BITE
PROFILE
FED UPWITH AMMONIA IN HAIR DYES STRIPPING AND RUININGYOUR
HAIR? TAKE SPECIALIST COLOURIST AND HAIR STYLIST, KARINE
JACKSON’S ADVICE AND COLOUR YOUR HAIR THE NATURAL WAY
WITH ORGANIC COLOUR SYSTEMS. ANNABEL GOLDIE-MORRISON
TELLS US MORE
COLOUR ME
RED
THE EXPERT
Karine Jackson started her career in her parent’s salon in
Wollongong,Australia, before coming to London 20 years
ago. She spent five years working for Charles
Worthington, eventually managing the prestigious Covent
Garden salon. In 2003 Karine took the plunge and set up
on her own in Litchfield Street, two doors from the Ivy
restaurant.
As well as precision cutting skills, Karine is a highly
respected colourist, and holds a L’Oreal Colour Specialist
Degree – putting her in the top 1% of L’Oreal colourists
in the UK. Her prestige is illustrated by winning London
Hairdresser of theYear in 2007, and since then she’s gone
from strength to strength. Karine has appeared on BBC’s
One Show, and celebrity clients include Neve Campbell,
Shelley Conn and Little Boots.
THE PLACE
Karine’s hairdressing skills and personable nature have
successfully transferred to her salon, where the stylists
are friendly and professional, and focused on fantastic
service.Training is one of the top priorities at the salon –
and the team rises to the challenge and revels in the high
standards. Regular training is important to keep the
approach fresh, and keep the team up to date with trends
and fashions.
The salon is airy and spacious, and even when it’s full
it doesn’t feel crowded or rushed. The decor is neutral
and minimalist, and everything looks new – from the
gowns to the chairs.
THE PRODUCTS
After a client suffering from cancer asked Karine to look
into organic products, she did some research without
expecting to find anything workable.However she discov-
ered Organic Colour Systems, manufactured by Herb
UK, and hasn’t looked back since. Developed by a hair-
dresser who’d suffered bad allergic reactions to conven-
tional colour, OCS uses naturally derived ingredients that
are kind and nurturing to the hair and feature natural
extracts such as aloe vera, sunflower oil (a natural UV
inhibitor), fennel seed (conditioner), comfrey (moisturis-
ing), orange and grapefruit.The products don’t use ammo-
nia, therefore allowing hair to retain its natural moisture
and protein balance. The natural base closes the cuticle
down when shampooing and applying conditioner, giving
it a natural feel and shine – and a longer lasting finish than
other colours.
The OCS range includes ammonia-free colour, sham-
poos, conditioners, treatments and styling products which
contain Soil Association and ECOCERT Organic
Certified ingredients. They’re never tested on animals
(OCS was recently awarded the Choose Cruelty Free
bunny logo to use in their branding), and parabens and
other harmful substances are excluded in favour of natu-
ral hard working ingredients.
Karine is now Creative Director for OCS, and
recently appeared on the BBC’s One Show talking about
the reduced risk of allergic reactions for both clients and
hairdressers when using the colour due to its low level of
PPDs. OCS has the lowest possible percentage of PPDs
(the ingredient that usually causes reactions – the
European guidelines allow up to 6% for hair colour, OCS
uses a max of 0.6%).
Karine has found that clients love the non-drip gel
and the fact that the treatment nourishes the hair. OCS
does not cost any more than conventional hair colour
and 90% of Karine’s clientele have switched over now, and
she’s got more pregnant clients looking for that extra
security.
THE TRENDS
Karine is tipping ClashingTones as one of the hottest new
hair trends for 2011. Karine says, “As seen on Angelina
Jolie, Cheryl Cole and Dannii Minogue, the great thing
about this look is that we’re just playing with tone and not
depth, so you can change the colour every six weeks
without any hassle or damage.
For Angelina’s colour, ask for a creative colour with a
golden light brown on the top and an auburn red colour
underneath - this will give you the clash of tones needed
to recreate this look. Cheryl’s wearing copper red on top
and golden brown underneath, whilst Dannii’s wearing
coppery, red-blonde highlights that clash with the golden