Everyone once dreamed of having blonde hair. While some can pull a blond look off, some might not enjoy it. But hair lightening doesn’t always mean the ultimate blonde hair colour. You can still bleach your hair to achieve a lighter shade than your natural hair. But if you are one of those who dream of beautiful blonde hair that will shine under the sun like a daisy, there are key points and differences you might need to be aware of. Blonde shades are not easy to achieve and can cause great damage if care is not taken.
The Differences Between Bleaching and Colouring
Hair lightening is the process of dissolution of pigment in the hair. Bleaching is used for lightening the already coloured hair. If you want to change the shade of your hair, your hairdresser will bleach your hair. The bleaching process can result in different outcomes depending on the colour of your hair. If you wish to achieve pastel colours aside from blonde shades, your first step should also be bleaching your hair to make the base colour ready for pastel shades. You can use semi-permanent hair colours in pastel shades. If you mix conditioner with darker semi-permanent hair colours, you can also achieve the pastel tone of that specific colour in the bottle. Colouring the hair with blonde hair dyes will not give the expected results if you have a dark base. Hair colouring dyes also contain bleach in them but if your hair has been chemically dyed before, the result will never be lighter than the current shade.
How does Hair Lightening Process Work?
Special lightening products are used in the hair lightening process. Bleach powders or creams are blended with developers and will be applied to the hair. Bleaching can lift your hair to 8 tonnes. After applying the solution to the hair the cuticles open, and this way the product can easily penetrate the cortex, due to oxidation, the natural pigments dissolve. What you should keep in mind is that this process is permanent. Your hair will remain the same bleached shade while growing darker from the roots.
What to Know Before Lightening Your Hair?
Before deciding on the shade you want to achieve, you should consider not just your natural hair color but also your skin color. Knowing your natural undertones will help in choosing the best hair shade that will suit your skin. There is an easy test to determine your undertones. When you check the veins under your wrists, if they appear to be green you have warmer undertones. If they appear blue, you are cool undertoned. People who have warm undertones should consider warmer tones like caramel or honey shades. Platinum or ash blonde hair shades will look the best on cool undertones.
Lightened hair needs extra attention as it is harder to maintain the health of the hair. To prevent brassiness you can wash your freshly lightened hair with purple shampoos. No matter what the lightening process is, your hair will be in desperate need of moisture. Investing in high quality moisturizers or conditioners will boost the smoothness and shine of your hair. With enough care and attention, you can maintain your newly bleached blonde hair as healthy as your natural hair.