Hair Color Tricks of the Stars

Nelson Chan, Master Colorist and product developer, is the go-to guy for some of the best-looking hair in show business, including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Heather Graham, and Alicia Silverstone. Chan tends to the stars' pampered tresses at Estetica hair salon in Beverly Hills.

Sarah Michelle Gellar, a longtime client of Chan's, has a new baby blonde color and baby soft hair. Chan lightened her up and then performed an ISH Ionic Conditioning Treatment - Chan's signature, after-color procedure.

"I have worked with Sarah for years and she is always ready to experiment with her hair color," says Chan, who recently founded ISH Haircare. "Because she has gone through so many shade shifts, I always condition afterwards to keep her hair strong and in shape."

The ISH Ionic Conditioning is a thermal heat treatment that combines ions with a crystal containing jojoba oil suspended in a protein base that is applied to sectioned hair. A heated ionic iron is passed over the hair, opening the hair cuticle and allowing the product to penetrate and "fill" the cuticle. The result is silky hair with glowing color.

Heather Graham's hair was recently cut in a layered 'do, so Chan used highlights and lowlights to accent and frame her new style. Chan's no-heat highlighting is a gentle process, perfect for clients who require frequent touchups. "no-heat" means not using bleach as an active ingredient and avoiding hair dryers or heat to achieve the highlighted look. It's permanent color without permanent damage. The ISH Ionic Conditioning followed for Graham, too, who is making several guest appearances on NBC's hit comedy, Scrubs.

Alicia Silverstone went full-on golden girl, with rich, gleaming tones - an example of Chan's dimensional hair coloring, which involves layering multiple sections of colors to create greater depth in hair. The secret is strategically placing darker colors on top of lighter ones.

Leah Remini, the star of King of Queens, keeps her dark hair from looking flat and monochromatic on camera with carefully placed highlights. Chan carefully manipulates her color so it appears more vibrant and bold on screen but still realistic off camera.

To extend the life of his professional Ionic Conditioning Treatment, Chan created the I.S.H. Ionic Rescue One-Minute Treatment, an at-home product that repairs damage while smoothing over-processed hair. The treatment contains silk amino acids along with protein, algae extract, rosemary extract, witch hazel extract, hydrolyzed keratin and wheat germ oil to help stressed hair recover its healthy glow.

For more information on I.S.H. Hair Care, visit www.ISHprofessional.com. Estetica Hair Salon is located at 9635 Brighton Way, Beverly Hills, CA 90210 Call 310-274-1553 for appointments.