Pravana Vivids for those who love the bright & bold

[manderly]

I stumbled across Pravana Vivids on the Killer Strands group messageboard and thought this may be something that many of you may appreciate.

Apparently they are incredibly permanent, we're talking henna permanent, you can go right over your natural/darker color and still get vivid results, and it is ammonia & peroxide free.

That's all I really know about it, and here are some images I found. I think they're pretty awesome!

http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g184/dallasfryer/contest-winners1.jpg

http://i245.photobucket.com/albums/gg70/c_n_c_is_D/colormyhair.jpg
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://media.photobucket.com/image/pravana%20vivids/dallasfryer/contest-winners1.jpg?o=1%22%20target=%22_blank%22%3E%3Cimg %20src=%22http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g184/dallasfryer/contest-winners1.jpg%22%20border=%220%22%3E%3C/a%3E

[Loviatar]

I am so researching these. Thanks Manderly :)

ETA:

Very sneaky. Yes they use no peroxide or whatever, but you have to 'prelighten' (bleach) first. It's on their website. Similar to trying to get those kind of bright colours with manic panic etc.

Oh well :)

[~GypsyCurls~]

Those styles and colors are awesome!

[demitasse]

I'd never have the guts to do this but I love the first place color; it reminds me of a peacock.

No, my virgin hair is staying chaste. ;)

[Moonstruck]

Love love love the winner - the peacock looking one. I'm sorta obsessed with peacock colors though, hahaha.
The Leopard one is really cool too! Wowza.

=/ I can't seem to find anything about ingredients on their page, which puts me off a little. I'll have to look into it sometime

[jessie58]

Those are gorgeous colors. DD22 has recently been coloring a bleached front part of her hair but the colores seem to disappear within 2 weeks leaving dull faded sections. I'll show her this post.

[zombi]

I used to have that exact peacock colour-scheme in the back of a head of blue-black hair. That makes me miss it.

Although, I could have sworn I had used this before and it WASN'T permanent? Maybe it was something else. I honestly can't remember very well; I used to change my hair colour like some people change their socks.

[manderly]

Probably something else zombi. If you google it you'll find a bunch of people posting question how to get it out :) Seems like funky-henna to me. :D

[Norai]

Oh wow... I love bright colors like that :)

I found this one somewhere and really love it... too bad black hair doesn't work well for my skin tone:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_sXI8Dr0DFV0/SRju_BVU3xI/AAAAAAAAVxM/HI6ck5jIqfY/s400/badasshair141.jpg

[Pegasus Marsters]

Damn, I'm upset now I've read you have to bleach to achieve this. Fail! :(

[Furiana]

GORGEOUS colors! :thud:

[manderly]

Damn, I'm upset now I've read you have to bleach to achieve this. Fail! :(

Where did you read that?

[Pegasus Marsters]

Where did you read that?

Loviatar said it and their website says it. You have to pre-process your hair to get the vibrant colours.

[manderly]

Loviatar said it and their website says it. You have to pre-process your hair to get the vibrant colours.


I found it :)

[GlassEyes]

******MIT.

Then again, if you didn't have to bleach for this, it'd be all over mainstream media, and they'd have normal colors. And I'd be in my happy place. :wail:

I may try it anyway. XD;

[Loviatar]

I may try it anyway. XD;

I'm so glad I'm not the only person thinking that :lol:

[Unofficial_Rose]

Sigh! I love coloured hair. I saw someone with bright pink hair today and I couldn't help but look at it. She looked so defensive, probably thought I was disapproving, but of course I wasn't! :rolleyes:

It's kind of high maintenance, surely? All that pre-bleaching and regular retouching. I shall have to wait until I have white hair.

I really love the 1st one. :agape: Beautiful.

[Fractalsofhair]

Well you probably don't need to bleach to get the effect on lighter hair colors. You could also probably use a more mild bleach if they are quite vivid. I used to use manic panic on my hair, and I'm interested in using these. I could probably just dope up on allergy meds and go during a mild time, since a salon near my house supposedly has these colors. They're known for being horrid at coloring, but how hard is a simple little blue streak in the front without bleach... Manic panic begins to fade after a month and I had to keep it in my hair for 5 hours, leading to sores on my scalp and generally bad allergies. If this can last for 3 months with only an hour on my scalp, I should be fine! (It's almost faded after 1 year completely, so my hair absorbs color well)

[manderly]

I'm sure you can still use this on darker hair and get a not so vivid result. And from what I'm reading of others using this, some have gone 9 months before retouching, so it doesn't strike me as being very high maintenance like other bright colors :)

[Isilme]

I'd love to find a bright colour that doesn't require pre bleaching or any peroxide or ammonia in the dye. I'll try a dark purple tomorrow straight over my hennaed hair on a small strand. (special effects)

[1953Diygal]

LOL! How funny! I just had my hairdresser use these on my hair. He mixed the red with the orange. First, he did highlights, then did a base color. My hair looks like jello, and I think that's a good thing

I find it very interesting that I'm using cone products on my hair, had my hair highlighted, and used these colors and I'm experiencing a growth spurt. People tell me my hair has never looked better, and yet I'm breaking all the "rules."

Here's a photo, Yes, I photoshopped out some zits. http://www.thoughtspaces.com/ts/memberfiles/90/exenehair.jpg

I'm reminded me of something a past hairdresser said to me. I was in the process of growing out a bad bleach job and was very zealous about not using dye. I made a comment to him that I couldn't understand why anybody would want to dye their hair. His reply was, "Because it's fun".

[ecologystudent]

Shoot! It just occurred to me that I should have done some wild bright colors while my hair was short, because then I couldn't be cutting that much off if I didn't like it. I just love those blues, greens, and purples.

Aw well. Next time I get a buzz cut, I guess :P

[manderly]

http://www.thoughtspaces.com/ts/memberfiles/90/exenehair.jpg


Gorgeous!!!!!! :thud:

[1953Diygal]

Gorgeous!!!!!! :thud:

Thank you so much! :D I love the color and those Pravana colors feel so good. When I touched up my hair recently, it felt absolutely silky for a couple of days afterward. It's nice to know I can buy them on eBay, too.

[dancingmegs]

Your hair looks stunning, Diygal! The bright streaks and heavy bangs really suit you.

[Shermie Girl]

Your hair looks :thud: Diygal.

[jel]

Diygal, that's stunning! Please report on how long it lasts for you...

I'm really intrigued by this range. The colours I'm drooling about are in the second place picture. What's worst is that the temporary dye I use over henna gives me similar hues - but it rinses out like mad! :justy:

[1953Diygal]

Wow!!! Thanks, everybody. The reason for the change was really because I'd gone to the Viva Las Vegas rockabilly weekender and I'd seen some beautiful long, colored hair (mostly beautiful, vivid reds, blondes, and jet black). The Jamila henna, which was once so vivid on my hair, was starting to build up and get a sort of monotone color. :(

Roger put in some foils, did a chestnut base color, and then added the Pravana colors. He even gave me extra for touchups. The original color was done on the 23rd of May (that photo was taken after about 2 weeks). I wash my hair every 3 days or so. I had to touch up last week.

The color sucks right up into your hair. I left it on for about an hour and when I ran my fingers over it, no dye came off. I'll probably touch up in about another month or so. If I can afford it, I may have Roger put in a few more foils. I'm kinda likin' the bright red.

What I said about cones....Going cone-free is just not really working for me. Maybe it's the climate. I'm getting exquisite results from a product called DermOrganics Argan Oil Leave-In treatment and another serum made by Obliphica. Yes, they're cone-heavy, but I'm taking care to clarify periodically, and the results speak for themselves. My hair isn't breaking as much, it seems to be growing faster, and it has that lovely cone swoosh to it.

I'm not sure about keeping the bangs. I might go back to the side-part Veronica Lake thing.

OH, P.S.
I forgot to mention that about 3 months ago, I thought I'd try a permanent color over my hair, so I brought one of those permanent haircolors that they sell at Whole Foods. I brought the brightest red they carried. It lifted the monotone color a bit (made it super-dry for awhile...yuck), but I think it helped the Pravana soak into my hair more effectively.

[Zombiekins]

Woah, this stuff sounds awesome! Does anybody else have reviews of this stuff? If you didn't go to a salon, where did you buy it from?

More pictures! :p I'm interested in non-henna ways of coloring my hair, as it's getting old, and this stuff sounds interesting.

[Delila]

That peacock look is so cool!

Jello-colors sounds like such fun, but I know I'm entirely too low maintenance to travel down this road.

[GlassEyes]

That looks awesome! :D

[kimberlily]

I was looking at their website and saw that they also have a "regular" hair colour line, called Chroma Silk Creme (http://pravana.com/v2/vis/products/chromasilk.php). It is no-lift, but does contain ammonia. I'm considering going this route since I'm falling out of love with the time involved with henna.

Here's a website that carries all the colours (http://www.extendedlengths.com/prchsicrha3o.html).

ETA: They have several developers to choose from, including a no-lift developer (http://www.extendedlengths.com/prchsicrdeze.html). Some of their developers do lift.

ETA again: I'm happy to see 1953diygal's comments since I have been trying to find something safe to use over henna :)

[1953Diygal]

http://www.thoughtspaces.com/ts/memberfiles/90/megared2.jpghttp://www.thoughtspaces.com/ts/memberfiles/90/megared1.jpg
YOu know, I received so many compliments when I was in Vermont and on Cape Cod this summer. When I was on Nantucket Island, a barber stopped his truck in the middle of the street and wanted to know all about it. He said it looked amazing. My dad and I went into a bookstore and as we were walking through the door, two ladies told me how much they liked my hair. I received hair compliments wherever we went. It was very good for the self-esteem. :)

I'm touching up my roots with that really bright red permanent color that Whole Foods sells (I think the color is called Terra Fuego) and then I put the Pravana Vivids over it.

Interestingly enough, I'm using cone products, permanent colors, Pravana Vivids, and yet my hair is growing like a weed. I finally reached 31 inches and it shows no signs of stopping, even though I'm "breaking all the rules."

[Zombiekins]

Thank you so much for posting pictures, 1953DiyGal. I've been weighing out my options lately for darkening my hair and colors outside of henna. I'd love to try out the violet vivd to see what it looks like over my henna-only roots and my old dye+hennna roots.

Looks like the vivids really are POW! That red looks beautiful against your skin. As a teen bright red hair like that looked good on me too. Now, however, I find dark colors with a purple/burgundy sheen to suit my color better. And nice bright red lipstick! I love the 50s vibe! :D

[pink.sara]

Woah, this stuff sounds awesome! Does anybody else have reviews of this stuff? If you didn't go to a salon, where did you buy it from?

More pictures! :p I'm interested in non-henna ways of coloring my hair, as it's getting old, and this stuff sounds interesting.

I'm currently using Pravana Vivids and have bought them from ebay.com, thay last much longer than a vegetable colour like Manic Panic, Crazy Color or Stargazer, but you do need to either pre-bleach or pre-colour to some degree.
The main problem I have with them is that I change my hair colour all the time and they are very difficult to remove :(
Having said that I love the Silver which gives me the white in my avatar.
I'll dig out some (poorly taken camera phone :o) pictures of my recent white/red and white, pink and black Vivid colours and post them in a bit :)

Diygal your hair is absolutely lovely and the red totally suits you! Nice job!

[1953Diygal]

Thank you, everyone! I think I'll keep it. :cool:

[Zombiekins]

but you do need to either pre-bleach or pre-colour to some degree.
The main problem I have with them is that I change my hair colour all the time and they are very difficult to remove

Now, what do you mean by "need"? Need it as in the color won't show up well without it, or need it because using bleach/pre-color gets it to stick better?

[pink.sara]

Now, what do you mean by "need"? Need it as in the color won't show up well without it, or need it because using bleach/pre-color gets it to stick better?

Sorry! To clarify, *need* because if the colour is brighter or paler than your natural hair it wont show and also Virgin hair does not take the colour well at all, it washes out and becomes patchy only seeming to adhere to damaged areas.

For example when I tried to colour my virgin dark auburn hair black I ended up with black roots (from the scalp heat when processing) and black for the last 2 inches with 36 ins of natural colour give or take a few patches inbetween after just a few weeks of washing :(
However my pre bleached top section went a really gorgeous even colour that stayed.

Hope that helps :o

[Zombiekins]

Sorry! To clarify, *need* because if the colour is brighter or paler than your natural hair it wont show and also Virgin hair does not take the colour well at all, it washes out and becomes patchy only seeming to adhere to damaged areas.

For example when I tried to colour my virgin dark auburn hair black I ended up with black roots (from the scalp heat when processing) and black for the last 2 inches with 36 ins of natural colour give or take a few patches inbetween after just a few weeks of washing :(
However my pre bleached top section went a really gorgeous even colour that stayed.

Hope that helps :o

Ah, thank you! For me, I just want something that'll shine on my already dark hair (well, everything below the first three inches), not necessarily for it to be bright and the intended color. Just a little more "oomph", you know?

But now I'm not sure it'll stick to my hair anyway. It's not exactly damaged, as I henna frequently and it seems to be in good shape. Perhaps using heat would help....

[ademtce]

I was looking at their website and saw that they also have a "regular" hair colour line, called Chroma Silk Creme (http://pravana.com/v2/vis/products/chromasilk.php). It is no-lift, but does contain ammonia. I'm considering going this route since I'm falling out of love with the time involved with henna.

Here's a website that carries all the colours (http://www.extendedlengths.com/prchsicrha3o.html)

ammonia isn't a bad thing. its an essential ingredient for haircolor, it expands the hair shaft & opens the cuticle allowing the color to get inside of it.


he main problem I have with them is that I change my hair colour all the time and they are very difficult to remove

Pravan Vivids are meant to be non removable.

[pink.sara]

Pravan Vivids are meant to be non removable.[/quote]

;) I know that... but I do love to change my hair every so often anyways.
Apparently oxidative dyes are supposed to be non removable and permanent too... doesn't stop me stripping the black and going platinum blonde all over though :D

[pink.sara]

Whoops n00b mistake on the quote there! Sorry ademtce! :o

[Loviatar]

I just ordered the red (thanks DIYGal for your PM.) I'll let you know how it holds up. I just want something that doesnt wash out of the prelightened length (which was originally developed with a 20vol developer, so it should be light enough to take the Vivids colours.)

[Loreley]

:thud: I love the first one!

[Ananael]

Was wondering if anyone explored any of these with Henna? I recently did my daughters first Henna app (am waiting to figure out if I will do mine) and I added some violet pravana to the mix before application. After the first few days her hair started to appear more of a purplish red as opposed to the orangish color. I only used a small amount though so not too sure if it was that. Hope to hear some experiment results! Ooooh and pics! :eye:

[Ananael]

BTW for those who were curious about how well they work, I also have used the Pravana vivids on my hair for the last few years. I have dark red dyed hair with some lighter streaks. When I use the violet I get a darker wine color with a purple hue to my hair (its a VERY dark purple). When I use magenta it adds a lot of cool red depth to the reds and browns in my hair. Love the stuff and it lasts a long time for me.

[archel]

Ok, I had been considering Manic Panic or Special Fx in a burgundy/wine color over my Lush Caca Marron to get it more of a wine shade and less orange. (I used to use Ferria Chocolate Cherry years and years ago but man did it FRY the heck out of my poor hair.) I would love to know if I will get my cool red highlights with this stuff and if it will stay longer. I do not want to use bleach first, though. Anyone tried this? I'd certainly go this route if it stays longer, I love having to henna only about every 6 weeks or more.

[archel]

Also, I just went to their website and Perfection straightening stuff sounds way too good to be true, but now of course I totally want to get it...

[BelleBot]

Ok, I had been considering Manic Panic or Special Fx in a burgundy/wine color over my Lush Caca Marron to get it more of a wine shade and less orange. (I used to use Ferria Chocolate Cherry years and years ago but man did it FRY the heck out of my poor hair.) I would love to know if I will get my cool red highlights with this stuff and if it will stay longer. I do not want to use bleach first, though. Anyone tried this? I'd certainly go this route if it stays longer, I love having to henna only about every 6 weeks or more.

I've no idea about pravana vivids, but I used to use Directions (similar to manic panic) over henna and it worked a treat to bring out a nice vibrant red and not so orange, so I'm sure using a burgundy coloured dye will help you get the shade you want and take out the orange of henna. Don't use bleach though as bleach + henna is generally a bad combination. Hope this helps.

