Three different ways to put colour into hair
Most colour mistakes are not mixing mistakes. They are category mistakes — reaching for a permanent when the hair needed a demi, or asking a gloss to do a grey-coverage job it was never built for. Before any shade choice, decide which of the three families the service belongs to.
Permanent colour works alkaline. An alkaliser swells the cuticle, peroxide in the developer lifts existing pigment out of the cortex, and the dye precursors oxidise into molecules too large to wash back out. It is the only family that lifts and the only one that reliably covers resistant white hair. The trade-off is a regrowth line.
Demi-permanent colour is ammonia-free and runs on a low-percentage emulsion rather than a true developer. It deposits tone and blends grey without meaningful lift, then fades over roughly 20 to 24 shampoos instead of growing out as a hard line. The refresh, the tone-down, the gloss over lengths already at the right depth.
Acidic gloss sits lower still: shine and a whisper of tone at an acidic pH, with essentially zero lift and no demarcation at all.
Koleston Perfect ME+ — the permanent workhorse
Koleston Perfect is the permanent crème colour the rest of the Wella system is built around. The Koleston Perfect ME+ Pure Naturals /0 range is the part we carry, the full depth ladder from 1-0 black to 10-0 lightest blonde.
What ME+ actually means
ME+ is Wella's replacement dye molecule for PPD and PTD, the two precursors most often behind colour allergy. It is designed to reduce the risk of a client developing a new allergy over years of repeat services. Two things it is not: it is not for anyone who already reacts to hair colour, and it does not remove the 48-hour allergy alert test before every service.
Why the /0 naturals are the range to own
The /0 Pure Naturals carry the highest concentration of primary pigment in the line, which makes them the grey-coverage backbone. Resistant white hair has little natural pigment for a fashion tone to sit against, so a /0-heavy formula is what stops a cool shade turning translucent at the temples.
The working rule: past about 50% white, build with a third to a half target-level natural and make up the balance with your tone. On stubborn hairlines apply the regrowth first, give it a real head start, then carry the formula through the mid-lengths for the last stretch.
Koleston Perfect mixes 1:1 with Welloxon Perfect Cream Developer and develops for roughly 30 to 40 minutes at room temperature. Confirm both against the leaflet in the box — ratios and timings differ by sub-range, and the leaflet is the authority, not a guide page.
Welloxon Perfect: what each volume is for
Welloxon Perfect is the developer built for Koleston, stocked here at 6, 10, 20, 30 and 40 volume plus a 3.78 L back-bar size of the 20. Volume is not a strength dial you turn up for a better result — it is only the decision about how much lift the service requires.
| Welloxon Perfect | Peroxide | Lift on natural hair | Typical job |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 vol | 1.9% | None — deposit only | Tone-on-tone, going darker, root shadows, base breaking |
| 10 vol | 3% | About 1 level | Depositing at level or darker; refreshing a faded permanent |
| 20 vol | 6% | Up to 2 levels | The default for grey coverage — most root retouches live here |
| 30 vol | 9% | Up to 3 levels | Lifting a natural base within permanent colour |
| 40 vol | 12% | Up to 4 levels | Maximum lift from a tube; the volume high-lift blondes call for at their own ratio |
Forty volume on the scalp is rarely the right answer — a service needing more than four levels needs lightener and a toner, not a hotter developer. And more lift means more pigment removed, so warmth exposed at 9% and 12% has to be corrected in the formula rather than hoped away.
For a softened root rather than a hard retouch line, the Base Breaker in /19 Cool and /86 Extra Cool is the tool. It mixes with a low-volume Welloxon Perfect and processes briefly — check the leaflet for ratio and timing, and watch it rather than setting a timer.
Koleston Xpress — where ten minutes earns its place
Koleston Xpress is a permanent colour formulated to develop in ten minutes with high grey coverage, in a compact shade set: neutrals from 2/ darkest brown to 10/ lightest blonde, plus ash and gold-warm options at levels 5 and 7.
It is not a lesser Koleston Perfect for people in a hurry — it solves scheduling problems. A regrowth-only client on a tight rebook, a walk-in between two long appointments, a gentleman's grey blend that should be twenty minutes end to end.
Where it is wrong: corrective work, formulas needing real lift, and anything wanting a wide tonal palette to mix from — the shade set is deliberately narrow and neutral-led. Like Koleston Perfect it mixes with Welloxon Perfect; follow the leaflet for the ratio and the volume your target depth requires.
Color Touch — demi-permanent, and the two activators
Color Touch is the ammonia-free demi, and the most used product in most colour rooms once a client's base is established. Our range spans the naturals from 2/0 to 5/0, the ash, gold, red and mahogany tones at levels 3 to 5, the /71 and /77 browns, the pure Intense Mix tones (0/00, 0/34, 0/45, 0/56, 0/68), and a Relights shade for refreshing ends.
Color Touch does not run on Welloxon Perfect. It takes its own Color Touch Emulsion activator, stocked in 1.9% and 4%, each in a 1 L bottle and a 3.78 L back-bar jug. The standard ratio is one part colour to two parts emulsion — a 1:2 mix that catches out anyone arriving from a 1:1 permanent system, and doubles the yield per tube.
