blur the line of demarcation with up to 100 percent multi-dimensional coverage. 
• 1:2 for the mid section to tone the previously lifted hair. This creates more sheer results with maximum neutralization on blondes. 
• 1:1:1 (with Tone Softener) at the ends, to add moisture and gentle deposit on porous, dry and fragile hair. 

Tap The Beaker For The Color Formulas!

• Formula B (roots)

  Schwarzkopf Professional tbh - true beautiful honest 7-16 + tbh - true beautiful honest 7-49 + 40-volume IGORA ROYAL® Developer (1:1)

• Formula B (mids/ band #1)

  tbh - true beautiful honest 7-49 + 10-volume IGORA ROYAL® Developer (1:2)

• Formula C (ends)

  tbh - true beautiful honest 1 part 7-49 + 2 parts 9-49 + tbh - true beautiful honest Tone Softener + 6-volume IGORA VIBRANCE® Activator Lotion (1:1:1)

Slide To See The Before & After 

#3 How To Formulate For Blurring Bands

Harsh lines of demarcation, pockets of underlying pigment throughout the hair and faded red? Where do you even start?! Get to the backbar ASAP and start formulating for success. To combat the range of warm tones throughout her client’s hair, Ami alternated teasylights and lowlights to add dimension back into the hair while blending the warm bands into a rich red. 

Tap The Beaker For The Color Formulas!

• Formula A (lightener)

  Schwarzkopf Professional IGORA® VARIO BLOND PLUS Powder Lightener +10-volume Igora Royal Developer (1:2)

• Formula B (roots)

  Schwarzkopf Professional tbh - true beautiful honest 3-06 + 6-volume IGORA VIBRANCE® Activator Gel + tbh Tone Softener (1:1:1)

• Formula C (mids)

  tbh - true beautiful honest 5-06 + 6-84 + 6-volume IGORA VIBRANCE® Activator Gel + tbh Tone Softener (1:1:1)

• Formula D (ends)

  tbh - true beautiful honest 6-84 + 6-volume IGORA VIBRANCE® Activator Gel + tbh Tone Softener (1:1:1)

• Formula E (gloss)

  tbh - true beautiful honest 6-84 + 7-47 + 6-volume IGORA VIBRANCE® Activator Gel + tbh Tone Softener (1:1:1)

Slide To See The Before & After 

#4 Break Up Bands With Foils

If you’re using multiple color formulas to break up bands, Ami avoids marrying her formulas together by sandwiching foils instead of folding them. This keeps color melted sections secure, separated and will help avoid any unwanted overlap that could cause further unevenness.