Where to Place Foils For Highlights

Where to Place Foils For Highlights

It’s summertime in the salon and whether your bleachy blondes want to be brighter or your darker clients want a little sun-kissed color, choosing the right placement for highlights makes all the difference. To break down proper placement, we had Color Correction Queen Gina Bianca (@iamginabianca) stop by The BTC House and drop KNOWLEDGE on how and where to place highlights, because there IS a time and a place(ment) for everything. Scroll down for everything and click here to purchase Gina’s balayage class and have lifetime access.

Tap the beaker for Gina’s formula breakdown!

• Formula A (Lightener)
  Joico Blonde Life + 20-volume developer
• Formula B (Toner)

  Paul Mitchell® Professional Hair Color The Demi 1/2 oz 9N + 1/2 oz 9A + 1/2 oz 9G + one capful of 4N + Paul Mitchell Shines Demi Processing Liquid

Horizontal Partings

“Think of a horizontal section as a wall of color,” Gina explains. This is the boldest way to paint and can be customize a lot of different ways depending on what look the client is asking for, so the type of weave you take for highlights matters here.  Click through the slideshow to see Gina breakdown different types of weaves.

A large, chunky weave.

Less chunky weave.

The smallest, but still chunky weave.

A babylight weave.

Mimic a balayage by creating a "V" with a stitch weave.

Create peaks and valleys with a "W" stitch weave.

Vertical Partings

Think about cutting layers, Gina explains, the section is brought out vertically and layers are cut. So, if the client already has layers, vertical partings will allow the foil to reach the perimeter of each.  If you’re unsure of which partings to take, let the hair fall naturally and that will give you an idea of where the paint will start. Gina demonstrated this at the crown, click through the slideshow for vertical painting tips.

Take a vertical section at the crown, about two inches wide.

Think about how high the lightener should be painted.

Then, let the section fall naturally so you can see where the highlight will begin once the section is styled.

Pro Tip: Never place more hair into a foil, Gina warns. “You should always be able to see through the section that is being foiled.”

Diagonal Partings

If a client wants a lot of coverage, diagonal partings will cover the most surface area, explains Gina. But, the end result will be softer than chunky weaves done with a horizontal parting, she adds. So, if a horizontal parting equals a wall of color, think of a diagonal parting as a curtain that can be manipulated with different sized weaves similar to a horizontal parting.

Quick Partings Review:

• Horizontal Partings = Wall of color
• Vertical Partings = Stripes of color
• Diagonal Partings = Curtain of color

Click through the slideshow to see more of Gina’s day at The BTC House and click here to purchase Gina’s entire balayage class on BTC University and have lifetime access!