Friday, August 3, 2012

How to Get Cool Hair Without Destroying Everything

So, I dyed my hair pink! Except that it sometimes looks purple, depending on the lighting. But that's okay, I like it regardless.


I used this:


...because I was already at Ulta, and Splat: Rebellious Colors is what they had. It came with a bleach kit, which I didn't use because the last time I used bleach it was on my college roommate, and it ruined the texture of her hair. And also because I didn't want neon pink hair.

It said on the back of the box that if you used the dye over unbleached hair, it would just tint it, and that sounded good to me. Now, I've done many a home dye job in my time, but using this stuff has some different results than other dyes I've used. I figured I'd share in case anyone else wants to do a crazy color job.

Tips on Using Splat Hair Dye

• It says on the box to make sure your hair rinses clear every time you shampoo it. Despite my hair being short, it took like 15 minutes to rinse clear the first time; normally it takes my hair less time than that (even when I had longer hair), so I was starting to get worried (and bored). When I shampooed it again the next day, it continued to run pink. Since then, I've been conditioning every day and doing a cold water rinse right before turning off the shower, which seems to have reduced the leakage.

• This stuff stains everything. If it gets on your scalp or ears or face, it will not come off. The box says to use Vaseline to prevent staining your ears and whatnot, but har har I thought "I've done this before, I don't need to do that" and I was WRONG. With other dyes you can swipe the color off your ears/forehead with a damp towel once you're done applying the dye; with Splat, waiting that long was too late. It's been four days and I still have huge splotches of pink dye all over my scalp and ears.

• The box says to make sure your hair is 100% dry before getting dressed or going to bed. I have not noticed any pink stains on my pillow (I shower in the mornings, so my hair is always dry at bedtime), but I've still been wearing dark-colored tops this week because I'm terrified of staining my clothes. Since I live on the surface of the sun I've also been afraid of getting sweaty, because I don't know if sweat activates that leaking-color thing like having wet hair does. (So far, sweat has not caused any leaking color, though admittedly I try to run from the car to the house as quickly as possible and have not done any strenuous workouts.)

• The color fades pretty fast, even though the box says it should last a minimum of three to four weeks. I've read that for lasting color, a second application may be necessary.

Overall, this was fun and I like the results (even with the fading, the subtle pink is pretty), but once it fades out entirely, I doubt I'll do it again. I think worrying about staining probably out-weighs the fun of having a cool hair color.

Would you dye your hair a fun color?

9 comments

  1. It looks so cute! I like it! :)

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  2. I like it! I wanted to dye the tips of my hair purple last summer, but never got around to it. Now I've been growing it out for a year to donate it, so that idea unfortunately went out the window...

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    1. Aw, sorry it never happened! If you get the chance in the future, it's fun!

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  3. Super Cute! I love colored hair..I bleached my bangs in college and had purple, blue, green hair..wish work would allow it so I could do it again :)

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  4. I have colored my hair a million times just about every color! I have been trying to figure out how to follow your blog can I only follow by Email?

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    1. Hi Shanda, sorry I had the feature hidden for following, there's now the blogger "followers" section in the right toolbar. You can also subscribe via Google Reader or any other reader-style feeds! Thanks for stopping by!

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  5. Your hair looks so great in that redish pink tint! I've never done much in fun colors, but have been dying my hair since about 6th grade, when I started a sleepovers with Sun In. I always thought red would be fun, but I've never been brave enough to try something different than blonde highlights!

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    1. Thanks Morgan! You know, I've heard this from several friends who are blonde too — they're afraid that if they dye it, the color will never come out! If you wanted to give another color a try, you could always do just the tips of your hair so it's easy to trim if you don't like it, or a few strands under your hair at the back of your head so if the color isn't your favorite/doesn't come out, you can only see it if your hair is in a ponytail.

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  6. Love your hair: I totally miss having brightly-colored hair. I used to dye my hair all the time; it's naturally a dirty blonde, but for a while I had it bright fuschia in the front and dark brown in the back, one of my favorites! You're right, the dye stains EVERYTHING: vaseline (for the shower, the sink, your ears, hairline, etc.) became my very best friend! And if that fails, bleach (but not on your hair and ears of course!!) My parents forbid me from dyeing my hair in the bathroom for a while after my first dyeing escapade, so I definitely feel the staining ;)

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