[MandyBeth]

It has a tint of color to dark hair. My phone doesn't pick it up, but I am vaguely violet over all, with my silvers being really purple. Nothing lasts in my hair 9 months without multiple applications so I will see.

[slz]

.............................

[luxepiggy]

Wait . . . wait . . . so I could buy a tube of this Pravana Vivid Blue and apply it ONCE, instead of messing about with SE every month?!?

OMG!! My mind, it is boggled (*(oo)*)

[theodora]

Pravana sounds really amazing and I love the results I've seen in pics around the internet. Problem is: it is impossible to find in the UK... :(

[slz]

.....................

[spike316]

So I was set on using Elumen, then I stumbld upon this thread, read a bit, and now I'm all confused : so, which one to choose ? Elumen or Pravana vivids ? Are they comparable in terms of lasting time ? In terms of gentleness to hair ?
Also someone posted a bit earlier, about a "zero lift developer" - is it required with the pravana vivids ? What use would it be ? I'm all confused now, please help >< !

So did you find anything out about this? Is developer even needed? I got some of this to have my stylist put in my hair, but I'm not sure how to go about it. O_o

[luxepiggy]

So did you find anything out about this? Is developer even needed? I got some of this to have my stylist put in my hair, but I'm not sure how to go about it. O_o

The Pravana Chromasilk Vivids do not require developer, they are deposit-only colours like Manic Panic. As with MP, you can just put to straight on from the tube, although if you want a very intense hue, prebleaching is required.

Regular Pravana Chromasilk dye does require developer.

[ktani]

Behind the Chair on removing Pravana Vivids
http://www.behindthechair.com/forum/displaythread.aspx?DID=9819
"I spoke with Danny at Pravana's Hotline... he said the only options were to use clarifying shampoo daily until it fades ... or to color over it with a natural tone in my natural level. I tried that first... it turned from a vivid pink to a deep vivid purple! So then I placed an ash/gold formula over that, and it worked pretty well except for around my bangs where it was the pinkest, which remained a dark red-violetish brown. It's tolerable for now..

The Pravana hotline said that the Vivids cannot be removed with bleach or with color remover under any circumstance."

Pravana pdf http://www.pravana.com/views/images/ChromaSilk_Hair_Color_System.pdf
"The Artificial Hair Color Extractor WILL NOT LIFT the natural hair color, as it is formulated to ONLY remove permanent, oxidative dyes. It will NOT remove VIVIDS, which are direct dyes!"

Makeupalley.com reviews
http://www.makeupalley.com/product/showreview.asp/ItemId=116696/Pravana_ChromaSilk_Vivids_Violet/0/Hair_Color

http://www.makeupalley.com/product/sreview.asp?ItemId=116696&RID=1963465

http://w76.makeupalley.com/product/x_showreview.asp/ItemId=116696/Pravana-ChromaSilk-Vivids-Violet/Unlisted-Brand/Hair-Color


ETA: http://pravana.com/f/pid/3/mid/prod
It sounds like the Vivids are so vivid because they are designed so that they can be combined with other conventional colours.
http://pravana.com/f/mid/17
"Vivids can be combined with more conventional colors to provide an array of stunning color effects."

Hope all of this helps.

[spike316]

Thanks guys! I'm ok if they can't be removed, my stylist just kind of streaks them through my ends and I'm looking for something that'll last longer than manic panic. I'm glad I don't need developer!

[slz]

.....................

[ktani]

Thanks piggy and ktani for the info .... now if I could only make up my mind between elumen and pravana vivids. Oh and find decent supplier - the one I linked above wanted 41 of shipping fees. For a 16 order. Yeah right -_- .

(darn it, my dollar sign key doesn't work anymore, stupid silicone keyboard)

For my part you are very welcome.

[theodora]

slz I found one ebay listing for the pravana chromasilk vivids, it doesn't say how much they charge for delivery though, but you might want to ask them for a quote.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PRAVANA-CHROMA-SILK-VIVID-YOUR-PICK-FREE-SHIP-/120698054051?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c1a2a25a3

[spike316]

Thanks piggy and ktani for the info .... now if I could only make up my mind between elumen and pravana vivids. Oh and find decent supplier - the one I linked above wanted 41 of shipping fees. For a 16 order. Yeah right -_- .

(darn it, my dollar sign key doesn't work anymore, stupid silicone keyboard)

I'm not sure what their shipping is to france (it says to contact them for worldwide shipping) but here's where I ordered my pravana from: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pravana-chromasilk-VIVIDS-YOU-CHOOSE-SHADES-/220854325615?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item791559df3b#shId If they don't have the color you're looking for currently just keep checking back periodically or they might be able to tell you when they're planning to restock. ^_^

[uglypug]

I'm very interested in this but the seller doesn't have great feedback :( I'm a bit fussy about ebay... spike316 have you ordered successfully from this seller before? Thanks

[uglypug]

Whoops! Never mind, spike316, found a different seller :)

[slz]

......................

[ktani]

Thanks a lot Theodora annd spike - but ebay wouldn't even let me SEE it, let alone buy it :justy: :rolleyes: . "Due to some regulations in your country" or whatnot, I HATE THEM.

Keep searching. While it can be frustrating, you "should be able" to find vendors for both. Good luck!

[coddswaddle]

Holy cow!!! I have teal, blue, purple and pink via vegetable dyes. I have dying my hair funny colors since middle school. Learning that a permanent funny-color solution exists has just blown my mind!!

*happy dance

[luxepiggy]

Thanks a lot Theodora annd spike - but ebay wouldn't even let me SEE it, let alone buy it :justy: :rolleyes: . "Due to some regulations in your country" or whatnot, I HATE THEM.

Check your browser language settings - I'm sure you have French somewhere on the list of default languages, right? If you delete everything from the list except American English, you should be able to view the auctions. Works like a charm for me. I use a secondary browser that's set on English-only for eBay viewing, so I don't have to keep adding & removing French from my primary browser (^(oo)^)v

[ademtce]

I have access to these colors if anyone would like me to help them get a tube or so.

[uglypug]

I've just received a couple of boxes of this in red. Am a bit apprehensive to put it on but the colour in the tube is so gorgeous...no doubt I'll be putting it on tonight. Surely it's not really permanent and will wash out eventually (sorry, have gone through the whole thread and still none the wiser)? If so, that is perfect! Too impatient to do a strand test:face:

[Amber_Maiden]

Very pretty!

[luxepiggy]

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/photo-1.jpg

Strand- and patch-testing today. If all goes well, whole-head application is scheduled for Thursday . . . fingers crossed! x(^(oo)^)x

[luxepiggy]

In case anyone's curious (^(oo)^)v

Ingredients: Water, Cetyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Lanolin Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, Propylene Glycol, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Ehtyl Ester of Hydrolized Sylk, Sodium Sulfite, Simethicone, EDTA, Fragrance

May Contain: Basic Blue 1, Basic Red 22, Basic Orange 1, Basic Violet 1, Basic Yellow 57, Basic Green 4

[Bianca]

In case anyone's curious (^(oo)^)v

Ingredients: Water, Cetyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Alcohol, Lanolin Alcohol, Ceteareth-20, Propylene Glycol, Hydrolyzed Keratin, Ehtyl Ester of Hydrolized Sylk, Sodium Sulfite, Simethicone, EDTA, Fragrance

May Contain: Basic Blue 1, Basic Red 22, Basic Orange 1, Basic Violet 1, Basic Yellow 57, Basic Green 4

Oh thanks, was about to ask. Could't find the ingredients anywhere :D

[luxepiggy]

Oh thanks, was about to ask. Could't find the ingredients anywhere :D

You're welcome! I searched high & low online and couldn't find them anywhere:eye: I ended up buying the dyes in-person from a friend's salon so I could check the ingredients before committing to a purchase (^(oo)^)

[Bianca]

You're welcome! I searched high & low online and couldn't find them anywhere:eye: I ended up buying the dyes in-person from a friend's salon so I could check the ingredients before committing to a purchase (^(oo)^)

I just bougth directions dye, but this was something I wanted to try, but yea, no ingredient list to be found. But now I know I can use it, if direction fails me :p

Looking forward to seeing how it turns out, luxepiggy :p

[luxepiggy]

Looking forward to seeing how it turns out, luxepiggy

Me too! The test strand's marinating right now (^(oo)^)

[Bianca]

Me too! The test strand's marinating right now (^(oo)^)

Weee, exciting :p

[luxepiggy]

Weee, exciting :p

Waiting impatiently for my friend, who is supposed to help me with application. She overslept - alas! (>(oo)<)`

[luxepiggy]

I'm impressed! I used Pravana Vivids in Blue on my uncleached hair (to go from dark brown to blue black), and so far I'm very pleased. This is one salon product that is definitely worth the extra money, for several reasons.

First, I found the Pravana easier to apply than other deposit dyes I've used (SFX, Adore). The product itself is quite thick so drips were not a concern. Once applied, it added quite a bit of slip to the hair, which made it easy to really saturate every strand with colour. The Pravana also seems to rinse cleaner than SFX. I've noticed much less colour transfer (onto both fabric and skin) than usual.

Post-colouring, my hair has become extra silky-soft and touchable. The colour itself appears much more dimensional and vibrant. But what I really love is Pravana's effect on shine! Behold:

"Before" (dyed with SFX & Adore) on the left, "after" (dyed with Pravana) on the right:
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/SFXvsPravanaVividssmall.jpg

Splendiferous, is it not? (^(oo)^)v

It took 6oz of dye (2 tubes) for the entire length of my hip-length hair.

[Gabriel]

That looks amazing luxepiggy!

[uglypug]

:) That's beautiful Luxepiggy, so shiny! Might have to do mine this weekend.

Bianca I have added a couple of pics to my album :)

[Bianca]

I'm impressed! I used Pravana Vivids in Blue on my uncleached hair (to go from dark brown to blue black), and so far I'm very pleased. This is one salon product that is definitely worth the extra money, for several reasons.

First, I found the Pravana easier to apply than other deposit dyes I've used (SFX, Adore). The product itself is quite thick so drips were not a concern. Once applied, it added quite a bit of slip to the hair, which made it easy to really saturate every strand with colour. The Pravana also seems to rinse cleaner than SFX. I've noticed much less colour transfer (onto both fabric and skin) than usual.

Post-colouring, my hair has become extra silky-soft and touchable. The colour itself appears much more dimensional and vibrant. But what I really love is Pravana's effect on shine! Behold:

"Before" (dyed with SFX & Adore) on the left, "after" (dyed with Pravana) on the right:
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/SFXvsPravanaVividssmall.jpg

Splendiferous, is it not? (^(oo)^)v

It took 6oz of dye (2 tubes) for the entire length of my hip-length hair.

Wow :thumbsup: That looks amazing. Very splendiferous, piggy :p

[wicked kisses]

Wondering how this would work on us girls. We're all fair, and although our base colors differ, we all tend to the redhead range. Darkest of us three is a naturally ash blonde, but tends to be dry, with a near white streak at her temple. I am a 'honey' blonde with grey streaks, and our third is auburn with lots of grey streaks. No she's not a renegrey.
What I really want to do is keep my grey streaks, but color the rest something brighter.

[spike316]

Hi there! I just had my stylist color my hair yesterday with these and I think it turned out pretty well. http://i42.tinypic.com/1ptj4x.jpg
I used the blue and purple in my hair. My only complaints are because I had some yellow tone in my hair so the blue ended up looking really similar to manic panic's teal color rather than the cobalt blue it was in the bottle, but still pretty. And this stuff instantly dyes whatever it touches. There were some white coffee mugs in the sink when she washed out her color bowl and apparently it tinted them blue, and when she opened the bottle a bit of the color squirted on her hands which she washed off right away but they were instantly purple. so be cautious of that If you use it. Other than that I'm a happy camper, just glad I didn't do it at home! And I didn't have to lighten my hair at all because it's pretty light naturally.

[Kaelee]

I'm wondering what would happen if I were to put a red color of this in WITH my henna...has anyone tried something like this?

[uglypug]

Just a (fairly) quick one on this - used the pravana red over my hennaed/previously chemically dyed hair last weekend. Only used one tube which was just about enough for my thick roughly APL hair and left on towel-dried hair for about 45 mins.

The good: Beautiful colour, not too drippy, covered well, lasted pretty well on the length (still really quite a nice red a week later)

The bad: May be expensive for Uk LHC-ers (cost me about £30 for two tubes from Ebay), strongly scented (to my nostrils at least!), stains everything and runs pink for days(but think this is pretty standard for these types of dye), faded pretty quickly on roots (virgin hair/greys/henna only).

Would buy it again if I could get it more cheaply. Will add pics later.

HTH someone!

[uglypug]

Have added a couple of pics to my album - don't know how to link to it I'm afraid, sorry!

[earthymamawitch]

so is the general consensus that this is better (brighter, longer lasting, more conditioning, etc) in some way than sfx? because i use that to cool the henna flare and deepen the burgundy on my black cherry henna shade and am wondering if it would be worth it or a waste of my money.

[luxepiggy]

so is the general consensus that this is better (brighter, longer lasting, more conditioning, etc) in some way than sfx? because i use that to cool the henna flare and deepen the burgundy on my black cherry henna shade and am wondering if it would be worth it or a waste of my money.

Way better, in my experience. It left my hair in better condition than SFX, and it doesn't rub off all over the place the way SFX did. The colour is also a lot more dimensional & intense. A month has passed since I dyed, and the colour is holding up really well. In fact, I had to dye the new growth at my roots a couple of days ago because the line of demarcation was pretty obvious (^(oo)^)v

[earthymamawitch]

Way better, in my experience. It left my hair in better condition than SFX, and it doesn't rub off all over the place the way SFX did. The colour is also a lot more dimensional & intense. A month has passed since I dyed, and the colour is holding up really well. In fact, I had to dye the new growth at my roots a couple of days ago because the line of demarcation was pretty obvious (^(oo)^)v

well your results speak for themselves, your shine is off the charts! i was also impressed by this blogger - found her thru a link on the pravana facebook page - and her incredible long red hair:

http://www.saraashouri.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Red-hair.jpg

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lx962qGDh11qbu7zuo1_400.jpg

heres the blog http://www.saraashouri.net/2012/01/03/pravana-vivids-in-magenta/red-hair/

she used magenta which is a bit pinkish, the red is pretty much crayon red and the wild orchid is a purplish red like sfx virgin rose, from the looks of it.
i'm thinking that magenta or wild orchid would go amazingly over my henna...

where did you purchase yours, if i may ask?

Jenn

[Calaelen]

I'm going to wait a month for the manic panic I just tried to fade out completely then, I am going PURPLE!!! This has given me hope. Ill even use a chemical colour first if I think it's warranted.

[luxepiggy]

earthymamawitch - I actually got mine from a friend of a friend who owns a salon, because I was impatient to try it out :p

The best price I've seen online (less than what I paid for mine) is $8/tube: http://www.extendedlengths.com/prchsicrhacr1.html

Calaelen - please take before and after photos, if you can! I probably should have let my SFX/Adore fade before putting on the Pravana, but after blue-black I can't abide the thought of going back to my natural hue, even temporarily!

[Calaelen]

^ There will certainly be before and after pics. As to seeing my natural shade, that'll never happen, I have so many years of different dye, bleach, more dye, henna, bleach, dye, henna, then the Colour Oops which removed everything but the henna. I am hoping the manic panic fades to the lightest shade I acquired with the colour removal, then I am willing to put a boxed blonde over that before the Pravana purple just to ensure the strongest stick. That last step I am going to gauge based on what happens with the fading...

