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Levi Aument at Reds Salon and Day Spa

@leviatreds

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✂️Salon Owner @redssalon, and stylist
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Modern, Customized Hair
🎨Color
✂️Cut
🌬Blowout
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📲 Call to Schedule 616.847.2122
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⬇️ Order products here ⬇️

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THE CONTRIBUTING-PIGMENT CHART NAMES THE LEVELS.
THE HAIR CHANGES CONTINUOUSLY. 🔬

A chart gives us reference points. It does not divide the material into sealed compartments.

That matters because not all pale yellows are created equally.

Two canvases may both read as Level 10 while showing different amounts of visible yellow—and therefore presenting different corrective demand.

Identifying the corrective family is only part of the decision. We also have to ask:

Does the target-level shade carry enough corrective chroma for the warmth in front of us? 👀

Within many shade systems, deeper shades in the same tonal family may carry a stronger concentration or expression of corrective dyes. They are designed to remain visible against the denser contributing pigment encountered at deeper levels.

That can make the deeper shade a more powerful corrective source.

In this professional example:

🟣 1 part Level 7 violet
💧 2 parts compatible Clear

The violet represents one-third of the color-component mixture.

But dilution does not turn it into a packaged Level 10 violet.

They are different recipes.

A packaged Level 10 violet has its own dye composition, balance and concentration. In an oxidative system, it may also use a different arrangement of dye precursors and couplers.

The diluted formula still begins with the Level 7 recipe. Clear reduces its concentration and visual depth; it does not rewrite its formula identity.

The deeper shade supplies the corrective strength.
Clear calibrates its concentration.

This is a chairside strategy—not a universal shade-number conversion or manufacturer formula. Shade construction varies by system. Verify the product line, follow manufacturer instructions and test on a controlled swatch. 🧪

OBSERVE the warmth.
CHOOSE the corrective family.
CALIBRATE the strength.
VERIFY the result.

The label is a clue. The fiber makes the demand.

Save this for the next time the chart and the canvas appear to disagree. 📌

#MAXMHAIR #MaterialArchive #HairColorEducation #HairColorTheory #CorrectiveColor ContributingPigment ColoristEducation HairScience HairChemistry HairColorist

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Fall hair is upon us 😍🍁
See you at the salon! Make sure to call us to set up your next appointment 🫶

616.847.2122 🌹

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Autumn reminds us that change is beautiful 🍁
@leviatreds

Call 616.847.2122 to book your next appointment 🌹

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🧪 Same depth. Different concentration.

Two formulas can arrive at a remarkably similar apparent value without being constructed the same way.

In this dye-out study:

A — 9.0/9N

B — 1 part 6.0/6N
+ 2 parts Clear

At first glance, the results are surprisingly close.

But look again. 🔬

In color, a tonal difference remains.

Remove the chromatic information from the same photographic comparison, and their apparent value becomes much easier to compare.

That’s the interesting part.

Dilution changes concentration.

It does not rewrite the starting formula.

A deeper shade diluted with Clear may approach the apparent value of a lighter shade—but that does not make the two formulas interchangeable.

Same apparent value.
Different construction.
Different recipe. 🧬

And here’s where it gets interesting:

Dilution doesn’t have to be guesswork.

There are quantitative relationships hiding inside what we’re observing.

That’s where we’re going next.

Material Archive No. 38B:
DILUTION CAN BE CALCULATED. 🧪

This is an observed comparison—not a universal level-conversion formula. Always work within the specifications of the color system you’re using.

Observation replaces assumption.

#MAXMHAIR #MaterialArchive #HairColorScience #HaircolorEducation #HairColorist HairEducator HairScience HairColorTheory ColorTheory HaircolorFormulation HairColorFormulation ColoristEducation ProfessionalHairColor DyeOut Dilution HaircolorDilution HairColorEducation SalonEducation ScienceButMakeItEditorial ObservationReplacesAssumption

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A little education + a lot of inspiration!✨

So grateful to the O&M team for coming in and teaching our stylists all about our new color line!
We’re so excited to keep learning, growing, and creating beautiful and clean color for our guests. 🫶🏼

Thank you, O&M, for spending the day with us! ✨

#nashbeautysalon #oandmcolor #coolbeauty #genevahairsalon

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Such a great day with the team! 💜

Today we had our O&M color + retail class and we are SO excited for this next step at the salon!

@leviatreds was seriously the best. So knowledgeable, so easy to learn from and just had such a great energy. We learned so much today and we get to have him back tomorrow to help us really master our formulations!

Also a huge thank you to @jillian_coolbeautychi for all of the support and everything you’ve done for us so far. We already feel so supported and it makes me even more excited about this change.

