Hair Colouring (my hair-story) + Tips and Trick
Colouring your hair at first seems trendy and something you might do once just to get that tingling sensation of rebellion out of your system. However, it soon becomes an addiction and a part of your own identity and expression.
I’ve been colouring my hair for about five and a half years now, and through those years I’ve learned a few tips and tricks to keeping your hair as healthy as possible, and with bright colours for a longer time.
Now, I have curly hair, which means I must be very careful when dealing with chemicals to be able to not mess it up badly. If there is too much damage, it frizzes up and ends up looking like an actual disaster.
The first time I coloured my hair was when I was in 9th grade, I didn't want to bleach it just yet but I wanted to have some colour on it. With my mom's help we went and bought a L'Oréal black-violetish colour box and then applied it at home. The end result was really nice, and I would recommend if your hair has never had a chemical on it. It didn't damage it as much, and while it still was it's natural rick black now it had a violet tint and shine under the sun. It was a fun way to be discreet and yet have some fun with my hair. It was a formal and classic look.
Next time I wanted to colour my hair, once most of the black tint was washed out, I wanted to go for some peek-a-boo highlights. Since I wanted a vibrant red colour this time I had to bleach it, and so I went to a profesional salon to get it done. If you have never bleached your hair do not do it by yourself, getting a profesional to do it is the safest (and healthiest) way to achieve the blond level you need for fantasy colours. Bleach is a very powerful chemical, and it can burn your scalp and hair. I have never bleached my hair myself, it is always better to be on the safe side. The peek-a-boo highlights where another really fun way to decorate my curly hair, since the red colour popped out from underneath an around my natural black curls.
The next time I decided to colour my hair after the red strands had grown out and where cut I decided to go for something much bolder and tried out blue. It was for my high school graduation and I wanted to go out with a bang. I went to Myracurl this time, a salon specialised on curly hair, since I was planning on bleaching all my hair this time and not just some strands of it. My hair went through a total of 3 hours sitting with bleach to go to a very light blond, and then more time for the colour to sit in. It was a wonderful vibrant colour, and it sure as hell made some people turn their head twice when they looked at me. Of course there was some damage, but it just started to show as the colour washed away.
After most of the blue had washed away, I made a horrible mistake. I did not know box hair colour had peroxide level 40 on them, and coloured it back again to black to try and hide the damage. Worst. Mistake. Ever. The coloured box over the already previously bleached and coloured hair took it's toll on my hair, and dried it up a lot more than whatever damage the bleach had done. I got tired of my damaged hair and opted for chopping most of it off, and that's how I got my pixie hair cut, that at first wasn't really a pixie cut but rather an under shave and very short top figureless hair.
After my hair chop-off, and some time with natural hair I decided to go to turquoise, I went to another salon for the bleaching process, this one called Excezzo. And took my favourite hair colour for an easier at home retouching, Manic Panic. I bought mine at Sally Beauty. Their colours are wonderfully bright and the colour helps hidrate the previously damaged hair, plus all their products are cruelty free. The shine the colour gets is also wonderful and the perk that it is very easy to apply once it's falling off. And easy to maintain with accurate hair care. You can see my curls didn't loose shape nor gained frizz from the bleaching and colouring this time. The colour I used that time is Atomic Turquoise, which is honestly one of my favourites in all of their colour line. Though all their products are amazing.
Once I finished my bottle I allowed the turquoise to fall off completely before changing colour, Head and Shoulders shampoo was a huge help getting the last stains out of my hair. And so I went form a white-ish green to bronze, to a pale yellow, before going for a new bright colour.
After all the colour fell off I decided to return to a bright vibrant day, but this time, rather than a natural red auburn colour I decided to go for Manic Panic's Vampire Kiss, a vibrant fantasy red. Since I have a very pale skin tone with pink undertones, the colour is wonderful and pops out pretty well, specially when matched with an equally bright red lipstick. The contrast with my growing undercut in it's natural black colour and just the tips being this bright red is wonderful. And I'm in love with my current hairstyle and colour. What I love most of this product is how smooth it makes my hair, and how it rehydrates my bleached curls for them not to loose shape or style. After that, when the colour was starting to fall off again I went to retouch it, and get a very needed shaping and wen to yet another salon named Ana Hernandez Salón. The hair cut she made me is absolutely wonderful since she specialises on European Urban Hairstyle.
Tips and Tricks for a Healthier (bleached) Hair:
1. Before bleaching your hair do not wash it.
2. You can add some coconut oil to your hair the night before.
3. Once it is bleached, made sure you don't apply peroxide based products.
4. The best shampoos are either transparent or sulfate free (this also extend your colour life!)
5. It's better to wash your hair with cold water (unless you don't mind a couple retouches).
6. If you use hairstyling products, make sure they aren't to hard to wash out, or they'll remove the hair colour as well.
7. Make sure to use hydrating masks every once in a while, this will work wonders on your hair.
8. Cut the dry ends AFTER you have bleached it, that way you'll remove most of the damage of the process.