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'GMA 40 for 40': Expert Tips to Get A-List Hair



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How To Get Salon-Style Hair Color At Home

There’s no longer a need to see a pro to get gorgeous hair color. “You can definitely get salon-like results at home,” says Kari Hill, a celebrity colorist for L’Oreal Paris who is based out of Méche Salon in Beverly Hills. “And since ombre became a trend in 2008, color hasn’t required as much frequent touching up, as a soft regrowth allows for more time between coloring. In the years following, so many user-friendly kits started coming out.” What makes these kits foolproof? New and innovative applicators that make even special color effects a cinch. Hill shares her best tips for getting perfect hair color at home. full story 

 

Whether or not they have the most fun is still up for debate, but there’s no denying that blondes—platinum, golden, honey, you name it—have some of the prettiest and most eye-catching shades in the hair-color game. And rightfully so, because unless you’re genetically blessed with baby blondeness (and few people who aren't still babies are), it takes some work to get and maintain a bright blonde. I spoke to L’Oréal Paris consulting hair colorist Kari Hill, who also happens to be the master behind Golden Globes blondies like Amy Poehler, Anna Faris, and Taylor Schilling, for her tips on achieving that perfect shade.

Hill’s golden rule (sorry) when it comes to going blonde? Be realistic. “A blonde looks good when she has beautifully healthy hair, and this means not overdoing it,” Hill says. She recommends building up to lighter color over time. “It might not happen in one shot. Try partial or full highlights over six to eight weeks to help build to your desired lightness,” she adds. This also helps to prevent overlapping color on already-highlighted pieces. “That’s when damage can occur,” she warns.

Her technique is all techniques. “A little ombré, a little tipping [a freehand technique for feathering blonde on the ends], some foils, and balayage,” she adds. The placement of blonde color is critical. “Target the right spots and you can pull off natural blonde without doing your entire head,” says Hill. She often does partial, or what she calls “ponytail,” highlights along the perimeter of the hairline, behind the ears, and at the nape of the neck. “This hair [at the nape of the neck] lies on the side of your shoulder when your hair is down and is also visible when you wear your hair up,” says Hill. “But it shouldn’t be quite as light as your hairline highlights or it will look unnatural."

And then there's maintenance. For starters, Hill recommends sticking to every-other-day shampooing. The longer you can stretch it, the better. This is especially important considering that many people shower with hard water that's loaded with minerals, like copper and chlorine, which can change hair color. “Some people install water softeners in their homes, but even most of these softeners have charcoal, which can also make hair color dingy and muddy,” says Hill. Her best solution: an extra filter on the showerhead (she likes the T3 Source Shower Filter Showerhead and the Raindrops Showerhead With Filter).

Revamping your water filtration system might be a bit high-maintenance for some people, but there are also a handful of color-preserving products that will help prolong your beloved blonde. Hill recommends a purple shampoo or conditioner (like the L’Oréal Paris EverPure Blonde line, which also has UV filters) to help brighten the color and prevent it from getting too yellow or too white. “The more lavender the formula, the gentler it is. Although you can always mix a purple formula with a regular one to help tone it down a bit,” says Hill. And if your hair is really delicate (like celebrity client Anna Faris's) opt for a sulfate-free shampoo. The one no-no: clarifying shampoos. “People think these help remove the hard water from your hair, but they actually strip hair, leaving it dehydrated, and it can be very stressful on the color,” says Hill. full article



A black, floor-length, backless Kaufman Franco dress is how a pregnant Blake Lively chose to adorn her bump during Tuesday night's L’Oreal Women of Worth event in New York.

But just as attention-grabbing as the dress was the actress and lifestyle site Preserve founder’s hair color — or, rather, lack thereof — which had her roots appearing just about as dark as the slinky number she wore down the red carpet.

Pregnant with her first child (her husband is the equally toasty-golden-haired Ryan Reynolds), Lively is most likely forgoing the typical and potentially toxic maintenance that comes with having long blonde locks. 

And of course, on her, it just sort of works. There’s no harsh line telling the world that she stopped monthly salon visits exactly six weeks ago, no stark color-blocking effect that would make most people scramble for their nearest hoodies.

“Blake has decided to not color her hair at all, thus growing out her darker roots,” says L’Oreal celebrity hair colorist Kari Hill, who doesn’t work with the actress but observes that Lively’s hair color seems to be a double-process base with highlights. Since creating highlights doesn’t require the dye to touch the scalp (the main controversy over hair color during pregnancy), Hill recommends just doing the highlights to help blend the growth line and create a subtle ombre effect.

Softening the look of darker roots is another option Hill recommends to pregnant women seeking an alternative. “This is actually something that we do in the salon multiple times a day,” she says. “To soften the roots, I would use a gloss that is a couple shades lighter than the root color to help all the shades blend.”

For an at-home option, Hill suggests the L’Oreal Paris Ombre Touch Hair Color kit ($10.99), which has an applicator that allows users to pick and choose where they want color to go. “This will help to break up the hard line of growth,” says Hill, “and lightens up some areas for a “sombre” effect.”

“Sombre,” for anyone who doesn’t speak hair, is a term people are using to describe a “subtle ombre” style of grown-out highlights that stem from a mainly dark base. 

