Root Touch-Up at Kohort Studio, Colour Refresh and Regrowth Coverage, Richmond Melbourne

Fresh roots, invisible blending, perfect tone. The colour refresh designed to keep your base looking its best between full services.

Fresh roots, invisible blending, perfect tone. The colour refresh designed to keep your base looking its best between full services.

What Is a Root Touch-Up?

A root touch-up is the colour service designed to refresh regrowth at the base of the hair without redoing the mid-lengths and ends. Your colourist applies colour only to the new growth that has come through since your last full service, blending it seamlessly into your existing colour so the result reads as a single continuous tone from root to tip. It is the maintenance appointment that keeps a full colour service looking clean for months at a time.

Root touch-ups are the backbone of a good colour maintenance schedule. Most permanent colour services create a clear line between your natural regrowth and your coloured ends after four to six weeks. That line is what people mean when they talk about needing their roots done. A root touch-up closes that gap cleanly and returns the hair to the depth and tone the full service was designed to achieve.

Root touch-ups are used across every category of colour service at Kohort. Brunettes who want their natural depth maintained book root touch-ups. Blondes who want their base lifted back to match their foils or balayage book root touch-ups, although for lifted blonde maintenance the service may be a lightener root application rather than a deposit-only root touch-up. Guests with significant grey book root touch-ups as their primary colour service, usually every four to six weeks, to keep grey covered cleanly. Creative colour clients book root refresh services as regrowth comes through, although the technique varies by tone. See creative colour for more on fashion shade maintenance.

A root touch-up is not the same service as a full colour, a gloss, or a full head foil. A full colour applies colour from root to tip. A gloss deposits shine and refreshes tone across the entire length but does not lift or cover regrowth. A full head foil lightens in foils rather than depositing a single tone. The root touch-up sits in its own category, focused only on the regrowth, and is priced and scheduled accordingly. Related services include hair colour, highlights, full head foils, half head foils, balayage and colour correction.

How KOHORT Approaches Root Touch-Ups

Root touch-ups at Kohort are treated as precision work, even though the service is relatively short compared to a full colour or foil appointment. Every root touch-up starts with your colourist matching the existing colour in natural daylight. Indoor lighting hides tonal shift. Natural daylight reveals whether the previous formula has warmed, cooled or faded, which changes what your colourist uses on the regrowth.

Your colourist matches the formula to your existing colour depth and tone, your skin tone, and the brief you originally agreed on. A root touch-up is not a licence to change the colour. If you want to shift the shade, that conversation happens at consultation and the service becomes a full colour rather than a root refresh. Root touch-ups as standalone services are maintenance, not reinvention.

Bond support is available on root touch-ups for guests who want it. L'Oréal Metal Detox is used as a pre-colour step for clients with any previous colour or mineral history, protecting the hair from metallic interference during application. Olaplex Bonding Treatment and K18 Molecular Repair can be added to the root colour formula for clients who want to layer bond protection into every service. These add-ons are optional rather than default for a simple deposit-only root touch-up, but they are standard for root services that include any lightener.

Sectioning is done cleanly. Your colourist works the colour into the regrowth using a fine brush technique, keeping the product tight against the new growth and out of the previously coloured mid-lengths. Over-lapping colour onto already-coloured ends causes banding, tonal build-up and progressive damage over time. A properly applied root touch-up prevents all of those.

Timing is monitored. Most root colour formulas process in 30 to 45 minutes. Grey coverage formulas may run a little longer for resistant greys. Your colourist is watching the developing colour and adjusting as needed rather than setting a timer and walking away.

Toning sometimes follows the application, depending on the tone you are aiming for. For cool tones, a quick toning step after the root rinse can sharpen the finish. For warm tones, a gloss can be added to deepen richness. For classic natural bases the root touch-up itself handles tone without a separate toning step.

The Kohort co-working model keeps root touch-up appointments genuinely short. Each colourist controls their book and runs their own service, so a sixty to ninety minute root touch-up is actually a focused hour to hour-and-a-half with your colourist, rather than a rushed half-hour squeezed between two larger bookings. You book in, you are seen on time, you are blow-dried and finished.

