At this year’s Premiere Orlando, our Facebook Live lounge in partnership with SalonCentric played host to some of the most talented artists and influencers in the industry. And Redken R-Team Member Cassandra McGlaughlin (@cassandraplatinum) paid us a visit to live demo the secret to her beautiful balayage technique.
In her video tutorial, McGlaughlin walks us through a salon-friendly technique that she uses every day in the salon. It’s a technique that combines balayage with foiling. “It’s a cool option to include foiling in some of your hand-painted looks because you get control with foil, you get the incubation and you also get the isolation that foil affords,” says McGlaughlin. “When you’re dealing with a darker canvas, you can get some of those lighter ribbons through the top with a pop of brightness on the ends. Combining with balayage, it achieves a really beautiful balayage ombre.” Another plus: Salon-friendly timing. The technique uses minimum foils for maximum impact.
For a softer, more lived-in look, McGlaughlin recommends applying a buffer like Redken City Beats in Clear or a conditioner right at the scalp to create an automatic transition with lightener. Anything with a neutral pH softens the effect of a lightener and keeps it from working at full strength. And, when working with a canvas that’s already light on the ends, she suggests feathering out the application to get a little bit of brightness, but not full saturation.