There's nothing I love more than creating a masterpiece in my art. Hair color is my first love in cosmetology and it is the main thing that I have spent the last two decades experimenting with, learning about, and perfecting.
However, there is one question I despise. The phone rings, I greet the customer with a bubbly "thank you for calling Anointed Beauty, how may I help you", and am met with this question:
"How much do you charge for color?" *head drops*
I understand that the average person thinks that there should be one set price for color, period. Please hear me out and allow me to educate you as to why that is just not possible.
Hair color is an art form. It requires looking at not only your natural hair color and percentage of gray (if any), but also every single color you have had on your hair from scalp to end. We also have to account for medications used, condition of your water, and your styling regimen. The length and thickness of your hair will adjust the time frame needed for your color service, and the texture of your hair also plays a part in determining the course of action for your color choice.
Once we have determined all the above, now we have to look at what color you are desiring. If your hair is dark brown and you are wanting platinum blonde, you can expect a much longer process and higher bill than if you were light brown wanting to go to a dark red. It takes longer still if you are trying to lighten from years of box coloring. (that's getting into color correction and will be in a separate blog altogether) If you have severely damaged hair, now we have to add treatments to your color service in order to prepare your hair to hold the color. And on and on it goes.
Hopefully, you get the idea. This is just skimming the surface of the thousands of details that go through the mind of a GOOD colorist when she starts your consultation. It's because of all these variables that we cannot have one-size-fits-all color prices. Below are a few examples of color work I have done and I will share the basics of the process with you to give you a visual of what I mean.
This first one is my daughter, Chloe. I promised her that I would give her a color makeover when she went into 7th grade. She spent all summer showing me pictures and going over the consultation process with me and in August before here 7th grade year we went with a Platinum blonde with a cool black shadow root and bright blue ombre.
The process: She had no color on her hair, so we were starting with her natural, dark blonde canvas. The first thing we had to do was lighten up her entire head of hair except the new growth. The entire process of getting her to platinum took about 3 hours. Since we put so much stress on her hair to get it as light as we could, we did a Kera-Triplex treatment to rebuild her hair structure so that it would hold the next colors. Once we got the canvas where we wanted it, we dried it completely and began the second process of adding the shadow root and the blue ombre. I was able to do these two steps at once, but VERY carefully. The entire process from start to finish with the cut took us just over 6 hours! That kind of color service is extremely costly. Like, total bill in the $400 range. If you're the type of person who can't stand to see that much money go out on your hair in one visit, then split it up into stages. You could go to this gradually by getting a full highlight every 3-4 weeks until you're blonde. Then add the shadow root at your next visit, and then the blue at the next. Ironcially, you'll spend twice as much money doing it this way, but some people like it that way better. If you think that's absolutely crazy to spend hundreds of dollars on color services, then this kind of drastic makeover is not for you. (Chloe's blue color started to fade a few weeks later, but the majority of the look lasted the entire first half of her school year when we finally decided to cut a cute bob to get rid of the blue when she was done with it.)
Here's another example: This first time guest came in with grown out blonde and wanted a darker base with a cooler tone. It's one of my all time favorite makeovers!
The process: Since her hair was all one shade of gold and her new growth was already as dark as we wanted to go, this was a lot less involved than the one above. We used one mixture on her new growth and blended it down, we used a second mixture on her underveil for a dark shadow base, we used a third mixture for the lowlights in the top and sides and then a fourth mixture to tone all the blonde that we left out of the foils. With a cut and treatment this would run you closer to $200 which is a far cry from the all day color service we looked at first! (She's now a regular client!)
The final example I don't have photos for because it's the basic re-touch or single color process. This is for my regular clients who come in every four weeks to get their new growth touched up and keep their color looking fresh. MOST of these clients get out of my salon for less than $100 for a cut and color. That price will vary if they come in and tell me they want to add a few highlights, or they need a treatment, etc.
Is professional color expensive? Yes, it is when you want it done right and you want your hair to be healthy when you're done. Are there color services that are just not possible for your hair? Maybe, that's why you need a thorough consultation with a colorist who knows what she's talking about. Next time you call the salon about a color appointment, don't ask "how much do you charge for color". Instead, ask for a free consultation to talk about your color desires. This goes a lot farther in getting you to where you want to be!
If you call Anointed Beauty and ask us how much we charge for color, this is what you'll hear: "We don't quote color prices over the phone, but I am happy to set you up a 15 minute appointment for a complimentary consultation and then I can give you a better estimation. We will definitely be able to offer suggestions to fit any budget! When can you come in?"
Call 574-269-4957 to book your next color appointment with Melissa!