[insomniac-uk]

I'm so happy I found this thread :) I have been wanting blue hair again for the past year but I didn't want to bleach again. Does anyone know where I can get this in the UK I tried looking online but I can't find anything :(

[spike316]

I'm so happy I found this thread :) I have been wanting blue hair again for the past year but I didn't want to bleach again. Does anyone know where I can get this in the UK I tried looking online but I can't find anything :(

I'm not in the uk, but here's where I got mine: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pravana-chromasilk-VIVIDS-YOU-CHOOSE-SHADES-/220854325615?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item791559df3b#ht_936wt_905 It says they ship worldwide, but you have to contact them for shipping info. You might also want to talk to your hairstylist, after I bought it and brought it into the salon my hairstylist was like "Oh, this was the one you wanted? I could have gotten it for you if you'd asked!" Lol I was so excited about it that I just went ahead and bought it without checking to see if they carried it at one of her suppliers first. :O)

[insomniac-uk]

Thank you spike316, I will check with my hairdresser first I never thought of that :)

[2vette2camaro]

My "new hair"- Pravana Vivids in Violet and some Atomic Pink Special Effects. The bottom picture is what I have been wearing for several years- strictly Atomic Pink


http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p275/2vette2camaro/newhair004.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p275/2vette2camaro/newhair003.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p275/2vette2camaro/hedgehogallyou023.jpg

[2vette2camaro]

I call the top 2 pics my version of "Tye dyed hair"

[insomniac-uk]

Love, love, love your hair, the violet is gorgeous.

[spike316]

I call the top 2 pics my version of "Tye dyed hair"

Gorgeous! Have you tested the atomic pink black light glowyness?

[2vette2camaro]

Thank you and NO, I have never been able to find a black light to test it.

I can say that this is the first time I have used the Vivids in one big swatch and it DOES RUN! I have read it will run for about a week so if raining- be sure and have an umbrella.

The Special Effects have NEVER run, I was at a bike rally the next DAY and it totally poured and my hair color did not run ANY (I was a little scared though)

I LOVE LOVE LOVE Special Effects and I tried the Silver but because I did not bleach back to blond, the silver over my current pink, just went to faded purple, so I have not yet been able to get silver/gray hair (husband not too happy I wanted to go gray anyways, and he doesn't care if I am purple, pink, etc)

I WOULD however like to find the best- meaning CHEAPEST place including shipping to buy my hair colors- I usually just buy from Ebay but would actually like to get a good reliable supplier found.

[theodora]

I really really want to try Pravana vivids but it's kind of expensive with the shipping to get them to the UK. I will just satisfy my curiosity with this thread and admire all the pretty coloured hair.

[Loviatar]

2vette2camaro, that tie dye look is so cute!! And I love the wavy/shiny reverse picture.

[Ligeia_13]

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lx962qGDh11qbu7zuo1_400.jpg



Holy **** O.o I am so so tempted to buy this stuff. It would come out darker on my hair but I don't want such a BLAM red anymore anyways. Non damaging hair dye that lasts? Wow.

[Catia]

So I was set on using Elumen, then I stumbld upon this thread, read a bit, and now I'm all confused : so, which one to choose ? Elumen or Pravana vivids ? Are they comparable in terms of lasting time ? In terms of gentleness to hair ?
.....

I wondering this too. I was searching all over to find ingredients on the Pravana (Thanks Piggy!!) to see if it had some sort of solvent to open up the cuticle, which would explain the super longevity (unlike MP, SpecialFX, etc).

Iris posted on the Elumen thread (page 2) that Elumen uses propylene carbonate as a solvent. I would imagine that the propylene is a relatively mild one given that people reported only mild dryness though.

Are there any chemistry minded people here that could decipher the secret to Pravana's longevity? :flower:

I have already ordered the Pravana vivids in Blue, Green, and Silver from various Ebay sellers. They will be in next week. I will be doing a ton of hairball testing then. I have become too allergic to indigo to continue and am trying to find something I can mix with the henna to match my dark length. I have tried MP and other semis, but to no avail. I'm only doing my roots and nothing wants to stick around for more then one wash :(

I will keep you posted on the experimenting ;)

ETA - I was also wondering if this has metallic salts?!? I was deep into googlefoo when I ran across someone saying it was "metallic" eh... not sure if she meant metallic effect as in color reflection, but it made me yelp internally.

Thanks again!

[luxepiggy]

I wondering this too. I was searching all over to find ingredients on the Pravana (Thanks Piggy!!) to see if it had some sort of solvent to open up the cuticle, which would explain the super longevity (unlike MP, SpecialFX, etc).

Iris posted on the Elumen thread (page 2) that Elumen uses propylene carbonate as a solvent. I would imagine that the propylene is a relatively mild one given that people reported only mild dryness though.

Are there any chemistry minded people here that could decipher the secret to Pravana's longevity? :flower:

I have already ordered the Pravana vivids in Blue, Green, and Silver from various Ebay sellers. They will be in next week. I will be doing a ton of hairball testing then. I have become too allergic to indigo to continue and am trying to find something I can mix with the henna to match my dark length. I have tried MP and other semis, but to no avail. I'm only doing my roots and nothing wants to stick around for more then one wash :(

I will keep you posted on the experimenting ;)

ETA - I was also wondering if this has metallic salts?!? I was deep into googlefoo when I ran across someone saying it was "metallic" eh... not sure if she meant metallic effect as in color reflection, but it made me yelp internally.

Thanks again!
My guess is that the Pravana Vivids contain larger (trinuclear) dye molecules while the retail brands contain smaller (mononuclear) dye molecules.

All semi-permanent dyes colour the hair via diffusion into the cuticle and cell membrane complex. However, once diffused, trinuclear dye molecules have a higher affinity to the hair (due to the larger number of polar and Van der Waals binding sites between dye and hair). This hinders desorption of the dye molecules, resulting in a hysteresis between the dye's adsorption & desorption kinetics.
Source: Chemical & Physical Behavior of Human Hair

None of the listed ingredients are metallic salts (^(oo)~)

[Catia]

My guess is that the Pravana Vivids contain larger (trinuclear) dye molecules while the retail brands contain smaller (mononuclear) dye molecules.

All semi-permanent dyes colour the hair via diffusion into the cuticle and cell membrane complex. However, once diffused, trinuclear dye molecules have a higher affinity to the hair (due to the larger number of polar and Van der Waals binding sites between dye and hair). This hinders desorption of the dye molecules, resulting in a hysteresis between the dye's adsorption & desorption kinetics.
Source: Chemical & Physical Behavior of Human Hair

None of the listed ingredients are metallic salts (^(oo)~)

Thank you! That was an amazingly well put together response! :smooch:

I fried my brain on the Elumen thread yesterday. (It's my third time reading that darn thing all the way through :rolleyes:) My head was spinning in too many directions and made me paranoid lol.

From a molecular/chemistry standpoint it makes sense as to why the Pravana is a bit more expensive, but worth it. Although. Compared to Elumen at $20-$29 (if you get a good deal) it is actually quite affordable. I'm not against Elumen at all though. If Pravana decides to be contrary and not stick around on my roots, I'm glad I have another option to explore :)

*Just a general FYI - the Pravana Silk Degrees Botanical Hair color is their "found in nature" shade alternative to the Vivids, but states on the website it will wash out in 6-8 shampoos. So it doesn't seem to claim the same longevity. I don't know why, but it's a bummer nonetheless.

[Bianca]

Im also torn between pravana and elumen.

I have pravana on the way, but recently read so many good things about elumen. Elumen would be easier to get for me, but I dont like that its permanent. I spend years growing out dye, dont wanna do that again and I just hate roots. Woulnd't get that so much with a semi.

Oh and after reading somewhere about semi build up, im hesitant. I was seconds away from ordering a medium copper blonde semi I would then use once a month, but dont want build up.

Decisions, decisions :D

[Vanille_]

Looks awesome

[winn]

Hi, I am new hear but just want to let you know I was also looking for Pravana Vivids distributor in Europe and it looks like I found one.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PRAVANA-CHROMA-SILK-VIVID-DEMI-PERMANENT-HAIR-DYE-10-SHADES-FREE-SHIP-/180791798155?pt=UK_Health_Beauty_Hair_Care_Hair_Co louring_Dyes_PP&hash=item2a1807e98b
And they have a free shipping anywhere in Europe right now. If anybody order from them let us know how fast you got it.

[winn]

Hi, I am new hear but just want to let you know I was also looking for Pravana Vivids distributor in Europe and it looks like I found one.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PRAVANA-CHROMA-SILK-VIVID-DEMI-PERMANENT-HAIR-DYE-10-SHADES-FREE-SHIP-/180791798155?pt=UK_Health_Beauty_Hair_Care_Hair_Co louring_Dyes_PP&hash=item2a1807e98b
And they have a free shipping anywhere in Europe right now. If anybody order from them let us know how fast you got it.


Anybody bought from them ? What is your experience ? How fast did you get it ?

[insomniac-uk]

My friend ordered from them its been a week and she still has not received her order. I'm waiting to see what happens with her order before I buy mine.

[insomniac-uk]

Update my friend received her order yesterday, it took about a week to get to the uk. The dye came with a usage guide too, she recommends the seller.

[luxepiggy]

Update my friend received her order yesterday, it took about a week to get to the uk. The dye came with a usage guide too, she recommends the seller.

Oh, any chance of getting the contents of the usage guide posted here at some point? Or even just a scanned or photographed image of the same? I bought mine from a friend's stylist, so it didn't come with any handy extras :p

[insomniac-uk]

Oh, any chance of getting the contents of the usage guide posted here at some point? Or even just a scanned or photographed image of the same? I bought mine from a friend's stylist, so it didn't come with any handy extras :p

My friend said she would scan the page for me, but I'm not sure how to upload a image here.

[luxepiggy]

My friend said she would scan the page for me, but I'm not sure how to upload a image here.

Easiest way is to use an image hosting site like photobucket. If you don't have one, I can put it on mine. Just let me know and I'll PM you with my email address so you can send it along. Thanks, and please tell your friend thank you as well (^(oo)^)

[insomniac-uk]

Here is the page on vivids from the guide, I'm not sure if its helpful but I uploaded it anyway.
http://i247.photobucket.com/albums/gg125/insomniac-01/th_chroma.jpg (http://s247.photobucket.com/albums/gg125/insomniac-01/?action=view&current=chroma.jpg)

[luxepiggy]

Here is the page on vivids from the guide, I'm not sure if its helpful but I uploaded it anyway.

Thank you!

[insomniac-uk]

@luxepiggy I was just wondering if the colour has faded since you have dyed it.

[luxepiggy]

@luxepiggy I was just wondering if the colour has faded since you have dyed it.

It has not :D My hair is still the same colour as the original test swatch I did back in early December. Keep in mind, however, that I CO-wash; if you use shampoo it will probably cause more fading. I also use 'cones, which I think also help with colour retention.

One minor complication that I hadn't anticipated - the colour sticks so well that it creates a visible line of demarcation between the dyed portion and the new growth! So I do have to be a bit more vigilant about touching up my roots, but I don't mind - it's all very genteel, you know, just dabbing a bit of colour on here & there. Not like the epic struggle associated with dyeing the entire length, KWIM? (^(oo)^)v

[insomniac-uk]

Thank you, hopefully it wont fade too much with CWC.

[Long_hair_bear]

May be trying this soon as I desperately miss my purple hair. I really don't want to bleach unless I have to.... I may go Piggys route.

[PolarCathy]

Guys, do I want blue-black (blue Pravana) over my henndigo or not? I don't know :) Trying to figure out. I think I have warm tones though. Skin,eyes, ... I'm never sure what type I am, I'm very bad at makeup and stuff.

[luxepiggy]

Guys, do I want blue-black (blue Pravana) over my henndigo or not? I don't know :) Trying to figure out. I think I have warm tones though. Skin,eyes, ... I'm never sure what type I am, I'm very bad at makeup and stuff.

I love my blue-black, but I have very cool-toned skin. The colour is quite striking, and it can have a pretty noticeable effect on your complexion, much more so than soft black, IPHO. Whether that effect is positive or negative largely depends on your natural undertones.

Since it sounds like you're unsure about your skintone, I'd suggest doing a trial run first with something that washes out more easily, like Manic Panic or Special Effects. I've been using the Pravana for about 4 months now and it sticks around! (^(oo)^)v

[PolarCathy]

I love my blue-black, but I have very cool-toned skin. The colour is quite striking, and it can have a pretty noticeable effect on your complexion, much more so than soft black, IPHO. Whether that effect is positive or negative largely depends on your natural undertones.

Since it sounds like you're unsure about your skintone, I'd suggest doing a trial run first with something that washes out more easily, like Manic Panic or Special Effects. I've been using the Pravana for about 4 months now and it sticks around! (^(oo)^)v

Thanks! I only know things like my veins are green if visible at all, never blue, my skin is rather thick and I think yellowish, never pink-ish. I get tanned easily. Overall I *think* I am a "warm" person, however one of my favorite colors is royal blue which looks very strange on me, but people say, amazing. But strange.
You and I do have very very different tones, even I can see that, this is why I'm hesitant. If it looks good on you (as it does) I'm afraid I can't pull it off. So I want your skintone too, and hair color ;) :D :D

[MagicalMystery]

Anyone know where to buy Pravana Vivids in Canada?

[Catia]

I was curious as to how long any of you processed the Pravana?

I left the Pravana blue on the [pre-hennaed] hair ball test for 40 mins and it came out a happy dark ash blackish brown. A good match to my previous two step henna/indigo. Of course I have no real idea what will happen on my head lol. Oh well. That blue sure is gorgeous in the bowl though!

Anyway.... sitting here with smurf goo on my roots, killing time :p

[luxepiggy]

I was curious as to how long any of you processed the Pravana?

I left the Pravana blue on the [pre-hennaed] hair ball test for 40 mins and it came out a happy dark ash blackish brown. A good match to my previous two step henna/indigo. Of course I have no real idea what will happen on my head lol. Oh well. That blue sure is gorgeous in the bowl though!

Anyway.... sitting here with smurf goo on my roots, killing time :p

I've been leaving it on for 3-4 hours when touching up my roots, which takes me to a blue-black that leans very heavily blue (that brown strip is my natural / base colour):
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/hair/naturalcolouragainstblueblacksmall.jpg

[BelleBot]

I've just bought 3 tubes of pravana vivids, 2 in red, 1 in magenta. I bought them off ebay, shipping from Poland to the UK was remarkably quick. :)

So I'm now sat with my head covered in red and pink goo and wrapped in clingfilm. I think I might leave it on for just an hour or so then wash it out and see what it's like. I've no idea how bright it will be, I'm just hoping it's not so bright that it will get me into trouble on my nursing placement., though personally I think the brighter the better.

I'll post pictures once I've washed it out and it's dried. I'm hoping this stuff sticks around longer than Directions especially on my crown.

[Bianca]

I've just bought 3 tubes of pravana vivids, 2 in red, 1 in magenta. I bought them off ebay, shipping from Poland to the UK was remarkably quick. :)

So I'm now sat with my head covered in red and pink goo and wrapped in clingfilm. I think I might leave it on for just an hour or so then wash it out and see what it's like. I've no idea how bright it will be, I'm just hoping it's not so bright that it will get me into trouble on my nursing placement., though personally I think the brighter the better.

I'll post pictures once I've washed it out and it's dried. I'm hoping this stuff sticks around longer than Directions especially on my crown.

Looking forward to seeing how it turned out :)

nikkilipstick from tumblr will be ready with a list of international distributors in some months. Thinking about trying it out.... :D

[luxepiggy]

Bellebot - can't wait to see your pictures!

[MagicalMystery]

I have a question...

How does this dye work on virgin hair? I hear it's protein heavy... Would this make your hair brittle as a result? In my head, it would cling like mad to bleached or damaged hair, because of the lack of protein in the hair shaft. But if your hair is healthy with sufficient protein, how will it take to Pravana?

[BelleBot]

I have haven't had a problem with my virgin (ish) hair since using pravana vivids, still lovely and silky soft. In fact all my hair was lovely and silky soft for a day or two after using pravana vivids.

I'll try and get some decent photos of it. Unfortunately the weather has been so grey here that all my photos are dull and don't show how vibrant it is.

[MagicalMystery]

I've got my pravana red on right now. Can't wait to see what it does to my virgin roots. How long do you usually leave it in for?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/MagicalMysteryGirl/IMG381-1_Vignette.jpg

I'm amazed at how unmessy it is. not a spot anywhere but my head!

[luxepiggy]

I've got my pravana red on right now. Can't wait to see what it does to my virgin roots. How long do you usually leave it in for?
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v159/MagicalMysteryGirl/IMG381-1_Vignette.jpg

I'm amazed at how unmessy it is. not a spot anywhere but my head!

