How Easy is to go Blonde or get Rainbow Hair? Sydney Inner-west Hair experts

Here at Stevie English Hair we get loads of enquiries about going blonde or unicorn hair. A lot of the questions go like this :

“How much will it cost to go pastel pink/ rainbow/ platinum ash blonde? I’ve got long hair, previously coloured dark brown and want to know if I can come in Saturday and leave with blonde hair with absolutely no yellow or orange tones. Also will I be out in 3 hours?”

The short answer to this question is NO. The long answer I will explain below in more detail, so if you are interested in any kind of dramatic colour change, please read on. 

Thanks @misswen

  So, can anyone go blonde with bright accents ? 

 WILL IT SUIT ME?

  We believe anyone can do anything with their hair. Confidence and personality over rides everything!  BUT…

  It’s about finding the right blonde. There are loads of different blonde types, just type “blonde” into Pinterest and see the shades.You can have blue-toned platinum, pink-platinum, green-blue platinum, steel grey , blue/grey, and even golden-platinum. You need a blonde base to do the “crazy (bright) colours”   

The perfect platinum shade is a mixture of what YOU like, and what the we like as a rule. 

DO NOT DO THIS AT HOME KIDS!

   You can YouTube anything, but powder lightening your hair is definitely not something you should do yourself! It’s not a great idea for your mate to do it either. Unless you really like the idea of major scalp blisters and an unintentional jelly chewing gum hair, you need to see a professional in order to go platinum. Does that sound scary? Because it is a reality! DON’T DO IT! 

IT TAKES TIME (SERIOUS) TIME

 Hair pending… Now if you have enough hair for 3 full wigs and it’s black- you can guarantee its going to be a long day in the salon. Even natural, virgin hairgoing white/platinum is still a massive job that needs several stages and close supervision.

  We would recommend it will take a few sessions (that’s 2 or 3 sessions) of sitting in the salon for 4 to 6 hours each go. Patience is a virtue but you need serious patience to go blonde and you can guarantee you will have very warm, possibly itchy moments whilst trying to get there. 

YOUR HAIR WILL NOT LIKE ME, OR YOU

 It doesn’t matter how healthy your hair is, lightening hair is a serious business and it changes the structure of your hair. Powder lightener attacks colour pigment, both artificial and natural, it doesn’t have a brain it’s job is to strip all the pigment out of hair. 

At Stevie English Hair, we use Matrix Bond Ultim8  which is a bond restorer and repairs the bonds in your hair that are broken by the lightener. Bond products like this have radically changes what we are able to achieve with hair colour, but they are not miracle products.The bottom line is that bleach damages hair bonds, we do everything we can to keep it as healthy as possible but it won’t feel or look the same as your natural hair, and you will more than likely have some breakage.

Katy Perry’s recent short haircut was a result of her hair all snapping off, so it goes to show that it can happen to anyone. I’m not trying to scare anyone off, I just want to be as honest as possible about this process. If your stylist tells you to use the Bond Ultim8 part 3 Part 3 at home once a week- DO IT!!

WHAT’S YOUR PAIN THRESHOLD? 

 So, you’re still here and still going to lighten your hair. You are going to have powder (bleach) on your head for an hour, on extreme occasions longer and maybe another application and toner! Blisters and slight burns are not uncommon - products are getting better and better but it does happen. At the very least, your scalp will feel hot and quite itchy, the discomfort eases off as your scalp desensitises so if you can stick it out, do. We always talk about the pain scale. 1= cant feel anything 10= I’m dying - please speak up, but remember beauty is pain. 

IT’S EXPENSIVE! START SAVING

 Quality comes at a cost. We do our best to look after your hair, we have years of training and experience and we charge accordingly. If you want cheap, go elsewhere. Going blonde and having rainbow/mermaid/unicorn hair is an investment and an ordeal- we are completely changing your hair! A ballpark figure $400 -$600 for the first visit and if you are fortunate enough to get it first time you will be spending $200- $400 every 6 weeks for root touch up and toner. We always offer complimentary consultations in the salon as it’s difficult to quote without seeing you in person.

EMBRACE HIGH MAINTENANCE

  So you have watched adverts for years about how great Pantene is… now throw it away because it is rubbish. It’s literally coating your hair in silicone (plastic) too give the false appearance of shine. We don’t recommend salon professional shampoos to rip you off- we recommend them to keep your hair in check and to maintain your expensive colour work. Silver shampoo keeps the dreaded brassiness away as the undercoat of your colour will always shine through. If you are blonde, there will be yellow, and purple neutralises yellow.

Being blonde means your hair will feel dry. We are a Matrix salon and recommendBiolage shampoos and conditioners, and you have to take home part 3 of Bond Ultim8 as well as KHair Pep, a peptide hair masque. 

 Do you wash your hair every day? We now recommend you wash your hair less and use dry shampoo more. Once a week is ideal. 

Hair is at it’s weakest when it is wet, so treat it gently and use nice brushes and hair ties. If you go swimming, wear a cap. If you have rainbow hair, use dark towels and pillowcases and expect to see crazy coloured sweat trickle down your face at the gym. It’s a lifestyle adjustment but you will look fabulous.

  THERE IS NO GUARANTEE

 There is a chance that you might never get blonde enough, your hair might be too fragile, those old home hair colours might not never come out. Worse case you don’t get there… Now you can have loads of fun with your colour and think of all the palettes of colour you could have , pinks purples etc…

The reality is that icy white is not achievable for everyone. 

 STILL WANT TO DO IT?

  Great! Colour corrections are a speciality of ours and we absolutely love doing them. There is nothing more rewarding than completely changing someone’s look and seeing the other changes that can result from it. We want to colour your hair and I’m not trying to put you off with this post, but we want you to have realistic expectations. It’s a process. If we work together and both have the same end goal and follow the steps, we can achieve most results.