Hair Chameleon

{My newest hair color!}

Just a few weeks ago, I was crazy about my blonde hair. I gushed, "I LOVE this color! Never going to change it!" Let's just say I was in over my hair.

When I decided to take the bleach blonde plunge, I totally did one of these: "Psh! Bleach my whole head? No biggie! Black roots coming in? I can handle that! Purple shampoo? It can't be that hard! Fried ends? It's only hair!"

As you can already tell, it turns out that blonde hair meant high maintenance (seriously, where was my light bulb? Common sense, Diana! Common sense!)

Back track to this Saturday. My uber talented sister-in-law-to-be touched up my roots with some bleach. After washing out the bleach, we attempted to tone the roots with an ashy shade to counteract the warmth. We pulled the toner towards my ends to make it blend nicely. My porous hair took the toner SO quickly and I got a seriously ashy, nearly green outcome. Because the color was even, I thought it would be an easy fix - add more warmth and get back to my beautiful blonde.

So, there I was at Sally's on Sunday - ashy hair and all. The lady there told me to go with a gold-based dye to warm up my color. I went home, tried it, and it didn't do much but make my roots ginger hot. Blorange roots and ashy ends... I was ecstatic. 

While letting my hair chill out for a few days - and also staying shy from the rest of the world (who would really want to show off the colorful mess I had going on?) - I dissected browsed the internet for more solutions. I also found myself on tons of fashion blogs and websites checking out what people wore to fashion week and this season's trends. 

And a new hair craving began. Yes, every so often I get a craving/itch for a new color. The thought process goes something like this: "Ou! Loving that pleated skirt for fall. A pumpkin spice latte in hand? I can't wait until the leaves change colors. How gorgeous would rich chocolate locks look against a fall palette? I must be a brunette... ASAP!"

This brunette conclusion came just in time. I was having a hair crisis and autumn was rolling in. Four boxes of level 5 golden brown dye later and I am back to my brunette self. I love how changing hair colors can make you feel like a whole new person. That's probably why I've been a hair chameleon since the ripe age of 12 - playing hair dress up whenever my moods or the seasons change.

My point? Autumn, I'm officially ready for you! Don't worry, blonde, we'll meet again someday.

{My changing hair colors in the past year}

Are you a hair chameleon too? What's your go-to hair color for this autumn? 

Tell me in the comments below!

DIY Ombre

I have dyed my hair countless times at home, but I've never bleached it by myself. Bleach is scary - it damages your hair and often pulls a lot of red tones. And I've seen a lot of hair colorists work their butts off to get rid of those red tones in my hair (back when I used to get highlights).

Yesterday, my cousin asked me to do a bit of ombre on the ends of her hair. I surprisingly said yes and used my previous experience as knowledge. Well, it ended up being super easy and it turned out to be amazing! Very effortless and beachy and the tone is so pretty for this season! 

I couldn't help but share the final results with you! And share my process, too! 

Note: I am not a hair colorist. I have no training. This process will not guarantee anyone the same results as everyone's hair is different - tones, texture, damage, and all. Be careful with bleach and hair dye and consult a hair professional!

Now, let's move on to the fun stuff!

WHAT I USED:

• Plastic gloves
• Plastic bowl
• Hair dye brush/applicator
• Tin foil
• 20 & 30 volume developer (levels of developer depend on current hair color and hair color objective)
• Powder bleach
• Level 8 Ash hair color as a toner

THE PROCESS:

• STEP 1: With my gloves on, I combined 30 developer with bleach powder (according to the package) until it became like a whipped cream consistency.
• STEP 2: Taking a 1 inch piece of hair, I applied the bleach to the ends of my cousin's dry hair using the hair dye applicator.  I also made sure it wasn't perfect by somewhat brushing and teasing the hair upwards. 
• STEP 3: I wrapped the piece of hair in a piece of tin foil.
• STEP 4: I repeated steps 2 and 3 for the rest of the hair.
• STEP 5: I checked on the hair every few minutes and then rinsed it when it reached a desired level of brightness (the time it takes varies depending on hair type, color, and damage).
• STEP 6: Since her hair pulled lots of warm orange and yellow tones, I had to tone it with an ashy color. I mixed a level 8 ash color with a 20 developer (following package directions) and applied this mixture to the bleached ends.
• STEP 7: I checked the hair every few minutes and then rinsed it once it reached a desired tone that was not brassy (length of time varies depending on hair type, color, and damage).
• STEP 8: I rinsed (no shampoo!) and conditioned the hair and then styled it!

And voila! Lovely ombre ends!