my hair journey: red to honey caramel - step 2 lessen ginger tone with ashblonde dye

1: vibrant red, 2: washed out red / 3: after using color b4 stripper / 4: final result after going over with ashblonde

so after i used color b4 color stripper i got rid from most of my red dye - see older post: "how to strip out hair dye"

i was left with a brassy ginger tone - as expected - to lessen that i used an ashblonde hair dye by garnier olia in "light blonde"

first of all, the new olia hair dye is amazing it smells very nice - not chemical like at all. my hair had to go through a lot and i mean a looooooooot - but after dying my hair with garnier olia it felt soft and healthier than before - not like super smooth healthy - but pretty healthy! i picked such a light tone because i knew that my hair won't turn out that bright - but i needed to pick such a light blonde tone to lessen the red shimmer.

i might lift the color of my fringe since it didn't come out as good as the rest - we'll see. but what i can say till now: WIN!!!!!! baaam

my hair journey: red hair - 2nd touch up

touched up my lengths nd roots last time in march while i was correcting some patchy spots - see my older post

finally my hairdyes arrived whoop whooooop - lifted my roots nd lengths yesterday with l'oreal hicolor in red, i used both tubes. first i applied it to the lengths and let it sit there for about 30 mins - after that i applied it to my roots and went for another 15 mins - taddaaaa! i applied it to the lengths this time cuz it was quite uneven - only way to correct it, is going all over it again or to work with bleach.

before - 8 weeks without touching up

window light / after touching up with hicolor "red"

bathroom light / no hot roots but nice red roots :D  WIN

so today's plan - mixing manic panic with directions hair dye and work it all over to give it a more vibrant and significant red tone.

p r o d u c t s   u s e d

• l'oreal hicolor in red 2x
• cream developer 30% - 140 ml

• manic panic vegan hair dye "rock n' roll red" 1x & "vampire red" 1/2 of the tube
• directions vegan hair dye "poppy red" 1x

u s e f u l l   t h i n g s

• vaseline - apply it to your entire hair/headline to avoid stain on your skin
• gloves
• container for the dye and application brush
• medium hair clip
• hair tie

2nd pic - dyes left to right:  rock n' roll red / poppy red / vampire red

leftovers - what a yummi red

i filled up the poppy red container with leftovers! don't throw it away - i keep it for now and then touch ups in between until i repeat the whole process in 2 months. don't forget to wear gloves when mixing it with your conditioner!!

l: final result after 2nd touch up
r: before, last touch up 8 weeks ago

well, honestly it turned out darker than i wanted it to - guess it's because of the "rock n roll red" by manic panic - should have picked a brighter red. it is brighter than before - but i wanted it like bright bright red. however, my roots are red, my lengths are more even and i'm good with it. but i'm already flirting with another color.. oh well that's how i am.

my hair journey: red hair - touch up ordering

so now that my roots show up about 1.9 inches *icks* i finally ordered my touch up products!
as i work with semi permanent dyes i can easily mix my very own mixture - right now i wear manic panic "vampire red" mixed with directions "poppy red". this time i ordered manic panic "rock n roll red" with "vampire red" - for my roots i'll be using l'oreal hicolor in red, this way i lift them without pre bleaching! gonna do another post when i did my touch up routine

current red tone - yeh without any filter/correction uuuuuyyy
this is my vampire red & poppy red mix

my hair journey: red hair - correcting patchy spots + going brighter

yeh... couldn't help myself

so after i dyed my hair with l'oreal hicolor in h9 red hot 3 weeks ago, i was pretty happy with the result. ok i knew from the beginning that it would take a longer run to get my hair red red red but since my haircolor was kinda uneven and screwd up from the treatment before (went to a salon in bern - ehm ja...) the result with hicolor of course didn't come out even at all -  i had to think about how i get rid of my obvious uneven haircolor at some spots -.- arrgghh

so - i tried to google, as always, but didn't find a good answer - so i just thought "whatever" and got myself a bleaching kit. yes, a bleaching kit... and yes, usually i'd rather cut it all off than going full blonde. nah, i just wanted to lift the darker spots a bit by applying that nasty blonde lifting thing. yes it is damaging (of course how couldn't it? it has something to do with blonde :P haters gonna hate i don't care, so stop crying).

