Hair color 101- Is the Color Wheel Always Right!?

In cosmetology school something that always confuses a lot  of students is the color wheel. This is essentially the basis of a lot of  early work and color choice decisions made by students when doing hair. I too still use the color wheel but I have a new take on the use. Here are just a few points on how the color wheel may or may not work:

1. The Color Wheel Works in One Direction Only- By this I mean that one cannot un-do blond hair that has turned green by tossing bright red on it. To do so would result in a horrid shade of brown translucent red. In other cases the color wheel does not give you the expected result. This is in part due to the intensity of the current hair color and how translucent the selected toner or hair color being used is.
2. Most of The Time Tertiary Colors are Left Out- Your tertiary colors are you Red-Violets (Rv), Red-Orange (Ro), Blue Green- Bg, Yellow- Green (would be an ash or gold iridescent). In addition most color wheels do not recognize the other colors such as Copper red (Cr), Titanium, Violet red (Vr), Red gold (Rg or Gr), etc.  These tones can be used for some fashion looks or added into natural color to make it have a nice tone. Used as a toner they can tone out unwanted tones or be used over blonde for fashion colors.
3. The Color Wheel Gives You A Frame Work, but It is Up to The Colorist to Make Adjustments- The colorist will use the color wheel to take into account what level to tone for and by some extent this will aide in developer selection. The best example would be me a natural level 3. I tend to pull orange red when lifted more then 2 levels. If i wanted to be a level 6 Ash (A). I would use 30vol and an ash color such as A, AA, AB, or Av. In this example I have many different shade choices that are available. It also gets complicated when lets say I want hi lights with a higher level or a hi lift color. In some cases pulling warm undertones is a positive thing. This is the case with doing reds both fashion and natural. Without the warmth the color red will look drab and boring.
4. The Myth that Brown is 3 Parts Yellow, 2 Parts Red, 1 Part Blue.- This part of the cosmetology textbook always confuses me and the students. I was taught this but was lost on how to formulate for this ratio. I ended up ignoring it and would formulate according to my manufactures swatches and guide. It’s a great thing I did not try this on someones head because recently when I took a class with Tom Dispenza I learned that this ratio makes an ugly green. I do want to try this on a hair swatch using direct dye and see if it makes the same result.
5. The Color Wheel will Vary From Each Manufacturer and so Will The Color Swatches- Just like how my version of red or blonde is going to be different compared to what my client is thinking, each hair color line is formulated differently. This is not a bad thing, rather a good thing. I look at this like a positive because I am the artist and I can make the line work for me and my needs. I do want to stress that for some what may look like a nice red on the swat, the clients hair is at a different level so it may be lighter or darker then expected. Making your own swatches can be helpful especially if you are freelance.
6. When Using a Hair Color Remover This Will Effect How you Use The Color Wheel- When using a hair color remover make sure to consult your color wheel. You may have to either use a different tone or adjust your formula. Some color removers behave like bleach and this can mean that your color will end up brighter as a result so doing a test strand with a tweaked formula is recommended.
7. Gray Hair Must be Accounted for or The Color Wheel May Work Too Well- Ever seen an older woman with blue or pink hair? I have! This is usually because when at the salon she was colored or toned with a  formula that did not take into account her percentage of gray. In more extreme cases I have seen the result of a client using a hi lift red hair color at home and she ended up with a translucent flamingo pink color. This is because gray hair has no pigment in it and what happens is these strands of hair will absorb the actual color and reflect a brighter tone back. This is sometimes not a big deal for a few pieces of gray hair because it can give a cool hi-lighted effect for red hair or warmer browns, but when its most or all of the hair you can have one very unhappy client.

Overall, I love the color wheel. I can be helpful for finding shades that compliment each other, often called analogous. It also is great for teaching the basics of how the color theory works. When used with advanced education such as knowing when the color wheel may not work as expected it can help students think critically about how to formulate for situations that are tough, or to not be as shocked when a bad outcome occurs. Knowing the color wheel can help to avoid disaster when working with the fun direct dyes. Personally I like the model of a painters swatch guide like Pantone because there are various color shades and choices, just like using a color line the artist can combine or create just about any color.