Q&A for How to Apply Highlight and Lowlight Foils to Hair

The color usually takes 30 minutes to process. Highlights may take up to an hour to lift to the desired color.

You can use foil to separate sections of your hair that you are using different colors on. This works for highlights, ombre, and block coloring.

A highlight is adding accent pieces that are lighter than your base shade. A lowlight is adding accent pieces that are darker.

This depends entirely on the pattern, how thick the sections are, and how blonde the client wants the end results. I've performed highlights with 10 foils and with 50.

No, you can still use foils. You won't be mixing the dye using the foil, plus foil is typically made out of aluminum, which won't react chemically with the dye.

There could be a number of reasons your highlights turned out silver. The dye may not have combined well with your natural hair color. If you bleached or toned your hair before applying the dye, that could've made it turn silver, too.

Bleach works with heat. The foil helps conduct the heat of your scalp more evenly into the hair that you're highlighting, which will help the bleach work faster.

See How to Restore Damaged Hair .

You can, but it may not turn out as well. You would be better off buying color from a salon and asking them for advice.

Yes, any kind of foil will do the trick. The really cheap stuff tears pretty easily, though.

It depends on how thick your hair is. Cut out a bunch of foil strips; if it's not enough, then cut out some more.

Any color that isn't a semi and most demi's do, but it depends on the brand. All permanent colors need developer.

To get a darker tone, you'll have to get a hair dye a shade or two darker than your base hair color. For the highlight, pick lighter shades than your base tone. If you're a blond, you could highlight with bleach. Using foil and weaving through the sections you pick for highlights and lowlights will prevent the rest of the hair from getting colors mixed up. Try using a comb or stick for the weaving.

No, the only way to lighten your hair more than maybe one shade is to bleach it. You should get highlights, and lowlights: that would make it much easier. Splurge and see a professional.

You shouldn't. Toner is only needed to balance out colors, and bleach will strip the color altogether. See a professional.

You should not have to, but it depends on your natural hair color. You should seek advice from a professional hair dresser before attempting to make these changes.

Yes. For your highlights, pick a few shades lighter than your base color depending on how light you want your highlights to be.

That's something you should probably get done professionally. If you want to do it yourself though, try doing the weaving method using the back of your comb (or a stick). This will give your hair a more natural look.

You should do the highlights first. Toners are used only if your highlights were bleached, not dyed. For lowlights, do them after the highlights, with any hair color kit. All you need is a shade or two darker than your base color. No toner is required when doing lowlights, since you'll be using regular dye. Remember, toner is for bleaching to remove brassiness after you bleach.

You can go to a local salon for supplies or buy them online.

I would honestly wait. Bleach your hair first, wait a few days to a week, then dye your hair the desired color you want.