Ash blonde—a complicated color. Does your client want an ashy hue that doesn’t dip into shades of silver, blue or violet? Does she want to go lighter and brighter without a hint of warmth? Does she love it when she leaves your chair, but hate that it fades? Like we said, it’s complicated.

So, how do you deal with all of that and then some? We grabbed a few tips from Matrix artist and balayage extraordinaire Constance Robbins (@constancerobbins), who recently shared her secrets for creating the perfect ashy tone, to help you out.