Paul Cucinello on the Science of Brassy Hair Color

October 8, 2008

While I was talking to hair color guru Paul Cucinello about hair glaze, the conversation turned to preventing brassiness, something I hear concerns about a lot. First, Cucinello broke down why it happens in the first place. "When you are using anything chemical, after six weeks the hair totally normalizes to its original state," he explained. The cuticle lifts back up so the product is released from the hair."

So why does red hair looks less red and blond hair look so orange? There's a perfectly logical explanation: "Red, yellow and blue color molecules are in your hair, and the first to come out is the smallest molecule — which is blue. That's why you see so many violet conditioners for blond hair, to control the pigment." Presumably, this means blue hair would be the hardest to maintain. Wonder how that Marge Simpson does it...

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12 Comments

Mariannie 3 years 44 weeks

wow...blown away by this blue hair explanation.

lizlee89 4 years 31 weeks

thank goodness I don't color my hair...

princessjane 4 years 31 weeks

blue hair goes green in three weeks flat, it's really rather unfair.

princessjane 4 years 31 weeks

blue hair goes green in three weeks flat, it's really rather unfair.

plasticine 4 years 31 weeks

actually, it's really cheap to maintain VERY BLUE hair, just use methylene blue, diluted in water, apply all over bleached hair and blow-dry. IT NEVER COMPLETELY COMES OUT (turns green and pretty soon neutralizes the bleached color underneath so it turns blue-gray). So if you want marge-blue hair forever, do that

aimeeb 4 years 31 weeks

I pull reds badly. I recall one time going blond and I ended up having highlighter yellow hair. Needless to say I was furious with my colorist.

scissorz 4 years 31 weeks

shimmer lights is really effective...good deposit of color. BUT i swear my great grandmother used it and it always smells like a nursing home to me! i love love love the l'oreal professional color conditioner. when i had platinum hair i always used their purple conditioner for white/blonde tones. it had great deposit and smelled pretty nice. they have several tones and i think they're great

bailaoragaditana 4 years 31 weeks

John Frieda Colour Glaze, folks! It works wonders! My sister uses the blonde version on her hair and loves it!

ChristinaMUFE 4 years 31 weeks

This is random but blue is the hardest to maintain. I know! LOL. I love Fekkai's Salon Glaze! I'm getting ready to do it right now!

thelorax 4 years 31 weeks

It's good stuff, and it's a lot cheaper than making extra trips to the salon for a color glaze! I use it probably once a week or so.

brittanyk 4 years 31 weeks

I should try that out, jacrabbit. My hair gets ridiculously brassy. I can't ever seem to keep it away for too long.

thelorax 4 years 31 weeks

Two words: Shimmer Lights. I think it's made by Clairol, and you can find this at pretty much any beauty supply store. It's a deep purple conditioner that works better than any other one I've tried. It costs a little more than the generic version (which is also pretty good if your hair isn't too hell-bent on brassiness), but it's WORTH IT.

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