Things To Know About Going Blonde

Have you ever thought about going blonde? Sometimes going lighter requires a lot more effort than Pinterest and Instagram lead you to think.  Even the most subtle change, such as going from dark brown to light brown means the better part of a day in the salon. A change in colour sometimes feels exciting, or necessary, but consider the steps needed to get there before making your final decision.

Bold Hair Goals
So your a natural brunette with an inner Blonde just aching to emerge in her fair-haired glory? You’ve seen your fave celebs go from raven black to platinum blonde over night and back again…twice…and you feel ready to embrace your lighter side? Well the reality is that the journey to becoming a blonde is not one for the faint of heart!
Everyday we help make hair dreams come true by transitioning dark haired beauties to show stopping blondes and so we know how important it is to be fully informed with all the important things you need to know to make an informed decision and know what is involved in becoming a blonde…and what is involved in staying a blonde…because it isn’t just a hair colour…its a way of life!

Going Blonde is a Journey
The truth is going from brown to blonde may require 2-3 or even 4 sessions of lightening to gradually take you lighter without causing excessive damage to your lengths.  Each round of lightening will remove more of your hair's underlying pigments, which are primarily warm tones such as red, orange and yellow.  Most brunettes request the coveted ash blonde shades, but the truth is you have to be comfortable living with warm shades for quite a while before achieving the goal. In most cases your hair will decide how light you can go. Once the hair looses elasticity, going lighter may mean your hair ends up on the floor.  A good stylist will know when to say no.

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The Importance of Your Hair History
Respect the stylists opinion. They are the expert and they've all seen the worst case scenario.  As stylists we want to ensure that clients who walk around town claiming to come to our salon have beautiful, healthy hair. If a stylist tells you not to go ahead with a lightening service its generally in your (hair's) best interest. Believe them.

Prepare to Spend $$
If you get the go ahead to start going lighter, consider the overall investment.
In most cases, global lightening and glossing requires many hours of work and loads of lightener and colour.  Your stylist will forgo taking on other clients to focus on your hair for a good part of their day. This means you'll most likely be charged an hourly rate to make up for the time.  Maintenance appointments every 4-8 weeks are also to be considered unless you are okay with ghastly regrowth. Going blonde can be beautiful and flattering, but the upkeep and maintenance can be surprising for many people.

Treat Your Hair Right
An important part of maintaining your beautiful blonde is to make sure the toner/gloss lasts as long as possible. The toner is a translucent demi-permanent colour that is put on at the basin after your hair has been lightened. It creates the unifying tone of your hair. Think of it like a ‘filter’ you would use on a photo to change the overall tone of the colours.  Toner is continuously washed out of the hair each time you shampoo and generally lasts 10-12 washes (or a lot less if you are a beach or pool lover!) A purple shampoo or conditioner is recommended to use at home to continuously combat potential brassiness by adding a bit of cool tone with each use. A bottle of dry shampoo, like L'Oreal's 'Day After Hair' can also go a long way to stretch time in between shampoos.

You can always schedule a toner top up between full colour services. Ideally these quick sessions can be combined with a professional strength treatment such as  Olaplex or L'Oreal Powerdose to give your hair a strengthening boost and keep it going that extra mile.