Woo, exciting! Isn't it so much easier to apply compared to the retail brands? I usually leave mine on overnight, covered in plastic. It really depends how intense you want the colour to be. Don't forget to use a moisturizing treatment afterwards to prevent protein overload! (^(oo)^)

[MagicalMystery]

Next time I use the red, I'm going to add a drop of orange to warm it up a bit. It looks a bit on the cool side.

[MagicalMystery]

Will do! I doubt I'll need to leave it overnight though. My length has been lightened with peroxide once, and after a mere hour, it's pretty stuck to my dark blonde roots.

[luxepiggy]

Next time I use the red, I'm going to add a drop of orange to warm it up a bit. It looks a bit on the cool side.

Alas! Sorry to hear that :o Maybe you can mix up a dollop of orange & red and comb it thru your hair right now?

[Charlotte:)]

I wouldn't mind just bleaching a small section of hair in an inconspicuous place on my under layer of hair, but I've heard that Manic Panic and similar brands of dye bleed onto your clothing and towels when it gets wet. I wonder if this is the same. I'd love a purple streak in my hair!

[MagicalMystery]

Charlotte, the Pravana Purple looks gorgeous! I've seen a few video reviews of it on youtube.

[MagicalMystery]

I didn't leave in the dye long, for fear of it going too dark. Gonna let it dry and see what it looks like. Worse comes to worse, I put some SFX Orange over it.

[luxepiggy]

http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/piggies/useless-without-pics.png

Just sayin' (^(oo)^)v

[luxepiggy]

I wouldn't mind just bleaching a small section of hair in an inconspicuous place on my under layer of hair, but I've heard that Manic Panic and similar brands of dye bleed onto your clothing and towels when it gets wet. I wonder if this is the same. I'd love a purple streak in my hair!

Unfortunately it does bleed when the hair is wet, although unlike MP-type products, the colour will not transfer when the hair is dry.

[BelleBot]

I've still yet to get decent pictures as the uk is just full of rain and grey skies so my hair looks dull on photographs. Though I have to say I'm not that impressed so far as my crown has already faded back to a murky blonde/brown/red colour. At least it doesn't bleed as much as Directions. I think I need to pre process the hair on my crown in some way first to get it to stick.

[MidnightStar]

Just read through this whole thread - I'm super tempted to try this, as I can't get the color I want with henna, henna-indigo, or MP (deep black-purple). Any word on how well it covers silvers? Also, I've seen some comments about how it doesn't stick to virgin/undamaged hair as well? Thanks!!

[luxepiggy]

I've still yet to get decent pictures as the uk is just full of rain and grey skies so my hair looks dull on photographs. Though I have to say I'm not that impressed so far as my crown has already faded back to a murky blonde/brown/red colour. At least it doesn't bleed as much as Directions. I think I need to pre process the hair on my crown in some way first to get it to stick.

Sorry to hear it's not sticking on your hair! That's really unfortunate :( I wonder if you might get better results if you leave it on longer? IIRC you washed it off after about an hour, no? I process with heat for 5-10 minutes, then leave it on overnight, wrapped in plastic plus an outer layer of silk so it stays warm from my body heat (^(oo)^)v


Also, I've seen some comments about how it doesn't stick to virgin/undamaged hair as well? Thanks!!

It sticks very well to my virgin/undamaged hair - WAY better than SFX did. Maybe some colours last longer than the others? :hmm:

[BelleBot]

Here's the best I could get of my hair, it's much more vibrant in real life, just rubbish lighting. I wish it would stop raining.
http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/6381/54659710151078103658098.jpg
http://desmond.imageshack.us/Himg528/scaled.php?server=528&filename=54644310151094919323098.jpg&res=landing

[insomniac-uk]

Help :( what did I do wrong ? I can finally dye my hair, I couldn't before because of work. So I did a strand test yesterday on virgin dark brown hair, I used blue and left it on for an hour. I didn't expect a huge difference but just a blue black hint but nothing showed up, no colour change at all. Even in the sunlight, no blue shows :(

[Amethyste]

BEllebot, how did the pravana take to your crown?
Beautiful color by the way!!!

[MidnightStar]

It sticks very well to my virgin/undamaged hair - WAY better than SFX did. Maybe some colours last longer than the others? :hmm:

Awesome, thank you! I'm gonna try this out next time I get paid. :cheese: I've been getting tired of watching henna straighten out my waves, but you need henna for indigo to stick - maybe this is something I can use instead!! I prefer a brighter, more vivid color anyway. I'm anxious to see how it sticks to my silvers as well. Once I get this done (might be a couple of weeks sadly) I will post my results!! :D

[luxepiggy]

A number of people have posted expressing concerns or difficulties getting Pravana to stick to virgin hair. Since I've been getting vibrant, long-lasting results on my own virgin hair, I wanted to share some tips, in hopes that others might find them helpful in achieving better results (^(oo)^)v

Always apply to clean, completely dry hair.
Any sebum, oil, hard water mineral deposits, product residues, or excess water will inhibit the diffusion of the dye into the hair.

Increase processing time.
Virgin hair is less porous, which slows down the diffusion of the dye into the hair. After thoroughly saturating the hair, secure all of the hair to the head, cover, and leave overnight.

Process with heat.
In addition to covering the hair in plastic, I also wrap it in a length of silk charmeuse, then warm it with a hair dryer for 5-10 minutes. Hold the dryer about a foot away and keep it moving constantly. Afterwards I leave the silk on to help retain my body heat and keep the hair/dye warm overnight.

Use conditioners with amodimethicone.
Amine-functionalized silicone fluids have been shown to reduce colour fading of temporary hair dyes (Effects of silicone pretreatment on oxidative hair damage (http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc1995/cc046n05/p00231-p00245.pdf)).

Dye more than once.
You will get more vibrant, longer-lasting colour if you dye multiple times within a short time period.

[MidnightStar]

Thank you for the instructions, luxepiggy! I went ahead and ordered 2 tubes of the vivid blue color yesterday from the website you'd posted earlier in the thread - for $8/each, that's a better price than I've seen for most anything haircolor-related. Although the shipping, yikes!!
I'd wanted purple rather than blue, but the purples looked so pale, not really what I'd been looking for, and at least on the site the blue actually looked deep and had an almost purplish-blue cast, so hopefully that one will work better for me! I anticipate I'll get them sometime next week so maybe next Friday evening I can try this out. Hooray!!

[insomniac-uk]

Thank you for the tips luxepiggy, I'm going to use a clarifying shampoo and try again.

[luxepiggy]

On another note, has anyone ever wondered what happens when hair that's been dyed with Pravana is subsequently bleached?

Magic. That's what happens (^(oo)^)v
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/hair/dipdyetipssun.jpg

Once you get the colour to stick, it really really sticks, I guess! :D

[insomniac-uk]

Oh wow, how long did you leave the bleach on? I love the colour :)

[luxepiggy]

Oh wow, how long did you leave the bleach on? I love the colour :)

Thank you! I had the bleach on (in foils) for about 2 hours total; about halfway through I heated the foils with a hair dryer for 10 minutes, to hurry it along a bit.

[insomniac-uk]

It seems like you have no damage from the bleach. I was thinking of bleaching my hair too as I think its just too dark for the vivids to show up. I may just try leaving the blue on overnight first, if that doesn't work then bleach.

[luxepiggy]

It seems like you have no damage from the bleach. I was thinking of bleaching my hair too as I think its just too dark for the vivids to show up. I may just try leaving the blue on overnight first, if that doesn't work then bleach.

There is definitely some damage, but it's manageable :p What colour are you trying to obtain, exactly?

[PolarCathy]

On another note, has anyone ever wondered what happens when hair that's been dyed with Pravana is subsequently bleached?

Magic. That's what happens (^(oo)^)v
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/hair/dipdyetipssun.jpg

Once you get the colour to stick, it really really sticks, I guess! :D

That's awesome :)

[insomniac-uk]

There is definitely some damage, but it's manageable :p What colour are you trying to obtain, exactly?

I'm trying to get a blue/black colour like your sig pic, just a hint of blue. I have natural dark brown/black hair but for some reason during the strand test the colour did not stick, it doesn't even show in sunlight. I might have product buildup, I'm going to clarify and try again but this time leave it on overnight.

[luxepiggy]

That's awesome :)

Thank you :flower:


I'm trying to get a blue/black colour like your sig pic, just a hint of blue. I have natural dark brown/black hair but for some reason during the strand test the colour did not stick, it doesn't even show in sunlight. I might have product buildup, I'm going to clarify and try again but this time leave it on overnight.

To get the colour in my siggy you need to dye more than once (^(oo)~) I didn't get that colour the first time I dyed it, I got almost-jet black. Second time I got intense jet black, and the blue really started to come out after the third time, IIRC.

ETA: Here's the direct-sunlight before & after from the first time I used blue deposit dye (not Pravana)
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/beforeaftersunsmall.jpg

[insomniac-uk]

Thank you luxepiggy for the tips, I love the jet black too, the shine is amazing.

[MidnightStar]

I got my dye today!!
Won't have a chance to use it till probably Friday. Am a tiny bit concerned by the fact that it's called a protein and keratin treatment, after reading all those horrible reviews of the Suave keratin kit. Granted, I know this is professional and that was drugstore brand, but still. Makes me a tiny bit nervous!! :confused:

[MidnightStar]

Okay, strand test is marinating currently, so we will see what happens!! If all goes well I plan on using luxepiggy's instructions from a few pages ago and dyeing on Friday evening. Wish me luck!! :D

[luxepiggy]

Okay, strand test is marinating currently, so we will see what happens!! If all goes well I plan on using luxepiggy's instructions from a few pages ago and dyeing on Friday evening. Wish me luck!! :D

Good luck!! Don't forget to follow up with a good moisturuzing deep treatment afterwards (^(oo)^)v

[MidnightStar]

Thanks, luxepiggy! The strand test didn't do anything weird to my hair, so it's a go!! I've clarified my hair and it will be up all day tomorrow, and when I get home I will color and (hopefully) leave on all night.
Piggy, can you recommend a good (inexpensive) conditioner with that 'cone you mentioned earlier? I checked all of mine and don't see them listed. I figure I will co-wash for about a week after coloring, as I typically do. Thank you!
Now my only concern is that someone will force me in the pool on Memorial Day...

[luxepiggy]

Thanks, luxepiggy! The strand test didn't do anything weird to my hair, so it's a go!! I've clarified my hair and it will be up all day tomorrow, and when I get home I will color and (hopefully) leave on all night.
Piggy, can you recommend a good (inexpensive) conditioner with that 'cone you mentioned earlier? I checked all of mine and don't see them listed. I figure I will co-wash for about a week after coloring, as I typically do. Thank you!
Now my only concern is that someone will force me in the pool on Memorial Day...

L'Oréal Nutri Gloss for medium-long hair that's damaged (^(oo)^)v

Don't get the one for fine hair, that one's no good.

I suggest really saturating your hair with the dye - in my experience, more is more :D Remember to follow up with a moisturizing treatment after you rinse, and to post pictures! I've got my fingers crossed for you x(^(oo)^)x

[MidnightStar]

L'Oréal Nutri Gloss for medium-long hair that's damaged (^(oo)^)v

Don't get the one for fine hair, that one's no good.

I suggest really saturating your hair with the dye - in my experience, more is more :D Remember to follow up with a moisturizing treatment after you rinse, and to post pictures! I've got my fingers crossed for you x(^(oo)^)x

Thanks!
So I started the process and now present the Ballad of MidnightStar and Pravana, part the first:
5:30 Decide I want to exercise tonight, and I could stand to clarify my hair again.
6:30 Wash hair.
7:30 Wait impatiently for hair to dry.
8:00 Give in and bring out the hair dryer. Just once isn't that bad, right? I seriously haven't used it in years...
8:10 Look how shiny it is! So much volume! Dryers are bad again why???
8:20 After brief distraction, start dyeing by basically tarping the bathroom. Don gloves, deep breath, and start mushing dye into hair.
8:40 Move to length with second tube of dye. Hair falls onto arm, leaving small patch of blue. MidnightStar realizes that she has stupidly forgotten to wear one of her dyeing shirts!
9:00 All done! Fingers, arms, and neck are marked up all Smurfy. Water helps, but not a lot. Maybe I can convince people it's a henna tattoo? You know, except it's blue? Most of the people I know don't even know what henna IS, let alone what color it is. I bet they'd buy it.
9:10 Realize that, seriously, all of my bedcoverings are WHITE. WTF, me??? I really didn't think this though...
9:15 Found ancient hot pink sheets I'll never use again. (It pays to never clean out your linen closet!) Drape dark-colored beach towels over the pillows. Score! Now if only I can keep myself from tossing and turning too much tonight. I'm afraid it'll all end up on my sheets and my skin rather than my hair. We shall see...

Pictures coming tomorrow! Some positives: it doesn't smell anywhere near as bad as henna/indigo, and it's not at all drippy, as others have mentioned. I was worried that it would bleed through the tarping on the counter, but it didn't! I was also pleasantly surprised I managed to not get it all over the bathroom. Just my skin. Oh well... :D

[luxepiggy]

Thanks!
So I started the process and now present the Ballad of MidnightStar and Pravana, part the first:
5:30 Decide I want to exercise tonight, and I could stand to clarify my hair again.
6:30 Wash hair.
7:30 Wait impatiently for hair to dry.
8:00 Give in and bring out the hair dryer. Just once isn't that bad, right? I seriously haven't used it in years...
8:10 Look how shiny it is! So much volume! Dryers are bad again why???
8:20 After brief distraction, start dyeing by basically tarping the bathroom. Don gloves, deep breath, and start mushing dye into hair.
8:40 Move to length with second tube of dye. Hair falls onto arm, leaving small patch of blue. MidnightStar realizes that she has stupidly forgotten to wear one of her dyeing shirts!
9:00 All done! Fingers, arms, and neck are marked up all Smurfy. Water helps, but not a lot. Maybe I can convince people it's a henna tattoo? You know, except it's blue? Most of the people I know don't even know what henna IS, let alone what color it is. I bet they'd buy it.
9:10 Realize that, seriously, all of my bedcoverings are WHITE. WTF, me??? I really didn't think this though...
9:15 Found ancient hot pink sheets I'll never use again. (It pays to never clean out your linen closet!) Drape dark-colored beach towels over the pillows. Score! Now if only I can keep myself from tossing and turning too much tonight. I'm afraid it'll all end up on my sheets and my skin rather than my hair. We shall see...

Pictures coming tomorrow! Some positives: it doesn't smell anywhere near as bad as henna/indigo, and it's not at all drippy, as others have mentioned. I was worried that it would bleed through the tarping on the counter, but it didn't! I was also pleasantly surprised I managed to not get it all over the bathroom. Just my skin. Oh well... :D

LOL!! (^(oo)^)`

How did your fingers get blue? Did it get through your gloves? :confused: I'm pretty surprised to hear that the dye isn't coming off your skin, though. Normally a swipe with a damp paper towel wrapped around my finger removes the dye easily from my skin. The key is to apply gentle pressure while wiping with the towel. If that fails, rubbing alcohol on a cotton pad will remove all traces of colour from your skin. You might want to wait 'til after you rinse to clean up your skin, though, otherwise you'll just end up having to repeat the process.

Rinse 'til the water runs clear tomorrow . . . 'cos unlike with retail deposit dyes, that will eventually happen :p To minimize giant blue splatters all over my shower walls, I soak excess dye out of my hair before getting under the shower spray:

bring a plastic container into the shower, fill with tepid water (add a splash of vinegar or citric acid to set the colour better, if you like)
dunk hair in the container until the water turns dark blue
empty container & repeat
once the water is only picking up a light blue tint, get under the shower spray



Protective gloves are strongly recommended for the rinsing procedure!

