WHAT VOLUME OF PEROXIDE SHOULD I USE?

By Kristina Russell

Wondering when to use 10, 20, 30, or 40 vol peroxide? Peroxide, developer, activator, processing solution. It’s all the same thing. Just different names are used for different strengths and by different brands to describe peroxide.

We can also use the word vol or describe the strength by percentage. Deciding on your colour tube is only part of the equation when formulating your hair colour. You also need to understand what peroxide you need based on your existing colour and your target colour.

In this article, I’ll be sharing pro tips about when to use 10, 20, 30 and 40 vol peroxide, which will be the same strategy for 3,6,9 and 12% peroxide for hair colouring. Plus, what to use in specifics to hair painting for redheads. There is a difference between formulating for red and copper hair colouring versus blonde and brunette hair colour, especially in the peroxide selection.

Hydrogen Peroxide is the chemical name for what hair companies call developers, activators and similar names for the additive mixed with their colours.

Basically, the hydrogen peroxides’ job is to lift the cuticle layer of the hair. The stronger the developer the more the cuticle opens and the more lightening of natural pigment it has.

PRO TIPS FOR PEROXIDE SELECTION:

10 vol or 3%

• Designed to be used with permanent colour to get 1-2 levels of lift or to deposit darker.

• Can be mixed with bleach for lifting 1-4 levels lighter depending on the brand, application, and technique.

• Can be mixed with semi or demipermanents or when breaking the base if you are seeking to shift the natural base a little warmer and lighter.

20 vol or 6%

• Designed to be used with permanent colour to get 1-2 levels of lift or to deposit darker.

• Standard developer choice for grey coverage

• Can be intermixed with bleach for lifting 1-9 levels of lift - depending on the application, saturation, technique, and brand. 20vol is a strong and flexible peroxide solution that can achieve maximum lift when used effectively.

30 vol or 9%

• When mixed with permanent colour you can achieve 2-3 levels of lift?

• This might be your best developer choice for resistant grey coverage if you’re not getting satisfactory results with 6%

• Can be mixed with bleach for all offscalp techniques, including foil highlights, balayage, freehand, and basin balayage.

40 vol or 12%

• Can be mixed with permanent colour to achieve 3-4 levels of lift.

• Designed to be mixed with high lift or special blonde series - usually with a 1:2 mix ratio for a maximum lift when bleach is not used, especially suitable for strawberry, honey. Rose gold blondes and creating a base for warmer pastels that don’t need a white platinum base.

• Not suitable for mixing with bleach for on scalp or foil highlight techniques

What is the real secret to formulating reds & copper peroxide?

It is not the brand that you are using! It is the formula and peroxide selection that determines your end result.

Every professional hair colour brand can achieve beautiful, red, and copper colours when you know how to formulate. The problem with reds and copper is the ‘root glow’ is so much more obvious it screams at both you and the client in the mirror that can leave you frightened to do more.

Formulating red and copper hair colour is a combination of knowing my unique 5-67-8 levelling system for hairdressers with peroxide selection and decoding the colour tubes.

If you are looking at your colour chart and not sure which colour to mix for a client, it can feel really overwhelming with all the options. I get it! I’ve been there too! I used to watch others in the salon confidently grabbing tubes of colour while I was stuck stroking the swatches without a clue of what to do next other than guess and make mistakes and learn from my mistakes.

Every level in the hair painting for redhead’s spectrum is a different colour. This is the foundation for understanding which colour tube to grab. For example, Level 7 is Copper and Level 6 is Red. When you miscalculate within the red spectrum of hair colouring it’s more obvious when banding occurs because it could be the difference between a Red and an Orange colour, as opposed to a brunette that is just a little lighter or darker than expected.

When working with permanent colours in the salon there will always be some warmth in your end result. This can be counteracted or enhanced by toning or using temporary toning products, and spending on your shared vision with your client.

Check out my pro tips below for peroxide selection when working with reds, coppers, and grey coverage for red and fashion colours, plus how to achieve strawberry blondes.

PRO TIPS FOR PEROXIDE SELECTION FOR REDS:

• 10 vol best suits Base Breakers for warmth

• 20 vol is suitable for grey coverage and reds.

• 30 vol is suitable for copper hair colour.

• 40 vol best suits any red needing 3-4 levels of lift, including strawberry blondes

For those who want to stop making mistakes with reds in the salon: my NEW online course ‘The Real Secret to Formulating Copper Hair Colour is here!

Head to my website www.kristinarussell. com.au to learn more about this new online fast-track formulation course.