Another source for feeding my narcissism

About the same as conditioner, except it’s harder to tell how much difference it will make on the hair, and it also makes the color runnier and harder to work with.

Thank you!

You may want to go to a place that specializes in alternative  color, just because they will have a lot of experience with bleaching the crap out of people’s hair! However, if that’s not an option, keep an eye out for platinum blondes. When you see one you like, approach her and tell her that you love her blonde hair, and who does it? Ask around a few times, if you can, and try to get contact info for their stylists if you can. Once you’ve got a couple of good candidates, see if you can get in for a consultation. You don’t necessarily want someone that you can just call up and say, “Hey, I wanna bleach my hair,” and they say, “OKAY!” - no questions asked! Everyone is different and has different bleaching needs, and some people can’t be bleached at all for certain reasons. A good stylist will want to see what your specific situation is so she can talk about it with you and work out a plan. You probably don’t need much of one anyway, if you are just needing a root retouch, but if you want anything more complicated than that, then it’s prudent to be careful and find someone who will also be careful so as not to completely ruin your hair.

Mainly, you will just want to make sure that you clarify that you want a level 10 blonde (a level 9 will work if you stick with warm colors like red, pink, and orange, but isn’t light enough for lighter colors like cotton candy pinks, lavenders, minty greens, or blues). Sometimes this can take two processes, which will cost more and take more time, so ask about that, too. You may also ask about toning, as some stylists just assume that you want this, and they usually charge it as an extra service. You will only *possibly* need toning if you want lighter, cooler colors on top, like turquoises, pale blues, violets, greys/silvers, and bluey-greens. It’s not necessary for warmer stuff, and if your hair gets to white, you won’t need it at all, but that isn’t always an achievable goal unless you’ve naturally got pretty light hair.

Also, find out if they have any recommendations for products that can keep your hair in decent shape. Keeping it our length or longer is really tough when it’s bleached, so take super good care of it, and use professional stuff - it makes a difference! It also doesn’t tend to be as harsh on your color.

I think I covered all my bases here, so I hope that helps! 

-ursula

p.s. sorry for taking so long to reply - i’m never on tumblr anymore!

Thank you!

I tend to use Manic Panic Electric Banana for yellows, as it is pretty long lasting. Her other colors were Ion Brights in Sky Blue, Pravana Violet, Special Effects Atomic Pink and Cherry Bomb, and Pravana Green. I mixed up a custom orange with the yellow and cherry bomb. 

I usually dilute with either water or conditioner, depending on what I am doing/going for.

Thank you!!

Well, the first thing I do when I start fading a color is switch to dandruff shampoo, and I usually wash my hair about three times in the shower every day with it. Usually a week or two of this will fade it a lot. However, if that’s not working then you can always try a vitamin c treatment, or, if your hair is in decent shape, you might do a soapcap on it. Here is an article with a bunch of ideas for getting color out. 

http://haircrazy.info/misc-articles/fading-your-colour/

South central Kansas.

Aww, well, thanks very much! I am glad to know someone else besides me is getting something out of this. And I appreciate your expression of gratitude - I have been working on trying to be more positive to people and tell them what specifically I appreciate about them, so your compliment sets a good example for me to follow. Thank you again.

You’re welcome!

Well, it depends on the color. The atomic pink is well-known for being stubborn, and I can vouch for that - I just cut several inches off of my hair a cople weeks ago because the atomic pink I applied in March was still there, but just dusty and gross looking - and I had diluted it a lot (three parts conditioner to one part color)! The color did stay bright for a long time, though. The darker colors will last (and by “last”, I mean, stay relatively bright and nice looking) for at least six weeks, usually. The neons, like the oranges, cherry bomb, and atomic pink, get brighter before they get lighter, so that can be pretty neat. They have some colors that are more subtle that don’t last very long, also, like the iguana green and wildflower - they just don’t seem to have a lot of pigment in them. Do you have a specific color in mind?

But also, for maximum color longevity, regardless of brand, make sure you are shampooing as little as possible, every couple of days if you can manage, with a color safe shampoo, and use the coldest water you can stand. DO NOT use dandruff shampoo, unless you are trying to strip the color.

Thank you! Since I do hair for a living, my own hair is really the best way to advertise my services, so I work pretty hard at making sure it looks presentable. Knowing a few makeup tricks helps, too ;)

It generally depends on what color I want and what kind of longevity I am looking for. My go-to brands are Pravana, Special Effects (usually diluted, tho, to shorten the lifespan), Manic Panic, Chi, Joico Color Intensity, and Redken HiFusion.