What process is used to treat gray or resistant hair to facilitate better color penetration?

The process used to treat gray or resistant hair to facilitate better color penetration is pre-softening. This technique is specifically designed to open up the cuticle layer of the hair, making it more receptive to hair color. Gray hair, in particular, has a denser structure and can be more resistant to color absorption compared to naturally pigmented hair.

During pre-softening, an alkaline solution is applied to the hair before the actual coloring process. This helps to swell and soften the hair cuticles, enabling the color molecules to penetrate more effectively and evenly. As a result, the applied color will take better, resulting in a more uniform and vibrant finish.

Other techniques such as lightening, color correcting, and deep conditioning serve different purposes. Lightening involves removing color from the hair, color correcting adjusts unnatural tones, and deep conditioning focuses on moisture and repair, rather than preparing the hair for better color penetration. Pre-softening uniquely addresses the challenges posed by gray or resistant hair, making it the correct choice for this scenario.