Colour formulas and bowl mixing

Keep the formula, each bowl and the result with the client’s appointment. Use a formula on its own, or record the quantities you mix and review the known ingredient costs.

Manual entry records the measurements your team enters; it does not turn the recipe into a free-text note. Structured per-visit formulas keep recorded ingredients, amounts, separate bowls and top-ups distinct from earlier imported or rolling notes.

Structured colour records and manual mixing require Pro, with products set up for mixing. Sign in with your own venue team account; the shared workstation account cannot open this workflow. FREE venues retain a rolling free-text formula note.

Start from the appointment

1. Open the client’s appointment and its Colour section.
2. Choose Start colour record and enter the formula, including the units, developer, application and processing details you need.
3. Save the formula. Use Add another formula for another formula in the same visit.
4. To record bowls, choose Mix this formula. Match each shade and developer to a product in your salon catalogue and review the target grams.

A formula does not need product matching until you choose to mix. Ratios and millilitres remain recipe references; they are not automatically converted into measured grams. Follow the product manufacturer’s mixing and application instructions.

The appointment must link to the correct client. Check that link before recording a formula so the record appears in the right history.

Set up mixing products

An owner or manager sets up the active products used for mixing. Check the product name and shade so the colourist can choose the right item. Add the pack weight in grams and the pack cost when known.

Leave unknown costs or pack weights blank. Do not enter a millilitre pack size as grams. Missing information remains visible in the cost calculation; it is not treated as a known zero cost. Product setup is separate from entering physical stock counts.

Record each bowl

Weigh products on your scale and enter the readings manually. This release does not connect to a scale.

• Keep each bowl distinct and name it for the work, such as roots or toner.
• Enter the actual grams for each ingredient. Targets describe the intended amount; they are not recorded measurements.
• Correct an entry when needed and review the bowl before finishing it.
• Record a top-up as a separate bowl. Its targets are a starting point; enter its actual quantities as you mix.
• Review the visit and choose Save colour record. Confirm the saved result before leaving the appointment.

If a quantity is unknown, retain an incomplete record instead of guessing. Only complete colour records can be reused as recipes.

Read the cost total

OpenChair calculates recorded ingredient costs from entered weights and your catalogue’s pack weights and costs. A known-cost subtotal can be incomplete when quantities or cost details are missing.

This total covers recorded ingredients. It does not include labour, overheads or show the service’s profit. Saving the record does not add a customer charge.

Record leftovers where available

If Measure leftovers is available for your venue, enter the bowl’s weight with its leftovers and its empty weight. OpenChair uses both readings to calculate the remaining product. A bowl without a leftover measurement stays unmeasured; it does not mean no product was left.

Leftover recording has separate availability from manual mixing. It does not automatically reduce the next formula.

Return at the next visit

Open the client’s colour history or Previous colour records from the appointment. Review the earlier formula, recorded bowls and results.

Reuse a complete mix to create new targets from its previous actual quantities. Review and adjust those targets before mixing. Actual readings start empty, so record what you mix during the new visit.

Earlier imported or free-text notes stay separate from dated recipes. Where an earlier note is available, enter a new recipe deliberately from that original. An ordinary client import does not establish migration of Vish or SalonScale formulas, measurements or waste history.

Results, photos and history

Record results and notes with the appointment. Saved formula history retains the earlier recipe; use a new formula when the recipe changes. Notes and results follow their own edit history and save controls. If another team member changes the record while you are editing, review the conflict before saving again.

Use Appointment photos to review linked treatment photos. Formulas are internal records. Photo visibility and permission to use photos publicly are separate. See Treatment photos.

Owners and managers can remove eligible formula entries from active history. Removed entries can be restored through Removed formulas. Measured snapshots preserve the recorded mix.

When something needs attention

What you see	What to do
Mixing is unavailable	Check Pro access, venue activation and that you are using your own venue team account. Ask your owner or manager to confirm setup.
No matching product	Ask an owner or manager to enable the correct catalogue product for mixing. Keep the formula without mixing until setup is ready.
Missing ingredient cost	Check the actual quantity, pack weight and pack cost. Keep the missing value visible until it is known.
Save is pending or failed	Keep the record open, follow the displayed recovery action and confirm the saved result. Do not assume leaving the screen saved it.
A mix cannot be reused	Check whether the record is complete. Incomplete or unknown quantities cannot become a complete recipe.
A previous note has no date	Keep its source and unknown date intact. Do not treat an imported note as proof of a dated appointment.

Read the colour management overview or request a colour mixing demo for help assessing your salon’s workflow.