The ' 'wow' v.s. health' issue

[Nera]

There is this one major problem with my hair, that has bothered my for 5 years I guess.
In the winter I naturally have dark brown/black hair, but in the summer it turns light brown with blonde highlights.
When that happens, people always ask me; did you highlight? why did you do that? why did you dye your hair?
My skin complexion is too dark and yellow-ish for light hair, and that makes me feel uncomfortable in my own (natural) hair and skin.
That is why, since I was 15, i've been dying black after the summer.
I feel terrible ruining my hair, I shed a lot more, and do too much damage, but I love the feeling of walking around with fresh, shiny black hair that really 'wows' people, including myself. And i need that since I'm a very outgoing person.

I've been using henna and indigo to get jetblack, but no matter what I try, the indigo fades really quickly.

So lately I've came to the point of wanting to dye my hair again, realizing that it will damage my hair so much that I probably need to cut off half a lot of my length.

Is all that damage worth having the look i want?/
Is being insecure about my color worth having great long hair?


http://i48.tinypic.com/2ldys7b.jpg
This is my natural hair in summer. You can see my darker natural color in the back of my head.

http://i48.tinypic.com/2b8sk3.jpg
Same summer, but dyed black.

It's really time to make a choice. I've been growing and dying my hair for 4 years now, and it can be a frustrating combination.
I think i prefer having long, healthy hair instead of short black hair. But it's kind of a hard dicision.


First of all, there must be more people deeling with this issue.
Tell me something about your double hair wishes that do not really go together.
And what have you chosen, or have you not yet chosen?

I really hope i'm not the only one with this problem, and i hope I will be able to find a solution for this.

[maskedrose]

One thing you could try is using a high SPF leave-in in the summer. I don't have any product recommendations, but I know there are products out there. Also, embrace physical sun blockers, such as hats or scarves. They can look adorable while protecting your hair from the sun.

Personally, I think your hair looks gorgeous both ways, but I like the blond/light brown highlights. They look exotic and I don't think it clashes with your skin. Your curls are lovely :)

[Dreams_in_Pink]

I think both colors suit you; you're lucky!
If you're very unhappy about light hair, why don't you darken your hair with natural stuff? Like a henndigo mix, maybe (with that mixture i heard you can even go jet-black)

[Sunsailing]

My hair has always lightened A LOT during the summer. When I was young, people would ask if I bleached my hair in the summer (this was decades before guys began having highlights, etc.). It would go from darker brown to light blonde.

Back when I had short hair....the first cut in fall would leave blonde hair on top and dark hair on the sides & back once the light hair was buzzed off.

I didn't begin growing my hair until I was in my late 30's. It was about the time that I began going gray. My stylist had just convinced my to begin covering the gray hairs that were coming in. Shortly after I began having the gray hairs colored, I decided to grow my hair long. So the entire time I've had long hair, it has also been colored.

You can color hair with minimal damage. But I highly recommend having it professionally done.
Do you do it yourself or go to a salon?

Everyone's hair is different, but you can have long hair and color it to, and have it healthy. But how you do it and how you treat it makes all the difference.

[3azza]

well, i cant see how the lighter colour does not match with your skin tone. Nonetheless, like it has been mentioned previously, if you dont want the lighter colour then protect ur hair from the sun. I always wear a scarf or a hat initially to prevent damage, but i have noticed that my hair stays dark now instead of going lighter. I know that henna/indigo is a big hassle, but you have to set ur priorities. For me, i would never use chemical dyes because i care too much about my hair, and i feel more beautiful with healthy hair rather than a specific shade of colour.

[Liss]

I actually really like your natural colour with your skin tone. I guess that if you leave it natural, it will lighten further and could look quite striking.

But then I see the image of your dark hair and it is stunning! It really does look like the dark colour is your natural colour, so I can understand your dilemma.

If you are undecided, maybe you can leave your natural colour to come through for a while, then if you decide that you really prefer it darker, you can go back to dying while knowing that the trouble with the upkeep is worth the effort.

[zenobia]

I think your naturally highlighted hair looks beautiful on you. :)

[gretss]

You have great hair! Both colors suit you:)
If you like the black better, go for henna and indigo. To keep the indigo longer add more salt to your mixture and it will stick better. After a few indigoes it will be pretty permanent and you'll be able to just do roots.
BTW your hair doesn't look damaged from the dye.

[virgo75]

I agree with everyone else that you look beautiful with both. :)

I have black hair that turns coppery red in the summer - almost exactly what I get with henna. lol I used to like it, but now I prefer my hair darker. However, I'm using henna and want it healthy more than I want it darker, so for the moment, I just deal with the lighter color. I've never tried indigo.

