# Hongdae hair salon: no-bleach milk brown dye and layered cut, Recteur

- By Dayul (https://superchart.com/en/@city-pause-guide/)
- Written Sep 20, 2026
- Local places › Hair & beauty salons › Mapo, Seoul
- Sponsored: This post was written after visiting Recteur Seoul, which provided the service free of charge.
- English edition: https://superchart.com/en/@city-pause-guide/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/
- Also in: [한국어](https://superchart.com/ko/@city-pause-guide/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/index.md)

## In short

Recteur Seoul is a hair salon on Jandari-ro in Mapo, Seoul, between Hongik Univ. Station and Hapjeong Station. At Recteur Seoul, level 10 faded hair with red tones coming through was lifted to milk brown without bleach using lightening plus pigment in a green-based mix, and finished with a layered cut for side volume. If you want a brighter brown before a trip but do not want bleach, Recteur Seoul is worth a look.

## Good to know

- **Location**: 1F, 61 Jandari-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul (10-min walk from Hongik Univ. Station Exit 1; 5-min walk from Hapjeong Station Exit 2)
- **Services received**: Full-head color (milk brown) + layered cut
- **Hair condition**: Matte brown color a year ago, root touch-ups every 2–2.5 months; visit came 2.5 months after the last touch-up, with red tones showing
- **Color consultation**: Currently level 10; told level 13–14 is possible without bleach
- **Coloring method**: Lightening plus pigment, with a green-based mix to cancel the red tones

*as written by the visitor on Sep 20, 2026*

![Finished milk brown dye and layered cut](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-01-1pq8d-1200.webp)

My roots had grown out a lot and my old dye job had faded, and with a trip coming up soon I wanted to get a full re-dye. I got a layered cut done at the same time, and I was so happy with both the color and the cut that I wanted to write up a review!

## Where is Recteur Seoul?

This time I visited a place called Recteur Seoul. It's a 10-minute walk from Hongik University Station Exit 1, and a 5-minute walk from Hapjeong Station Exit 2 — such a great location if you're looking for a hair salon around Hapjeong or Hongdae!

## Recteur Seoul's exterior and interior

![Exterior of Recteur Seoul hair salon on Jandari-ro in Hapjeong](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-02-8qmlg-966.webp)

The stylish interior caught my eye from the outside, so it wasn't hard to find the shop at all!

![Metal and concrete interior of Recteur Seoul](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-03-1gtpg-966.webp)

![Service seating and interior at Recteur Seoul](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-04-nywvg-966.webp)

Once inside, the overall metal-and-concrete interior gave off such a hip vibe haha. Is this what they call 'metal-terior'? That's exactly what I thought!!

## My hair condition before the color

![Hair condition before the dye, with grown-out roots](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-05-bpk64-966.webp)

This is what my hair looked like before the dye. I dyed it matte brown a year ago and had been doing root touch-ups every two to two-and-a-half months since. At the time of this visit, it had been two and a half months since my last root touch-up, so my hair was really messy.

![Consultation with the designer about hair condition](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-06-skw7x-966.webp)

My designer at Recteur Seoul handled the whole service! She came over and explained my hair condition in detail — the brown tones were still there, but much of the previous dye had faded, and over time it had lost color and picked up red tones.

## Is milk brown possible without bleach?

The color I wanted was much brighter than my current hair, with no bleach, and a soft brown with no orange or red undertones. Honestly, even as I was describing what I wanted I was thinking 'is this even possible? lol' and braced myself to be told no.

![Explaining brightness levels with a color chart](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-07-3ejeh-966.webp)

She explained the shades using a color chart — my hair was currently around level 10, and going brighter without bleach could get me to level 13–14! That was already more than enough for me, so I said yes right away!!

### How does the coloring process work?

She said she'd use a lightening-plus-pigment method, but since it was my first visit, we wouldn't really know the exact result until after the dye. If the color took well it would come out bright, and if not, adding the pigment would make it slightly darker but still tone-corrected — she explained it all so kindly haha.

### Mixing the color at Recteur Seoul

She said she'd use a green-based mix to correct the current red tones. I guess you could call it 'blending' the dye haha — that part really comes down to the designer's skill, but she explained it so clearly that I trusted her completely!

## The milk brown color and layered cut, step by step

![Applying scalp protectant before the dye](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-08-15sgh-966.webp)

After the consultation, before starting the dye, she carefully applied scalp protectant first! I always love that cool, tingly feeling when scalp protectant goes on lol.

![Applying dye starting from the roots](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-09-kp996-966.webp)

![Applying dye through the full length of hair](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-10-h0m06-966.webp)

Then the full-head dye began in earnest. She carefully applied the dye starting from the roots, then spread it evenly through the rest of my hair. Since the dye would penetrate deeply, she kept telling me to speak up anytime it stung, so I felt comfortable the whole time haha.

![Hair left to sit after dye application](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-11-1xnb9-966.webp)

### Shampoo and treatment

After letting the dye sit, she shampooed my hair and finished with a treatment. While she was blow-drying, I could already see the color coming through, and even though it wasn't finished yet, I was already so happy I could barely stop myself from smiling lol.

![Hair color after shampoo, treatment, and blow-dry](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-12-1rgk5-966.webp)

### A personalized layered cut for side volume

Once my hair was fully dried, she moved on to the layered cut. She checked my hair texture, length, and overall volume, asked if it was okay to go light, then added the layers. She especially mentioned that adding side volume would look great, and explained that cutting it light lets air get in, which builds volume haha. And the result was totally satisfying..!!!! Isn't this basically personal hair consulting at this point? T_T

## How did the milk brown color and layered cut turn out?

![Milk brown hair made lighter with a layered cut](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-13-buwns-966.webp)

The length stayed almost the same, but with the layered cut added, the whole silhouette felt so much lighter without any droopy heaviness! And I loved how naturally the layers fell haha.

And above all, the milk brown color I'd wanted so badly turned out amazing!!! It was exactly the soft, non-orange, non-red brown I was hoping for, T_T. I couldn't wait to go outside and see it in natural light!!

![Close-up of the milk brown color](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-14-1izod-966.webp)

So the moment I stepped out of the salon, I just took photos right there on the street lol. Normally I'm too embarrassed to take photos on regular streets that aren't travel destinations, but I just couldn't not take this one?!!!

![Photo taken on the street outside the salon in natural light](https://img.superchart.com/images/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut/lector-seoul-milk-brown-layered-cut-15-i7hh5-966.webp)

I loved the photos so much I posted them straight to my Instagram story, and the response was great too! Haha, seriously, thumbs up, thumbs up, thumbs up — I want to bow in the direction of my designer 🙇🏻‍♀️

## Who should try Recteur Seoul?

- Anyone who wants a much brighter brown than their current color without bleach
- Anyone with faded dyed hair that's picked up orange or red tones they want corrected
- Anyone who wants to keep their length while creating a lighter silhouette with layers and side volume
- Anyone who wants a clear style change before a trip or big event

After the dye, I got so many compliments meeting up with friends, and I was especially happy to change my style into something I loved right before my trip!! Thanks to this, I'll be taking home lots of pretty photos!

## Where it is

- Recteur Seoul (렉터 서울)
- 1F, 61 Jandari-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea
- 서울특별시 마포구 잔다리로 61 1층
- 37.5532274, 126.917407
- Google Maps: https://www.google.com/maps/search/%EB%A0%89%ED%84%B0%20%EC%84%9C%EC%9A%B8/@37.5532274,126.917407,17z

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