Beauty, Features, Opinion peice, Reviews

Review: Blonde for summer? Trust Lisa Shepherd London and get 30% off your first visit!

I went bottle blonde many years ago and have since varied between California blonde, Nordic light ash blonde to once a peroxide platinum nightmare where I actually did think my hair was going to fall off (Note to self: don’t bleach at home…)

Before the New Year I fell in love with my roots and let my natural colour shine through, which meant by the time May came around my hair looked more like Drew Barrymore’s dip-dye than Daryl Hannah’s Kill Bill blonde.

That said, hippy chic has never been my thing so when summer hinted that it was just around the corner I felt an urge to go back to my Scandinavian roots and go all-over blonde once more. However, since it was weeks until payday, I decided to book myself in at a ‘cheap and cheerful’ salon just minutes from where I work called Vannoli Hair. After all, how bad could it be? It’s only a bit of colour…

It went wrong, all kinds of horrible wrong.

Having opted for a light ash blonde, my roots were at first bleached to ensure the hair would get an even, all-over colour. As a colour addict, I know that sometimes the shades can look different while developing, but nothing – and I mean NOTHING – could have prepared me for what I was about to see. Looking back at me from the mirror was Madam Mim; my hair had gone dark ashy! Naturally I kicked up a fuss and said I would not be leaving looking like that and demanded them to strip the colour from my already over-processed tresses.

When I finally left – four(!) hours after starting what was now a colour catastrophe – my scalp was burning and was showing signs of small sores. Once home the actual horror dawned on me: apart from feeling like a scouring pad upon touch, my hair now had an awkward yellowish tint!

The next morning, in sheer desperation I pleaded to the Gods of Hair to fix my misfortune – through the modern means of Twitter of course – and was thrilled when the wonderful Wahanda and Lisa Shepherd Salon answered my call for help.

By the end of the day, I’d had my colour consultation and was booked in for an appointment the very next morning.

Arriving at Lisa Shepherd London’s cool, calm central London premises on a sunny Saturday – it recently won Salon Interior of the Year 2011 – I was met with welcome smiles and a relaxed atmosphere that made my stress levels drop a notch or two. I immediately knew my hair and I were in good hands.

Director of Lisa Shepherd London, Jason Cocking – who joined the company seven years ago and became one of Lisa Shepherd’s Art Directors before setting up the London venture – met me with a calm smile and knew exactly what had to be done.

After conferring with their Colour Director Sarah, Jason explained that he would only be colouring the yellow roots, leaving the more distressed tresses alone as they already had a nice blonde shade. The Swartzkopf colour, mixed right in front of my eyes, offered an intense coolness to my still burning scalp. Once all yellow strands of hair had been covered, I spent the next half hour flicking through magazines, browsing the net and sipping a lovely ice cold drink in the ‘break-out’ area, with Jason regularly checking in on how the colour was developing.

Rinsed and blow-dried straight, the end result was a lovely blonde colour. I was so pleased that I’ll happily admit I almost cried. I then understood even more why Jason is such a hit with celebrities – he has previously styled the hair of Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen, Cat Deeley, Zoe Ball, and Nigella Lawson – as his down-to-earth manner and colouring skills combined definitely are worth the indulgence!

To lend from Shakespeare, if clothes make the man, then hair definitely makes the woman; I left the salon feeling like an A-lister with bouncy, blonde locks and a bright smile. I know where I am going when my roots need a touch up!

Here is the result of my hair colour rescue!

To celebrate that summer is here the wonderful Lisa Shepherd London has kindly offered a 30% discount to all ShinyStyle readers for their first visit. To take advantage of this amazing offer, simply quote ‘ShinysStyle’ when booking your appointment.

Lisa Shepherd London
24 Mortimer Street
London
W1T 3JP

For appointments call: 0207 467 9560 or email london@lisashepherd.co.uk

If you are thinking about going blonde for the summer Jason offers some advice:

“When choosing a blonde shade there are some things which must be considered: your skin tone, the natural depth, your lifestyle and how you are able to maintain the look with salon visits. Everyone can achieve that celebrity blonde look.”

“When choosing a blonde the best way to work is with a neutral base and placing tones within it. With rosy skin tones, such as Lady Gaga, work with light pastel blondes. On a neutral face tone, like Jennifer Aniston, work with golden lights and if you have olive or yellow based skin tones stay away from golds, like Gwen Stefani.”

For more advice check out the video below for top tips from Lisa Shepherd on choosing the right colour and tone for you.