The Crosswrap Hair Coloring Technique

You've been pampered at the best getaway spas, eaten at the newest, most raved about restaurants, and had your hair coiffed by the best in the business. What is left for you?

So you think you've had it all?

You've been pampered at the best getaway spas, eaten at the newest, most raved about restaurants, and had your hair coiffed by the best in the business. What is left for you? What can you do to make yourself stand out in a world where having the best sometimes just isn't enough?

As a New York City hair colorist, I have seen my share of women who think they have had it all and don't know what else is left to do with their color. What could possibly take it up one more notch to make their hair even more fantastic? Answer: the Crosswrap.

	The goal is to have a head of countless varied tones which blend together to create a unified natural look.

What Is a Crosswrap?

The crosswrap is a technique introduced to me by legendary stylist Beth Minardi. A crosswrap combines two opposing color patterns to create natural looking, multi-dimensional tonalities, while saturating the hair with color. This innovative approach to hair color is truly amazing, but the work is so intensive that nothing short of a few glasses of wine, some excellent conversation, and patience can pass the time.

The Crosswrap Technique

Imagine painting vertical yellow lines on a white wall, then once that's dry, painting blue horizontal lines on that same wall. Since this is done by hand, no two lines will be the same and it creates interesting gradations in color. Wherever the blue interacts with the yellow there will be green squares as well as blue and yellow tones. Now picture that on your head—well maybe with some more natural tones.

One of my crosswrap clients Jamie (featured in my crosswrap video) is a young, trendy, NYC fashionista. She prides herself on knowing what's hot well before the masses do. Keeping her color fresh and innovative is a challenge, but nothing a little crosswrap action can't solve. Jamie likes to have her color as blond as possible, but still wants it to look dimensional and natural. Here’s how it’s done.

1. To begin the coloring process, I apply one pattern of highlights and mid-lights in a single direction.
2. After that color processes, I remove all foils, wash, treat, and gloss the hair with a first tone. At this point, the hair has approximately three tonalities: the base color, highlights, and lowlights.
3. Now the fun begins. I artistically work through the hair, introducing even lighter and darker tones in a different direction than the previous pattern (if I went horizontally before, I now go vertically).

Each hue will take differently depending on where it is placed and over what it is layered. A lighter piece will be exceptionally brighter on a previously highlighted section than on an unhighlighted piece. A lowlight hitting a light strand will look slightly different than if it hits a midlight. The goal is to have a head of countless varied tones which blend together to create a unified natural look.

The crosswrap is one of the most labor intensive hair color methods that I do, but the results are always incredible. Isn't having a head of glorious, multi-faceted color that sets you apart from the rest worth six hours in the salon?