Gingerbread head

I've been wanting to add some color to my life (hair) for quite some time, but the fear of extreme damage kept me from actually doing it. I would have daydreams of me applying the chemicals and then the next scene I'd be rinsing my hair and all of my hair would be in the sink!! My husband told me, "It's just hair. It only took two years to grow this much." He's an all or nothing type person. I'm more of an 'I dont want to be bald for two years' type of person.

After tons of research (YouTube videos), I decided to give it a go. I wanted to avoid bleaching my hair at all possible costs, but we know that naturally dark hair is hard to lighten without it. I wasnt looking for a platinum blonde, but something a few shades lighter.

I dove right in to my student mode, reading tons of blogs and watching videos of dark haired beauties going lighter. I wanted to know what to do before, during and after the coloring process. And I searched high and low on how to avoid the dreaded orange. I contacted a friend of mine who is also a cosmetologist and asked which box brands she recommended I use or stay away from. Well after her long complicated instructions on using bleach (sounded like rocket science to me, but she knows her craft), she told me she just didnt want me to end up with hair color that appeared to melt into my skin tone making me look like a gingerbread cookie. If that's not funny, she then sent me a picture of a gingerbread girl cookie! I fell out laughing. So now I had to worry about orange hair and hair too close to my tone. Let's just give up now shall we?

Of course I didnt. I located the "Sally's Beauty Supply" store here in Germany. It actually was bought out by a company named Pro Duo and they accept our stateside Sally's discount cards! Score! The lady working the register that evening spoke English very well and she had great advice. I wasnt too sure if she knew what she was talking about, but I confirmed with an American lady also shopping that day who was a licensed cosmetologist. I purchased the shampoo & conditioner here, but I bought the box kit from the BX or Base Exchange.

photo from drugstore.com

Here's what I learned through YouTube & conversations

1. If going lighter, choose an "ash" tone to avoid the brassy orange tones. You're not going to get blonde from the box, but it will be the best in lifting the color without using bleach.

2. Dont shampoo hair 24hours prior to coloring. you can rinse your hair if you have some product buildup. I rinsed my hair the day before.

3. DO A STRAND TEST! I mixed according to the instructions in my kit. It was 1:1. I mixed a little in a plastic bowl and threw in some shed hairs I had from my detangling session. The color was lighter and not brassy.

4. Line your ear and skin around your hairline with conditioner. Let it dry- it will look white. This will protect your skin from the dye/chemicals.

5. Section hair. I did 4 sections. If going lighter start the mixture 1/4 inch from the scalp. The heat from your scalp speeds up the process. This is why some people end up with very light roots compared to their hair. After you've done each section like this THEN go back and apply it to the roots.

6. Follow the box instructions! Mine said to not shampoo for 48 hours and to use their follow-up conditioner. I did this. I left the tube of conditioner on my hair for about an hour before rinsing out.

7. Shampoo & condition with products specifically for color treated hair. Mine are purple/blue tones and help with toning any brassiness or orange tones. These also help with keeping your color vibrant.

8. MOISTURIZE! Keep your hair moisturized daily if not twice a day. I normally deep condition 1x a week, but will be doing it 2-3 times a week for the next month before I reevaluate the condition of my hair.

Im happy with my end result and even got the stamp of approval from the Gingerbread head police! Im thinking of doing an all over application around November/December to lighten it a few more shades, but we'll see.

Until next time, CIAO!