The 7 best toners for platinum blonde
Not enough ash and it’s yellow, TOO much ash and it’s suddenly gone darker/greeny/purple at the hairline! Knowing which toner to use for platinum blonde can be an absolute nightmare, so here are our 7 favourite shades for a platinum or silver result.
1. Dia Richesse 10.12 (level 10 with blue & mauve ash)
When to use: When the hair has lifted to a level 10 (very pale yellow) and there is no natural hair left in between.
Technology: Alkaline (ammonia free)
Pros: It’s got a good amount of both blue (.1) AND mauve (.2) ash so is great for neutralising out the last little bit of yellow as well as depositing a decent amount of ash tone. Being an alkaline colour it is strong enough to get quite deep inside the hair and has good staying power in general, even on thicker hair types.
Cons: Can sometimes grab around the hairline. Try adding in some ‘Clear’ shade in porous areas or apply at the end after rest has developed. Being alkaline means if you tone highlights or balayage where there is natural hair left in between, it may break the base and appear warm, especially on lighter bases or fine hair types.
2. Luocolor P01 (Level 10+ with blue ash)
When to use: Scalp bleaches ONLY and when the hair has lifted to a clean level 10 (very pale yellow but NOT a strong yellow tone. If you want a platinum/silver result.
Technology: Alkaline (contains ammonia)
Pros: It’s a reallllly strong toner and will leave a beautiful silvery result over a level 10 undercoat. Being a ‘P0’ level, there is slightly less ‘depth’ than a 10, so it keeps the hair light and bright where some other ash shades can drop quite dark.
Cons: Being an alkaline colour, if you tone highlights or balayage where there is natural hair left in between, it WILL break the base and appear warm, especially on lighter bases or fine hair. It also seems to have quite a bit of ammonia in as you can both smell it and feel it when applied to the scalp. On a more sensitive scalp this might not be ideal, so choose your client accordingly. There isn’t any mauve in this shade, so what do you think will happen if you put a pure blue based ash over too much yellow? It can go greeny. To avoid, either pre-tone out the warmth or mix it with P02 below….
3. Luocolor P02 (Level 10+ with mauve ash)
When to use: Scalp bleaches ONLY and when the hair has lifted to a level 10 (very pale yellow) and you want a platinum/pearly result.
Technology: Alkaline (contains ammonia)
Pros: It’s a great little toner and will leave a beautiful platinum, neutral or pearly (depending how long you leave it on for) result over a level 10 undercoat. Being a ‘P0’ level, there is slightly less ‘depth’ than a 10, so it keeps the hair light and bright where some other ash shades can drop quite dark.
Cons: Being an alkaline colour, if you tone highlights or balayage where there is natural hair left in between, it WILL break the base and appear warm, especially on lighter bases or fine hair. The same also applies as the above re ammonia content, so be mindful of this when choosing who to use it on. It looks TERRIFYING when developing, like dark purple. The temptation is to wash it off immediately but often when you do this it is actually still yellow! Generally in our experience, when you think it’s done, it needs another 5 minutes. Saying this, it’s always best to err on the side of caution and you can easily reapply it if needs be, rather than then having to remove it if it goes too strong. The hairline may grab (as with all toners) so leave until the end if you don’t want this to happen or mix with a little ‘P0’.
4. Dialight 10.21 (Level 10 with mauve ash and blue ash)
When to use: To tone highlights, balayage or scalp bleach when the hair has lifted to a level 10 (very pale yellow) and you want a platinum/pearly result.
Technology: Acidic (ammonia free)
Pros: Being acidic, it won’t disturb the natural hair if you use it to tone highlights/balayage. It’s also really gentle, so if you’re working on fragile hair it’s not going to try and rip open the cuticles even more, meaning the result may actually last LONGER than if you used something else.
Cons: On thicker hair types, sometimes acidic colours are not quite enough to fully neutralise/deposit all the tone that you’re looking for. The dominant mauve tone is beautifully pearly but may look lilac in some lights - not necessarily a ‘con’ as such, but worth noting.
5. Dialight 9.11 (Level 9 with strong blue ash)
When to use: To tone highlights, balayage or scalp bleach when the hair is a clean level 10, or 9, and you want a platinum/silver result.
Technology: Acidic (ammonia free)
Pros: Being acidic, it won’t disturb the natural hair if you use it to tone highlights/balayage. It has a strong silver tone (blue ash based) which, when used over a clean level 10 or 9 lightened base, leaves a gorgeous silver tone without causing any further stress to the cuticles.
Cons: If used over any yellow undertone it will likely go greeny, so make sure you tone out using a mauve based toner first, like P02 above. Honestly, it’s not really platinum. Being a level 9, and having a strong ash tone, you will lose some of the lightness and brightness and the colour result will appear darker. But it’s too good a shade for us to miss off the list :) Being acidic, it sometimes isn’t quite enough on thicker hair types. If this is the case, you may need an alkaline equivalent like Dia Richesse.
6. Pulp Riot High Speed Toners: Icy (Pale blue ash)
When to use: To tone a scalp bleach on a level 10 (very pale yellow) for a platinum/silver result when you don’t have much time!
Technology: Alkaline
Pros: Speed! This range works FAST and can deliver a platinum/silver tone in just 5 minutes. They’re also great at hiding a small multitude of sins, not that you ever need that of course…
Cons: Speed! You’ll need to apply FAST as it will drop down darker if you leave it on longer. Still a nice result, but deeper and ashier for sure. It’s also alkaline so don’t use it on highlights/balayage unless you want to break the base on the natural hair.
7. Pulp Riot High Speed Toners: Silver (Strong blue ash)
When to use: To tone a scalp bleach on a level 10 or 9 (very pale yellow or pale yellow) for a silver/grey result when you don’t have much time!
Technology: Alkaline
Pros: Speed! This range works FAST and can deliver a silver/grey tone in just 5 minutes. The lighter the base you put it on, the more silver it will look, whereas if you use it on a level 9/pale yellow, it’s going to use up a lot of its ash in neutralising.
Cons: Speed! You’ll need to apply FAST as it will drop down A LOT darker if you leave it on longer. Still a nice result, but much darker and ashier for sure. It’s also alkaline so don’t use it on highlights/balayage unless you want to break the base on the natural hair, which happens mainly on lighter bases. This is more of a grey than platinum, but too good to be missed off the list!
Now it’s play time!
We hope you’ve gotten some silver and platinum inspo from this little lot! If you’d like to learn more about how to achieve these results, or to create the perfect bleached base for them, sign up for our Bleach Without Fear course, taking place both in person in London (UK) and online.
To get your hands on any of the shades mentioned above, head over to Salons Direct where you can get them at a competitive price with next day and weekend delivery options.
Now go get creative, and don’t forget to tag us in your work!
Big Love,
HKH xx