evil bleaching stuff

applied it to the darker spots only

the whole process is simple, i mixed everything together according to the instructions, tested it on a single strand to figure out how much time it needs for a certain lift. after 25 minutes i washed it out and it looked a bit lighter, more matching to the rest of my hair! so i proceeded with the rest of my hair, of course ONLY on the darker spots/areas! if i would've put it on my tips etc it would look uneven again!! so i only applied it to the darker spots and waited for 25 minutes - as i also had to touch up my roots i applied l'oreal hicolor in h9 red hot on my roots and left everything in for another 15 minutes (didn't want super bright roots haha) and washed it all out.

after bleaching, bathroom lightning kinda sucks

the result is more(!) even than before, it's slightly still a bit uneven, but that's ok to be honest - makes it more natural. the following pics show the result AFTER i went over with manic panic/directions.

after / normal indoor lightning, no extra lightning or filter here

before / indoor lightning

before with patchy bangs/sides + super bright lightning

after / with sunny lightning from outside (window)

t o u c h   u p

after letting my hair air dry i mixed 3 parts of directions "poppy red" with half of manic panic's amplified "vampire red" tube and applied it to my entire hair. these sweeties are SEMI-permanent hair dyes, vegan + they are NOT tested on animals!!! how awesom is that?! since they are vegan (vegetable based), they don't contain any aggressive and damaging chemicals, that means you can easily let it sink in your hair for about 2-4h!! yes, you can even let it in over night! the application is super easy and i even had leftovers so i disposed it back in the directions pot - i can use the leftovers for refreshing my color while washing my hair everytime!

color mixture in daylight - vibrant red with a cool undertone

vegan hair dye <3

I'll do the same touch up process once a month, lifting my roots with l'oreal hicolor in h9 red hot and apply my color mixture (directions poppy red and manic panic vampire red) all over afterwards.

 

started to mix, bright red is "poppy red" darker one is "vampire red" I added more afterwards, just so you can see the contrast

#5 inspired post

when i first met mr. big i never had a clue what was about to come in my life - the past months were anything but normal, i guess it's something totally irrational what made me do all of those things. i experience so many different things, a lot i experienced for the first time. but it's not all about experiencing things for the first time, it's about how he makes me see them from a different point of view - like there isn't any better way for it, like this is just how it should be. and that feeling is beautiful. this is def not where i planned to go in first place, but it reveals to be just the perfect, right place where i belong to be in the end.

cloud 9, cloud 7, pinky love glasses, falling in love, loves stoned - however one might call it, i don't care. fact is mr. big knocked me off my mental feet, like there is a switch for inspiration and imagination that went from "off" to "ON & hyper hyper on". my mind was never dull though, but it felt like slowly drying out from thirst - thirsty for huge mental stimulation. guess i couldn't define it myself back then, but something was missing in my life. he inspired me in a different way, enabled me to write again - not just about how awesomely handsome he is etc nah, much more!! almost every text is inspired by him and that makes me happy. that makes my mind feel alive and limitless - i feel a huge need to write my thoughts down and if i can't then that upsets me, more and more each day. so as he gives me inspiration, he gives me peace of mind and happiness at the same time.

i believe that one can find inspiration in many things, but if you can find inspiration which is given from the heart of someone so special - well that amazes me.

thank you

my hair journey: how to care for red hair & maintain vibrancy

Disclaimer: i'm by no means a professional - if you are concerned using some of the mentioned products then consider your local beauty salon for advice or google! i just share my experiences with you and show you how i do it cause' it works for me.

yeh dem b!tches be like "care, care, care" - BUT hair care becomes slightly different when you are a red head! The better you care for your hair with the right products, the longer you will enjoy a vibrant color - no you really don't want to run around with hair looking all faded and... just meh!!!