Don't forget to dig up a towel you don't care about for drying your hair after rinsing! Let us not have a variation on the white-sheets incident (^(oo)~)

[insomniac-uk]

Yay I just did a strand test again using luxepiggy method (thank you) and the colour actually stuck. It does look a bit dark but hopefully it will be more blue in the sunlight. If its blue enough in natural light I'm going to dye this weekend :)

MidnightStar can't wait to see your results, I didnt think about my sheets either :(

[MidnightStar]

Okay! Drumroll please...
Here's the start color I was working with. It's a couple weeks old but still pretty representative of what I had:
http://img826.imageshack.us/img826/6082/hairmorningafter1.jpg
Sleeping on it wasn't as bad as I thought. I had a plastic cap covering my hair and then I used an old towel wrapped around my head. This tends to give me a headache because everything gets so heavy, but as I was sleeping I didn't notice. :) The pillows got a little blue on them but that was why I'd found those old cases. :) Rinse out was a giant pain, I think it took nearly forty-five minutes for the water to start running clear. Also, the color did start lifting up from my skin, it's all pretty much gone now.
So sorry it's pic heavy, but here are some shots from earlier:

http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/1985/insideflasho.jpg
Inside, bright (accidental) flash.
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/2432/insidenaturallight.jpg
Inside, natural light
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/200/insidenoflash.jpg
Inside, darker natural light.
http://img805.imageshack.us/img805/3933/insidenolight.jpg
Inside, light from the window.
http://img848.imageshack.us/img848/4269/outsidebrightsunshine.jpg
Outside, bright morning sunlight.
The color is definitely darker, and though it isn't picking up on the pictures I do see some blue, especially in sunlight. You can see some spots where I either missed or the color didn't take, because it's a bit reddish from my last henna job. I used 2 tubes of the color and I almost think I could've done with 3 - it really soaked into my hair, much more than anything else I've ever used. Overall, I'm very happy - I didn't expect the deep blue-black on my first outing, and I was a little concerned that some of my lighter patches would actually turn blue, and they didn't. I was also curious as to what it would do to my silvers, because that's the main reason I was dyeing with the henna/indigo to begin with, to cover them up. As far as I can tell it did cover them; the few I've found when searing along my hairline are now electric blue, very pretty! I will definitely be doing this again!! :D
Luxepiggy, a couple of questions. How long did you wait till you did your second go-round with the Pravana after the first? And if you oil your hair or use oil products, did you notice any issues with the color? Before, when I'd used indigo, I noticed that oil, especially coconut, would strip the color out of my hair unless I waited about a week to use it. I'm not big on oils on their own, but I've been using the Toadstool shampoo and conditioner, which have a lot of oils in them. It probably won't be a big deal for this because I do tend to co-wash for about a week after coloring, but I was just curious if you'd found that to be problematic in the past.
I also found I actually didn't need the deep moisture treatment, but I'd kinda figured on that. My hair gets SUPER oily on its own, and sometimes after I've done a protein treatment I like that it's a tiny bit drier for a little while. I did co-wash with low 'cone conditioner this morning, then did ACV rinse, and because my hair was really tangled I used my Toadstool conditioner ('cone-free) as a leave-in before combing out. It's a little flyaway as you can see in the pictures, but it feels pretty good. I will definitely be looking for that L'Oreal conditioner when I run some errands this afternoon though!
Oh, and to answer your question - I have no idea how it got on my fingers last night, as it didn't bleed through the gloves at all. I suspect it was when I was cleaning up after I'd capped my hair.

[luxepiggy]

The color is definitely darker, and though it isn't picking up on the pictures I do see some blue, especially in sunlight. You can see some spots where I either missed or the color didn't take, because it's a bit reddish from my last henna job. I used 2 tubes of the color and I almost think I could've done with 3 - it really soaked into my hair, much more than anything else I've ever used. Overall, I'm very happy - I didn't expect the deep blue-black on my first outing, and I was a little concerned that some of my lighter patches would actually turn blue, and they didn't. I was also curious as to what it would do to my silvers, because that's the main reason I was dyeing with the henna/indigo to begin with, to cover them up. As far as I can tell it did cover them; the few I've found when searing along my hairline are now electric blue, very pretty! I will definitely be doing this again!! :D
MidnightStar, the colour came out gorgeous, and I am super jealous of your new electric-blue strands!! That sounds too cool for words b(^(oo)^)d

I know exactly what you mean about the blue not showing up on the pictures. That always bemuses me :p Don't worry about any lighter areas on your hair turning blue; they won't. Remember colour mixing theory: Brown + Blue = Black!



How long did you wait till you did your second go-round with the Pravana after the first?
Until my roots started showing, so about 3 weeks.


And if you oil your hair or use oil products, did you notice any issues with the color?

Unfortunately, I can't help you with this one, as I don't oil my hair :p



I also found I actually didn't need the deep moisture treatment, but I'd kinda figured on that. My hair gets SUPER oily on its own, and sometimes after I've done a protein treatment I like that it's a tiny bit drier for a little while. I did co-wash with low 'cone conditioner this morning, then did ACV rinse, and because my hair was really tangled I used my Toadstool conditioner ('cone-free) as a leave-in before combing out. It's a little flyaway as you can see in the pictures, but it feels pretty good.


Even if your roots get oily very fast, I'm concerned about your mid-length and ends due to the tangling that you mentioned. The reason I keep harping on it is because the second time I used Pravana, I skipped the moisturizing treatment afterwards and EPIC protein disaster ensued:
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/proteinoverload1.jpg

My hair was seriously forming mini-dreadlocks! It took almost an entire bottle of conditioner to return my hair to its natural, non-tangly state:
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/proteinfixed01.jpg

I don't want that to happen to your hair! ( ' (oo) ' )

[luxepiggy]

Yay I just did a strand test again using luxepiggy method (thank you) and the colour actually stuck. It does look a bit dark but hopefully it will be more blue in the sunlight. If its blue enough in natural light I'm going to dye this weekend :)


You're very welcome. How did it look in natural light? (^(oo)^)v

[insomniac-uk]

I'm not that happy with the results it still looks too black in natural light. So i have decided to bleach, hopefully I won't have too much damage.

[MidnightStar]

MidnightStar, the colour came out gorgeous, and I am super jealous of your new electric-blue strands!! That sounds too cool for words b(^(oo)^)d

I know exactly what you mean about the blue not showing up on the pictures. That always bemuses me :p Don't worry about any lighter areas on your hair turning blue; they won't. Remember colour mixing theory: Brown + Blue = Black!


Until my roots started showing, so about 3 weeks.



Unfortunately, I can't help you with this one, as I don't oil my hair :p



Even if your roots get oily very fast, I'm concerned about your mid-length and ends due to the tangling that you mentioned. The reason I keep harping on it is because the second time I used Pravana, I skipped the moisturizing treatment afterwards and EPIC protein disaster ensued:
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/proteinoverload1.jpg

My hair was seriously forming mini-dreadlocks! It took almost an entire bottle of conditioner to return my hair to its natural, non-tangly state:
http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff33/shoppingpiglet/proteinfixed01.jpg

I don't want that to happen to your hair! ( ' (oo) ' )

Eek! Well I will definitely keep a moisture treatment on hand for the next time I color!
Thanks for answering my questions, too. I wasn't able to find that specific conditioner you mentioned, but I did find a conditioner with that specific 'cone so I purchased that and co-washed yesterday morning. I did get some more dye run-off, but I'm not super concerned with it because, if anything, the color actually seems...darker? Not more blue, but definitely more jet black than it seemed on Saturday after I'd first colored. My family even commented on it on Sunday afternoon. Maybe it's just because it was a brighter day on Sunday so it looked different?? Interesting. :D
Did the color keep getting darker and darker and then just come over somewhat blue for you, luxepiggy? I definitely don't want it to go much darker than it is right now, as I'm really pale and super extreme black hair looks kinda harsh on me. Thank your for all of your help!:flower:

[MidnightStar]

Okay, this is now the third time I've washed it and judging by the sheer amount of blue that's washing out of it, I have to conclude it's just not sticking. I think it might be on my length, because my crown and roots look pretty dark still, but I'm not certain.
I'm somewhat discouraged by this; I remember the first time I used Manic Panic, over damaged, dyed hair, it washed out within a week or two. The next time, though, on healthier, henna'ed and indigo'ed hair, it stuck around a lot longer. I'm also a bit surprised that the Pravana appears to be sticking to my roots and crown (undyed, undamaged areas) better than my length (damaged).
The washing out in the shower is so bad, I should actually be using gloves when I wash/condition. In addition, I wore my hair down today, and I noticed at the end of the day my fingers/nails were noticably blue.
Should I try again in a couple of weeks and see if I can get it to stick properly? Did I maybe do something wrong? I'd done the wrapping, heat, then slept all night and rinsed out. Maybe I should run to Sally's and get a jar of blue Manic Panic, see if that sticks better? I WANT this to work, I adore the blue-black and got a compliment today from someone who said she thought the darker color suited me way better than the brownish red henna I'd had the last time I saw her. I don't mind doing the Pravana over again if eventually it'll stay, but I hate to spend money on something that'll just literally go down the drain.

[luxepiggy]

Did the color keep getting darker and darker and then just come over somewhat blue for you, luxepiggy? I definitely don't want it to go much darker than it is right now, as I'm really pale and super extreme black hair looks kinda harsh on me. Thank your for all of your help!:flower:

It actually goes the other way 'round. When my hair is freshly dyed, it leans very blue for the first month or so. Over time the blue grows more subtle, so the colour "fades" through cool black towards neutral black. I always re-dye before it reaches neutral black tho (^(oo)^)v


Okay, this is now the third time I've washed it and judging by the sheer amount of blue that's washing out of it, I have to conclude it's just not sticking. I think it might be on my length, because my crown and roots look pretty dark still, but I'm not certain.
I'm somewhat discouraged by this; I remember the first time I used Manic Panic, over damaged, dyed hair, it washed out within a week or two. The next time, though, on healthier, henna'ed and indigo'ed hair, it stuck around a lot longer. I'm also a bit surprised that the Pravana appears to be sticking to my roots and crown (undyed, undamaged areas) better than my length (damaged).
The washing out in the shower is so bad, I should actually be using gloves when I wash/condition. In addition, I wore my hair down today, and I noticed at the end of the day my fingers/nails were noticably blue.
Should I try again in a couple of weeks and see if I can get it to stick properly? Did I maybe do something wrong? I'd done the wrapping, heat, then slept all night and rinsed out. Maybe I should run to Sally's and get a jar of blue Manic Panic, see if that sticks better? I WANT this to work, I adore the blue-black and got a compliment today from someone who said she thought the darker color suited me way better than the brownish red henna I'd had the last time I saw her. I don't mind doing the Pravana over again if eventually it'll stay, but I hate to spend money on something that'll just literally go down the drain.

Bother! (>(oo)<)`

When you say "wash" are you talking about CO or shampoo? Are the portions near the roots/crown (the part where it's sticking better) new growth with no henna on them? I wonder if the henna/indigo on your length might somehow be interfering. How does henna/indigo work? Does it coat the hair cuticle or does it actually change the hair colour itself? I'm woefully ignorant when it comes to all that "natural" stuff :o

[MidnightStar]

It actually goes the other way 'round. When my hair is freshly dyed, it leans very blue for the first month or so. Over time the blue grows more subtle, so the colour "fades" through cool black towards neutral black. I always re-dye before it reaches neutral black tho (^(oo)^)v



Bother! (>(oo)<)`

When you say "wash" are you talking about CO or shampoo? Are the portions near the roots/crown (the part where it's sticking better) new growth with no henna on them? I wonder if the henna/indigo on your length might somehow be interfering. How does henna/indigo work? Does it coat the hair cuticle or does it actually change the hair colour itself? I'm woefully ignorant when it comes to all that "natural" stuff :o

I was co-washing the first 2 times with a conditioner that I found which had that specific cone you mentioned. Last night I got sick of it (I can't co-wash for very long, my hair doesn't take very well to it) so I did use shampoo/conditioner, but what I used was the Toadstool stuff. Ingredient list:
Shampoo: distilled water, coconut oil, cocoa butter, saponified olive oil, vegetable oil, honey, lemon juice, potassium sorbate, fragrance.
Conditioner: distilled water, jojoba oil, glycerin, vitamin E, humectant (corn/soy oil blend), potassium sorbate, fragrance.

The parts where the color seems to be brightest and best near my roots and crown are a mixture of total virgin re-growth and also hair that has been henna'ed and indigo'ed, but not extremely recently. The length of my hair has also been henna'ed and indigo'ed, but is also growing out chemical dye that I used for years and years (L'Oreal Feria, which I've since learned is deposit and therefore less damaging than other dyes, but still, we're talking probably 10 years of coloring.) Henna coats the hair, makes it stronger and also can change hair color depending on what color you start with. It turns hair red but won't lighten. Since my hair is pretty dark, it only added some reddish highlights for me. The indigo makes your hair black (again, depending on the ratio and how you do it), but you can't just use the indigo, you have to start with henna or mix the henna with the indigo to get various shades or brown to black, otherwise the indigo will just turn your hair blue. Ironically, doing the two-step henna and indigo will eventually give you the blue-black color I wanted, except I hate how time consuming it is and I also can't stand the stink of henna and indigo, and it really lingers in my hair. Last time I did it, it lasted at least 2 weeks. Ick.
I'm not seeing a huge color change at this point, even with how much blue is washing out; it's still pretty dark. I did notice, however, that using the shampoo last night my suds were blue. Maybe I'm just panicking? I guess I'll just have to monitor it over the next week and see what happens.

[Henrietta]

Thanks!
So I started the process and now present the Ballad of MidnightStar and Pravana, part the first:
5:30 Decide I want to exercise tonight, and I could stand to clarify my hair again.
6:30 Wash hair.
7:30 Wait impatiently for hair to dry.
8:00 Give in and bring out the hair dryer. Just once isn't that bad, right? I seriously haven't used it in years...
8:10 Look how shiny it is! So much volume! Dryers are bad again why???
8:20 After brief distraction, start dyeing by basically tarping the bathroom. Don gloves, deep breath, and start mushing dye into hair.
8:40 Move to length with second tube of dye. Hair falls onto arm, leaving small patch of blue. MidnightStar realizes that she has stupidly forgotten to wear one of her dyeing shirts!
9:00 All done! Fingers, arms, and neck are marked up all Smurfy. Water helps, but not a lot. Maybe I can convince people it's a henna tattoo? You know, except it's blue? Most of the people I know don't even know what henna IS, let alone what color it is. I bet they'd buy it.
9:10 Realize that, seriously, all of my bedcoverings are WHITE. WTF, me??? I really didn't think this though...
9:15 Found ancient hot pink sheets I'll never use again. (It pays to never clean out your linen closet!) Drape dark-colored beach towels over the pillows. Score! Now if only I can keep myself from tossing and turning too much tonight. I'm afraid it'll all end up on my sheets and my skin rather than my hair. We shall see...

Pictures coming tomorrow! Some positives: it doesn't smell anywhere near as bad as henna/indigo, and it's not at all drippy, as others have mentioned. I was worried that it would bleed through the tarping on the counter, but it didn't! I was also pleasantly surprised I managed to not get it all over the bathroom. Just my skin. Oh well... :D

I love your description. And I'm happy that the process went well :)

[MidnightStar]

I love your description. And I'm happy that the process went well :)

Thanks. :)
It's still rinsing out, but the dark color is staying. Now it's more I'm irritable because I can't do a mani/pedi till it stops, otherwise everything will turn blue. ;)
I'm trying to remember what my hair routine was like last September, when I did the Manic Panic fairly successfully. It couldn't have been all that different, I was 'cone free I think (mostly) and had done henna/indigo before but I don't think really recently. The Manic Panic, if I remember correctly, soaked right into my hair and didn't cause a lot of bleeding. Maybe a protein or other treatment prior to the coloring would help? I also read somewhere the henna "locks" in semi-perm colors, perhaps I should color then henna. Hmm. I'm going to do this again, but probably with Manic Panic to compare how it works.
Luxepiggy, sorry to keep bothering you with all these questions, but you are my resident expert on...well, just about all things hair. :D When you first starting using the semi-perm colors to get the blue, did you have a lot of bleeding? I mean back when you were using SFX and others, not just the Pravana.

[luxepiggy]

Oops! Nothing to see here (^(oo)^)v

[luxepiggy]

Thanks. :)
It's still rinsing out, but the dark color is staying. Now it's more I'm irritable because I can't do a mani/pedi till it stops, otherwise everything will turn blue. ;)
I recommend silver for the toes. It will gradually shift to a lovely metallic silvery blue :D I actually wear gloves every time I wash my hair. Although this policy was originally implemented way before I started colouring my hair to protect my nail polish from chipping, it has obviously proven quite useful for protecting the polish colour as well (^(oo)^)v


I'm trying to remember what my hair routine was like last September, when I did the Manic Panic fairly successfully. It couldn't have been all that different, I was 'cone free I think (mostly) and had done henna/indigo before but I don't think really recently. The Manic Panic, if I remember correctly, soaked right into my hair and didn't cause a lot of bleeding. Maybe a protein or other treatment prior to the coloring would help? I also read somewhere the henna "locks" in semi-perm colors, perhaps I should color then henna.
I don't recommend this. Piggy has been doing some research on your behalf! Now that I understand more about how henna works, I have a better sense of what might be happening. Both henna and semi-permanent dyes deposit mostly in the hair cuticle. I suspect that the henna which remains in your hair has reduced the available attachment points for the blue dye molecules.