Every root touch-up at Kohort finishes with a Kérastase Fusio Dose Ritual or a Davines Liquid Luster gloss if you want shine and tone locked in, although these are priced as add-ons. A blow dry and style is included. Retail recommendations are offered but never pushed.

Who Performs Root Touch-Ups at KOHORT

Sheree, Precision Root Touch-Ups and Grey Coverage

Over twenty years of industry experience. Sheree is a go-to for clean, seamless grey coverage and precision root touch-ups. If you have struggled with banding, hot roots or patchy coverage at previous salons, Sheree is the colourist to see. Book with Sheree.

Zoe, Cool-Tone Root Touch-Ups and Blonde Refresh

Zoe is the colourist to book for cool-toned root refreshes, particularly on blondes and cool brunettes where tone accuracy matters most. Strong on blonde base maintenance and root shadow services. Book with Zoe.

Billie, Rich Brunette and Creative Root Refresh

Thirty years of industry experience. Billie approaches root touch-ups with an artistic eye. Strong on rich warm brunettes, creative colour root refresh work, and bolder tonal bases. Currently welcoming existing clients only. Book with Billie.

Grace, Foundation Root Touch-Ups

A third-year apprentice trained at Biba and Billie Jean Hair. Grace offers accessible pricing on foundation root touch-up services, and is a great fit for natural bases and straightforward grey coverage. Book with Grace.

Taylah, Blonde Base Refresh and Root Shadow

Taylah's signature on root work is bright, clean, blonde base refresh and soft root shadow services that keep lived-in blonde looking fresh without creating a harsh regrowth line. Book with Taylah.

Sheridan, Soft Natural Root Touch-Ups

Sheridan's root touch-up work skews toward the soft, lived-in end. She is the colourist to book if you want your root refresh to blend invisibly rather than read as a corrective line. Book with Sheridan.

Elodie, Glass Hair Root Finishing

Elodie specialises in glossy, reflective finishing and is the colourist to book when you want your root touch-up paired with the kind of polished shine that takes a good service to a great one. Book through Instagram @glass_hair_elodie. Book with Elodie.

Root Touch-Up Process, What to Expect

1. Consultation

Your colourist reviews your existing colour in natural daylight, checks regrowth depth and any tonal shift since your last service, and confirms the formula. For regulars this takes two to three minutes. For first-time root touch-up clients we recommend a free fifteen-minute in-salon consultation before booking.

2. Preparation

L'Oréal Metal Detox pre-colour step if your hair history calls for it. Gowning, sectioning and barrier cream along the hairline.

3. Application

Colour is applied precisely to the regrowth using a fine brush technique. Your colourist works quickly and cleanly to keep the product tight against the new growth.

4. Processing

Colour develops for 30 to 45 minutes, sometimes longer for resistant grey. Your colourist monitors colour lift and saturation throughout.

5. Toning (if required)

For cooler or warmer briefs, a brief toning step may follow the rinse.

6. Finishing

Optional Kérastase Fusio Dose Ritual or Davines Liquid Luster gloss if you want added shine and tone, blow dry, style and retail recommendations.

Root Touch-Up Pricing at KOHORT

Root touch-up pricing at Kohort varies by colourist, hair length and colour type. As a guide, natural root touch-ups start from around $130. Grey coverage root touch-ups start from around $140. Creative or lightener root applications start higher and are quoted at consultation. Pricing includes consultation, application and a blow-dry finish.

Add-on treatments are priced separately. K18 Molecular Repair from $50. Olaplex Bonding Treatment from $50. L'Oréal Metal Detox from $45. Kérastase Fusio Dose Ritual at $50. Davines Liquid Luster at $25. Kohort Scalp Ritual from $80 for guests who want the full wellness experience alongside their colour.

Because pricing scales with hair length and density, we do not quote final root touch-up pricing without seeing the hair or knowing what formula the previous colour used. If you want a quote before booking, email salon@kohort.com.au with a photo of your current regrowth and your last service details. Every colourist at Kohort is an independent business setting their own rates. Grace's foundation rates are more accessible because she is in her final apprentice year.

