ask the expert - Q&A with mishi:

Hello Mishi,

I currently have dry hair and peek-a-boo highlights. I really want ombré highlights but was told my hair is too dry. I love your work and want to know if it is possible for you to ombré hair like mine? (with peek-a-boo highlights and dry hair). Thanks for your time and hope you can help me.

-Melanie

Dear Melanie,

I have a couple clients who have inherently super dry hair. They condition and get regular trims, but it's still dry. Regardless, they still want to leave it long and do ombré color because it looks so great. The hair may not be silky smooth, but they are happy because it meets their aesthetic expectations. If you are expecting that it's going to be slightly damaging and accept responsibility to care for a new ombré style, then I recommend you come see me. I have some great products with fabulous natural moisturizers for dry, colored hair. Though it's important for everyone to use quality hair products, it's especially important if you have very dry hair. You should check out the product that I recommend, and plan to cut your hair just before the ombré color is applied. It's also a great idea to do a follow-up trim about a month after the color. This will keep any split ends at bay, and prevent your hair from becoming more damaged and needing more length cut off later.

As for the peek-a-boo highlights, I'm seeing a lot of people come in who have peek-a-boo highlights, and want me to blend them to make it more of an ombré. It's my opinion that stylists who don't know how to do ombré end up doing this a lot, but we all know the full story here. They don't know how to do balayage highlights (hand painted highlights), and are still reliant on the foil.  Balayage will help blend the peek-a-boo highlights, but it might not get as light with the first color process. The foil in traditional highlights acts as a heat conductor, and helps lighten the hair more significantly in one sitting. To achieve a light blonde highlight for darker hair, it will be necessary to do at least two balayage sessions.

Melanie, I hope this answers your questions! I'd love for you to come in to Morphic for an appointment to do an ombré look! Feel free to come in for a consultation, or just make a Skype appointment here on the website!

Thanks for the query!

- Mishi

sf street beauty

activate your highlights!

Is your parched, highlighted hair in need of some extra moisture and love? We have a fabulous new product over here at Morphic: Okara Active Light. This trio of hair care combines a unique duo of natural ingredients that deeply repair and nourish highlighted, bleached hair, to enhance the brilliance of your lightened color. Natural honey extract nourishes hair and prevents fading and yellowing, while OKARA extract, a protein from the soybean, repairs damaged hair. This highlight enhancing system revives hair's luminosity and leaves it radiant, soft and silky. All the Okara Active Light products are free of silicones and sodium chloride, so they are eco-friendly as well as gentle on your hair!  

The Activating Leave-In Fluid adds additional shine and softness to the hair, while tightening the cuticle. Reveal the brilliance of your Morphic balayage highlights- come on over for your Okara active light samples today!

man ray & lee miller at the legion of honor

On Sunday, I went to the new Legion of Honor exhibit: Man Ray | Lee Miller: Partners in Surrealism.Both artists are Americans, and they met while living in Paris in the late 1920's. So much incredible art (across many genres) happened in Paris during that time, and this exhibit also provides a decent sampling of Ray and Miller's contemporaries (Pablo Picasso and Alexander Calder among them). Lee Miller was Man Ray's model, lover, student, and undeniably a collaborator to his body of work. From 1929 to 1932, they developed what turned out to be the most memorable work of both their careers. Though they lived together for only three years, the exhibition's photographs, drawings, paintings and manuscripts examine the lingering effect each had on the other's art throughout their lives. A preview of my favorites from the exhibit are below... what do you think of these?

gaultier at the de young

Jean Paul Gaultier is a nonconformist fashion designer, bending society's definition of what's "pretty" by creating masterfully crafted haute couture. This exhibition is superlative to all the fashion exhibitions that have been shown at De young combined.  Gaultier is a fashion leader in pushing the limits of what's possible.

Odile Gilbert has many memorable wigs displayed on the mannequins in this show.  She is also the leading female of the editorial hair world.  Both residing in Paris, Odile and Gaultier have collaborated on many shows.  Gaultier has obviously influenced Odile's creative exploration in ways that have advanced the art of hairstyling. Would you wear any of these styles?! Which one?

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