There are two kinds of people in New England: people who love fall, and people who start talking about fall sometime around July.

Either way, September changes things.

The mornings get cooler. The sweaters come back. Our coffee orders change. And after a summer of sun, humidity, swimming, vacations, and heat styling, our hair is usually ready for a change too.

That does not mean you need an entirely new hair color.

Sometimes you just need a really good gloss.

At Parker on Main, we call ours the Shine Bomb, and it has become a guest favorite for a reason. This September and October, our stand-alone custom demi-permanent Shine Bomb service is just $49.

If you have never experienced one, this might be the easiest upgrade you can make to your fall hair.

What Is a Shine Bomb?

Our Shine Bomb uses Redken Shades EQ, the professional demi-permanent color line beloved by colorists around the world.

A gloss lives somewhere between hair color and conditioning treatment.

Unlike permanent color, Shades EQ does not lighten your natural hair. Instead, it deposits tone while conditioning the hair and enhancing shine. Because it is demi-permanent, the color gradually fades over time rather than leaving you with an obvious line of regrowth.

Redken's Shades EQ formula is ammonia-free and acidic, and it can be used to tone, refresh, correct, or enhance hair color.

Translation?

It gives your stylist a lot of possibilities without asking you for a huge commitment.

Your Color, Only Better

One of our favorite things about a Shine Bomb is how customized it can be.

Maybe your brunette became a little too warm over the summer and you want to bring back a cooler, richer tone.

Maybe your blonde is feeling a little too bright and you are ready for something softer and creamier for fall.

Maybe your red has faded and you miss that gorgeous copper richness you had when you first left the salon.

Or maybe your natural color is already exactly what you want, but it could use a little more dimension.

Your Parker stylist can create a Shades EQ formula specifically for your hair.

Redken's professional gloss palette gives colorists an enormous range of tones that can be mixed and customized. Rather than completely changing your color, we can refine what is already there.

It is the difference between getting a new wardrobe and simply adding the perfect jacket.

And Yes, Clear Is a Color

Actually, in this case, it isn't.

If you love your existing hair color, your Shine Bomb can be completely clear.

Shades EQ Clear delivers shine and conditioning without adding a new tone to your hair.

This is one of our favorite options for guests with natural hair who have never considered themselves "color clients." It is also wonderful for guests who simply want their existing color to look more polished.

Think smoother, softer, more reflective hair without changing the shade you already love.

Beauty publications including Allure have helped make professional gloss treatments increasingly popular by highlighting their ability to create the highly reflective, healthy-looking finish often described as "glass hair."

You do not need a filter. You need good hair.

Why Hair Loses Its Shine

Hair goes through a lot, particularly during summer.

Sun exposure, heat styling, chlorine, salt water, environmental stress, and chemical services can all affect the condition of the hair's outer cuticle.

When that cuticle becomes rough or porous, light scatters instead of reflecting evenly. That is part of the reason damaged or dehydrated hair can appear dull.

Shades EQ takes a different approach than traditional permanent hair color.

Its acidic formula helps support a smoother cuticle and healthier-looking hair. Redken explains that hair naturally prefers a slightly acidic environment, while processes such as lightening can temporarily make hair more alkaline. Using an acidic gloss helps return the hair toward a healthier pH while conditioning and smoothing the surface.

That smoother surface reflects more light.

Which brings us back to the name.

Shine. Bomb.

A Great Way to Maintain Your Color Between Bigger Appointments

Not every visit to Parker needs to be a major color appointment.

In fact, a Shine Bomb can be a great way to keep your hair looking fresh between larger services.

Blondes can use a gloss to control brassiness or adjust warmth. Brunettes can restore richness to faded ends. Reds can revive vibrancy. Guests with balayage can refresh the tone without re-lightening the hair.

A gloss does not replace every color service, of course. Your stylist will always recommend what makes sense for your individual hair.

But sometimes the answer really is this simple.

You do not need more highlights. You just need your tone refreshed.

That can be healthier for your hair, easier on your schedule, and easier on your budget.

Low Commitment, High Reward

One of the reasons Shades EQ has remained such a staple of professional hair color is its flexibility.

According to Redken, a Shades EQ gloss typically lasts about four to six weeks and gradually fades with shampooing.

There is no harsh grow-out line.

That makes it ideal for someone who wants to experiment with a slightly warmer, cooler, deeper, or richer tone without making a permanent decision.

Fall is particularly fun for this.

You can take a blonde slightly warmer for sweater season, give brown hair an espresso or chestnut feel, deepen copper, or play with a richer version of your natural color.

Then, as the gloss gradually fades, you can decide what you want to do next.

It Works on More Than One Kind of Hair

Straight, wavy, curly, coily, natural, highlighted, balayaged, gray, brunette, blonde, red.

A professional gloss is not reserved for one particular hair type.

The goal is customization.

That is where having the service performed professionally matters. Your Parker stylist evaluates your starting point and creates the formula based on your hair, your desired result, and the condition of your strands.

Sometimes that means color.

Sometimes it means Clear.

Sometimes the most sophisticated thing we can do is simply make your natural hair look spectacular.

Consider This Your Invitation to Shine

Summer hair has had its moment.

Now it is time for glossy fall hair.

Whether you want to subtly shift your tone for the season, refresh faded color, soften unwanted warmth, deepen your brunette, revive your red, or simply make your natural hair ridiculously shiny, the Shine Bomb might be exactly what your hair needs.

And because we think everyone deserves a little extra shine heading into fall, the Parker on Main Shine Bomb is just $49 throughout September and October.

No major transformation required.

Just your hair, only shinier.

And sometimes that is more than enough.