HAIR GEEKERY!
I had a lot of fun being a "Hot Tamale" (Garnier Nutrisse Rich Auburn Blonde #76), but I was concerned about using permanent dye on my cranium every 4 weeks. Often times, ideas come to me in dreams. I shot bolt upright one night and exclaimed, "PPUUURRRPPLLLEEE!"
So here's basically what Hot Tamale looks like on me. It's most true to color on the top of my head accounting for my backwards ombre as previously discussed. It's hard to tell in this picture since my hair is up, but trust me, the variance in tone is there!
I'm not processing my hair in any way. I'm just gonna slap some Manic Panic Purple Haze on top of Hot Tamale and be amazed at the results.
I envisioned ending up somewhere in here...
Drum-roll please...
OMG I HEART THIS SO MUCH! I have no idea how I'm gonna keep up my roots, but we'll just worry about that later. It throws burgundy, but not in a I-used-all-sorts-of-different-red-dyes-and-fucked-up-and-now-it's-purple kind of way. The purple really shows through on the bottom tips of my hair and it's definitely purple. The Hot Tamale looks like highlights on top, but somehow the variance in tone that gave me the backwards ombre has diminished a lot. The first 2 photos above show how it can vary from favoring red to purple (and I didn't use any sort of light filter at all in the photos).
Here's some semi-pro tips for Manic-Panic-ing your head!
+ The colors I've personally used that look awesome without bleaching your hair first are: Purple Haze (of course!), Vampire Red, Red Passion (which is really pink, kind of), and Raven.
+ Bleaching your hair isn't overly difficult but you have to be prepared to basically work on your hair all damn day and you still may not be able to lift it light enough. For the lightest Manic Panic colors, your hair basically has to be white. Consult helpful beauty store people or get thee to a professional!
+ Manic Panic can sit on your head all day long! Especially when you don't bleach your hair first, it's important to let it sit for a long time. I waited at least 2 hours before rinsing. Some people sleep in it! The longer you wait the better.
+ Make that hair thirsty! I used a hair scrub, yes a hair scrub, and shampooed (no conditioner, Manic Panic will do that for you!) my hair thoroughly before dyeing. Leesha, aka xsparkage, totally turned me on to this hair scrub by Redken. It's awesome!
+Hit your hair with the blow-dryer a few times while the dye is setting. This "opens up" the hair and lets the color in.
+Rinse your hair in cold water! This "closes" the hair and reduces dye fall out.
+Rinse your hair with a bit of white vinegar. This helps make your hair's pH more color friendly blah blah blah SCIENCE! I use about 1/2 a cup of vinegar to 1/2 a cup of water. Don't get it in your eyes though!
+Avoid pool water and no more super-hot showers!
+You can add a bit of Manic Panic to your conditioner to touch up the color.
+See the Manic Panic Tips section for more!
Do you like to change up your 'do for Fall/Winter? What's your favorite hair color product? Tell me!
