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Photo Credit: Instagram via @paintedhairArtist—Patricia Nikole
By Rachael Gonzalez·Published: June 22, 2026
When a client sits down with years of DIY color, banding and gray coverage, it's easy to assume the correction is going to require multiple toners, lowlights and extra steps to blend everything together. But for Patricia Nikole (@paintedhair), the solution started before the blonding service even began.
During a recent BTC Live, the Redken Global Artistic Ambassador shared how pre-toning helped her create a more even canvas, avoid adding more bands and simplify a major blonde correction. Here's how she approached the transformation—and why correcting the canvas first changed the way the hair lifted.
For this transformation, Patricia was working with a client who had years of at-home color, heavy banding and significant density throughout the hair.
"My thought process was okay; if I go in and I try to do all these ribbons, and then I try to go in between the foils, and then try to lowlight. I'm going to create more bands," Patricia explains. "Because she has so much hair, there's so much density that it was going to be hard for me to control."
Instead of immediately reaching for foils and lowlights, Patricia focused on creating a more even starting point. She used Redken Shades ALK™, an alkaline demi-permanent color that can both deposit tone and provide up to one level of lift. "It was easier for me to go in [and] use Shades ALK. She didn't want to be cooler, and she didn't want to be darker, so this was the trick. I had to go in at a Level 8 with gold in it and a natural, so I had to balance everything out."
According to Patricia, the purpose of pre-toning was to neutralize the inconsistencies already present in the hair before beginning the blonding process. "What that allowed me to do was even soften the band where her gray coverage is, so everything was all even," she says.
"Then I applied her gray coverage, so I was able to cool everything down at her base. I used [Redken Color Fusion] NA at a level eight, and then I did my ribbon lights."
For Patricia, the biggest advantage showed up once it was time to lighten the hair. "When I lifted her, her hair was perfectly blonde," she says.
Because the tone had already been balanced throughout the canvas, the finishing process became much simpler. "There was no need to root melt her, no need to tone her. She was ready to go. All I did was use the [Redken Shades EQ™] Crystal Clear."
Press play to watch her full process:
Want to see all of Patricia's tips? Press play below to learn how to control warmth, maintain dimension and avoid muddy tones:
