Hair colour gets healthy

I try out Organic Colour Systems hair colour as an healthy alternative to chemical hair dye- perfect for those who prefer not to use chemical permanent dye for a variety of reasons, particularly if they are pregnant, have had illness or prefer using organics for their diet and want to extend that to their skin and hair care.

Morgan, originally from Vancouver, greets me at HUE in Ponsonby and talks me through the Organic Colour System process in a one on one consultation to ascertain exactly what colour I want and what my expectations are of the colour. She advised that organic colours have some limitations; the processing time is longer - at 45 minutes- and is under a heat diffusing lamp. There's less strength in covering grey and they aren't expected to be as long-lasting as a non-organic hair colour would be. Organic colours are very soft, very pretty, so they're not ideally suited, for instance, to a fashion shoot looking for bright colour trends and intense colour. The price at March 09 was $75 for organic and $65 for non-organic colours.

You do get the full range of natural colours on offer, from super light blonde through silver, brown, black and all shades of red. Morgan advised I go lighter rather than copper red as usual, to match my ash blonde (salon-speak for 'mousey') roots to prolong visiting the salon for longer. 

Morgan had never heard of the plant extract-derived organic hair colours back in Canada, but now she's working in Auckland, "I get a lot of pregnant women asking for them as word spreads. Pregnant women say their sense of smell is heightened and they can only smell non-organic hair colour for so long, but this is very gentle and smells nice. They're also good for women with cancer and other illnesses, or dramatic hair loss, and contain no ammonia."

Manager/Educator Liz Saunders says the organic colour "already has a huge fan base, especially with people who eat organic food. HUE has a monopoly in Organic Colour Systems at present in Auckland, and it's imported by a company who imports organic foodstuffs here."

"In a couple of months, we'll also have Essensity available" says Saunders. "Essensity is the new organic colour range from Schwarzkopf and includes a retail range of shampoo, conditioner and styling products."  The range is free from artificial fragrance, silicones, paraffin/mineral oils and parabens, using pure organic essences and essential oils and a high percentage of natural ingredients. It has biodegradable packaging and undertakes a reforestation programme in Panama.

I sit under the sci-fi Climazone helmut feeling slightly like Joe-90 for three quarters of an hour and come out a lovely shade of auburn which I am really happy with. And I didn't even bring in a celebrity photo to copy.

"The most common photo I get given is Jennifer Aniston. 9 times out of 10 if clients bring in a hair colour matching photo, it's of her" says Morgan. " 'Caramel' means different things to all which is why consultation is important, and using the colour swatches. It's really important to communicate what colours will do, especially with warm tones like coppers. We could end up with a fire engine red and they want a sandy blonde! We're seeing a lot more natural, soft dusky blondes rather than platinums. Simple, calm colour which is nice and less maintenance too."

I ask Morgan about colour trends for hair. "Summer's always ash cool blonde. When Fall comes around, people want to warm it up and play with darker tones. People also start dressing differently and so match that in their hair colour. I personally love gingers, they really catch my eye. Ginger is hard to pull off. If you can work it, I say embrace it! Next time you see me, I'll have ginger hair!" she says. 

Below, tubes of colour match the salon interior at HUE, 100 Franklin Road, Ponsonby.
Phone 0508 call hue