She does it again! Lavender → Teal (BONUS: Tutorial!)

Yes, I changed again. It's been  4  5 months (I can't count apparently! This is why you don't write and edit a blog post at 3 AM EST) since I bleached my hair and roots, which have gone pretty insane. I have a photoshoot to do as well as probably makeup and a show to perform in.

I'm doing Teal for these purposes!

I've chosen to do Teal because I had the dye already and I can't get my hands on Special Effects' Fishbowl. It's sold out everywhere that I have looked. It's so frustrating!

The Teal is from Ion Color Brilliance Brights, a very thick brand of dye that works very well! Except for the bloody metal tube! I hate things packaged in these tubes, because when you take off the cap each time whatever is inside comes out immediately. Ugh...

Aside from that little complaint, I do love the vibrancy and lasting power of the color. I want to try more from this line, because its only about $5.

Epic.

TUTORIAL: LAYERED HAIR COLOR

Products I use, all of which came from Sally Beauty Supply store:

• Ion Color Brilliance Brights - Teal
• Roux Violites Powder Bleach
• Salon Care 40 Vol. Creme Developer (I have very dark hair and this gets the job done for me)
• Tint brush (cheapo Sally store brand)
• Plastic measuring cup (cheapo Sally store brand)

 Products I use which are mostly around the house:

• Plastic container
• Hair clips, elastics
• Rat tail comb
• Gloves
• Deep conditioning product
• Foil and/or plastic wrap (I use the stuff from our kitchen) 
• Shirt you don't care about

The materials, minus foil and bobby pins

BEFORE WE BEGIN... 

See? Dirty, oily, stringy hair! When mine is super oily and dirty, it become stringy. Ewwwww

1. Have UNCLEAN HAIR! You need to have dirty hair. Why? Because conditioner negates the effects of bleach and dye! You'll also be washing the bleach out of your hair anyway. I tend to do my hair when it's really icky and limp. People also believe it sort of shields the hair from the bleach a little. I don't know if this is true or not, it's just more convenient for me.

2. Have on a shirt you absolutely do not care about. It will probably get bleach on it and dye. I also wipe my hands on my "dye shirt," so it's stained with just about every color I've used on my hair thus far. I do wash it, because I don't want to find out if bleach will eat through the shirt or get it on my other clothes when I toss it in the dirty laundry.

3. WEAR YOUR GLOVES. Seriously, walking around with your hands stained blue, pink, purple, etc. isn't fun. Trust me, it's annoying. I've had my hands stained pink and they looked raw because of it.

4. I am NOT a professional stylist. This is merely how I do my hair and written from experience. A friend wanted to know how I did my hair with the color layered, so this is for her.

Now the fun parts.

Showing how I use the "tail" of the rat tail comb to section at the roots

1. Section your hair. Decide what you want to change and section off whatever you don't want to bleach. I usually use a hair elastic to separate the rest of my hair from the front part and my bangs. From there, I section off any pieces I missed and pin them back with bobby pins, hair clips, etc. When you've got all the hair that won't be messed with pulled away from what you'll be working with, you can move onto the next step.

Developer + powder bleach + mixing both

2. PUT ON THOSE GLOVES!!!! Follow the directions on the bleach packet, whatever they say. This is where having a tint brush and a small measuring cup comes in handy. If you're using powder and a separate cream developer like I am, then have a plastic container ready. I use whatever I can find from our kitchen that no one cares about. You'll want to mix this into a thick cream.

3. Everything mixed up? Start on your very bottom layer if you have a thick section of hair, because you don't want to work from the top layer down, that's messy. 
***If you have serious roots like I do, then start brushing the bleach on at your roots.***
***If you don't have roots and this is the first time you're doing this, start one inch from the scalp and work down the hair section.***
I personally am trying to even out the color of my bleached hair and removing two layers of old colors (pink and lavender), so I'm going to cover all my bleached sections and start on the roots.

