The Daunting Dive into the World of Unnatural Hair-colour (Continued)

In my first post I ended with thinking of your hair as a piece of paper, that is to colour over it, it needs to be as close to white as possible (without sacrificing the health of your hair). Now it’s time to get technical! Your hair is not just one long strand; it is made up of cuticles, which on healthy hair are smoothed and closed. That’s why “fried” hair gets frizzy; the cuticle has been roughed up

and is no longer closed. What you want to achieve is a happy medium. The unopened cuticle of unprocessed hair will not hold unnatural colour on it’s own, as such colours of hair-dye normally do not contain ammonia (this is what is responsible in “regular” dyes for opening the cuticle). If your hair is not processed the dye will just sit on top of the hair, and wash out quickly. While, if the cuticle is slightly open from processing the dye will go into the hair, rather than just sitting on top, and last much longer. Alternately, if the cuticle is over-processed, and wide open, the dye will enter the cuticle, but the hair will not be able to hold it there. It’s a delicate process, which is why I recommend making hair processing a salon trip.

There are two major brands which I have used, Manic Panic and Special Effects. These can be

bought at malls (try Culture Craze or Sally’s Beauty Supply) or online. There is tons of debate over which brand is better, loads of blogs and sites give testaments which conflict one another. Personally, I don’t think one is better then the other. I

think they’re different, one brand or one colour may work better on one person than on another. For example, I had Special Effect’s “Nuclear Red” hair dye (see photo from last post) which lasted super well and was super vibrant. When I dyed my hair blue I used their “Fishbowl Blue,” which faded quickly and was dissapointing. Using Manic Panic’s “Atomic Turquoise” gave me a much more bright and long lasting blue. Oftentimes with finding the right brand it is simply necessary just to hunt around until you find what you’re looking for.

Once you have bought your dye it’s time to dye your hair! You can get a hair-dresser to apply the dye for you, or you can apply it at home. Many websites have helpful tips and steps on do it yourself unnatural colours, and for me dying my hair at home has always turned out well. As neither Manic Panic or Special Effects contains ammonia, I usually

keep my dye on for 12-15 hours (overnight in a shower cap). Once your hair is dyed, pour a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water on it to balance the pH. Wash your hair as little as possible to keep the colour fresh, and when you do wash, wash with cold water. Avoid heat styling your hair as much as possible, this opens the cuticle and takes out colour. If you do heat style, use a protective spray.

I hope your hair-colour is a big success, good luck!