If you really want the darker hair, why not use a semi-permanent dye which is less damaging than a permanent one? Sure it will fade(supposedly after X number of washes - whatever it says on the packaging), but it should give you the darker color that you crave without as much damage. When I used Clairol Natural Instincts(don't know if you can get that where you are?), it was supposed to be semipermanent, but it never fully washed out. I have some gray hairs and at worst they turned a very dark brownish red even years after the dye, but never fully washed out. Plus if you do plenty of deep treatments and SMTs before and after dying, hopefully that should prevent some of the damage?

Good luck with whatever you choose to do. :)

[FrannyG]

My natural colour is silver in some places and salt and pepper in others, and I have chosen to keep it coloured. I baby my hair in every other way, but I do dye it, knowing that it will probably prevent growing my hair as long as I might like to, while still looking healthy.

Having said that, I honestly think your natural colour suits you beautifully. It's a lovely colour and it does suit your skin tone.

Although you look very nice in black, I think your natural colour has more "wow", to be frank.

[akevita2002]

This happened to me last summer also and it's curios that I didn't have this issue before, maybe because my hair was shorter, I donno :confused:

Not only my hair got lighter, but it also became more dry, breakage occured and it tapered at the ends. Complete disaster. It was part my fault as I stopped pampering my hair for 2 months (during the summer) and I was wearing it down all the time, not a very clever thing to do. I chose not to dye as the color didn't bother me very much comparing to the damage and I thought my natural dark brown/black color will come back. Well, I still have those awful highlights, I am thinking of layering my hair a little to get ridd of them.

Lesson learnt - this summer I'll wear my hair up and won't stop oiling it.

The comparison pictures (25 June 2009 - 30 April 2010), you can see my dark brown hair would maximum get a reddish shade in the light, now it's more blonde :angry:

http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll189/ellybijoux/Andreea%20-%20LHC/00325June200903LHC.jpg http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll189/ellybijoux/Andreea%20-%20LHC/PICT0405LHC.jpg

This was my experience, but I think it's different from yours because my hair (the sun lightened one) didn't get back to it's natural color in the fall - winter.
I cannot tell you what can be done as I will experiment this summer different things for my hair, maybe you should try what other users suggested like wearing a scarf or hat, I think it would suit you as you have a beautiful face.

[Angeletti]

if your unhappy with the color I would say go with it and color it. Like you my black hair lightens due to my red natural highlights, so I'm also coming due for a coloring, and yes I'm bad because I use the box stuff, but as long as your hair is healthy to begin with then hopefully it won't be too hard on your hair. with mine I actually don't notice a difference after coloring, it's still soft and silky as it was before

[Speckla]

I love the highlighted look. It goes great with your skin and it's free. :)

[MsBubbles]

Since indigo is classed as herbal (right?), I don't see how you can't have both! Your hair does look gorgeous black.

I understand your dilemma though because I'm growing out highlights. But highlights strip part of my hair making it weaker, so yes for me growing long AND having highlights was mutually exclusive. I decided to go with 'healthy' and look just awful in the meantime while the roots grow out.

However, I don't see why you can't have your cake and eat it too.

[Nera]

Thanks to all you guys for responding!
I am already doing henndigo (with salt), but not with black results.
And I assume this will not improve during the summer, but I will probably keep on doing it because it helps to get a slightly more uniform color.

It's great to hear that a lot of you like my "natural" sunbleached hair. However, that doesn't change my view on it, maybe it's a matter of taste.

I often do protect my hair with a scarf. But on some of those perfect summer days, i just love to show my hair.

Maybe I do need to work a little harder for the condition, and don't necessarily need to chose between either having healthy long hair or short and colored hair.

[Nera]

akevita2002, our hair kind of resembles! Mine is a little more curly, porous and frizzy (which is why i think it lightenes more), but mine doesn't go back to it's natural/starting color either. It only does because I usually dye it after the summer.

Seeing it on your hair though, doesn't look that bad! Maybe I need to get over it more.

[Fractalsofhair]

You could reapply indigo in a 2 step if you wanted to get jet black if it fades.

[mellie]

I got a very dark dark brown with henndigo. I used Rainbow Dark Brown. Over a couple of applications, it got basically black (compare to my natural color in my avatar):

http://home.comcast.net/~ttudek/pwpimages/DSCN1041_2.jpg

I just refreshed the roots about every 3-4 weeks with a half jar. I usually just mixed with tap water and a splash of white vinegar and used it straightaway (no waiting). My hair seemed very happy with it, very shiny and healthy, much better than with commercial dye.

[jaine]

What kind of henna & indigo are using ? What are you mixing it with and how long are you leaving it on? It should be totally possible to get black with fresh, body-art-quality henna and indigo. I had good results with the henna and indigo from mehandi.com.
Here are instructions to get black:
http://www.mehandi.com/shop/hairindigo/black.pdf

[Cailie]

are you doing 1 step or 2 step hendigo ?

[spidermom]

The sun-lightening process is also damaging, so whether you dye it or not, protecting your hair from the sun is a very good idea. You can always show it off indoors or at night.

