11 Nov
You would think that selecting hair color would be a simple process, like selecting paint from a home renovation store. Imagine a row of paint swatches, transitioning neatly from warm colors to cool colors and from darks to lights. If only hair extension color numbers were that clear and precise! Today, we’ll make it easier for you to understand extension colors.
Be warned that COLOR and Hair Extension Colors are two different animals.
Stylists who work with COLOR are familiar with the International Color Chart, or ICC. Using industry guidelines, ICC focuses on 25 colors, 9 of which are considered natural and 16 of which are considered fashion colors. Each color has a number that matches other standardized colors used in dye, wigs, tints, and sometimes hair extensions.
COLORS are matched to numbers in an attempt to create an industry standard and make your job as a stylist easier. The first number represents the base shade (darkness), the second number is the primary tone (depth), and the third number (if there is a third number) is the secondary tone. It’s valuable to remember the ICC—as well as Donna Bella’s hair extension color classifications—when it comes time to color your DB hair extensions. For more information on how to accomplish this, visit our online Color Takeover Portal.
Our Donna Bella hair extension color numbers (the numbers you’ll find on the packaging of your DB hair extensions) use some numbers that match the International Color Chart exactly but do not follow the system using base, primary, and secondary numbers. To make sense of hair extension numbers, remember that the numbers fall into five basic categories.
Base Shade Number Range
Black & Brown 1 to 18
Blonde 22 to 613A
Red 19 to 530A
Gray & Platinum 34 to 280
Solid Colors By Name
Surprisingly, the numbers overlap but the categories are actually narrower than the numbers suggest. For example, the main blonde colors run from #22 to #27 but take a giant leap to number #613. So just because blonde shades begin with #22 and end with #613, it doesn’t mean that all 591 numbers in-between have been assigned a color. You will notice, however, that color number shades generally transition from darker to lighter shades. For example, brown #4 is a lighter shade than brown #2, and blonde #24 is lighter than blonde #22.
There are some variations in the system. For example, #27-613 means that blonde hair #27 has been blended with blonde hair #613 in the same strand or weft. The same example applies to brown #6-10. The strand contains a certain percentage of colors #6 and #10 to soften and neutralize the shade.
Solid colors are another thing altogether. They are sometimes referred to as fashion colors and have no numbers assigned to them. So you’ll see names like red wine, dark purple, green, burgundy, black wine, and pink. It is not unusual to find that solid colors from different manufacturers vary in color, just as clothing dye lots can vary from company to company.
Don’t underestimate the importance and convenience of buying a Color Ring from Donna Bella. A Color Ring is a valuable tool to guide your client with their color choice. And, of course, an actual Color Ring made with real swatches of Donna Bella hair is always more accurate than color swatches printed on paper or listed on the Internet.
And again, when it comes to custom coloring your Donna Bella hair extensions—which is one of the many wonderful benefits of 100% Human Remy hair—be sure you have a good understanding of both the hair extension color and the applied color, as this will allow you to anticipate how the two will interact. To assist stylists in all hair extension coloring endeavors, Donna Bella has launched a Color Takeover Portal, complete with instructional videos, articles, and a free downloadable guide. With all these resources (and more!) at your disposal, you can feel confident your color job will turn out beautifully.
Visit the Color Takeover Portal today!
