Category Archives: Tips & Advice

Wella Colour Fresh Mask: How to Use It and Which Shade to Choose

Wella Color Fresh Masks Red

Wella Colour Fresh Mask is often mistaken for either a normal conditioner or a replacement for salon toner. It sits somewhere between the two. The formula contains direct colour pigments that settle onto the surface of the hair while the conditioning base softens and smooths it. There is no developer, no peroxide mixing and no […]

Dia Light vs Dia Color vs Majirel: What Is the Difference?

Loreal DiaLight Hair Colour

Dia Light, Dia Color and Majirel are sometimes treated as three strengths of the same L’Oréal Professionnel hair colour. They are not. Each range is designed for a different part of the colour service. Dia Light is an acidic demi-permanent gloss made for toning, refreshing and working on sensitised hair. Dia Color is an alkaline […]

K18 Mist vs K18 Mask: What Is the Difference and Which Comes First?

Sofia Ritchie K18

The K18 Molecular Repair Mist and K18 Leave-In Molecular Repair Hair Mask contain the same patented K18PEPTIDE™, but they are not two versions of the same treatment. The Mist is a professional pre-service product. It is used before bleaching, colouring, perming, relaxing or another chemical service to work on damage already present in the hair. […]

How to Remove Builder Gel at Home Without Damaging Your Nails

Builder Gel

Builder gel removal usually goes wrong before the acetone is even opened. The most common mistake is assuming every builder product is soak-off, then scraping at a formula that was designed to be filed. The second is peeling away gel as soon as one corner lifts, taking thin layers of the natural nail with it. […]

INOA vs Majirel: Which L’Oréal Professional Hair Colour Is Better?

L'oreal Professionnel INOA Hair Colour

INOA vs Majirel: Which L’Oréal Professional Hair Colour Is Better? INOA and Majirel are both permanent L’Oréal Professionnel colour ranges, both can cover up to 100% white hair, and both develop for 35 minutes. Yet they do not feel, mix or perform in exactly the same way. The choice is not simply “ammonia-free versus ammonia”. […]

What Nail Products Should Your Salon Keep in Stock?

Yoshi Geteway Neon nails 2

A busy nail desk usually runs out of the quiet essentials first. Not the glitter shade. Not the colour nobody has picked since Christmas. It is usually the base coat, top coat, nail cleanser, file, buffer, wipe, remover, or lamp-related tool that everyone assumed was still in stock. That is why salons should not buy […]

How to Use L’Oréal Majirel Hair Colour: Mixing Ratio, Developer and Processing Time

L'Oreal Majirel Mix Hair Colour

How to Use L’Oréal Majirel Hair Colour: Mixing Ratio, Developer and Processing Time L’Oréal Majirel is a permanent professional hair colour, which means the final result is determined by more than the shade number on the tube. The quantity of developer, its strength, the natural starting level and the condition of the hair all affect […]

Salon Furniture Buying Guide for Busy Irish Salons

Beauty Furniture

A styling chair is not just there to look good in a photo. It is adjusted, cleaned, moved around, leaned on, and used through cuts, colours, blow-dries, treatments, and long appointments. A wash unit has to support client comfort while giving the stylist enough room to work. A beauty bed has to suit real treatments, […]

Olaplex vs K18: Which Is Better for Damaged Hair?

Olaplex vs K18: Which Is Better for Damaged Hair?

If your hair feels stretchy when wet, rough through the mid-lengths, or snaps far too easily when you brush it, you are not just dealing with a little dryness — you are dealing with damage. So, K18 or Olaplex, which is better? The honest salon answer is this: they are not identical products, and they […]

10 Professional Hair Products Every Salon Should Have

10 Professional Hair Products Every Salon Should Have (1)

If you spend enough time in a busy salon, you quickly realise that the products you use matter just as much as the technique. Most stylists have learned this the hard way at some point — a colour that doesn’t develop properly or doesn’t cover grey hair, a bleach that lifts unevenly, or hair that […]