Blonde hair has a tendency to go yellow and brassy.
So how do you fix yellow and brassy hair and produce a cooler, ashier blonde tone?
The answer is that you use a hair toner.
But which type of hair toner should you use?
In this blog we will show you some very effective blonde toners which work.
And we'll show you some before and after pictures for each one.
So that you can make your choice.
Keep reading....
What do blonde toners do to your hair?
Blonde toners typically contain a mixture of purple, blue and grey pigments.
These pigments fight yellow, pale yellow and yellow orange.
In the process they produce a cooler, ashier tone.
Will blonde toners make my hair lighter?
It all depends on which toner you use.
There are actually 4 different types of hair toners out there.
The first 2 types of toners can lift very well.
The second 2 tone, but they don't lift.
Let's go through these different types of toners now.
Permanent Toners with Extra Lift
Dark hair lifted with Brilliant Blonde at the roots and toned with Intense Pearl Blonde toner
The strongest and fastest acting toners are permanent toners with additional lift built in.
This lift is thanks to a special "booster" technology which is a technology unique to Ugly Duckling.
These toners are great if your hair is really very very yellow, because they will kick all that yellow out.
In so doing, they typically lift the hair level by at least 2 levels.
Ugly Duckling has 2 such toners:
Before: Dark Roots and yellow mid-lengths
In the picture above you can see a model with very dark roots and very yellow mid-lengths.
Of course, even an intense permanent toner would not have been able to handle those black roots.
We used Brilliant Blonde Bleach to lift that up.
Then we applied Intense Pearl Blonde 100V.
We first applied the intense (high-lift) toner to the yellow roots and yellow mid-lengths.
The toner was able to lift that yellow out thanks to the booster.
Then we pulled it through the rest of our model's hair for the last 5 minutes.
We turned her hair to a beautiful white platinum blonde, as you can see in the pictures below.
Bleach Processing on the Regrowth Area
Hair After Bleaching
Intense Pearl Blonde toner processing
After toning
WATCH VIDEO:
Hair by Elona Taki
Regular Permanent Toners (With Regular Lift)
Yellow hair toned successfully with Ugly Duckling's Pearl Blonde Toner 10V
The second category of toners are also great for blonde transformation.
Ugly Duckling's regular permanent toners are every bit as pigmented as the intense toners.
And they also have lift. But a little less lift built in as compared to the intense toners we just saw (1 level lift only).
These regular toners are excellent for transforming totally yellow hair into a much cooler, ashier blonde tone.
Ugly Duckling has 2 such toners:
The pictures below show No-Lift Pearl Blonde 10 V in use.
As you can see, this toner is every bit as pigmented as the first one that we saw.
Hair being rinsed after bleaching
Bleached hair towel dried
Hair processing with Pearl Blonde 10V
After toning with Pearl Blonde 10V
WATCH VIDEO:
Hair by Elona Taki
Demi-permanent toners (with no lift)
Yellow bleached highlights toned with Blondify Natural Ash Blonde Toner
Demi-permanent means that these products contain no ammonia.
As such, they smell better and open the hair cuticle a little less.
These toners don't lift.
But they are very intensely pigmented, and they tone really well in under 10 minutes.
They are really the ideal go-to toners when no lift is required.
Hair stylists particularly appreciate them when they wish to refresh and tone blonde highlights without touching the base or lowlights.
They can also be used to produce medium ash blonde and cool blonde results.
You can use them with low strength developers - 10 Vol, for example, is good.
Ugly Duckling has 2 such toners. They are liquid toners, meaning that they can be mixed and applied straight out of an applicator bottle.
Blondify Natural Ash Blonde 010A
Blondify Natural Violet Blonde 010V.
Here are some before and after shots of Blondify 010V in use.
Before toning
After toning
WATCH VIDEO:
Hair by Elona Taki
Purple Shampoos & Masks (no lift)
Yellow Hair toned with Purple Mask at the backwash.
Our last category of toning products are not strictly speaking toners at all.
We say this because these products do not penetrate into the hair cuticle.
But they do have intense purple pigments built in. So they will take out yellow.
As such, they are great either for use straight after bleaching and toning.
Or as a regular at-home color correction product for all types of blonde hair.
They will stop blonde hair from getting yellow, and also keep it in good condition in-between salon visits.
Ugly Duckling has 2 such products:
Brilliant Blonde Purple Shampoo
Both these products are acidic (meaning that they will close the hair cuticle and help keep hair free of split ends and frizziness).
They are also sulfate-free.
You should use them whenever you see your hair veering towards yellow.
Up to 3 times a week is good.
They don't stain, so no need to worry about purple towels or pillow cases.
See the before and after pictures of Purple Shampoo and Mask above.
Notice how much of the yellow has been removed from the hair thanks to these products.
WATCH VIDEO:
Hair by Elona Taki