Ultra Lifts 101: Everything You Need To Know About High-lift Colour

Have you got clients wanting to go lighter but wanting to refrain from bleach? Ultra Lift colour could be the answer. Designed to lift natural hair while depositing and refining tone at the same time, Quif Professional’s Ultra Lift range gives you the ability to create lighter results in one colour service.

You’re probably thinking, ‘When should I reach for an Ultra Lift instead of a traditional lightener?’. In collaboration with Quif Eductator, Sara Simpson, we're here to break it down for you.

Both Quint:essential and Magi:colour, from the Quif Professional colour portfolio, have an extensive Ultra Lift collection within the 12 series. These are high-lift permanent colour tubes designed to lighten natural hair while refining the tone at the same time. With a 1:2 mixing ratio and development time of 45-60 minutes, Ultra Lift can achieve up to 4-5 levels of lift, depending on the hair’s starting level and porosity. And the result? A lift and tone in one service, without the need to reach for the bleach.

When it comes to understanding the difference between an Ultra Lift and a traditional lightener, it comes down to the result you’re trying to achieve.

Ultra Lift colour is designed to lift natural pigment while simultaneously depositing and refining tone. So if your client has virgin hair and wants to go lighter with a tonal result, an Ultra Lift could be the perfect option.

With lightener, such as the Magi:light+ range, the main goal is to remove pigment. Once the desired level has been achieved, you would typically need to tone separately to refine the final result.

Neither option is necessarily better than the other; it’s down to choosing the right service for your client’s hair and their desired result!

One of the best scenarios for Ultra Lift is a client with natural, virgin blonde hair who wants to go lighter. For example, if your client is a natural level 7 and wants to achieve a lighter beige blonde, Ultra Lift could give you the lift and tonal refinement you need within the same service.

Remember: Ultra Lift is designed to work on natural pigment, so if your client has previously coloured their hair, your approach will need to be different.

One of the most important things to remember when working with high lifts is that the different shades in the 12 series each have a purpose.

When choosing an Ultra Lift, you need to consider the underlying pigment you’re working against. For example, a level 6 client has red/orange underlying pigments. Therefore, you need the appropriate tone within the Ultra Lift range to help neutralise that warmth.

With Quif, the 12 series has been developed with different tonal directions to help neutralise underlying pigment across natural levels 6-9, giving you more control over the final result.

Pro Tip: Always consider your client’s starting level and underlying pigment before choosing your Ultra Lift formula. The right tonal direction is just as important as the amount of lift you’re looking to achieve.

This is where Quif’s Magi:bond technology, powered by the Quint:amine complex comes in…

With Quint:essential, the Ultra Lift system is designed to lift natural hair while helping to:

So, you can confidently focus on creating lighter results while keeping the condition of the hair at its best.

Needing a little extra lift? Get to know Lift Booster 000. Designed to be added to the Ultra Lift formulas when you need that additional boost, 000 can increase the result by approximately 0.5-1 level and be used at up to 50% of the formula. It’s the perfect addition when you’re almost at the level you need, but just want to push your lift that little bit further.

Understanding your clients' starting level, underlying pigment and tonal direction is key to getting the most from high-lift colour. With the Quif Ultra Lift collection, you have the tools to create lighter, luxuriously refined results on natural hair while keeping hair condition, strength and shine in mind.

So, next time a virgin hair client asks to go lighter, before you automatically reach for the lightener, ask yourself, could Ultra Lift be the better choice?

Discover Quif's extensive colour portfolio online and in-store exclusively at Alan Howard.