[dropinthebucket]

The black does look stunning on you (both look nice, but yes, the black is quite "wow").

The black conventional hair dyes have the highest concentration of PPD, and are the most damaging to health - more PPD allergies are reported with the black dyes than any other colour. But you do have a couple of choices.

1) Indigo in a 2-step with henna is quite permanent for many people, but for some people, it really does just fade (I'm one of them, too!). Adding salt to the indigo step, amla to the henna step, and/or doing back-to-back indigo sessions (apply the indigo, rinse, let dry, do it another application) have been reported to help with sticking power. And as others have mentioned, sometimes indigo needs a good few applications to stick. I gave up at 6, but I have very fine slippery hair! Your hair looks like it might accept the indigo permanently if you stick with a good, long, 2-step application (an hour with the indigo) and give it a few goes. You've probably already switched to light, natural hair products - harsh shampoos can strip indigo pretty quick.

2) You could also try one of the deposit only dyes, like Elumen, or an organic dye that's PPD free, like Naturtint's PPD-free line (not all the Naturtint products are PPD free, you have to get their specific allergen free formulation, but it is for sale online). Good luck, I hope you get the colour you want without having to compromise!

[akevita2002]

akevita2002, our hair kind of resembles! Mine is a little more curly, porous and frizzy (which is why i think it lightenes more), but mine doesn't go back to it's natural/starting color either. It only does because I usually dye it after the summer.

Seeing it on your hair though, doesn't look that bad! Maybe I need to get over it more.
My hair is also porous and frizzy, but I wish it would be half as beautiful as yours!
Anyhow, I'm glad my picture had a positive effect - that after all doesn't look that bad. It happens to me (and I guess to all mankind) often to dislike something on myself and after seeing it on other person to think it ain't that bad.

[lhangel9]

Both shades look great on you, seperately or mixed!

[EbonyCurls]

Maybe you can add indigo to your shampoos and conditioners. They also sell darkening conditioners/shampoos made from crushed wall-nut, and you can do a darkening herbal rinse once a week, and just make that your *summer* routine.

[ravenreed]

I switched to a demi-permanent dye because I wanted to lessen the damage on my hair. It is working just as well as the permanent dye since I am darkening my hair and not trying to lift the color, and my ends are in good shape.

[McFearless]

Wear a hat! I think some type of leave-in will help coat your hair and protect it.

[Danelliia]

I can see why you prefer having darker hair, but both colours look great on you and the lighter colour does not clash with your skin!

[Darkhorse1]

Hi Nera--I have this exact problem too. I work outdoors and am outside up to 16 hrs in a day. When I first started working with horses, I was lucky all my hair fit into an old helmet. Since then, helmets have changed in their safey and putting my hair up will affect the safety of the helmet. So, I had to start wearing it in a braid. Between that and starting to teach and coach at shows in the early 90s, by 1999, my hair was fried from the sun.

Apparently our hair will go the color it was when we were a child. in my case, it goes this reddish color.

If you color your hair, there are conditioners that have sunblock in them. Swarkzkopf has a line, but I find it very, very heavy in cones (made my hair mush). I've used the following:

ICON damage therapy spray on conditioner--currently my favorite--light weight, and not heavy at all. UBV protection for color treated hair.

Also a good one: Joico Integrity. This leaves more of cone build up over time, so I am happy I found the ICON line (though very, very pricey).

The best solution? Find an SPF hair buff. I use this and put my hair up in a bun, then cover it. It's the only way to keep hair from changing color--even just a regular hat won't protect the hair.

I did read that wetting down/soaking hair slows the process down as the sun has to absorb the water first. I plan on trying this at my next show I'm coaching at, though as of now, it's supposed to rain ;)

[GoddesJourney]

First of all, your skin is really not all that dark in the pictures, especially if that's your summer color. The dyed black looks a little too dark to look natural quite and that is just my honest opinion. That said, I live in Souther California where there are a whole lot of girls who have your skin tone and your natural summer hair color (and even kind of look like you). I think it is not only normal but beautiful, especially with your hair texture. I do understand your issue with it bleaching easily in the sun. Mine does the same thing. It's dark brown at the roots but the canopy turns a red to orange coppery color and the ends don't even appear to belong to the same person if I compare them to my roots. My hair isn't even that long. That said, I knew a girl with skin like yours and hair texture and color like that of your second picture. It looked great, too. I would say that it may be a bit too much maintenace to continue that cycle. Try letting it go this year. Maybe if you do it every other year it won't do too much damage. Also, you will never get bored with your hair if you change the color every now and then. Win win. I like black shiny hair, too. Like I said, let it go this time and see if you don't get used to it.

[dropinthebucket]

Here's that Oprah link I was looking for:

http://www.oprah.com/community/thread/57237?start=150&tstart=0

and a rather good article by Julian Kesner, of the Daily News

http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/lifestyle/2006/08/10/2006-08-10__your_bod__babe___to_dye_for.html