Earlier in this thread I postulated that larger, trinuclear dye molecules might be responsible for Pravana's extra staying power relative to brands like MP. Although larger dye molecules are slower to diffuse into the hair, they normally bond to the hair more strongly because their larger surface area provides more attachment points. If the henna is preventing the dye from attaching fully, that could be why so much of it seems to be rinsing out.

I can see how henna applied after a semi-perm on previously unhennaed hair might trap some of the dye molecules inside the hair with it, but I don't think you'd get the same effect since your hair already has henna in it, KWIM? Plus I thought the whole point of this exercise was to get away from the henna? :p


Hmm. I'm going to do this again, but probably with Manic Panic to compare how it works.

Honestly, I think you'd be better off re-dyeing with Pravana, using heat to encourage the dye to diffuse further into the hair shaft. If you can get it in past the henna, then you will benefit from that colour-locking effect you mentioned.


Luxepiggy, sorry to keep bothering you with all these questions, but you are my resident expert on...well, just about all things hair. :D When you first starting using the semi-perm colors to get the blue, did you have a lot of bleeding? I mean back when you were using SFX and others, not just the Pravana.
It's no bother. Piggy is here to help! (^(oo)^)v

Yes, the bleeding was pretty much nonstop. One of the reasons I'm such a huge Pravana advocate is because on my hair it stops bleeding after the 2nd or 3rd wash. I remember with SFX I used to have to scrub my back like crazy every time I showered, to get the blue off my skin.

[MidnightStar]

I don't recommend this. Piggy has been doing some research on your behalf! Now that I understand more about how henna works, I have a better sense of what might be happening. Both henna and semi-permanent dyes deposit mostly in the hair cuticle. I suspect that the henna which remains in your hair has reduced the available attachment points for the blue dye molecules.

Earlier in this thread I postulated that larger, trinuclear dye molecules might be responsible for Pravana's extra staying power relative to brands like MP. Although larger dye molecules are slower to diffuse into the hair, they normally bond to the hair more strongly because their larger surface area provides more attachment points. If the henna is preventing the dye from attaching fully, that could be why so much of it seems to be rinsing out.

I can see how henna applied after a semi-perm on previously unhennaed hair might trap some of the dye molecules inside the hair with it, but I don't think you'd get the same effect since your hair already has henna in it, KWIM? Plus I thought the whole point of this exercise was to get away from the henna? :p



Honestly, I think you'd be better off re-dyeing with Pravana, using heat to encourage the dye to diffuse further into the hair shaft. If you can get it in past the henna, then you will benefit from that colour-locking effect you mentioned.

I think you're right! I noticed the other night that when I used my Pandora's growth formula (mix of rose water, essential oils, and regular oils) on my scalp, I had no bleeding onto my fingers whatsoever. I think it's rinsing out of the length rather than the crown/scalp (although it is rinsing from there as well, just slower I think), and it's only the length that has the henna on it.
I also checked back and found the thread where we were all talking about temporary colors on dark hair, and saw that apparently I was co-washing last September when I did the Manic Panic, which could've contributed to it's staying power in my hair. I'll try the Pravana again, maybe I can find it on ebay or something. As always, thank you! :D

[Bianca]

Anyone try diluting pravana in conditioner ? Does is still last ?

Im thinking about trying the orange. Maybe I could get a copperish color on my dark/medium blonde hair :D I need a change.

[Lapin]

Allllll right, some questions for the experts (*cough*luxepiggy*cough).

So my hair is darkish brown, sorta flat-colored and very uninteresting. (See my user pic - it still looks that color, but longer).

Adding red highlights/tint to my hair does wonders for me! In the sun, I can get my hair to take on a reddish-tint, but I don't get to play in the sun much these days. Plus, I'm babying my hair as much as I can!

I have tried so hard to get henna to work, but while I love the color initially, it fades to nothing within a week. I have tried multiple brands, formulas, techniques, etc. No dice. Plus, it's so messy and a pain! I guess my hair isn't porous? I CO with occasional ToadStool shampoo, no other products.

I have been eyeballing the Pravana Vivids Red for some time now. On my naturally dark hair, how bright do you (you referring to anyone with some sort of experienc) think it will turn? I have a fairly conservative job, and I need to keep my hair on the somewhat-natural color spectrum...

[Lapin]

Oh, another concern I have is the high protein content of Pravana. Protein and my hair do not agree AT ALL.

I used Mane & Tail conditioner a few times and went from having split-less hair to needing about an inch trimmed from the tips due to the severity of splits and damage. I found destroyed hair throughout my head for weeks - the strands of hair would be really coarse and unevenly textured from root to tip.

I never had anything like that before, so I assume it was the conditioner. Since discontinuing it (around christmas) and a good trim and incessant lovin', my hair is back to normal... I don't want to mess with it again!

Anybody else with similarly reactive hair use Prevana? How'd it go for you?

*cluttering up the thread, sorry!*

[MidnightStar]

Anyone try diluting pravana in conditioner ? Does is still last ?

Im thinking about trying the orange. Maybe I could get a copperish color on my dark/medium blonde hair :D I need a change.

I'm pretty sure that someone (likely luxepiggy) said they add some dye to conditioner and it helps. I'm thinking of doing this next time as well. Just make sure you wear gloves!!


Allllll right, some questions for the experts (*cough*luxepiggy*cough).

So my hair is darkish brown, sorta flat-colored and very uninteresting. (See my user pic - it still looks that color, but longer).

Adding red highlights/tint to my hair does wonders for me! In the sun, I can get my hair to take on a reddish-tint, but I don't get to play in the sun much these days. Plus, I'm babying my hair as much as I can!

I have tried so hard to get henna to work, but while I love the color initially, it fades to nothing within a week. I have tried multiple brands, formulas, techniques, etc. No dice. Plus, it's so messy and a pain! I guess my hair isn't porous? I CO with occasional ToadStool shampoo, no other products.

I have been eyeballing the Pravana Vivids Red for some time now. On my naturally dark hair, how bright do you (you referring to anyone with some sort of experienc) think it will turn? I have a fairly conservative job, and I need to keep my hair on the somewhat-natural color spectrum...

Not piggy, but I did notice that the color seems to be holding slightly better on my unprocessed hair rather than my processed length. Also I don't know that it would turn that bright, unless you bleached it first...my natural color is dark brown, and I used the blue Pravana and got very dark hair with a blue sheen. Maybe do a test strand first, and see what happens?


Oh, another concern I have is the high protein content of Pravana. Protein and my hair do not agree AT ALL.

I used Mane & Tail conditioner a few times and went from having split-less hair to needing about an inch trimmed from the tips due to the severity of splits and damage. I found destroyed hair throughout my head for weeks - the strands of hair would be really coarse and unevenly textured from root to tip.

I never had anything like that before, so I assume it was the conditioner. Since discontinuing it (around christmas) and a good trim and incessant lovin', my hair is back to normal... I don't want to mess with it again!

Anybody else with similarly reactive hair use Prevana? How'd it go for you?

*cluttering up the thread, sorry!*

Luxepiggy said she does a moisturizing treatment after the color. I found I didn't need it, but then my hair sucks up protein and just laughs. Again I'd recommend a strand test to see what happens first.
Good luck and post pictures!! :D

[Lapin]

Hrm... guess I'll order a tube and see what happens!

Thanks MidnightStar, and I LOVE what the blue did for your hair!

[MidnightStar]

Hrm... guess I'll order a tube and see what happens!

Thanks MidnightStar, and I LOVE what the blue did for your hair!

Hooray! Post pictures! :D And thank you for the compliment! I am very happy with it as well, even though the washing out has been somewhat frustrating. And right now there's apparently nothing I can really change to make it stop, since it starts when I start wetting my hair, so it's not a shampoo/conditioner thing. Oh well. I will try again! It looked too good for me to just give up! :p

[luxepiggy]

Anyone try diluting pravana in conditioner ? Does is still last ?

Im thinking about trying the orange. Maybe I could get a copperish color on my dark/medium blonde hair :D I need a change.

I have not tried diluting Pravana in conditioner, sorry! Please let us know how it goes, if you decide to experiment :flower:


Allllll right, some questions for the experts (*cough*luxepiggy*cough).

So my hair is darkish brown, sorta flat-colored and very uninteresting. (See my user pic - it still looks that color, but longer).

Adding red highlights/tint to my hair does wonders for me! In the sun, I can get my hair to take on a reddish-tint, but I don't get to play in the sun much these days. Plus, I'm babying my hair as much as I can!

I have tried so hard to get henna to work, but while I love the color initially, it fades to nothing within a week. I have tried multiple brands, formulas, techniques, etc. No dice. Plus, it's so messy and a pain! I guess my hair isn't porous? I CO with occasional ToadStool shampoo, no other products.

I have been eyeballing the Pravana Vivids Red for some time now. On my naturally dark hair, how bright do you (you referring to anyone with some sort of experienc) think it will turn? I have a fairly conservative job, and I need to keep my hair on the somewhat-natural color spectrum...

Hello, Lapin!
-() ()
(^-^)

Hehe. Don't mind my antics. It's late, and I've been working on a glass of very tasty gewurztraminer (^(oo)^)v

My guess is that the red used straight would be fairly vibrant. It's hard to say for sure, but I definitely recommend careful strand testing beforehand.


Oh, another concern I have is the high protein content of Pravana. Protein and my hair do not agree AT ALL.


My hair is normally OK with a moderate amount of protein (the conditioner I CO-wash with has some protein in it). Pravana seems to have more than a moderate amount of protein, hence my need to follow up with a moisturizing treatment, as MidnightStar mentioned. If your hair reacts very poorly to any protein at all, Pravana might not be the right choice for you.

[Bianca]

Will do, piggy ;) Still only considering.

[Lapin]

Just an update, since you guys gave such good advice!

I used two entire tubes on my shoulder-length hair, threw a shower cap over the slop, and left it on for about 10 hours.

The color is pretty - a definite cherry twist on my hair. If it wasn't such an enormous PITA I would definitely do it again! However, my scalp is pink. My nails are pink. My ears are pink. My entire bathroom is pink. Even parts of my boyfriend are pink. This stuff gets everywhere! Every time my hair gets wet, pink dye comes out!

I've washed it until the water ran clear, and then washed it again. And again. And again.

I probably used way too much product :rolleyes: At least the color is great! And my hair is downright silky! Fingers crossed that it lasts!

[luxepiggy]

Just an update, since you guys gave such good advice!

I used two entire tubes on my shoulder-length hair, threw a shower cap over the slop, and left it on for about 10 hours.

The color is pretty - a definite cherry twist on my hair. If it wasn't such an enormous PITA I would definitely do it again! However, my scalp is pink. My nails are pink. My ears are pink. My entire bathroom is pink. Even parts of my boyfriend are pink. This stuff gets everywhere! Every time my hair gets wet, pink dye comes out!

I've washed it until the water ran clear, and then washed it again. And again. And again.

I probably used way too much product :rolleyes: At least the color is great! And my hair is downright silky! Fingers crossed that it lasts!

Glad the colour came out well! I'm really surprised to hear that the colour is getting all over the place though! I used to have colour all over the place when I was using SFX, but since I switched to Pravana my bathtub is finally white again.

I do suspect that 2 tubes might have been *slight* overkill on shoulder-length hair tho. I use less than that for doing my entire length! (^(oo)^)

[MidnightStar]

Okay, back with an update. I couldn't help myself, I ran to Sally's and picked up some Manic Panic in a deep blue similar to the Pravana, just to experiment, as I remember having success with it last year. Same problem!! Also I like the Pravana color better anyway, and it covered my silvers better - the Manic Panic is already washing out of the silvers.
Maybe a pretreatment of some kind might be helpful? At this point I feel like I've found the color I've wanted for years, and I'm willing to put up with a bit of hassle and blue in the shower to keep it the way I want it. :D But I know that some people do pretreating before coloring or hennaing their hair, I wonder if there might be something I could try before doing the Pravana?

[insomniac-uk]

I finally dyed my hair :) I was waiting till my sister had some time off so she could bleach my hair for me but I couldn't sleep and I just did it myself. The bleach is a bit uneven but i'm hoping it wont look so bad, at the moment I'm waiting another half hour until I wash the pravana out. I was going to leave it on overnight but i just want the dye out I can always dye it again in a few weeks.

It definitely is permanent the section of hair I did for the strand test is still blue even after the bleach. Pics to follow tomorrow.

[luxepiggy]

Okay, back with an update. I couldn't help myself, I ran to Sally's and picked up some Manic Panic in a deep blue similar to the Pravana, just to experiment, as I remember having success with it last year. Same problem!! Also I like the Pravana color better anyway, and it covered my silvers better - the Manic Panic is already washing out of the silvers.The Pravana colour is WAY better right? More vibrant, richer hue. I know my SFX and Adore dyes looked very dull and flat next to it (^(oo)^)v


Maybe a pretreatment of some kind might be helpful? At this point I feel like I've found the color I've wanted for years, and I'm willing to put up with a bit of hassle and blue in the shower to keep it the way I want it. :D But I know that some people do pretreating before coloring or hennaing their hair, I wonder if there might be something I could try before doing the Pravana?

I know *exactly* what you mean about finding the colour you've wanted for years, 'cos that's how I feel too! Isn't it wonderful? :bounce:

Hmm . . . I don't know if pretreating is the answer. I think you'd get better results if you use a hair dryer to warm up the hair after you apply the colour. That should encourage the cuticle to open up and allow the colour to penetrate further into the hair. I also think this is something that will resolve itself with time; as you continue to use the product, the colour will stick better each time.

IIRC, the first time I dyed with Pravana, I still had some colour runoff in the subsequent weeks, but after each subsequent application I noticed less and less. At this point I don't have any noticeable colour in my rinse water when I CO-wash. I haven't dyed the length since the beginning of the year, but I just checked the colour against my original test swatch and it doesn't seem to have faded at all (^(oo)^)v

[luxepiggy]

I finally dyed my hair :) I was waiting till my sister had some time off so she could bleach my hair for me but I couldn't sleep and I just did it myself. The bleach is a bit uneven but i'm hoping it wont look so bad, at the moment I'm waiting another half hour until I wash the pravana out. I was going to leave it on overnight but i just want the dye out I can always dye it again in a few weeks.

It definitely is permanent the section of hair I did for the strand test is still blue even after the bleach. Pics to follow tomorrow.

Can't wait!!! \(^(oo)^)/

[MidnightStar]

The Pravana colour is WAY better right? More vibrant, richer hue. I know my SFX and Adore dyes looked very dull and flat next to it (^(oo)^)v


I know *exactly* what you mean about finding the colour you've wanted for years, 'cos that's how I feel too! Isn't it wonderful? :bounce:

Hmm . . . I don't know if pretreating is the answer. I think you'd get better results if you use a hair dryer to warm up the hair after you apply the colour. That should encourage the cuticle to open up and allow the colour to penetrate further into the hair. I also think this is something that will resolve itself with time; as you continue to use the product, the colour will stick better each time.