1.9% or 4%
1.9% (6 vol) is the true tone-on-tone activator. Nothing lifts, the cuticle barely opens, the deposit is soft. Use it for toning freshly lightened hair, refreshing faded mid-lengths, glossing a client happy with their depth, and every Relights application.
4% (13 vol) opens the cuticle further, which does two useful things: it drives pigment into resistant hair that turns 1.9% away, and it gives a marginally brighter result on darker or coarse bases. It is still not a permanent — expect blending, not opaque coverage, and expect no lift.
Timing varies by sub-range: the standard shades, the Plus shades built for resistant grey and the Relights each have their own window, and Plus is specified with the 4% only. Read the leaflet rather than assuming one timing covers the family.
Shinefinity — what we actually stock, plainly
Shinefinity is Wella's acidic zero-lift glaze: shine and a light veil of tone, no lift, no demarcation line. From that system we stock the service parts, not the colour — the Shinefinity Base Activator 2% in 60 ml, live in two applicator formats, and the Shinefinity Base Colouring Brush, the narrow pink brush made for tight root work.
The glaze shades are not in our catalogue at the moment. If you already run the system and need the activator or the brush, they are here. If you are starting a glossing service from scratch, Color Touch at 1.9% is the demi we stock and the honest recommendation.
Choose by the job
Full grey coverage
Koleston Perfect ME+ /0, 1:1 with 20 volume Welloxon Perfect, regrowth first. Go to 30 volume only when the target is genuinely lighter than the natural base, never to force coverage.
Refresh faded mid-lengths and ends
Color Touch with the 1.9% emulsion, at or slightly deeper than the current tone. Keep it off already-saturated ends until the last few minutes so they do not go muddy.
Tone after lightening
Having lifted with a powder such as BlondorPlex dust-free lightener, tone at low strength: Color Touch at 1.9%, or the dedicated BlondorPlex toners and Blondor Liquid Toner in the pearl, silver, beige and platinum families. Pre-lightened hair is porous and grabs fast — never time it blind.
Shine without lift or a regrowth line
Color Touch 1.9% as a full-head gloss, or the Shinefinity activator and brush if you already run that system.
Prep and tools that change the result
Colour goes wrong at the edges more often than in the bowl. Prep and application are the cheap part of the service, and the part that gets skipped.
- Marula Oil Blend Scalp Primer — pre-colour scalp protection before a full-head or sensitive-scalp application.
- Preguard Protective Cream — barrier cream along the hairline, ears and nape, and the difference between a clean finish and ten minutes scrubbing stains.
- Colour Service Pre-Colour Treatment — evens porosity so the ends do not drink the formula and go dark.
- Non-slip colour mixing bowl and the large dye brush with tail comb — the wide head covers faster and the tail sections cleanly, no second tool needed.
- 240 ml applicator bottle — for liquid toners and anything you would rather flood through than paint on.
- Water-repellent salon apron.
- Wellaplex No. 3 Hair Stabilizer — the take-home step after lightening or a heavy colour change.
Two steps hold the result afterwards: Colour Service Post-Treatment at the basin, to bring the hair back to an acidic pH and stop ongoing oxidation, and a colour-safe home regimen — Invigo Brilliance for vibrancy, ColorMotion+ where the hair also needs structural help, Ultimate Color Colour Sealer to seal.
Questions we get asked
Can I use Welloxon Perfect with Color Touch?
No. Color Touch is formulated around its emulsion at 1:2, and Welloxon Perfect is built for the Koleston system at its own ratios. Substituting one for the other gives the wrong pH, the wrong viscosity and an unpredictable result. Keep each colour line on its own developer.
Does ME+ mean I can skip the allergy alert test?
No. ME+ lowers the risk of a client developing a new colour allergy over time; it does not make colour non-allergenic. The 48-hour allergy alert test before every service still applies, and anyone who already reacts to hair colour should not be coloured.
My client is 100% white at the front and blends fine everywhere else. What formula?
Build with the /0 natural at the target level as at least a third of the mix, at 20 volume, 1:1. Apply the front hairline first and give it the full development, then carry the formula through the rest of the head once the resistant area has its head start.
Why did my demi wash out in three weeks?
That is close to how demi-permanent behaves, especially at 1.9% on porous hair, and it usually points to sulfate-heavy shampoo, hot water or unrepaired porosity rather than a bad formula. Move the client to a colour-protection shampoo; on resistant hair, the 4% emulsion gives a firmer deposit next time.
Can I put Color Touch straight onto freshly lightened hair?
Yes, and it is one of its best uses — but treat it as toning porous hair, not colouring. Use the 1.9% emulsion, start with a lower-intensity formula than you think you need, and watch the head rather than the clock. If the lightening was uneven, even the porosity first.
Do you stock the Shinefinity shades?
Not currently. The Base Activator 2% and the pink Base Colouring Brush are live; the glaze shades are not. For a gloss or tone service today, Color Touch at 1.9% is the range to order.