Aftercare for Root Touch-Ups

Root touch-ups are the simplest colour service to maintain, but a few rules keep them looking fresh right up until the next appointment.

Wait 48 hours before the first wash. Permanent colour needs to settle into the cortex, and washing too soon strips pigment before it has fully oxidised and locked in.

Sulphate-free shampoo is essential. Sulphates strip deposited colour faster than anything else in the bathroom. Kérastase Chroma Absolu is our pick for coloured hair, Davines Alchemic is excellent for tone-matched maintenance, and K18 peptide shampoo works beautifully on any coloured base.

Wash two to three times a week. Over-washing pulls colour tone out of freshly coloured hair. Dry shampoo is your friend between washes.

Use a colour-safe mask weekly. Kérastase Masquintense, K18 Molecular Repair mask or Davines NouNou keep colour conditioned and sealed.

Heat protect before any hot tool, every time. Freshly coloured hair is slightly more porous at the cuticle. Heat protection preserves the colour and the condition.

Chlorine and salt water fade root touch-ups gradually. Before swimming, wet your hair with tap water and apply a leave-in. That reduces chlorine absorption. Rinse immediately after.

If your roots include lightener work, follow the full blonde or highlights aftercare protocol on blondes and highlights. Lightener root applications need stricter aftercare than deposit-only root touch-ups.

Rebook on schedule. Four to six weeks is standard. Leaving root touch-ups too long leaves a visible colour band at the demarcation point, which then requires more work at the next appointment. Regular cadence is cheaper in the long run than stretching the window and paying to correct the demarcation.

Who Root Touch-Ups at KOHORT Are Ideal For

Root touch-ups are ideal for guests maintaining an existing colour service between full appointments. If you have a base colour that works, grey that you want covered, or a tonal depth you want held consistent, a regular root touch-up is the service that keeps it all on track.

They suit guests with significant grey who want clean coverage on a reliable schedule. Many of our Hawthorn, Kew, Camberwell, East Melbourne, Balwyn and Hawthorn East regulars book a root touch-up every four to six weeks as their primary colour service.

They suit brunette clients who want their base refreshed while leaving the mid-lengths and ends alone. Warm, cool, neutral and rich chocolate bases all maintain beautifully with regular root touch-ups.

They suit blondes who want their base refreshed between full foil or balayage services. A root touch-up can be run alone between full services, or paired with a half head foil or gloss as a longer maintenance visit.

Root touch-ups may not be the right fit if you want to change colour direction. Changing depth, tone, or technique is a full colour or colour correction conversation. They may also not suit if your regrowth is so significant that redoing the full length is a more sensible use of time and money. Your colourist will be honest about that at consultation.

Root Touch-Ups for Clients Across Inner Melbourne

Our root touch-up book is the most consistent service schedule at Kohort, pulling from every inner Melbourne suburb on a five to six week rotation. Richmond locals come in from Bridge Road apartments and the Cremorne tech precinct, often booking a root touch-up in a ninety-minute lunch window. Cremorne clients from the SEEK, REA, MYOB and Disney Australia offices book standing rebooks for exactly this reason. Burnley riverside guests book natural root touch-ups paired with long layered cuts every six weeks.

From south of the river, South Yarra and Toorak clients cross Punt Road for root touch-ups as their backbone maintenance service. The typical Toorak booking is a Thursday or Friday morning root touch-up paired with a gloss. Prahran and Windsor guests from the Chapel Street precinct book root touch-ups around double shifts and event schedules. Prahran clients in the LGBTQ+ community around Commercial Road often pair root touch-ups with creative colour refresh work.

From the north, Fitzroy and Fitzroy North guests book root touch-ups with tonal precision in mind. Sharper cool bases, bolder warm bases, creative fashion roots and grey coverage done artistically. Collingwood regulars from Smith Street, Gertrude Street and the Collingwood Yards precinct bring both refined and adventurous root briefs. Northcote and Fairfield guests come down High Street and Heidelberg Road for natural copper, warm brunette and soft grey blend root touch-ups. Clifton Hill and Alphington guests book gentle root services with subtle grey blending and natural bases.

