I have long hair, and I've been thinking about bleaching it and then using a toner to make it either pure white or platinum. I've considered this for about a year or more now, and I think I want to go ahead with it, but I am not sure what to do, or if I should. From what I understand, bleaching will make my hair very brittle and dry. Is this permanent, or will it become better over time? I would guess my hair is medium brown, or dishwater blonde. I'm not really certain.
Does anyone know how I should go about this, if I decide to go ahead with it? what kind of extra care will I need to do? I've heard I'll need to rebleach the roots every 3-4 weeks, How difficult is this? I've heard varying accounts from different people. Some tell me it's no big deal, others say it's a nightmare.
Also, is it possible to bleach eyebrows to match? I've heard different answers on this as well. Some tell me there are special products made just for it (which I havn't been able to find), others tell me it'll make them fall out or carries the risk of blinding myself. I have also been considering this for my beard as well, and have likewise found little reliable information on bleaching facial hair (well, I need to make up my bloody mind about my beard too, i guess.. i keep shaving it off every 2-3 months because I can't make up my mind.)
Hi- from recent expereience of bleaching, I would not recomend it- BUT this was only for me. It may be different for other people but this is just my expereince. I decided to have just streaks in my hair, well it was nearly almost bleached all over, anyway, I had heavey blonde streaks used with bleach. AT first it was a total shock and it just totally messed with my complection. (i have dark brown hair). Anyway I thought I would stick it out to see how it goes but in the end (from january to september) I cut the streaks out :(. This resulted in me having a beatles hair styles for a while, but now, April 2002 it is almost as long as it was when I had it cut. I will never permantly colour again- but thats just me, it will be different for different people. It also wrecked my hair and made it very dry.
Just think hard before doing anything drastic and because hair takes so long to grow its not easy to come back or come back quick after making a very drastic decision.
James
Yes you have to touch up the roots every 4 to 6 weeks. Check out the site of Going Blonde. It will give you about all the information you
need. Good luck with it.
Yes, Bleaching does some damage, but you do not have to go totall colorless to take on the silver or gray toners. These toners are necessary however to keep from looking like an albino, unless that is the look you seek.
My beard is gray. I do blech my hair. Stylist are very reluctant to help you go gray but if you insist.
Jim
First let me say I'm a woman. Now that that's out of the way, I have dark brown hair and bleached it very light once. Here's what I think:
(1) Remember once you get tired of it you'll have wait while it grows out or cut it. I don't know how long your hair is. Would you be willing to do this if it is long?(2) Everyones hair is different, but the darker your hair, the longer the bleach will have to sit, and the more damage will be done. (3) If your hair is somewhat dark, its possible all the hair may not lighten to a uniform color. Once three of my male friends asked me to bleach their hair for them. They all had brown hair, but for some reason the one with the lightest brown hair only ended up with some of his hair bleached and some dark. It may have had to do with product build-up.(4) If you're serious, have it done professionally, especially when you're touching up the roots. It's just way too easy to mess up on your own. I ended up re-bleaching some of the hair when I was doing my roots which made my color uneven. Plus some of the hair was reluctant to bleach, which caused more damage because I had to leave it in so long. (5) It will cost you alot of money to have it done professionally, but I think its worth it because you'll cut down the risk of messing it up. Also, they can tell you about doing your eyebrows and beard.(and most likely do that for you too) (6) As far as extra care goes, it shouldn't take too much. Use shampoo for color treated hair (not any more expensive than regular and will keep the fading minimal), and be prepared to spend some time conditioning. The longer your hair, the more this will be important.(7) Any damage will be permanent, although you can use products to help hide it. Split ends will have to be cut. Let us know what you decide.