Hi friends,
This might quite possibly be one of the most dramatic things I have ever done to my hair ever! If you are on campus with me then you have probably already seen my new hair, however if you aren't at school with me then this may be the first you've seen. In this post I will tell you my process, from consultation to after care, and show you some before and after pictures.
I went for my consultation with Nadine at Parlor in August but unfortunately with my work schedule and my hair stylists full schedule, finding a time to dye my hair before school started was impossible. Impatient to have blonde hair, I went to a couple consultations at other places to see if I could get an earlier booking. However, all the rates I was given were $230+. Not going to happen on this university student's budget. On top of the $100 price difference between Parlor and these other places, Nadine told me that she could get my hair where I wanted it in one session, whereas the other hair salons told me two or three sessions.
Now I had mostly virgin hair going in. That means that my hair hadn't been dyed before, except for the tips which were still growing out. Virgin hair lifts much easier than dyed hair, which is part of the reason I was able to get to light.
To prepare my hair I did a lot of hair masks. I have two favorite hair masks that I like to DIY at home: one was taught to me by my hairdresser and the other I enjoyed doing with my friend. The first one is egg, olive oil, and honey mixed together. The egg provides much needed protein to my hair, the olive oil hydrates, and the honey gives shine. The other is coconut oil and honey, and we all know that coconut oil is amazing for basically everything. I did at least two hair masks a week for about three weeks leading up to my appointment.
I walked into my appointment with oily, second day hair. I read online that natural oil helps protect hair during dying sessions. I did text Nadine before my appointment to make sure she didn't mind and she completely encouraged it.
Nadine placed the lightener into my hair and wrapped my hair in foils. I appreciated that Nadine would unfold a foil wrap to test my hair during the lightening process to make sure it was still healthy and doing well. The lightening process scared me because it didn't look very blended when she took the foils out but apparently lightening is just the placement and the toner is the actual painting of the color. Nadine was very reassuring about that - I think she could easily read the worry on my face when she first took the foils out. My hair lightened very well. Nadine said that it was the best case scenario because I had healthy virgin hair. When all of the foils were unwrapped and my hair was down my tips were white.
Next Nadine put the toner on my hair. This is where the real magic happens. It was blended so well and I could not have had been happier with the result. The toner did really take to my hair, making it a much cooler tone than in reality but that just took a couple washes and then it warmed up to the actual colors.
Overall, the process took 5 hours. I definitely received a parking ticket but didn't care at all because we got from a natural level five and lifted me to a level ten. I love my hair and was thoroughly impressed with Nadine. During my appointment I was offered multiple cups of tea, which I very much enjoyed. I was also given many head massages throughout the five hours so I was quite relaxed. I am so happy with the result and that the cost was so affordable.
OUTFIT DETAILS: Top: Dynamite | Jeans: Garage | Shoes: Steve Madden |
The aftercare right now is pretty simple. It currently just includes buying sulfate free shampoo, not using heat products, using Olaplex in my hair, and putting olive oil on my ends while I sleep.
OUTFIT DETAILS: Romper: Dex | Cardigan: Dex | Jeans: Garage | Last outfit same as above |
Let me know below if you have any questions.
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