Red Hair, Don't Care.

Red Hair, Don't Care.

Hey, hey, hey there! So this week's blog isn't exactly about makeup.. well, okay it isn't about makeup at all. My hair needed to be badly redone, and for the sake of this very blog, and all you who actually read this I decided "Do it for the blog. Go big or go home. I am mixing my own hair dye."

Have I ever done this before? No.

Was I scared to try? Yes, very.

If you know me personally, then you know my hair has never been the same all the time.

I've had long natural hair, to a shaved head, to a pixie cut. From brown to Auburn, to Black and Purple, then a light Burgundy. 

I've only been coloring my hair for about a year, and I do use extra conditioners, and strengthening serums. I don't necessarily "style" my hair 24/7 because I like it to be natural just to give it a break every once in a while. When i first started getting my hair colored I would go to the salon and get it done for me, but since I have been on sort of a budget and I wasn't really feeling like committing to anything long term, I'd been using pre-mixed colors from your usual drug store. That's not always a problem but I knew I wanted my hair to be more vibrant.  

So last week, I was on you tube ( Always dangerous idea wise. Lol) and I watched several videos that all seemed to use the same products. I like burgundy because the red is deep, and not startling. But I also like cherry red because the red is more red than purple. So having said that, you have an idea where this is going.

Pick Your Poison:

For any of you that have never actually stepped into a Sally Hansen store, let me give you the run down. You walk in, expected to know what to pick. The isles are small. The women are pushy. It's hot. And all of a sudden you find yourself looking at a wall of hair colors. So many possibilities, so many new "You's". It can be a little overwhelming if you're not used to something like that. Lucky for me, I never shop without a list so I knew exactly what I was looking for.

 

L'Oreal Oreor 20 Vol. Creme Developer - $4.29 

L'Oreal Excellence HiColor Highlights - $6.59

 Since I was searching for more of a red burgundy, I decided to try Loreal Excellence HiColor Highlights in Magenta, and I bought two for more vibrant, even coverage. OKAY BACKSTORY TIME!! My hair was crazy black, not a good look I should say. So i had it for about a week, was over it, went back to the salon and they had to do a complete color lift to my hair. Since then I have had really blonde highlights making it kind of hard to dye my hair any other colors without the blonde peeking through. Because I didn't want my hair to be too light I decided to use a 20 Vol. developer. enough to lift my brown but not so much as to bleach my blonde. 

The Process: 

Being able to take care of your hair at home is nice. You know what isn't nice? Assembling and disassembling your own hair studio while trying to create a master piece. It is easy though, so here's what you'll need. 

• A mixing bowl + Brush for the color
• Gloves (Always Gloves Always)
• Vaseline ( If I don't use Vaseline I do use alcohol swabs to take the dye off of my skin)
• Paper Towels for clean up
• An Old T-Shirt to wear
• Bare Feet (Sometimes you can misfire and you don't want stained socks) 

• Dark Colored Towel for Rinsing Hair 

After you're all set up, its a lot easier to just section out the hair and be done with it. Trust me.   

 So my set up was two full L'Oreal hair colors in Magenta, and I just used to recommended amount of  developer. I let it sit for about 30 Minutes.

The Results:

Hair Color Before

Hair Color After

Hair Color Before

Hair Color After

After Care: 

When coloring your hair, especially when going with outrageous colors its good to give your hair a break. My natural hair is very curly, and I hate it! I also hate straightening it every single day because that can cause so many problems. Since I want my hair to stay red, Ive been washing it every three days. I know, gross right? It can be gross if you don't take care of it. My number one favorite item to use after coloring my hair is a deep conditioner. Sometimes when you buy the pre- mixed dyes from the drug store it comes with a color safe "deep conditioner". They don't always suck, but they can. So since I'm addicted to shopping, I found the PERFECT option for me! I actually found it by accident. I always make the mistake of just assuming the Sally's by my house has the products I see on their website. I'm never disappointed but when shopping there it's probably better to just go in with a general idea of what you want instead of expecting them to have exactly what you're looking for. Anyways, I found this hair masque:

 Proclaim's Argan Oil Intense Hair Masque - $7.99

It instantly became my favorite because it smells so good! I love fruity scents, and this definitely has one. Although, it isn't over powering, it's more of a natural scent. It's still very pretty. 

Anyways, like I said, I wash my hair every three days in COLD water. The cold water wont mess up the color like hot water will, trust me. Red hair bleeds literally forever, and if you're using hot water to rinse you might as well have not even wasted your money on the hair color because it's not going to stay. 

 My schedule usually goes like this: 

• Sunday Night: Rinse, Deep Condition, Rinse, Shampoo.
• Monday: Curly Hair
• Tuesday: Straighten ( Leave Down)
• Wednesday: I just wear my hair what ever way, sometimes I will straighten it again.
• Thursday: Bun + Rinse Night 

If you make the extra effort to take care of your hair, it will always be healthy and vibrant. If you don't already use a deep conditioner I would get one. The one recommended is relatively cheap and accessible. Even if you don't color your hair, or straighten it, or curl it, a deep conditioner will make your hair SO soft. And this one is anti-humidity which is absolutely perfect for me, and I'm sure for all of you since winter is just around the corner. 

 

 

The Verdict: 

 

It's officially been two weeks since I've first colored my hair red.  Mixing my own hair dye was.. an experience. I'm not totally against it , but I do recommended visiting YouTube first! Since I first colored my hair, it's been bleeding every time I wash it, which was expected. The color is still so fresh and even though its "faded" now it's the very shade of Burgundy that I was aiming for (with a little more red). I love it. Here's pictures from this very morning (excuse the curly).

 

Thank you all for spending your precious morning reading my blog! 

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