My Hair Saga (or why I should listen to my husband) - with pics!

[long.again]

Have you all seen that mermaid ombré dye effect? The top is your natural color but the ends ombré (or gradually change) to tones of the ocean (blues, greens, purples maybe). I love the look but I didn't want to do it because I'm a natural honey blonde and I didn't want anything to stain my hair. Plus, I didn't want to damage it, especially at the fragile ends. Well, several weeks back I saw that there was this new hair dye product out that was basically pigment mixed with conditioner. It was supposed to wash out in 1-3 washed and, online, most reviews said that the pigment really didn't show and it wasn't permanent enough. PERFECT, I thought, I can do the mermaid effect without commitment. My husband told me not to do it. He said I take great care of my hair and that I'd regret it. But I did it anyways.



Oooo. Fun. It looked okay. And the color faded quickly. After 6 weeks though, I was ready for it to be gone. Unfortunately, the green stained my hair (duh) and I had that swimmers hair look... kind of a day-glow green on the ends.

That picture doesn't do it justice. So what do you think I decided to do? I dyed those ends with a box dye.

Well, because my hair is virgin hair and naturally sun bleached, the dye took differently in different areas. The last 2-3 inches were dark mossy green. Above that, a 2 inch horizontal band of an ashy blonde and above that another darker horizontal band. Then it was my natural golden blonde resulting in still another horizontal line. I was

devastated. Bawling my eyes out. And the whole time I knew my husband was going to be ticked because he told me not to mess with it.
He was so supportive though, and just as concerned that I was going to have to chop it off to salvage it. I ended up clarifying with Prell and HOT water, adding a ton of conditioner and sleeping in a bun. The next morning I washed and dried it and it did look better than the night before but still green and not my normal at all. My husband said, "It's not too noticeable, it just looks really dirty." Great, that definitely not the look I was going for.



I knew I had to go in to a salon and get it fixed. The more I messed with it the more I was risking losing length. Ensue, hair stylist anxiety... Wash she going to want to chop it off? Would she tell me that thin hair should be kept short? Would she tell me that hair needs to be cut every 6 weeks? Would she want to change my whole head?
Turns out, through recommendations, I happened to get the most amazing stylist who did a perfect job and did everything I have learned from THC. She even said "I'm just going to dust the ends" when she trimmed it. *swoon* The end result is amazing and closer to my natural hair than I ever thought possible.



You'd never know that, just hours earlier, I was crying my eyes out in my bathroom over my ruined hair. Please someone slap me if I ever decide to dye it or cut it. Never again.

[Kaelee]

Wow, your stylist did a great job!!! Definitely baby it from here on out, it sounds like that could have caused some damage. It looks great though!!!!! Really glad it worked out for you!

[icallitbliss]

Wow, yeah, I would have been freaked out too! Glad you got an amazing stylist to fix it. Your hair looks great and you can hardly tell that it got cut.

[Soltimus]

She did such a nice job! I'm glad you didn't have to cut it. That would've been such a shame when your hair is so long and healthy.

[lazuliblue]

Glad you got your hair sorted out I STILL have part of my hair that is green from where I dyed it blue with Manic Panic...which is only supposed to last 6-8 weeks. Well, it's been over a year and the only way that colour is coming out is by me cutting it out when my hair is long enough!

[Suze2012]

She has done a great job!

That sounds like nasty stuff! Best avoided and the damage really shows up in the earlier photos.

I think I'd be doing a few reviews of that stuff on various sites in the hope others avoid using it.

[bo-peep]

You got SO lucky!!! Your hair survived AND you found a great stylist!

Your hair looks wonderful!

[dwell_in_safety]

That stylist is a keeper! Really glad you were able to get it fixed; you have beautiful hair.

[jacqueline101]

Your hair turned out great.

[meteor]

Wow! Great color and great hair! And congratulations on finding the perfect stylist!
Don't forget to baby those ends from now on. The damage from dye often takes a while to show, so you'll benefit from a proactive approach.