So instead of hearing me rant about what is fab and what is bad in the beauty world I thought it was about time I gave a tutorial instead. It's good to mix things up a little.
I get asked quite a bit about how I achieve the silver/ ash blonde tones in my hair so I am going to show you just that!
It's easier than you think and perfectly safe as long as you are super careful (with the bleach in particular) and use the right products. It also saves you a heap of money as it cuts out the need for a hairdresser.
Please note: I am NOT a qualified hairdresser but I have years and years of experience of colouring my own hair every colour under the sun and I have learnt from my own mistakes (unfortunately) of what you should definitely not do.
STEP ONE- BLEACH THAT HAIR
You can spend all the money you want on ash blonde/ silver toners/ dyes and use them again and again but you will not get the ash blond/ silver tone until your hair has been lightened to that fugly yellow shade. Yes it's not pretty but it's what we need for the toner to do its magic.
So how do we get this lovely colour? I shall tell thee now.
First of all you will need to buy some powder bleach and peroxide developer. Normally
I grab a sachet from Sally's hair supplies but if you don't have one of these wonderful stores open to the public close by you can grab Jerome Russells bleach from Boots or Superdrug usually which works a treat.
It looks like this.
Now before I go any further - If you pay attention to anything I say on this post- make it this part.
This was me four years ago...
You can spend all the money you want on ash blonde/ silver toners/ dyes and use them again and again but you will not get the ash blond/ silver tone until your hair has been lightened to that fugly yellow shade. Yes it's not pretty but it's what we need for the toner to do its magic.
So how do we get this lovely colour? I shall tell thee now.
First of all you will need to buy some powder bleach and peroxide developer. Normally
I grab a sachet from Sally's hair supplies but if you don't have one of these wonderful stores open to the public close by you can grab Jerome Russells bleach from Boots or Superdrug usually which works a treat.
It looks like this.
Now before I go any further - If you pay attention to anything I say on this post- make it this part.
This was me four years ago...
Alright well no. I lied. It's Britney Spears but I was close.
The lesson I learnt was this: No matter what shade your natural hair colour is, even if it's very dark brown or black, please do not use anything over 20 volume peroxide bleach because it will FRY your hair. Even if your hair survives it will be in horrendous condition and resemble hay. No one wants that. We want hair that bounces like that on the Pantene ads.
In short, avoid 30 and 40 volume bleach like the plague because that is what I used years
ago and I had clumps of hair falling out in the shower. It was REALLY REALLY scary and cost me a heck of a lot in protein rich shampoos and conditioning treatments. I had no money for alcohol. Says it all.
ALSO- DO A STRAND TEST BEFORE YOU BLEACH YOUR WHOLE HEAD FOR OBVIOUS REASONS.
The darker your hair is the more difficult it is to achieve the yellow shade we need so it will take a good few sessions of bleach. PLEASE leave at least a week between each bleaching session and use loads of protein rich conditioning treatments in between. You may be ginger for a few weeks but you will still have hair. Ginger is cool these days anyway. Or wear a hat. It will be well worth the wait.
So moving on, once you have your bleach just follow the instructions in the box. Mix it up in a non metallic bowl and apply it leaving your roots until last because they will take to the bleach much quicker. Check your hair colour every ten minutes and do not leave the bleach on for longer than stated. Normally about 40 minutes.
Always wear gloves too. That's very important. You normally get a pair with your bleach but I have my own stock from Sally's. Cost me a fiver for a 100. Sweet.
STEP TWO- TONE TONE TONE
Hoorah! You have bleached your hair to that nasty yellow shade. Well done you. Let the fun begin.
This is the easy bit. All you need to do is tone your hair to get whatever shade of blonde you desire. I have tried many many toners and the holy grail of all them all I believe is Loreal PO1 Luo Color, from the pastel collection. This will give you ash blond hair if you leave it on for the 20 minutes stated- but if you leave it on for longer (which I do) you can also achieve the silver tone. PERFECT.
I pick mine up from Sally's but you can buy this online really easily too for about £10. It's popular in salons for a reason.
Along with the toner, you also need a developer. Loreal has a developer made specifically for the pastel collection which can also be picked up from Sally's but if you are unable to find one then you can grab another peroxide developer. Just make sure it's not higher than 10% peroxide as this will effect the toner working properly. Grab a non metallic bowl again and your ready to go.
As you can see below, I didn't have the Loreal Developer this time so used one from Sally's but I have added a picture so you can see what it normally looks like. I'm nice like that.
Mix the toner and developer as stated in the instructions.
VOILA. You now have a lovely creamy consistency. Wack this on your hair and relax.
Like I said if you just want an ash blond tone then leave this on for the required 20 minutes. If you want silver/grey hair then leave it on for longer but keep an eye on it because it changes fast. I normally leave it on for about 40 minutes.
These are my results.
BEFORE
AFTER
Lovely right? Thank you.
STEP THREE- PURPLE SHAMPOOP
I wash my hair every single day and so this normally fades after a month or so. To prolong your colour you need to use a good purple shampoop a couple of times a week. My fave is from the Bleach London range which costs a fiver ( I have wrote a review on this in my July Treats post). A Touch of Silver is cheaper but doesn't work as well in my opinion. You can grab both from Boots or online easily.
Now all that's left is to enjoy your lush colour. Enjoy. ANY QUESTIONS AT ALL- JUST HOLLA.
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