Ewwwwwwwwww! This was a bit itchy.

4. When everything is well-coated in bleach, start a timer depending on how light you need to go or how light you want to go and watch your hair. I don't have a time chart, sorry! I let my hair sit for an hour and watch it carefully. It's a waiting game, so occupy yourself. I like to put a piece of plastic wrap over my hair

5. When your hair is the shade you want or the timer goes off, wash it! WEAR YOUR GLOVES FOR THIS TOO. ***If you only wanted to bleach your hair, go ahead and rinse your hair twice or more then follow your normal hair washing routine with extra care for conditioning. If you're going to be adding a color like I do, then ONLY rinse and shampoo your hair.***

YIKES!

6. Dab your hair dry and be nice to it, particularly if it feels awful after because you skipped conditioner to dye your hair now. You need completely dry hair for the dye. Re-section your hair if you took it all down to wash it, particularly what wasn't bleached. Because I'm an impatient person, I very carefully hit it with the hair dryer a few times or sit in front of a fan to help speed up the drying and re-section it.

Sectioning for coloring

Foil and dye!

7. When your hair is dry, decide if you're going to do layers. Decide on where the color will be in the hair section and separate whatever you're not coloring. If doing multiple colors, decide what color will be on what layer and section them out with clips. You'll start with your bottom layer and work up in both cases. ***If you plan on more than one color, get some foil (I use the kitchen stuff) and use it keep the colors from bleeding on each other.***

Just finished section

8. Have your color ready and here, you can kind of go nuts! I like to squirt the color in the palm of my hands and smooth it on the middle and ends of the hair then use the tint brush to apply it to the roots. I also like to really saturate the hair in color then comb it all through, wiping off the excess on the comb and re-adding it to the hair. I rub the product into the roots too.

• If you're using multiple colors, start the color going on the very last layer. Apply it on the middle and ends and use the tint brush on the roots carefully. Wrap the section in foil and make absolutely sure it's covered from root to end.

All section covered in color, covered in foil and the foil pinned to hold it in place.

9. More waiting! Since I use alternative dyes (Special Effects, Ion's Brights, etc), which tend to be conditioning in themselves, I leave them for ~30 minutes. The directions for your brand will affect time and I admit I go over the recommended time for the brands I normally use by 5 minutes.

10. When the time has passed, you can go rinse your hair. I like to do two rinses till the water runs clear or nearly clear, agitate the freshly colored section to get rid of any excess still on the hair and then shampoo the color with more rinsing.

• If you've done different colors, start on the bottom and rinse very well! Make sure that the color isn't bleeding anymore and give it a light shampoo followed by rinsing and conditioner. The conditioner will help keep the colors from bleeding onto each other as you work—conditioner sort of works like a sealant for dye. Alternatively, you could rinse+shampoo at the sink then the do the conditioner so you can work a little easier. Condition the rest of your hair (it'll appreciate it ~ ) and make sure to rinse that out super well.

11. Extra step: I have a tub of L'Oreal Total Repair 5 balm that I like to use when my hair really needs that extra little boost of care. If you have a deep conditioning product, it can really help your hair feel and look its best. Bleach sucks out the moisture from hair, hence why deep conditioning and hair masks help. Leave-in conditioner can also help if you don't have a rinse-out deep conditioning product.

Take care of your hair after this. No teasing after bleaching, and if you use heat frequently, use a heat protector! They do help! My favorite is John Frieda Frizzease serum in the orange bottle. DIY moisture masks will be a nice treat while your hair recuperates.

*A full-sized tint brush has a long, thin handle that tapers to a dull point. It's really pretty dang awesome for sectioning hair if you don't have a rat tail comb!

When I do my hair, I'll take a photo so you can see my finished results.

I FEEL LIKE A MERMAID ~ It's not 110% even, but it's gorgeous looking in the light and real life. I love it!

I styled it ~ And did makeup

SPOOKEHDOOM