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Tuesday, December 06, 2016
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Hey guys~ Today's topic will be very interesting because it's all about COLOR.
Who doesn't like bringing a little color to your monochromatic life, right? Okay I'll get to the point now :)
A lot of you did ask me about dyeing my hair and so far the experience has been great. I'm quite addicted to trying different colors every 2-3 months. Sounds pretty crazy, right? I know that it could cause a lot of damage to my hair. Also, maintaining it is EXPENSIVE!
But if those two things don't really bother you, then please continue reading this post. :)

*DISCLAIMER* I am not a hair expert. Everything you are about to read in this blogpost is based on my experience on hair dyeing. If you have any other inquiries regarding hair bleaching and dyeing, you may always approach hair professionals on a hair salon near you.

Let's start with the hardest part: BLEACHING.
So what is bleaching? - Bleaching is a process where you're opt to remove your natural hair color to make it lighter using chemicals.
Why bleach? - Sad to say we people who are born with dark hair really need to do this process because if we don't then the desired hair color won't be visible.
I really hate bleaching you guys, but it's a must! But don't worry, I got a couple of tips for you to survive this wicked process.
At first I don't have any idea about hair bleaching, so I did a lot of research before I did it. I know I could've let the hair experts in the salon to do it for me, but I was extremely broke when I first tried dyeing extreme colors. I saw a lot of bloggers sharing their experiences and tips, however the one from xovain was the best for me (link here).
To summarize her post, these are the important points you need to remember in bleaching your hair at home:

TIP #1: COCONUT OIL. Yes guys that's right! All you need is your good old coconut oil from the cupboard in the kitchen. If you don't have one, you can always find it in your local grocery store. Make sure you put a generous amount from your scalp to your hair tips, then cover your hair with a plastic shower cap and let it sit for a minimum of 3-4 hours. I love to leave it overnight. The key here is that the longer number of hours, the better.

TIP #2: HOW TO BLEACH. You basically need one sachet of bleaching powder (anti-yellow one is better), oxidizing agent/developer in 12%, a plastic container (don't use a metal one because we're dealing with chemicals here and we don't wanna see some unusual reaction), an applicator, and gloves. - Just mix the bleaching powder and the oxidizing agent/developer together in the container. The amount of developer would depend on how long or thick your hair is. If you're not so sure about this, you can always ask assistance from your local hair and beauty shops. One of the legit shops in the country is Hortaleza, plus their products are affordable.
TIP #3: THE B*TCHY PROCESS. Please DO NOT rinse your hair after leaving it with the precious coconut oil. If you are not sure about applying bleach into your hair, you may ask your mom or sister or your aunt to help you. When applying it, make sure you don't include your roots 'cause that's gonna hurt - A LOT. Divide your hair into sections so that it would be a lot easier to apply. Once it's done, let it sit until you achieve your desired bleach-blonde color. *This actually depends on every person. I have very thick hair strands and bleaching my hair takes about an hour. Sometimes it needs to be bleached twice.

TIP #4: RINSE AND DRY. Rinse your hair with cold water and use shampoo to remove all that grease from the coconut oil. NEVER use conditioner. You may feel your hair a little crisp after but that's normal. That's exactly what bleach does to your hair. After rinsing, dry your hair with heat by using a hair dryer and you're good to go~

...So that's all for bleaching. And now we move on to the fun part: DYEING!

I was so excited to do this at home because I've always wanted to try and change my hair color to red. Yes, red was my first choice and always will be.

Honestly, I don't have any idea which hair dye brand I should use at that time, but now I know better of course. Sad to say my country has limited sources when it comes to hair dyes. Good thing I found rainbowheadph. They are known to be the authorized dealers of Manic Panic, Arctic Fox, Sparks, and many more.

Out of all the many choices they had in their online shop, I decided to go for Sparks color and bought Rad Raspberry (fuschia color) and Red Hot (bright red color).

I did mention above that I want to have red hair, but because I got overwhelmed by the colors and do want to try them all at once, I went for fuschia (a color that is a mixture of red, pink, and purple hues) as my first try.

Freshly dyed fuschia hair

...and I didn't just end there, guys. This photo above was taken a year ago and up until now, I STILL want to try different colors. Once you'll get used to the whole process, everything will be easy and you'll get to discover that bold and daring side of you ;)

Hair dye used: SPARKS Rad Raspberry (left); SPARKS Red Hot (center); Generic hair dye in Red (right)

As soon as my red hair started to fade, I decided to change colors again, because maintaining it cost me a lot of money. I went to the salon as soon as possible because I thought it would need help from professional hairstylists.

Brown-blonde balayage (left); Silver (center); Ash gray-purple ombre (right)

In other words I went BLONDE :) Yes that's right~ One thing I love about dyeing your hair silver or ash gray is that when it fades, it turns into blonde that will flatter any skin tone.

Other words of advice:

DO HAIR TREATMENTS FROM TIME TO TIME. Keratin treatment is the best for bleached hair. It will regain its shine and smoothness all over again. If you're on a tight budget, you can do the keratin treatment in your home. You may buy any keratin-infused products/treatments in the drugstore(price: Php 130-400 depending on the brand). I usually do it once a week if I'm really into saving money, but if I'd like to splurge, I'd go to the salon to get some keratin treatment (ranges about Php 1,500-2,500).
CHOOSE THE APPROPRIATE HAIR CARE. When I started to try outrageous colors, I absolutely have no idea what shampoo or conditioner I should use. But the one from L'oreal Everpure (the silver-colored tube) is a good one. If you really opt to not washing your hair everyday to maintain its color, you may also try the dry shampoo.
BUDGET. Yes guys, you really do need to budget. Dyeing your hair is fun but it will hurt your wallet a lot! Well this is just my side. But you wouldn't want your hair to look nice only in the photos, right? So save up money to buy proper hair care to maintain its healthiness.

...and that's it for this post!

I really do apologize for the lack of photos. Actually I did plan to blog about this since the first time I bleached my hair, but unluckily the memory card of my camera got corrupted and I couldn't retrieve my files and my photos with all the products I used were there T.T

I hope this one did satisfy your curiosity about hair dyeing.

If you have more questions, you can always leave it in the comments below or ask me directly through twitter (@kimsings69).

'till next post! - k*