I'm with Chai. I've colored my hair since I was 22 (I took about 3 years off in there but otherwise I've been coloring it). I am now 43.
Without coloring (yes, I know what shade it really is), it's mousy medium brown with a lot of grey. With color, it's strawberry blonde. Since I have white hair in front, that dyes lighter than the rest of my head -- instant highlights!
I don't use Feria but I may try it after the stellar recommendation. I use Clairol Nice 'n Easy (#104) and L'Oreal Excellence (8G - Medium Golden Blonde). The L'Oreal is slightly darker and the Clairol is slightly redder so I switch off every other month and it all blends nicely.
Chai's right, there are definitely ways to do this without getting color everywhere. Personally, I just color my hair topless (
take it easy, Gus). It's just easier. I get a magazine to read and sit in the bathroom for a half hour while everything is percolating (after I've applied the color), then hop in the shower.
Both types of color (and any reputable hair color manufacturer) include a tube of a deep conditioner. It's enough for a month. You rinse the color out then apply about 1/4 of the conditioner, leave it on for maybe 5 minutes, then rinse and style as usual. Then apply another 1/4 of the conditioner in a week, then another, etc. The way I remember is to do the application on Sundays. Then once the conditioner is done, that week, I color my hair again, so it's -
- 1st Sunday, color hair and apply 1/4 of the deep conditioner
- 2nd Sunday, wash hair and apply 1/4 of the deep conditioner
- 3rd Sunday, wash hair and apply 1/4 of the deep conditioner
- 4th Sunday, wash hair and apply 1/4 of the deep conditioner
- 5th Sunday, color hair and apply 1/4 of the deep conditioner, etc.
Of course, in between I wash and condition my hair as per usual. Also, one thing I've found is that the conditioner is a bit much for the hair right at the crown -- it can make it appear a little greasy. So I don't apply the conditioner all the way up there, and just shampoo there. I'm talking about a very narrow swath there, maybe 1/4 of an inch on either side of the part. But everything else gets the deep conditioner, once a week.
One thing about coloring: if you haven't done it before, don't try to make a huge change. Just a bit at a time, usually either your original shade or only one shade lighter, darker or redder, and no more. You can fiddle around later. But if your initial coloring is close, you won't feel too bad if it's not what you really want. After all, it's your own color (or very close to it). For example, when looking at the Feria site,
http://www.lorealparisusa.com/haircolor/products/feria/index.asp , I see that I'm probably close to Candleglow Blonde (93). I could go to 94 or maybe 91 without too many people asking me if I was suddenly coloring my hair. If I wanted something more drastic but still blonde, I could go for something like 72. I wouldn't select a dark brown like 40 as that would just make me look like a middle-aged Goth chick.
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