Meet the #1 Salon Secret Lightening Weapon: Toner

Hair Toner

Let us set the tone (pun intended): you get your hair highlighted at a salon. After a few hours in your colorist’s chair, you leave with your hair looking lighter, sun-kissed, shiny, fresh. You LOVE it. A few weeks later, the highlights seem to have faded a bit. Your highlights may look a little yellow, brassy, dull. Or maybe you have lightened your hair yourself at home using a drugstore highlighting kit, and the color looks raw, the hair dry. Either way, we have one word for you: TONER.

What is hair toner? And why do I need it?

First of all, no matter what color your hair is, if you lighten it, you expose warm yellow, orange or red undertones. In addition, if you’ve been coloring your hair for years, as you lighten it, it may reveal different shades depending on what types of color you have used previously on your hair. Toner evens out the porosity of your hair, camouflaging differences in the exposed color, which is why colorists use toner after highlighting. Some argue that toning is actually the most important part of the highlighting process. Put simply, a hair color toner is a demi-permanent glaze that refines color, enhances shine and improves the overall condition of your hair. Depending on the shade of toner used, it may cancel out yellow, orange or red tones to counteract unwanted brassiness, and it may refine the highlighted shade with hints of honey, vanilla, or caramel for a flawless finish. (Yum.)

Are toners just for blondes?

Nope. They may be more commonly known for blondes, but toners are a must for all shades of hair. They help redheads stay true to color, brunettes stay glossy...in short, they refresh all shades of hair while adding a dose of healthy-looking shine.

 

Can I tone on my own?

Yes, and we’ve made it easier than ever to tone highlights with Light Works™ Toning Glaze. This is the second step included in our Light Works Balayage Highlighting Kit, so after you highlight your hair you can perfect the tone just as a colorist does in a salon. But we also carry just the Toning Glaze by itself, so you can refresh your highlights at any time. Our Toning Glaze doesn’t interfere with your base color, and like all of our products, it’s free of ammonia, PPD, resorcinol, parabens, phthalates, and gluten, and enriched with hair-loving ingredients, keratin, argan oil, ginseng root extract.

 

How to tone your hair

It’s easy. Simply mix the glaze with the activator and apply to freshly shampooed hair. Let it process for 20 minutes, then rinse, shampoo and condition. Voila! A fresh start for your highlighted hair.

 

At Madison Reed, we believe in empowering women with a better way to color, which includes hair toner. Now that you know the salon secret to professional highlights, you can take your highlights from faded to fresh while improving condition and shine at home. As we like to say, all for tone, and tone for all...