Going RED

Alright, not sure how many people noticed but last summer after I graduated my hair magically changed colors...to red.

Why red?

Well, why the heck not!?

I'll start from the beginning. I have wanted to be a redhead since I was very young. I was fascinated by the fact that it was such an uncommon hair color. And it's STUNNING...so to any redheads out there who get teased because of your hair color, SHOVE THIS BLOGPOST IN THOSE PEOPLES FACES!! Because they are wrong. You are absolutely beautiful.

My dad was also a ginger in his younger years...so it probably stemmed from that a little bit, too. My brain connected the dots and realized that God made a mistake and that hair color was given to us for a reason: to correct those mistakes.

Now, to any of you out there who are thinking about Going Red, this next part's for you. While I absolutely 100% stand by the hair color choice I made, it is not for everyone:

1. It is extremely hard to achieve the exact shade of red you desire. I'm not even going to tell you how many times I've had to visit the hair salon to correct it. And I still haven't found my perfect formula. But I will! I'm patient and I would never trade in my red even though it can be a pain at times :)


2. Red fades fast. If you're the kind of person who loves washing your hair every single day (which I don't recommend to anyone because it strips your hair of its natural oils...but I'm not going to even get into that in this blog post), red is not the color for you. Use a shampoo (+ conditioner) made for color treated hair to reduce how quickly it dulls. If it complements your skin tone, go for a shade of red that's close to the lightness/darkness of your roots. That way your roots won't be as noticeable when they start to grow out, and you can go for longer periods of time between salon visits. a.k.a SAVE MONEY!!! $$$


3. It can be expensive. Especially if you don't take my advice above in #2. I like to go to salons that offer Aveda hair color, because in my personal opinion, I feel that Aveda color lasts longer, and is more rich and vibrant overall. I like to go 8 weeks between each salon visit. I stretch out my color as long as I possibly can. If you got cash to blow, I guess this isn't an issue for you. For normal people, it can be very stressful.


Now you've been warned. But I wouldn't be writing this post raving about red if I didn't love it. It's FUN! Red really suits my personality. I like that it feels like there's a flaming fire ball on top of my head. I like when Chloe calls me "gingie locks." People can easily spot me in a crowded room. It makes you want to whip your hair.


How would I describe my shade of red?


Red can mean a lot of different things. There's red-brown, burgundy red, Fire Engine red, orange red, carrot red, copper red...
Here's how it (sort of) went down:


colorist: So what kind of red do you want?


me: I want Weasley red. The stuff that looks like it naturally grew out of your head. I do not want fake dark burgundy or brown red. I want it to be "carrot red," not "beet red." By carrot I mean more of an orange-y, copper penny shade. Like Lucille Ball! I love Lucy's hair. I want to be a ginger.

YES: I like my hair Ron Weasley red!

NO: dark burgundy red is too fake-y for my taste

If a colorist asks me, "If I err on one side, lighter or darker, which would you prefer?" I ALWAYS tell them "Err on the lighter side!" because darker hair color makes my pale face look washed out. Washed out = I look like I'm sick all the time because it highlights my pale-ness.

Which gets to my next point: why I choose red over blonde or brunette. First, I've dabbled with blonde. My roots [natural hair color] contrast blonde too much. When this happens, it automatically makes your hair look greasy (even when it's not) because your roots are darker. I found that my hair grew too fast to keep up with this stark contrast. Not a good combination.

I already touched on why brunette is no good for me. It's too dark, and I'm too pale to pull it off. Chloe has an amazing natural God-given hair color, that conveniently came with amazing natural God-given tan skin. While I didn't get my dad's freckles, I did inherit the pasty, milky-white, never-seen-the-daylight (and if it does it burns) skin. 

So there you have it. I hope that answers any questions you may have, but if you have any further, don't hesitate to ask! Comments always loved <3

Stay lovely ;)

xo,

T

p.s. I have a "gingspiration" board on Pinterest...great reference for colorist: http://pinterest.com/taylordturner/gingspiration/