Leave it to Lively to help ignite a trend by doing nothing more than being mindful of her future spawn. Full Story

 Deep Condition Less
While deep conditioning or at-home masks are a good idea before you color, they can fade a rich brunette or vibrant red, says Meche Salon colorist Kari Hill. The conditioner or mask is designed to get deep in the hair follicle to moisturize. However, when it's rinsed out, it takes the color molecule with it—resulting in the color fading. To avoid this, a good daily conditioner will do the trick (just don't leave it on for a long period of time). full story 

Elle Fanning

If you want to try the colorful ombre update on your own hair, follow L’Oreal Celebrity Consulting Colorist Kari Hill’s tips. “The great thing with ombré is that you keep the color around your face, thus if done correctly it can really compliment your skin tone,” Hill tells Us Weekly. “Red ends work well for brunettes with olive skin tones. If you are wanting to do green or blue ends, you need to have a lighter skin tone and lighter hair, or you’ll have to lighten your hair to achieve the look.”

PHOTOS: Dramatic hair color makeovers

To get the job done at home, Hill recommends the L’Oreal Paris Feria Ombre kit, a package she says is especially for brunettes who want to experiment. “[The kit] will only take you a couple shades lighter than a natural brown color, and you do not have to pre-lighten your hair,” Hill explains.

There’s one more option for colorers not ready to take the bleach plunge: “If you want to try the look out before bleaching your ends, it is best to get colored hair extensions,” says Hill. full story 

Hair Talk

Definitions from L'Oreal Paris consulting celebrity colorist Kari Hill.

Lift vs. Deposit: Lift is to lighten and brighten; deposit means to maintain or darken.

Single Process vs. Double Process: When one shade is applied directly on the scalp to cover grays or enhance overall color, it is a single process. Add highlights and it becomes a double.

Highlights vs. Lowlights: Highlights are small pieces of hair (usually near the hairline) that are a lighter shade than the base color. Lowlights are the opposite—darkened sections of hair.

Semi-Permanent vs. Demi-Permanent vs. Permanent: How do these differ? It comes down to duration and lightening ability. Semi lasts about 8 washes and can only darken; demi lasts up to 25 washes and can lift color slightly under heat. Permanent can completely lift color.

Gloss vs. Glaze: It's a wash. These similar-sounding terms actually have the same meaning: a "topcoat" for your color that brightens, adds shine and lasts up to 20 washes. fulll story

You did your research, read 5,000 salon reviews on Yelp, and finally went for the plunge—and your shiny, new hair color looks amazing. Props. The only problem is, your bank account has taken the fall and the situation is, ahem, not as pretty. What’s a broke girl with fabulous hair supposed to do? Not let that multi-dimensional color fade prematurely, that’s what.

We spoke with celeb colorist and L’Oréal Paris hair color expert, Kari Hill (she’s responsible for the perfect hair color of Taylor Schilling, Michelle Williams, and our own sister site’s editor), and beauty DIY expert and Beauty Bean founder, Alexis Wolfer, and asked for their most budget-friendly hair color tips. Keep flipping for six hair color maintenance tips every broke girl should know! full story

NEW YORK, April 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading global beauty brand L'Oreal Paris is thrilled to welcome renowned celebrity hair colorist Kari Hill to its notable roster of experts. With more than fifteen years of experience coloring some of the most well-known manes in Hollywood, Kari's artistic perspective lends to her mastery of varied hair coloring techniques. She will join long-time L'Oreal Paris Global Consulting Colorist Christophe Robin in lending her insights and expertise to trend forecasting, product development, content creation and consumer education for the brand.full story

One Editor Goes From Brunette to Blonde: See Her Incredible Transformation:

Confession: I’ve been blonde before. When I turned 13 years old, my mom thought it’d be appropriate to get me blonde highlights as my birthday gift—considering that I grew up in the South, this is perhaps not altogether surprising. So when I relocated from New York City to Los Angeles about three months ago, the prospect of going sunny California blonde was not beyond my imagination. In fact, it may or may not been at the forefront of my mind. full story.

Add Mega-Volume

Hill says that you don't have to wait until your hair is greasy to mist it with a little dry shampoo. "One of my favorite ways to add volume to dry, limp hair is to use L’Oréal Paris EverStyle Energizing Dry Shampoo ($7) right after your blowout," Hill says. full story

Summer is winding down, which means your hair is officially crying uncle. You've put it through chlorine, salt water, dye, and more. And, now, it's your job to nurse your strands back to health — which is actually a lot harder than it seems. With so many different products and hair types out there, how exactly do . . . full story 

. . . Meet Kari Hill, who has been the artist behind the goddess tressess of [many] celebrity icons. She was kind enough to take the time to answer my questions, and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Enjoy!full story

Kari is not limited to a specific color or technique, but is well known for her diverse abilities: from highlighting to balyage, and from brunettes and reds to color correction. She does it all!full story

These days, all it takes to make a new hair-color guru is a good publicist. So let's start by saying Hill doesn't have one. Here's what else she doesn't have: attitude. The petite blonde doesn't bad-mouth other salons . . . , and she doesn't drop the names of her many A-list clients. Here's what Hill does have: talent. When we walked out, our usually light brown hair was a perfect, natural-looking shade of wheat blonde. Her highlights add volume to baby–fine tresses . . . Allure Magazine

L.A. Beauty Black Book: The Ultimate Local's Guide To Looking Fly   

'GMA 40 for 40': Expert Tips to Get A-List Hair