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SARAH LOUISE KEANE

@slkbleachexpert

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Helping hairdressers build more than a full column 💇‍♀️
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Scalp Bleaches don’t have to be white blonde and I don’t know where that idea came from if I’m totally honest 😅

The point of having them is to have a bold global colour, that doesn’t always mean white. We wanted a bright blonde which in my mind is creamy and if we got a tub of cream out and compared it to this it would be PRETTY similar.

The hair was lifted with @blondesolutions_uk and 15 vol. Toned with 2 parts 10/0 to 1 part 10/6 in @wellahairuki Color Touch ❤️ by @slkbleachexpert

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9 months ago

OMG are you seeing what I’m seeing?!

I know I say this all the time but WTAF 😭 I’m obsessed, and so is my gorgeous client Beth.

This was only her second foil appointment and the transformation is already huge. We’re officially on a lived in blonde journey, and I couldn’t be happier about it.

If you’ve followed me from the beginning, you’ll know I used to live for these kinds of blondes. But somewhere along the way, scalp bleaches took over and foils kind of slipped into the background. I started telling myself I was out of touch, and I felt like I’d lost my confidence with them a bit.

So I booked a 1:1 with the absolute icons @daisy_goord and @carlybrown9 and… lived-in blondes are BACK, baby. Not to be dramatic but I’ve already been inundated with appointment requests 🌝

Sometimes, all it takes is a little reminder of what you’re capable of. ✨ by @slkbleachexpert

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2 years ago

Let’s face it, most blondes want to be blonder, brighter and bolder! Let’s break down these points shall we?

1. Product saturation is KEY 🔑 to any lifting service, in this instance more is more. You want to essentially camouflage your section by heavily saturating your bleach

2. Get to know your bleach brands active lift life, knowing and working with this really is the difference between a level 9 and a level 10.

3. Understanding the difference in pigment between a level 9 and 10 is crucial when it comes to formulating your toners to work with you. Scientifically a level 10 formula won’t work how it’s meant to on a level 9.

4. Our industry has dismissed scalp bleaching for years and branded it as high risk meaning so many of us spend hours highlighting to try and achieve the same result. Sorry to break it to you, sometimes scalp bleaching is the best option. by @slkbleachexpert

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2 years ago

We’ve all been stood at the backwash at some point hoping a toner is about to perform a fucking miracle, but come on, there’s only so much we can ask of it 😂

If the lift isn’t there, it isn’t there. Throwing another formula at it won’t suddenly give you the blonde you promised in the consultation.

I know you want to make your client happy and you want to be the hairdresser who gives them the hair they’ve always wanted. But sometimes we get so caught up in wanting to say yes that we agree to something we KNOW is a stretch, and then we’re the ones sweating over a tint bowl wondering why we’ve done this to ourselves.

This is why I’m so particular about giving myself enough time. I want to be concentrating on the head in front of me, not mentally calculating how late I’m going to be for every other client that day. Because once you start trying to claw that time back, it’s very easy to make a decision you wouldn’t have made if you’d booked the appointment properly in the first place.

And honestly, saying “we’re not going to get there today” is part of being good at your job. You don’t have to agree to every bloody thing to prove you know what you’re doing.

Sometimes knowing what you’re doing is exactly why you’re saying no ❤️ by @slkbleachexpert

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11 hours ago

No natural oils means less protection and more sensitivity 🥹

A little lived-in scalp is your best friend with a scalp bleach, it creates that natural barrier so you can focus on lifting safely instead of wondering if your clients heads on fire 🤪 by @slkbleachexpert

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4 days ago

Rinsing in sections slows you down in the right way. It lets you control what’s ready, what’s not, and where the bleach is actually going 🕺

Flooding the whole head at once removes your control. Some areas keep processing longer, some get pushed onto already lightened hair. Some get diluted before they’ve finished lifting.

It looks difficult but I promise you it’s not you just need to get your client to work with you ✨ by @slkbleachexpert

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3 days ago

One of the most common mistakes I see with scalp bleaching is rinsing too soon 🥹

There is a big difference between a Level 9 and a Level 10 raw lift, the difference being a lot of yellow. Your bleach should always be doing the hard work, not your toner.

Using an ammonia based toner and expecting it to miracously bump up your lift level might appear to work temporarily but what you’ve done is use a product thats working hard to blow open your already raised cuticle, that toner’s going to fall out very quickly, which is disappointing.

Never mind the fact that your clients scalp will be probably be screaming by the time you’re done.

Leave your bleach for longer instead of relying on a toner hoping that somehow it’s going to give you more lift, thank me later 🫶 by @slkbleachexpert

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10 days ago

There’s a lot of unspoken rules when it comes to bleaching 👀

Mix your bleach little and often. The oxidation process starts as soon as your peroxide mixes with your powder, so leaving a big bowl sitting on your trolley can lead to inconsistencies.

And please don’t underestimate your sectioning. The cleaner your sections are, the easier it is to be precise.

They might seem like small things, but they can make such a difference when you’re bleaching! ❤️ by @slkbleachexpert

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5 days ago

Five years ago I did my teaching qualifications genuinely thinking this wasn’t going to work out because why would anyone want to learn from a loud mouthed Northerner like me 🤣

On Monday I won the Creative Head Most Wanted Award for Education, I was so overwhelmed when my name was called because I know how much of myself I’ve put into this part of my career.

From classes and programmes to mentoring and quite literally opening my mouth on social media, the thing that has always mattered most to me is helping someone see something differently enough that it changes what they do next and imo that is the whole point of education.

I’m also reallllly shit at acknowledging my own achievements, so my dad helped me with this entry because I needed someone else to make me stop and actually look at what i’d helped other people to achieve.

I’ve entered this category three times. and this time I fucking won it. 😭🤍 @creativeheadmag thank you SO much by @slkbleachexpert

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12 days ago

I will die on this hill…

Rushing a scalp bleach doesn’t make you quicker in the long run, it just gives you more chance of making a mess and there is a HUGE difference between being quick at something and rushing it 😅 by @slkbleachexpert

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11 days ago

A few months ago, SLK’s Staff Room was literally just an idea I’d been too scared to do anything with…

I knew I wanted it to be more than lessons. I wanted a safe space where hairdressers could actually talk about the shit we all deal with, be honest about what’s not working and learn from each other too 🥹

We had our first Staff Meeting this week and seeing people say they felt understood, more confident, less alone and already asking when they could all meet in real life honestly got me 😩

It’s mad watching something that only existed in my head a few months ago turn into this ❤️ by @slkbleachexpert

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17 days ago

How many times have you heard this? 🙄

When it comes to scalp bleaching every base level you work on has its pros and cons, no matter what you were taught when training.

Darker hair takes longer to lift yes, but working on hair that lifts faster isn’t as “risk free” as you think 👀 by @slkbleachexpert

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18 days ago