Students in COMM 1318 Photography observed a color lab during a color theory class at the Cosmetology building on the Levelland campus. Students split mannequin hair into four quadrants, then dyed and observed the tone changes on the different quadrants. The lab was led by Jeb Wilcox, cosmetology instructor at SPC.
For SPC Cosmetology, instructors understand that the industry is diverse and that students need to know the many different techniques and applications for any hair color scenario.
“Part of what we teach in our program is confidence and self-assurance,” Wilcox said. “We do this by having labs, like this one, that challenge students to tap into their creative and technical skill set to solve problems.”
Students are required to prepare their mannequins, then the first quadrant is dyed darker than the mannequin’s hair. The second quadrant is dyed red, the third is decolorized to a pale yellow or “blond stage,” and the fourth quadrant is dyed lighter than the existing hair color.
“This alone allows students to understand the relationship with color and peroxide, and how together, they interact with hair,” Wilcox said.
In the second part of the lab, students apply highlights to the darker quadrant, tone half the blond quadrant, and neutralize half of the red quadrant.
“This reinforces what they learned in color theory with the color wheel and allows them hands-on experience in color correction,” Wilcox said.
Wilcox said at the end of the lab, students typically have a greater understanding of the concept of hair coloring, a major aspect of the cosmetology industry.
“Overall this color lab incorporates a little bit of each faction of the hair color world, giving the students a foundation to build upon in their career as a cosmetologist,” Wilcox said.
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