00:00My whole life I didn't know my hair was curly. I was bullied a lot and I wanted
00:04to fit in in high school so I would bleach it all the time. My hair was
00:08falling out. It was bad, like my hair was dead. I feel like hair is really symbolic.
00:13When you dye your hair you're kind of transitioning into like a different part
00:17of your life. Going through what I've gone through I really think that red
00:20would be a really good transition into a new part of my life.
00:25Hey I'm Aiden and I'm here with Refinery29. Today I'm getting my hair
00:29done. For the first time professionally I'm going from ground box dye to red.
00:35I've done a lot of colors in my hair. I've done like pink, I've done purple, I've
00:39done blue and red is just something that I've always wanted to try. This past year
00:43has been probably the hardest year of my life. I lost my job because of COVID. I
00:49was diagnosed with an ectopic pregnancy and my doctors didn't even think that I
00:53was going to survive. It's been a really really hard year and your hair can be
00:57really transformative and it's an expression of yourself. I really really
01:01want to get my hair changed and I think that's going to be really good for me.
01:06Hi my name is Stevie Smith. I'm a master colorist and we're here today at my
01:10salon Smith & Davis in Chicago, Illinois. My specialty for hair color is hair
01:16transformations, bleach and tones, as well as fun color pops mixed in with natural
01:21color. Today on Aiden's hair we're going to be removing some of that old built up
01:27box color. Then we're going to add some multi-dimensional highlights and then do
01:32a color overall to enhance Aiden's beautiful skin and eye color.
01:38Hi Aiden. Hi. Welcome. Thank you. Tell me again when was the last time you colored
01:43your hair? I was using like brown and black box dye so I've been using that. The
01:49last time I used it was like two months ago I would say. We had thrown out some
01:53ideas about doing some reds which is definitely feasible today. We'll see how
01:58light we can get it and get some pieces in there and then we'll go all over the
02:03whole thing with a demi permanent color and we'll pick out the right shade of
02:07hue that's going to be perfect for your eye shade and and your inner skin tone as
02:11well. Okay awesome. Does that sound good? You're gonna be here for a little bit. You're
02:15ready? I'm so excited to do this. For the first step in Aiden's color
02:20transformation, I'm using a citric acid and vitamin C color reducer. This is
02:26going to ensure that I gently remove the most amount of those color molecules
02:30that have been built up from her box color. I'm going to put that on dry hair.
02:35We're gonna let that sit for 30 to 40 minutes under heat.
02:44Then I'll rinse for five minutes and then we'll blow it dry.
02:53I'm now going through Aiden's hair after we've used the color reducer and I'm going
02:58to add some multi-dimensional balayage highlights. I'm using a clay lightener and a gentle developer
03:06in order to ensure again that Aiden's hair is left healthy and lush. Balayage is a free form
03:14hair painting lightening process that allows for a more organic and soft grow out. I don't want Aiden
03:22to have a high maintenance hair color that she has to keep up with. I'm using a process called
03:30teasy lights, taking sections of hair and lightly teasing the hair to leave a more organic feel so
03:37that there won't be any harsh lines. I want it multi-dimensional, but I don't want it to be
03:41stripy or high contrasting. When I'm working with a client, I find my inspiration from the clients
03:49themselves. I like to ask a lot of questions about their lifestyle, about who they are as a person,
03:54and that's what inspires me to give them what is going to make them feel and look their best.
04:01We'll let this sit for about 30 to 40 minutes. We'll then shampoo, towel dry, and move on to our
04:06next step.
04:15I am now applying the Demi permanent red shade. I'm making sure that I have even saturation all
04:21throughout. This will process anywhere from 20 to 30 minutes. I'm now shampooing Aiden with a color
04:37safe shampoo. I love Aiden's natural texture, so I'm using right now a color safe hydrating mousse. I'm
04:46adding a few drops of a macadamia oil for some added moisture and shine, and I'll be diffusing her hair
04:54dry to maximize her beautiful curls. And then we'll see the final look.
05:03Open!
05:05Oh my god!
05:08Do you love it?
05:09It's like wine red! That's so pretty. It makes my eyes like pop.
05:14Yeah.
05:23And my curls look really good, too. Yay! Yay, yay, yay!
05:27Thank you so much. Oh my gosh. You're so welcome!
05:30I can't wait to go outside and take a look at it in the natural light.
05:33I know. This sun is going to be so red.
05:34Yeah. It's going to be amazing.
05:36I love it. This is exactly what I had envisioned. I didn't want it to be like too red like
05:41a firetruck,
05:41so I'm super excited and happy about how it turned out.
05:46I think Aiden looks sophisticated, yet fun. It looks healthy, shiny. We embraced her natural curls.
05:54The color just looks amazing with her skin tone, and her eyes are radiant.
05:59Working with Stevie today was absolutely awesome. She listened to everything that I wanted,
06:04and she told me that, you know, I should embrace my natural hair. It was just an amazing experience
06:09to be here today. Aiden's hair transformation is going to grow out beautifully, so it's not going
06:15to require a lot of maintenance as far as her coming back in the salon. However, she is going to
06:20have
06:20to take care of it at home. Reds can fade, so it's definitely important that you use a color safe
06:27shampoo,
06:28as well as using a sunscreen. So I definitely think I will see a stylist again. Maybe my years of
06:35box
06:35dyeing are over, which I'm sure is going to make Stevie happy. So yeah. The first person I'm going to
06:42show
06:43my new hair to is my boyfriend when I walk in the house. I think when my boyfriend sees my
06:47hair,
06:47he's going to be really happy and give me a million kisses, so I'm excited about that.
06:53This new hair really makes me feel sexy. I know most of it comes from the inside, but I feel
06:58like now
06:59my personality is kind of showing more in my hair, which is something I've always wanted, and I definitely love
07:05it.
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