And obviously the team earned a sushi date, so we made a whole day out of it at Sushi Uni! 🍣

Lots of learning, lots of laughs and really excited for what’s next for Rising Lotus 💜

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🧡 Seeing orange doesn’t tell you what to do next.
Not all contributing pigment is created equal. One person’s orange contributing pigment may differ from another’s in hue and intensity—even when both are assessed at the same level.
Natural pigment, genetics, color history, and the lightening process all contribute to the material in front of you. 🔬
Start with the target:
🔥 MAXIMUM WARMTH — Preserve or enhance the warm character. 🌿 NATURALIZE — Soften excess warmth for a natural balance. 🎯 NEUTRALIZE — Counteract unwanted warmth.
The same applied shade can look different over different starting pigment. These visual examples illustrate that relationship; they aren’t tested formulas or guaranteed outcomes.
Before choosing your formula, assess the depth, hue, intensity, and condition.
The level gives you a reference. The hair gives you the information.
📌 Save this for your next formulation conversation.
Observation replaces assumption.
#MAXMHAIR #MaterialArchive #HairColorEducation #ContributingPigment #HairColorTheory HairColorist ColorFormulation ObservationReplacesAssumption

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Turning the brightness up 💡

@leviatreds

Call 616.847.2122 to book your next appointment! 🌹

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Dilution and desaturation can both make a shade appear softer—but they’re not the same change. 🎨
Dilution changes concentration.
When a manufacturer-approved clear functions as a non-pigmented diluter, it reduces the amount of colorant per unit of mixture. The hue family may remain recognizable while the deposit becomes softer or more sheer.
Desaturation changes chroma.
When formulated shades carrying their own reflect and neutral/base components are combined, the result can move closer to neutral. Sometimes that reads as sophisticated. Sometimes it reads as muddy. The difference is intention. 🧠
And yes—the two effects can overlap.
A diluted formula may also appear less chromatic, but concentration and chroma still describe different variables.
Think about a copper series in two directions:
↕️ 5 Copper through 9 Copper moves vertically through the level system.
↔️ At one level, reflect-dominant copper → copper-brown → brown-copper → natural/neutral moves progressively closer to the base.
Deeper oxidative shades also tend to contain higher concentrations of color-forming ingredients than lighter shades—but every manufacturer builds its shade system differently.
The formula is never just a number.
Read the level. Read the reflect. Read the base. Read the material in front of you.
Observation replaces assumption.
Save this for your next formulation conversation. 📌
#MAXMHAIR #MaterialArchive #HairColorScience #HairColorEducation #ColorTheory HairColorist ColoristEducation SalonEducation HairColorFormula CosmetologyEducation BehindTheChair

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🧬 The same formula doesn’t always produce the same result.

Haircolor is chemistry interacting with a material—and that material changes from person to person, strand to strand.

Individual fiber diameter influences how much material the chemistry encounters. But diameter never acts alone.

Porosity.Condition.Structural integrity.Previous chemical history.

They all help shape how color moves, develops, and ultimately appears.

Fine, medium, and coarse describe individual fiber diameter—not how much hair someone has. And while those categories give us a useful starting point, they are observations—not guarantees.

The formula is only part of the equation.

The material matters too. 🧪✨

Save this for your next color consultation—and send it to a colorist who knows the canvas matters as much as the formula. 🤎

Observation replaces assumption. 🔬✨

#MAXMHAIR #MaterialArchive #HairColorScience #HaircolorEducation #HairColorist ColorTheory HairStructure HairFiber HairChemistry ProfessionalHairColor SalonEducation HairEducator BehindTheChair CosmetologyEducation ColoristEducation HairScience HairColorFormula LuxuryHair ScienceButMakeItEditorial ObservationReplacesAssumption

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🧬 Haircolor doesn’t happen at 35 minutes.

That’s simply when you finally get to see what the chemistry has been doing all along.

Every second, molecules are diffusing.
Pigments are forming.
Natural melanin is changing.
The chemical environment is shifting.

The final result isn’t a single event.

It’s the accumulation of thousands of microscopic reactions happening over time.

When you understand haircolor as a process instead of an event, timing becomes more than a number—it becomes another variable you can observe, predict, and control.

Observation replaces assumption. ✨⚗️

#maxmhair #MaterialArchive #HairColorScience #HairChemistry #HaircolorEducation HairColorist ProfessionalHair HairEducator SalonEducation Hairdresser ColorTheory OxidativeColor BehindTheChair Cosmetology HairScience ScienceButMakeItEditorial ObservationReplacesAssumption LuxuryEducation EditorialEducation HairColor

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🧪 The tube doesn’t know what it is.

And neither do you—until you see what it does.

A shade name gives us information.
A formula gives us intention.

But neither guarantees behavior.

Developer. Time. The material. The existing canvas. Each variable changes what happens when chemistry meets hair. 🧬

That’s why great colorists don’t just memorize formulas.

They learn to observe behavior, recognize patterns, and predict outcomes. 🔬

The tube offers potential.

Observation reveals reality. ✨

Observation replaces assumption.

#maxmhair #ArchiveSession #HaircolorEducation #HairColorScience #HairChemistry HairColorist HairEducator ProfessionalHair SalonEducation Hairdresser Cosmetology BehindTheChair ColorTheory HairColor OxidativeColor HairScience ObservationReplacesAssumption ScienceButMakeItEditorial EditorialEducation HairArtist

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