g e n e r a l

as we know from our research, red color molecules mostly sit on the surface of our hair because they are too big for our hair cuticles to fully absorb. each time you wash your hair it will bleed out - there is no way of avoiding it. especially if you wash it on a daily basis or every second day + overkill factor: warm/hot water. i wash my hair in cold water only - how i do it without freezing my whole body, i'll explain later. combining both, daily washing + warm/hot water, i'll promise you that your red color will fade super fast. that's why i wash my hair max. 3 times a week - usually 2 times, when i was out clubbin or whatever doin things that affect the freshness of my hair i wash it 3 times, otherwise just 2 times. you think that's gross?! jezz a bit oil is so good for our hair - it's natural!! - washing your hair on a daily basis will damage it anyways and might cause a dry scalp! sure it depends if you have naturally greasy hair or not, but if you have let's say "normal" grease excess then 2 times a week is just fine! but here's another tip, use dry shampoo between your washing days - it's not at all old fashioned, it works super well and gives back freshness by absorbing the grease in your hair + it smells nice. 

p r o d u c t s

• "reviting reds" shampoo & conditioner (see first picture), amazon
• "gliss kur" marrakesh oil & coconut intensive hair mask, dm
• "alverde" almond & argan hair oil, dm
• "balea" trend it up dry shampoo, dm

bleeding love *sing*

m y  r o u t i n e

as i said before i wash my hair in cold water, so obviously i don't want my whole body to freeze the sh!t out of it - that's why i wash it separately. see how it bleeds out even with cold water? the thought of how bad it would bleed out even more with hot water gives me shivers!!! i wash it headover in the tub first, using both my reviting reds shampoo & conditioner. those products are indeed red! they are red tinted and color depositing products, that's why they help you to maintain your color a little better and longer. we aren't talking about general products for colored hair, these goodies are explicit for red hair because they contain red pigments - yes they will stain your hands a bit, but that fades after washing your hands with soap or showering your body.

shampoo above, conditioner below

when i put on the conditioner i also add some of my hair mask and massage it all in. instead of hangin over the tub for 8-10 minutes like a weirdo. i slightly wring out my hair and wrap it in an extra towel - then i shower my body as usual, having both products in my wet hair which i wrapped up. that works just fine and i can have both, warm shower & cold hair wash!! after showering i simply hang over my head again and wash it out! that's all, actually not much more effort than doing it the other way round - that way it's much easier to leave in the mask/conditioner. my hair really feels awesomely soft and it's somehow easier to straighten!! of course i use a heat protector before doing so. super shiny!

stained hands - but no biggie!

after that i just massage a little bit of my almond/argan oil into the tips of my damp hair and let it air dry - another amazing tip! cold washing + air drying really helps your hair to shine, stay healthy and on top of that it maintains your color way longer! although the reviting reds products help for vibrancy they do not replace a touch up! the difference after using it isn't phenomenal, but you can clearly see that it helps a bit. in my next post i'll write about how i touch up my roots and what i use on my hair length to touch up! i just ordered two different semi permanent hair dye, manic panic amplified in vampire red (more a blueish red) and directions in poppy red (more a pinkish hotter red) however these are vegan dyes, you can mix them and they don't damage your hair because they don't contain ammonia or other aggressive chemicals - they are even cruelty free!! but you will read about both in my next post.

one last tip: when you use dry shampoo between your hair washes then you won't have problems with grease or whatever. i'm not sure yet if this product is the right one for me but til now it works. 2 days after washing my hair i spray little strand by strand on my upper sections, run a towel gently through my hair and brush it out - no leftovers but freshness instead!

my hair journey: black/dark to red hair (without pre bleaching)

DISCLAIMER: 
i'm not a professional!!! however, if you should be unsure about dying your hair (damaging, chemicals, color result etc) please do NOT do it! consider your professional beauty salon for adivce! all i do is to share my experience i made on my own.

f a c t s

ok, first of all - and i'm sure you guys heard or read it a thousand times before (if you did research): red hair color fades out damn fast! i mean super fast, like a bleeding b!tch on her damn period without a tampon!!!
why? because the molecules in our super gorgeous red hair color are too big for our hair's cuticles, so the color mostly just "sits" on the surface - which explains why it "bleeds" out hella crazy each time you wash your hair. this information is essencial when deciding wether you dye your hair red or not because it surely means that you will dye/refresh your hair a lot more than with other colors! however i decided to go reeeeed <3 again...

and guys... please - do research!!!! google can be your bff, if he b!tches around at the first page then just check out the 2nd or 3rd page!!

ask yourself at least these questions before turning into a red head:

• is my hair healthy/strong enough to handle dyes/refreshers every 4-5 weeks (depends)
• can i effort to buy the hairproducts (dye, special hair shampoo/conditioner, hair masks) every now and then
• do i really want to invest a lot of time for hair care routines
• can i handle to get red stains on towels, pillow sheets or even clothing (especially when it rains!) etc
• red colored hair might bleed out a bit while swimming in pools O.O might embarass the sh!t out of you cuz peepz be like "damn dat gurl on her period?!?!?!" 
• if your hair has been dyed recently (like mine was dyed to a mahagoni brown/red about 3 weeks ago) don't expect wonders!!! won't really work as well as with colored hair that hasn't been dyed for longer than 4-5 months + think about the damage that might be caused after over dying. in general you should strip out the color first, the best results will be achieved with virgin hair. my hair wasn't damaged thaaat bad after using this dye!!!

h o w   t o

since you can't get anything good here in germany or switzerland that truly lifts dark hair to fire red without bleaching, i bought "L'Oreal Excellence HiColor For Dark Hair Only" in h8 red & h9 red hot from the states via amazon! these products have amazing reviews -again, it's for dark hair only and you won't have to prebleach you hair! i wanted to go fire red, like vavavavoooooooom the roof is on fire red!!! but - for my first attempt with this hair color i started out with h9 red hot, which won't give you a fire red but still a very nice and vibrant red. i'll try to go lighter in the next months but i'll write about that in a future post!

what you'll need:

• "L'Oreal Excellence HiColor For Dark Hair Only" in h8 red or h9 red hot (I went with h9 red hot) 
• gloves 
• l'oreal 30 vol. creme developer (peroxide activates the bleach which the dye contains! it also comes in 40 vol, but trust me you don't wanna fry your hair with 40 vol) 
• small bowl to mix everything together
• tin foil, i use to wrap my hair in tinfoil while waiting for the dye to do it's magic. the warmth will fasten/intensify the process and will give you somehow better results
• application brush 
• vaseline, no we are not having dirty mind games right now! you better put your hands on some of this and apply it along your hairline, on your ears, neck etc because otherwise you'll have such a hard time washing away the red stain - for days!!!!
• hair clipper to section your hair, this will make it a lot easier for you to apply the color evenly
• old shirt, no you don't want to ruin any of your precious shirts/tops that you wear on a daily basis

1. step

time to put on our sexy gloves ;) grab vaseline and apply it along your entire hairline, ears and neck.
pour the whole "h9 red hot" tube in your mixing bowl and add 2.5 oz or 73 ml of the creme developer - stir up everything like your doin some delicious cake icing! yeeeeeeah!!! stir stir stir until there aren't any clumps left!!

2. step
section your hair and clip up the rest, this way it will be a lot easier for you to apply the color evenly through the entire hair. start applying the color strand by strand. important: when your hair has been dyed already (like mine) and you have regrowth at your roots, then definetly start at the bottom and work your way up, leaving the roots for last! when you start at your roots they will turn the brightest!

3. step
when you're done with applying, gently massage the dye into your hair a bit and clip it up. grab some tin foil and wrap it around your hair, this way the warmth that builds up underneath the foil will intensify the result! my neighbor rang at my door and I opened looking all like a psycho weirdo ready for abduction by aliens woohooo still looking fly huh?

4. step
the box said to leave it in for 30 minutes after you are done with applying - I let it in for 45 minutes. washed it all out, hanging headover the tub rinsing it out with ice cold water - that is very important for a long lasting color, do not use hot/warm water!

optional step
i did this process twice  yes... twice - you should leave your hair at least one day to "rest" though. the reason i did it twice is to even out the tone since my hair was colored in a rather uneven way before + the result will be brighter! after that it´s all about deep deep deep deep care! but we´ll take a look at this in the next post.

 bright lightning - comparable to how intense it looks when i´m outside during a sunny day
I will try to go lighter in the next months, but for now I'm super happy with the intensity!

that´s how it looks with usual indoor lightning - still I think iphone pics aren't really true with the coloring -.- meeh - makes it look less red!

shadowy lightning

before - lol lightning kinda hit me bad here, 
hahaha nope not having white hair yet

before, after the first attempt to go red
from black

not like I'm not proud to be a black haired gal ;)
but I still love red... as you can see