Tabitha Dueñas is a Los Angeles–based colorist and educator who helps hairstylists build dimensional color that looks bold, blends clean, and grows out like it was planned that way. With a career that started behind the chair in 2003, she’s spent two decades refining not just the “how,” but the why—from launching an apprentice program at ARROJO Studio in NYC to teaching more than 100 classes as an educator at Nine Zero One’s 901 Academy after joining the salon in 2015.

Her signature lane is high-contrast blending and color transformations—those seamless transitions where the placement does the talking. In her education, Tabitha gets specific: root shadows and toning (tap, shadow, melt), keeping blondes bright, and blending foil lines without muddying the work you just did.

Today, she co-founded Essential Hair Academy, where pros can learn through an on-demand membership library (170+ tutorials, with ongoing drops) and also attend intimate, hands-on workshops at Essential Studio in West Hollywood. If you’re ready to stop second-guessing your sections and start placing color with purpose, Tabitha’s teaching is a strong next step.