Em Bray Hair

new booking link in bio!

we’re switching things up —for the better! now, you’ll get to see pricing ahead of time & get to choose the service that’s right for you. this post is to help you navigate through the services i currently offer & to help bridge the gap in what *i* mean by certain buzz words in the hair industry!

as always, i LOVE a dm with questions! i would 100% prefer to help you through booking myself than to let you wander, all lost and alone in the interwebs. and bonus—sometimes you’ll hit me on a good day & i’ll flex my schedule for ya ;)

the right amount of dark & light

no lowlights needed when you’re embracing your natural color. just enhancing what’s already there in my chair!

Dimensional Brunette | Butter Blonde Bronde | Balayage | DSM Hairstylist

dreamy grey blending

my guest has been wrestling with her hair going warm & was tired of the extra maintenance of covering her roots, so we’ve been working towards cooling her down & blending her natural gray with the tiniest baby highlights!

Gray Blending Iowa | DSM hairstylist | Ankeny Salon | Brunette Gray Blending

bright bright bright

Helen wanted her hair lighter & brighter, yet still dimensional. teased ribbon highlights, a root smudge & a healthy chop later—we’re obsessed.

Dimensional Brunette | Bright Bronde | Gray Blending Des Moines | Ankeny Hair Stylist

oooo this one is just too good

Allison loves leaning into the cool tones & i am here for it. This bright but still blendy, dimensional look was literally exactly what we both were wanting for her hair.

i got to give “zonal toning” a try for the first time and it paid off. Zonal toning is a color-melting technique that allows the ends to gradually get lighter as your eye reaches the ends.

zone 1 - root from previous appointment (6Intense Neutral & 7Intense Neutral, 7AI)
zone 2 - 8N, 8AI & 8GI
zone 3 - 10AI & 10N

absolutely dreamy

these results 👏👏👏

today was Katie’s first gray blending appointment, and i am floored by these results. our goal for this appointment was to soften her grow out, and our secondary goal was to soften the warmth from previous highlights & permanent color.

a hundred baby highlights (maybe im exaggerating 😋) & a few rounds of toner later, this was our result!

Gray Blending | Going Natural | Brunette Dimension | Des Moines, IA

seamless & soft

Sarah and I have been playing a game of “how much blonde is too much blonde”—and after hitting that threshold last appointment, we opted for a soft lowlight & a cooled-down toner…and id like to think we hit this one out of the park 🤍

Dimensional Brunette | Gray Blending | Ankeny, Iowa | Cool-Toned Dark Brunette

living for this transformation

Priya was willing to wait for her appointment with me & the wait paid off—we were able to spend 4 hours together to get her dream hair a few weeks ago & these results!! are so good!! cant wait for our refresh coming up soon!!

blended goodness

Rachel’s hair is one of my favorite canvases. our goal is to find that perfect blend of natural yet enhanced, and i think this was my favorite look yet

📍 Des Moines, Iowa

Dimensional Brunette | Gray Blending | Ankeny Iowa Salon

i had a conversation with a client recently…

“i can never tell if i like my hair until i go home and see it in my own lighting.”

and I’M the one who said it. because everyone who’s ever done my hair has seen the same reaction…

“it looks nice! ill text you in two days when i finally get used to it—i’m sure i’ll love it.”

the way light reflects on hair is EVERYTHING when it comes to telling the true color of your hair. even the coolest, ashiest hair colors can look warm in the wrong lighting.

so what’s a girl to do??

1. give it a day (or a wash as directed by your stylist) if you’re unsure. it takes time for our brain to adjust to change, especially on ourselves. color-safe shampoos & conditioners as well as heat protectant are not optional when it comes to maintenance of colored hair!

2. look at it in all lighting settings—but look at it as the whole. one orange hair? two yellow-ish strands? maybe—but how does the whole picture look? is it cohesive & is it working well together?

3. understand all hair, once it interacts with hair color, will be warm. it’s just science—your hair *will* reflect warmer once altered with hair color over time due to the chemical changes in the strand. i could geek out & explain more—so dm me if you’re curious!

toners (every 6ish weeks), lowlights, and good color maintenance habits will continue to keep your color looking fresh until the next time you’re in the chair.