Blond Expert Provides Tips

by Michelle Breyer on Monday, November 23, 2009

Annalynne McCord

Rick Wellman, celebrity colorist and blond expert, specializes in blondes. As the head colorist and co-owner of Patrick Melville Salon, his clients include celebrity blondes like Heidi Klum and Blake Lively—the latter, who hits up the salon with her dog Penny, was recently credited with the hair of the moment by the NY Times.

As a former artist, Wellman has an uncanny ability to blend and paint color onto hair, using his unique signature style called Bio-Lights, finding the perfect, natural-looking shade which Wellman claims is dependent on your skin tone. While he is an influential colorist at a top salon, Wellman has also worked with companies like Clairol to develop boxed at-home color.

When coloring natural curly or wavy hair, Wellman says to keep in mind the texture is generally a little more coarse and dry.

One advantage though, most likely the curls will camouflage any missed spots. Treat and time the root area differently than you treat the ends, especially if the client already has colored her hair. Be careful to avoid excessive overlapping of color to the ends as curly hair tends to be more porous and can quickly suck up color and become dull. Try adding a tablespoon of natural coconut oil to buffer the remaining formula and help protect ends.

When getting highlights, avoid many tiny fine strands of light pieces as they can just get lost and melt into your curls. Generally, curly hair needs thicker pieces of lightness to be even noticed or worth the while.

Wellman says that the key to achieving natural-looking blond color is “to keep subtle dimension throughout. Solid platinum or monotone yellow are dead giveaways to fake hair color. Remember, hair naturally is composed of different shades blended in the same family. For a more natural look, blonde hair color should always be a little more toned down or ashy near the root area and gradually lighter and vibrant towards the ends, never the reversed.”