IIRC, the first time I dyed with Pravana, I still had some colour runoff in the subsequent weeks, but after each subsequent application I noticed less and less. At this point I don't have any noticeable colour in my rinse water when I CO-wash. I haven't dyed the length since the beginning of the year, but I just checked the colour against my original test swatch and it doesn't seem to have faded at all (^(oo)^)v

Yeah, that's a big NO on the pretreatment!! I did it again, went to Sally's and got some MP in a different blue shade (this time closer to the Pravana, but again not it) and picked up a little pretreatment protein thing. The little bottle said to put on, wait 20 minutes, then do the color. Well, I feel fairly certain that the treatment wasn't made for overnight use. My hair, which has never suffered from protein overload, is pretty overloaded! Also, the MP stuck to almost everything - my skin, the shower, MY NAILS. Seriously. I am a smurf right now!! This has never happened, not with MP or Pravana, so I have to put it down to the pretreatment I used. I SCRUBBED my skin with a washcloth till it stung and I still have blue patches! I had to put on socks so that I don't accidentally track blue all over the house (and the new puppy seems to love my feet, and I don't want him licking this stuff). So anybody out there considering a pretreatment, take my advice - DON'T. Unless, of course, it's Halloween and you're going as Smurfette! :D
So right now I think I'm going to just let all this stuff wash out of my hair, and maybe try again. To add insult to injury, it doesn't even look like the color really stuck to my hair - it's already dry (protein!) and under the lights and natural light it almost looks like it's got a slightly pinkish cast? It's not ugly or shocking, of course, but not exactly the point of what I was doing. It almost looks like I warmed the color up, but in the pot the color's a pretty icy blue. So I dunno what that's about.
Sigh. I'm giving it a rest for a few weeks. I've considered going back to henna/indigo, but the indigo washed out too, and it smelled so awful and stuck around in my hair forever. I really don't want to do that. Hopefully the stupid stuff I do helps someone else know what not to do!! :p

[PolarCathy]

Piggy, how much Pravana do you need for a full-head application? (I've never used any kind of chemical dyes, no idea)

Thanks!

[MidnightStar]

All right, my hair's dry all the way through and that protein treatment DEFINITELY made it lighter. I think the "pink" color I was seeing earlier was the red raj henna I did several weeks ago showing through. It didn't show like that originally, but I'm assuming the protein thing somehow lifted my "natural" color and now I'm seeing more of the henna. It doesn't look like that around my scalp/crown area, which wasn't touched with the henna, which makes me think I'm right. I'm telling myself it could've been a lot worse - I used to indigo my hair, too, so at least it's not green!!
It's REALLY dry, and I honestly can't tell if it's just protein-overload dry or if it's damage-dry. Right now I'm leaning toward both. I'm now terrified it's about to start falling out or something. I keep tugging slightly at the roots to check, and it's not doing anything weird so I guess it's okay. I put on my favorite leave-in and it helped a little, but I think I need a full on moisture treatment. Except I really don't want to get it wet again and deal with the blue everywhere again, and I'm afraid of doing too much to it too soon and making things worse!
So in short, I won't be coloring my hair for awhile now, and I will never ever ever use a pretreatment again!! :(

[MidnightStar]

Okay, it's been a few days and now that I'm over the initial "OMGWTF did I do to my HAIR???" I'm feeling a bit better. The dryness seems to have been more from protein than damage, and I think I've set that right with a deep conditioning macadamia treatment. It seems more like itself. I really want to get the blue out because it's color transferring everywhere (not a problem I've had with Pravana or MP before). But to be honest, I'm kinda digging the pink. It's not incredibly noticable like bubblegum pink or anything, it's mainly in the sunlight. A friend of mine told me people pay big bucks to get what I have now, and since it's not damaged I'm okay with it at the moment.
I'll try the Pravana again, I'm sure, but for now I'm just happy I didn't destroy my hair. :) Piggy, have you ever seen a protein treatment actually lift color out of hair? Unfortunately I don't know the brand I got - it was just a tiny white bottle from Sally's.
PolarCathy, when I did Pravana I used 2 tubes for my almost-TB somewhat fine hair. But I tend to overdo things with color, I probably could've gotten by with just one. Hope that helps!

[PolarCathy]

I bought blue and violet. I'm going for a very subtle effect. Only to neutralize the henna red and a tiny bit more.

[PolarCathy]

ETA: my Pravanas arrived, 1 blue, 1 violet. Piggy, I'd need your advice. What I want is basically my natural haircolor without red (which is the darkest brown that's not black yet only when you see it against black clothes). Now I have that color on the sunbleached parts of my hair because of the two-step henna/indigo, but I do have the henna showing through. So my hair is not really black black anymore, since indigo fades on me. As I say it's a warm, very very dark brown and I have the same color at my roots genetically, but with no red undertones in the sun.

I don't want blue hair; I want the red to turn into brown maybe so that it doesn't show. How would you proceed? would you clarify or just slap it on? Would you do a gloss with conditioner or just as it is? For how long? I've been collecting my shed hair for a week now, maybe time to test it, I just never trust those tests, because it's such a small amount of hair. I never know how it would look on my whole head.

Thanks!

[Catia]

PolarCathy - I know it wasn't directed at me but I thought I'd chime in since I was in exactly the same boat when I was playing around with Pravana.

Maybe you can learn and find improvements ;)

I was attempting to replace the indigo with either Pravana blue or green in the second step of henna/indigo. I wanted to cover/neutralize the henna red. I highly suggest strand testing because (much to my surprise) the green strand tests showed only slightly muted GREEN over henna. The green pigment must be monstrously strong. The blue achieved more of a darker warm brown over henna. I haven't experimented with violet ... just thought I'd heads up in case it was anything like the green one lol.

Having said that, I left the blue on the first six inch roots (full strength) for an hour. No heat aside from body heat (just like my strand tests). It stained the worn out spots on my old iron tub, stained my shower curtain, but only barely stained my hair. It took the intensity of the henna down a notch, but didn't come close to matching my two-stepped length. I wouldn't even say it was brown, just a rusty shade of red.

I don't know if heat, longer application, different hair texture, etc., would change the outcome, but for me it was a total bummer. :sad

On the upside, it was easy to apply; creamy and didn't drip. I like the smell too. :)

HTH ;)

[luxepiggy]

Whoops! Apologies for being slow to respond; this little piggy has been out of town (^(oo)^)`

PolarCathy - For a full application I use 4-5 oz. of dye, which works out to about 1.5 tubes of Pravana (each tube contains 3 oz.).

I'm pretty sure I understand your target colour, but can you explain the current colour in a bit more detail? When you say the henna red shows through, can you be more specific about hue? Is it like an orangey red? Terracotta? Tomato? Cherry? Also, what is your plan going forward with new growth at the roots? Are you hoping to continue with henna and use the Pravana in lieu of Indigo, or are you trying to match your natural shade in order to transition away from colouring your hair altogether?

Sorry for all the questions! Since this stuff sticks so well on my hair, I'm extra paranoid about avoiding potentially permanent mishaps! :o

[PolarCathy]

Whoops! Apologies for being slow to respond; this little piggy has been out of town (^(oo)^)`

PolarCathy - For a full application I use 4-5 oz. of dye, which works out to about 1.5 tubes of Pravana (each tube contains 3 oz.).

I'm pretty sure I understand your target colour, but can you explain the current colour in a bit more detail? When you say the henna red shows through, can you be more specific about hue? Is it like an orangey red? Terracotta? Tomato? Cherry? Also, what is your plan going forward with new growth at the roots? Are you hoping to continue with henna and use the Pravana in lieu of Indigo, or are you trying to match your natural shade in order to transition away from colouring your hair altogether?

Sorry for all the questions! Since this stuff sticks so well on my hair, I'm extra paranoid about avoiding potentially permanent mishaps! :o

Good questions, and I'm still thinking. The only reason why I indigoed in the first place was because my length was sunbleached. Then I kept doing it because I liked what henna did to my hair. So I plan to keep on hennaing, I think.

Indigo though is a b*tch on me. I could even live with just henna and something that pushes it into the darkest non-red color. It's orange, the undercolor, and shows in full daylight, and at least in my bathroom so also in artificial light. I hate it. With cherry or deeper (burgundy an especially like beetroot color, or violet) I would be okay. It's just this orange-y thing I can't stand on me.

So for now I'd stick with the henna, say every 6-8 weeks on roots only and about once or twice a year on full length. If I can drop the indigo I am a happy person. If I could just apply some Pravana every time right after henna that woud be probably the best case scenario. My roots are dark enough so that it will match my length.

Catia:thanks! Your comment is insightful and appreciated :)

[luxepiggy]

PolarCathy - I know it wasn't directed at me but I thought I'd chime in since I was in exactly the same boat when I was playing around with Pravana.

Maybe you can learn and find improvements ;)

I was attempting to replace the indigo with either Pravana blue or green in the second step of henna/indigo. I wanted to cover/neutralize the henna red. I highly suggest strand testing because (much to my surprise) the green strand tests showed only slightly muted GREEN over henna. The green pigment must be monstrously strong. The blue achieved more of a darker warm brown over henna. I haven't experimented with violet ... just thought I'd heads up in case it was anything like the green one lol.

Having said that, I left the blue on the first six inch roots (full strength) for an hour. No heat aside from body heat (just like my strand tests). It stained the worn out spots on my old iron tub, stained my shower curtain, but only barely stained my hair. It took the intensity of the henna down a notch, but didn't come close to matching my two-stepped length. I wouldn't even say it was brown, just a rusty shade of red.

I don't know if heat, longer application, different hair texture, etc., would change the outcome, but for me it was a total bummer. :sad

On the upside, it was easy to apply; creamy and didn't drip. I like the smell too. :)

HTH ;)

Hm. I'm really starting to suspect that henna may not play well with Pravana Vivids, since you and MidnightStar both had problematic experiences! :(

It's very perplexing to me because I get such amazing colour payoff and longevity . . . I haven't dyed my full length in 5 months and it's still almost an exact match to my original test strand. My biggest gripe is the obvious line of demarcation I get if I don't keep up with dyeing the new roots as they grow in :p

[luxepiggy]

Good questions, and I'm still thinking. The only reason why I indigoed in the first place was because my length was sunbleached. Then I kept doing it because I liked what henna did to my hair. So I plan to keep on hennaing, I think.

Indigo though is a b*tch on me. I could even live with just henna and something that pushes it into the darkest non-red color. It's orange, the undercolor, and shows in full daylight, and at least in my bathroom so also in artificial light. I hate it. With cherry or deeper (burgundy an especially like beetroot color, or violet) I would be okay. It's just this orange-y thing I can't stand on me.

So for now I'd stick with the henna, say every 6-8 weeks on roots only and about once or twice a year on full length. If I can drop the indigo I am a happy person. If I could just apply some Pravana every time right after henna that woud be probably the best case scenario. My roots are dark enough so that it will match my length.

Catia:thanks! Your comment is insightful and appreciated :)

Now piggy can think concurrently with you! (^(oo)^)v

So what is it, exactly that henna does to your hair that makes you inclined to carry on? As per my reply to Catia above, I am beginning to wonder about the compatibility of henna & Pravana. Of course, my current sample size of 2 isn't exactly statistically reliable :p

[PolarCathy]

Now piggy can think concurrently with you! (^(oo)^)v

So what is it, exactly that henna does to your hair that makes you inclined to carry on? As per my reply to Catia above, I am beginning to wonder about the compatibility of henna & Pravana. Of course, my current sample size of 2 isn't exactly statistically reliable :p

Shine, strength, some added coarseness. But if I can't cut down on the orange, I may ditch it. Since I have no demarcation line, so I could.

Argh! :eyebrows: F*** henna color.

[Catia]

Argh! :eyebrows: F*** henna color.

:lol: My thoughts exactly.

And you're very welcome too. I have been trying everything to beat henna into submission. It's been a long road.

Piggy - Exactly! I had the same thing happen with Elumen. Permanent on everyone else's hair, but spit out maliciously by mine. It doesn't necessarly reflect on the product ;) Coarse hair + grey + henna = impenetrable. :rolleyes:

I have a big box of different hair colors and treatments I've been trying all year. I finally had to accept defeat and bow down to permanent color :undecided

[PolarCathy]

:lol: My thoughts exactly.

And you're very welcome too. I have been trying everything to beat henna into submission. It's been a long road.


Well I haven't tried one thing yet, and that is using an IRON bowl to mix it and let it do its thing for two nights before applying it.

I can't seem to get my hands on an iron bowl.

F*** iron bowls too ;)

[PolarCathy]

There seems to be a problem. I marinated the test (shed) hairs in the blue Pravana for 10 hours. I rinsed it now. NOTHING


OOOPS hold on... no I don't see even the slightest blue... but I see no red either... wohooo? Okay I'll check tomorrow morning (22:50 here and Cathy is sleepy)

[PolarCathy]

Okay, Cathy has new questions.

I've decided to go with it on my roots. I marinated a strand on my head overnight and I like the color. However - and this is new for me since I never used any kind of box dyes - my scalp is blue there. How to get rid of that? Henna/indigo never does that. They do stain my hands/nails if I use bad gloves but my scalp, never.

Thanks.

[Catia]

I'm not as versed in Pravana as Piggy ... but my lack of life makes me available to answer your question in the interim if you don't mind :p

For me, the blue scalp began to break up with the production of sebum. The residue, however, stuck around for a couple washes. I do remember a blue cast on my white pillowcase, but it has since washed out. Keep in mind I do everything in *overkill* mode and probably had more Pravana in my hair then necessary ;)

I do know that the Pravana residue was modest in comparison to Elumen, but then, see "overkill" notation above ^ :shrug:

[MidnightStar]

Hm. I'm really starting to suspect that henna may not play well with Pravana Vivids, since you and MidnightStar both had problematic experiences! :(

It's very perplexing to me because I get such amazing colour payoff and longevity . . . I haven't dyed my full length in 5 months and it's still almost an exact match to my original test strand. My biggest gripe is the obvious line of demarcation I get if I don't keep up with dyeing the new roots as they grow in :p

Yep, I think you are right! :( Oh well. I shall persevere!! Henna will not beat me! :luke:

[PolarCathy]

I'm not as versed in Pravana as Piggy ... but my lack of life makes me available to answer your question in the interim if you don't mind :p

For me, the blue scalp began to break up with the production of sebum. The residue, however, stuck around for a couple washes. I do remember a blue cast on my white pillowcase, but it has since washed out. Keep in mind I do everything in *overkill* mode and probably had more Pravana in my hair then necessary ;)

I do know that the Pravana residue was modest in comparison to Elumen, but then, see "overkill" notation above ^ :shrug:

Mind? LOL. Thanks for replying ;) :rolling:

[luxepiggy]

Okay, Cathy has new questions.

I've decided to go with it on my roots. I marinated a strand on my head overnight and I like the color. However - and this is new for me since I never used any kind of box dyes - my scalp is blue there. How to get rid of that? Henna/indigo never does that. They do stain my hands/nails if I use bad gloves but my scalp, never.

Thanks.

The easiest way to get rid of scalp staining is immediately after washing your hair. Just wrap your finger with a bit of dampened paper towel and rub it over the blue areas. That should remove most of it. If necessary, dip a Q-tip in rubbing alcohol to lift any particularly stubborn spots along the hairline & part.

[luxepiggy]

For those who have difficulties with Pravana not sticking at the roots, I strongly suggest using heat when you've got the dye on. 5-10 minutes on warm/hot immediately after application should do the trick.

I know I've suggested using heat previously, but I wanted to reiterate due to my own recent personal experience! Normally I always apply heat when using Pravana, but it's been super hot weather here (and I have no AC - roast pork, eep!), so when I retouched my new growth this week, I skipped the heating step. Not good, said the little pig, not good; after rinsing out the dye, I was quite displeased to note that the colour did not take on the first couple of cm of roots.

Botheration! (>(oo)<)`

[MandyBeth]

Add another vote to gray hair + henna + Vivids = doesn't work. Tried the blue for 8 hours to try to kill the burgundy I got from two step to black. The strands are still burgundy. Meh. The rest of my hair is black, and I can't see a difference.

[PolarCathy]

Add another vote to gray hair + henna + Vivids = doesn't work. Tried the blue for 8 hours to try to kill the burgundy I got from two step to black. The strands are still burgundy. Meh. The rest of my hair is black, and I can't see a difference.

Same; didn't work. (I have very few greys but I do have the red. Couldn't cancel it out.)

[Rain]

I have Pravana magenta in my hair right now. It has not been permanent for me at all. I first had streaks of crayon red put in. A dye that lifted my color and deposited red in one step was used but I don't know the name of it. After that was washed out, my hair was dried and Pravana magenta was put over the red to achieve red-violet. It lasted for about six weeks, then I was left with faded crayon red till I went back to the salon.

I'm thinking of acquiring a tube of magenta to go over my highlights between salon visits. I don't think it's going to stick to my virgin hair at all but if it does, it's going to wash out.