From the east, Hawthorn, Hawthorn East, Kew, Camberwell and Balwyn clients are the heart of our root touch-up book. The Boroondara brief is almost always invisible grey coverage on a reliable schedule, with tonal depth held consistent across every appointment. Many of these guests book six-week rotations for years. Balwyn clients in particular bring strong demand for clean grey coverage across the Chinese and Hong Kong Australian community where tonal precision on darker bases is non-negotiable.

Carlton and Carlton North clients, many from the University of Melbourne academic community, book discreet root touch-ups for both brunette maintenance and quiet grey coverage. Abbotsford guests from the Convent arts pocket request warm, natural root refresh services with copper or honey lean. East Melbourne clients closer to the MCG, Fitzroy Gardens and St Patrick's Cathedral book refined root touch-ups suited to Parliament and Collins Street professional life. St Kilda clients mix beach-adjacent root services with tonal work for the arts and hospitality scene. Melbourne CBD apartment-belt clients usually book root touch-ups on a Friday afternoon, often paired with a Kohort Scalp Ritual for a longer restorative visit.

No matter which suburb you are coming from, Kohort is fifteen minutes or less by car, tram or train from most of inner Melbourne, and a root touch-up slots easily into a lunch break or half day.

Frequently Asked Questions About Root Touch-Ups at KOHORT

What is a root touch-up?

A colour service applied only to the regrowth at the base of the hair, blending new growth seamlessly into your existing colour. It is the maintenance service between full colour or foil appointments.

How often should I book a root touch-up?

Every four to six weeks is standard. Grey coverage clients often book every four weeks. Natural bases and softer briefs can stretch to six or seven.

How long does a root touch-up take?

Sixty to ninety minutes including blow-dry.

How much does a root touch-up cost at Kohort?

From around $130 for natural tones, from around $140 for grey coverage. Creative or lightener root applications are quoted at consultation. Add-on treatments from $25 to $50.

Does a root touch-up cover grey?

Yes. Grey coverage is one of the most common reasons clients book root touch-ups. Your colourist formulates specifically to cover resistant grey in the regrowth area.

Can I use a root touch-up to change my colour?

No. A root touch-up is a maintenance service that matches your existing colour. Changing depth or tone is a full colour or colour correction conversation.

What is the difference between a root touch-up and a gloss?

A root touch-up covers regrowth with pigment that lifts and deposits. A gloss deposits shine and refreshes tone across the entire length but does not cover regrowth. Many guests book both together.

Can I get a root touch-up for my blonde hair?

Yes. The service may be a deposit-only root shadow, a lightener root application, or a combination. Your colourist will match the technique to your blonde base.

Do root touch-ups damage hair?

A deposit-only root touch-up is one of the gentlest colour services available. Lightener root applications have more impact and benefit from Olaplex or K18 bond support.

Can I book a root touch-up at the same time as foils or a balayage?

Yes. Many of our regulars combine a root touch-up with half head foils or balayage for comprehensive maintenance in one appointment.

Which stylist should I book for a root touch-up?

For clean grey coverage, book Sheree or Billie. For cool tones and blonde refresh, book Zoe or Taylah. For soft natural work, book Sheridan. For foundation pricing, book Grace. For glass hair finishing, book Elodie. If unsure, email salon@kohort.com.au and we will match you.

Can I stretch the time between root touch-ups?

Sometimes. A root shadow or lived-in balayage technique can stretch regrowth tolerance significantly. That is a strategy conversation at consultation.

Where is Kohort and how do I get there?

234 Bridge Road, Richmond VIC 3121. Burnley and East Richmond stations are eight to ten minutes walk. Trams 48 and 75 run along Bridge Road directly past the door.

Is there parking near the salon?

Yes. Two-hour metered street parking on Bridge Road and free longer parking on residential side streets within a block.

Book Your Root Touch-Up at KOHORT

KOHORT Studio · 234 Bridge Road, Richmond VIC 3121

Phone: 0423 979 900

Email: salon@kohort.com.au

Hours: Tuesday to Saturday, bookings by appointment.

Book directly with any of our root touch-up colourists:

Book with Sheree
Book with Zoe
Book with Billie (existing clients only)
Book with Grace
Book with Taylah
Book with Sheridan
Book with Elodie