You may be dying to go blonde but turning into a brassy disaster is a real risk if you don’t follow the rules.
Coming into to summer, everyone is lured by the notion that blondes have more fun (in the sun). Horror hair disaster stories about bottle blonde mistakes are all too common. Victims that spend the next six months trying to rectify the broken blonde tresses or getting their locks stripped and re-coloured in the wake of a dye job catastrophe. Things don’t have to be so scary.
The first thing to realise is that going blonde isn’t going to be cheap on your time or your hip pocket. If you don’t want your roots showing, you will be up for regular maintenance every six weeks. Consider it an investment, if you put the effort in you’ll reap the rewards.
Second, blonde isn’t a ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution.
You need to ensure that the shade you choose will suit you, your skin tone, wardrobe and lifestyle. Consult a few colour specialists and try on few styles of blonde wigs to gauge the shades that suit you – there are warm tones and blonde tones. You may also need to consider an eyebrow lightening to complement your colour and ensure an overall natural look.
Changing you hair colour can cause stress to your hair, so get your hair into excellent condition prior to embarking on your dye job. Blonde hair in bad condition looks trashy so begin home or salon nourishing treatments to get your hair in tip top condition for a few months leading up to the big event and one the day before.
For your first foray into blonde, you may like to start with a mild flirt by having your hairdresser do a round of highlights. These can be done every six to eight weeks to increase their intensity of blonde in your hair. This produces a gradual and more natural looking results as the colourist can use several shades of blonde. Some balayage, painted on blocks of colour, can give a sun kissed effect.
Another good way to dip your toe in the blonde pool is by experimenting with a semi permanent gloss colour that lasts around six weeks. This is a low risk option to lighten your colour that will wash out over time.
For a middle ground that achieves instant results, start with a hair primer to lighten all over and then have blonde foils to add depth. They key to good blonde results is to achieve a degree of texture and depth within the shade.
If you’re going the whole platinum hog, bold blonding all at once, it will involve getting your hair bleached by a professional. This can lift hair up to seven shades lighter very quickly, but can have consequences for the instant hit. Breakage and dryness can be side effects of bleaching. Hairdressers say the type most suited are those with short hair.
Lastly, change your products for blonde or coloured hair varieties and keep your treatments going at home to upkeep your hair health. Don’t be scared of your blonde ambition!