[MidnightStar]

Okay, I'm taking the plunge again! It's been a long time since I had any kind of color on my hair. I figured the Pravana had all washed out and did nothing for me...but now I'm actually noticing that there are several inches of much lighter hair on my head! So the color, while it didn't give me that bold blue-black I wanted, did end up sticking and giving me a rather natural looking black...so natural that I thought it was just my actual color!
So I ordered a couple more tubes of the blue Pravana and I'm expecting them to come this week. Will be experimenting with this this coming weekend and I will report my results!! :D

[Rain]

I touched up my highlights at home last night. Pravana stuck really well to my bleached sections but didn't touch my virgin hair at all. I know a lot of people are trying to get it to stick to virgin hair but I didn't want it to (but it would have been okay if it did). Nice to know I can do this at home to stretch out time between salon visits. I can just apply it all over and not have to worry about trying to pick out only the highlights.

[MidnightStar]

All right, after a false start and a post office mixup, I currently have Pravana Vivid blue on my head. :) I'd ordered two tubes but used just one because I really just wanted to saturate the first few inches of my hair. I clarified, squeezed out excess water, combed out the tangles, and then applied to my wet hair. I know piggy advocates application on completely dry hair, but that didn't work so well for me the first time so I decided to try it this way. I have another tube if it doesn't work out! I messed around with what I thought was a heat cap (was a piece of plastic I'd gotten at Sally's, supposed to apply to head and then heat with blow dryer...did not work and destroyed my awesome manicure grr!) before just wrapping in my turbie and then heating with a blow dryer for a couple minutes. I'll keep it on till early evening and then rinse out and we'll see.
Speaking of piggy, does anyone know where she is? Haven't "seen" her around lately. I hope she's still here! I miss her insights and general awesomeness.

[MidnightStar]

Okay, I'm back! Left the mixture on for about 5 hours, then rinsed out. Did a deep treatment with Palmer's coconut oil pack and then a palmful of Toadstool's leave-in. It's still drying, but the color appears to be taking on my roots. My silvers are kind of covered. We'll see how long it lasts. But at least for now I'm very happy with the color. :)

[akilina]

I love pravana sooo much. I used to have all my hair bleached and I had solid purple hair for several months.

I have not used it in months though. Has anyone else noticed that The pravana vivids do not effect your virgin hair? I have tried it in 4 different colors and its never even effected it. I have wondered why actually. It seems that when people use manic panic over NON pre lightened hair it still works great. :/

Last time I used it I was giving myself a big chunk streak of bright red and tried to just re-touch it once without bleaching my already light roots and it did not do a thing to them.

[MidnightStar]

I love pravana sooo much. I used to have all my hair bleached and I had solid purple hair for several months.

I have not used it in months though. Has anyone else noticed that The pravana vivids do not effect your virgin hair? I have tried it in 4 different colors and its never even effected it. I have wondered why actually. It seems that when people use manic panic over NON pre lightened hair it still works great. :/

Last time I used it I was giving myself a big chunk streak of bright red and tried to just re-touch it once without bleaching my already light roots and it did not do a thing to them.

Yeah, that was the point of my experiment...it seems to have taken to the length, but the length is a mixture of chemical dye and henna/indigo, so wasn't virgin. About four or five inches of my roots were truly virgin this time. I'm hoping it'll stick at least a little bit! :)

[akilina]

Thats good to hear...Did it stick to the roots very well??

I have been so jealous lately hearing of lots of members coloring their hair with MP over their natural! Its making me miss henna..and also wishing my hair was lighter. I am a hair dye junkee. I never do things that are too damaging to my length though.
I keep wishing I could henna my hair again...or bleach out a big chunk in the front/side of my hair and make it red or purple or something >___< I keep telling myself "You know you love black hair!!" Lol..I always go back to it. I have some pravana red left from long ago and its making it worse :p
A few months ago I bleached under my bangs and made it pink and ended up getting rid of it pretty quickly, and it happens every time. I should just hold off really.

[MidnightStar]

I know how you feel! I used to change my hair color almost monthly - black, brown, red, blonde, purple...the list just goes on! I decided on Pravana because others seemed to have success and it seemed longer lasting than Manic Panic. Plus, I hated the smell of indigo and couldn't stand to use it!! Now that it's dry, I can definitely see the color in the mirror, black with some bluish sheen. I know it'll fade out and bleed as I wash it, but I'm hoping it doesn't go too badly. My hair's naturally pretty dark anyway so it won't be hugely noticeable if it does, but I prefer this darker color. :) Will keep the thread updated on how it goes this time!

[akilina]

I know how you feel! I used to change my hair color almost monthly - black, brown, red, blonde, purple...the list just goes on! I decided on Pravana because others seemed to have success and it seemed longer lasting than Manic Panic. Plus, I hated the smell of indigo and couldn't stand to use it!! Now that it's dry, I can definitely see the color in the mirror, black with some bluish sheen. I know it'll fade out and bleed as I wash it, but I'm hoping it doesn't go too badly. My hair's naturally pretty dark anyway so it won't be hugely noticeable if it does, but I prefer this darker color. :) Will keep the thread updated on how it goes this time!
Cool :)
I noticed that pravana blue stuck stronger than ANYTHING. Bleaching did not even get it out!! It was the strongest one to stick.
This was my purple
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/2162.jpg
And my blue:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/032-1.jpg
Purple on top blue, then black
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/IMAGE_289.jpg
Then this was the green and purple!
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/IMAGE_713.jpg

Pics should not be too big! I resized them all very small. Sorry if they are huge! Many have been having issues with PB.

[MidnightStar]

Cool :)
I noticed that pravana blue stuck stronger than ANYTHING. Bleaching did not even get it out!! It was the strongest one to stick.
This was my purple
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/2162.jpg
And my blue:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/032-1.jpg
Purple on top blue, then black
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/IMAGE_289.jpg
Then this was the green and purple!
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k5/OLLLLY/IMAGE_713.jpg

Pics should not be too big! I resized them all very small. Sorry if they are huge! Many have been having issues with PB.

Oh wow, beautiful! I wish I could bleach sections of my hair and wear colors like that again...sigh. I'm so envious!! :)
So I waited till last night and co-washed. I did have some bleeding, which surprised me because I rinsed till clear on Sunday, but whatever. It's still dark which was my main goal. I'm still super happy with how awesome it looks!

[Rain]

I love pravana sooo much. I used to have all my hair bleached and I had solid purple hair for several months.

I have not used it in months though. Has anyone else noticed that The pravana vivids do not effect your virgin hair? I have tried it in 4 different colors and its never even effected it. I have wondered why actually. It seems that when people use manic panic over NON pre lightened hair it still works great. :/

Last time I used it I was giving myself a big chunk streak of bright red and tried to just re-touch it once without bleaching my already light roots and it did not do a thing to them.

It's not affecting my virgin hair at all. I have lightened red streaks, which I go over with Pravana magenta. But I don't try to pick out the streaks; I slap the dye on all over. And it only sticks to the pre-lightened sections, even after letting it sit for several hours. I don't even have the tiniest pink tint in sun. Which is great! I don't want it to stick to my virgin hair. It would be fine if it did but I'm totally happy with what it's doing.

ETA: It's not even sticking to my whites, really. It made some of them ever so faintly pinkish and I suspect that's going to wash out fast.

[akilina]

It's not affecting my virgin hair at all. I have lightened red streaks, which I go over with Pravana magenta. But I don't try to pick out the streaks; I slap the dye on all over. And it only sticks to the pre-lightened sections, even after letting it sit for several hours. I don't even have the tiniest pink tint in sun. Which is great! I don't want it to stick to my virgin hair. It would be fine if it did but I'm totally happy with what it's doing.

ETA: It's not even sticking to my whites, really. It made some of them ever so faintly pinkish and I suspect that's going to wash out fast.

Thats good it works out perfectly then for you/your hairy needs :)
So strange...my friend who is 54 has solid white silver hair (gah its so beautiful) and shes always dying it with dyes like Manic Panic and it sticks perfectly to her hair...
One day, I used the rest of my Pravana Blue on her hair and it stuck SUPER strong....for 6 months after, even...but it turned out periwinkle purple.

[MidnightStar]

Update! Since Saturday I have co-washed two times and actually washed (with Toadstool) once. The color is staying, though I'm getting bleeding in the shower, especially after the actual shampoo. I noticed this evening (after the second co-wash) that the color is still on my silvers, but they look more lavender than blue, so they're obviously washing out. The bleeding was definitely (and obviously) worse after the actual wash. If I could co-wash every time I would, but my hair and scalp don't seem to like it.

[PolarCathy]

A few days ago I slapped some leftover blue Pravana on me. Twas on my hair for seven hours. It didn't do anything to the white hair (I was hoping for some electric blue, seriously), but made my hair a bit darker overall, like the most perfect (non-dripping and lightweight) indigo treatment. LOL.

Based on my earlier affair with Pravana it won't last. Both applications (blue and purple) in the past came out in just a few weeks. My hair is not bleached, but the length, with the exception of the roots, say 3" or so, has henna and some indigo in it.

[Rain]

I am so in love with this stuff that I'm probably going to use it on all my hair pretty soon. It's a two-step process involving HiColor, then Pravana. I have fine hair that needs some babying after being lightened. And Pravana really has to be followed with moisture anyway. So my question is this: What do you do when you have a color that is prone to fading, but you need to moisturize the crap out of it? If I get my hair wet and slap on some coconut oil, won't that pull the color out?

[MidnightStar]

I am so in love with this stuff that I'm probably going to use it on all my hair pretty soon. It's a two-step process involving HiColor, then Pravana. I have fine hair that needs some babying after being lightened. And Pravana really has to be followed with moisture anyway. So my question is this: What do you do when you have a color that is prone to fading, but you need to moisturize the crap out of it? If I get my hair wet and slap on some coconut oil, won't that pull the color out?

This one is difficult! I'd imagine the coconut oil would cause the fading/bleeding faster. It did it to me with indigo and I can't see how it would be different with Pravana. I read somewhere that oils will cause color to fade faster just in general, so I'm avoiding all oils for right now and probably at least another week. Hmm...I don't know your hair routine, have you ever co-washed? I've found that to be pretty good for getting needed moisture into my hair without causing (a lot) of fading. At least, less than when I shampoo. For leave-in, I use Toadstool's leave-in conditioner, which doesn't seem to bother the color at all.
Sorry I couldn't be more help. :flower: This is something I struggle with as well!

[Rain]

CO washing doesn't work for me at all, but washing with Deva No-Poo does. It contains coco betaine, a mild cleansing agent. I am completely out of it right now. I know there is a color safe version but I can't afford to buy it right now. I use Elucence and Jessicurl. The shampoos are very mild and it's all safe for colored hair. I've just gone almost a whole week without washing my hair because I want the brightest color possible for a stressful event tomorrow. My color looks great but my hair needs more conditioner. Washing and conditioning twice a week has been okay so far, and I use leave-in. I'm just terrified of an oil treatment, even though I think my ends would benefit from it. Blergh.

[MidnightStar]

CO washing doesn't work for me at all, but washing with Deva No-Poo does. It contains coco betaine, a mild cleansing agent. I am completely out of it right now. I know there is a color safe version but I can't afford to buy it right now. I use Elucence and Jessicurl. The shampoos are very mild and it's all safe for colored hair. I've just gone almost a whole week without washing my hair because I want the brightest color possible for a stressful event tomorrow. My color looks great but my hair needs more conditioner. Washing and conditioning twice a week has been okay so far, and I use leave-in. I'm just terrified of an oil treatment, even though I think my ends would benefit from it. Blergh.

Yeah, I'd definitely avoid the oils. I love them too! Also will look into that Deva No-Poo...my hair doesn't really like co-washing either, I get horrible dandruff from it that I'm always super self-conscious about. Hmm...I wonder maybe just a water only rinse, then condition the ends with a regular conditioner? I've done that before to get my hair feeling a bit less ick, though I admit I hate it as it's always so difficult to comb out afterwards.
Good luck with your stressful event! :)

[PolarCathy]

Okay, my Pravana Blue came out with the first oiling (was not very heavy but had it in my hair all afternoon). Olive. That was it for me. Pravana no work for Cathy!

[MidnightStar]

I have one more tube of Pravana Blue, and will probably use it this Friday evening. But I'm seriously considering going back to henndigo. The Pravana does a great job on my length, but gets washed out from the "scalp hair" so I have dark dark brown hair about an inch or two, then the black. Also, it really doesn't cover grays at all, which was one motivation for coloring my hair. Henna at least seems to cover them, so even if the indigo washes out, the grays are henna-colored, and it really seems to be lasting (as the Pravana washed from my longer silvers, I can still see the orangey henna color on them). Considering, considering...hmm. But I don't know that I can handle the maintenance that Pravana seems to demand of my hair anymore, as I can't co-wash and I miss my oils! :)

[StarryNight]

I went pink recently with pravana vivids, and i am so pleased with it.
http://www.tumblr.com/blog/anoddthomas#

[Jmcmullena]

What were the parts you used to get this color? I just out Pravana Vivid Red all I've and it's a little to bright. I am trying to achieve this color so would it be like 1 ounce magenta 1 ounce wild orchid and 2 ounces of red?

[Katze]

hi LHC! Former long-time LHCer here who has given up on trying to get difficult, fine, thick, wavy, mixed hair long and has fallen in love with Pravana Vivids!
On a trip to see family in Portland Oregon I took the plunge and had my shoulder length hair bleached out, then dyed with a mix of Pravana Blue and Violet. The end result was a deep rich indigo-blueberry blue that has faded but still looks nice - SIX months later! No other product I have tried stuck to my hair, whether bleached or dyed.
Now the problem is that I have about 3 inches of roots - which actually look nice in an 'ombre' way with the faded Pravana - but my hair is at a terrible awkward length and I want to bridge the gap by having blue hair again. In a year, my hair will be long enough to look good down and I am happy to rock the 'ombre' look.
And I live in Europe, where no one knows Pravana and where I can only order it online.
My stylist has agreed to apply it for me after bleaching my hair, thus saving me the mess and uncertainty of doing it at home (this stuff stains everything in the first 2 weeks) but I am unsure what I need.
Will two tubes work, one of violet and one of blue for medium thickness, shoulder length hair?
What is the sealant for Pravana and where do I get it?
What does my stylist need to know before applying? Hopefully instructions come with the dye, but I will have to translate them for her…!
I plan on treating it like the lovely lady at the salon in Portland did - no washing for a week to let it 'set', then as little shampoo as possible - lots of CO washing and streching the time between washes worked well before.
Experienced Pravana users - can you help?
thanks!
Katze

[BroomHilda]

I ll leave this feedback here:

I tried Pravana vivids in Blue. I have half virgin hair and half dyed hair (dyed multiple times with peroxide 20v. but NOT bleached)
I used pravana as directed, left it on my hair for about 30-40 minutes.

Lasted for about 4 washes (of which 2 were CO washes), meaning no more than a typical deposit only dye. And I paid 16 euro for a tube. It was a total waist of money. I am so dissapointed.

[augustana]

Are these dyes damage free?

[red-again]

They are deposit only dyes like manic panic. No developer needed. And therefore no damage. However, it depends on your natural base colour as to how strong the effect would be. Ideally, for full brightness, some lightening beforehand is required.
Pravana though, differently to other deposit only dyes, does contain protein. So if your hair goes crunchy at the mere suggestion of protein, steer clear!

[MidnightMoon]

I have been using Pravana for a couple of years now, on both bleached and virgin hair. My experience has always been the same: it sticks very well to bleached hair and lasts longer the further hair is from scalp. On my virgin roots and virgin 1 year of growth it is removed by the second wash, so I too end up with very dark brown roots and blue black and blue on the rest of my hair. It doesnt bother me in certain lights but in others light makes my hair look a medium ash brown while the bleached part with Pravana looks either dark blue or entirely black.

I dont like the amount of manipulation required to apply it (first I have to wash all my hair with head n shoulders, wait until it dries, apply, wait some hours and then wash again)
I feel I am damaging my hair doing that and Im unwilling to repeat the process each week. Right now Im letting it fade from my roots so I have about 13 months of virgin roots, and the rest is dark blue. It looks nice and I might re apply to the bleached portion once it fades more but Im not going to keep doing my whole head. It might be the sign its time to quit experimenting and embrace my *cough* boring *cough* natural colour.