New hair, Garnier Color and Shine in Chocolate

Hello!

I hope you are well.  I dyed my hair again last weekend after a long period of leaving it to grow naturally.  I hadn't dyed it for so long because of a really bad episode of eczema that had affected a few parts of my body including my scalp so any potential irritants were off the menu big time!
My skin has been calm again for a few months now and I was feeling really dowdy with my natural hair colour (quite a pale sort of mousy brown).  I decided it was time to use another semi permanent dye to give my hair some vibrancy again.
I chose the shade Chocolate 5.35 from the Garnier Color and Shine range.  I've used this range before and really liked the results but never used this particular shade.

I did an allergy test as you always should 48 hours before and all was fine so I went ahead and let my personal colourist (fiancé) do the dyeing.
The result was quite a bit lighter than I had expected.  I wanted a warm brown but it was a bit more warm red brown.  I usually go for quite a red colour dye so didn't mind the red in the colour and feel that it warms up my face.

 These photos were taken almost immediately after my hair was dried and I hadn't even properly brushed it yet.  I'm very pleased with the results.  The difference is actually quite natural and subtle but I can really notice it when I look in the mirror and I feel like I look much fresher.  I like semi permanent dye as I don't feel like it's as damaging as long as I don't do it too often and I still feel that my hair retains some of the colour for quite a while.

Till next time :)

Twirlybirdie

I want Pink hair!

Browsing through Tumblr I have been exposed to some gorgeous images of long pastel coloured hair.  I'm so drawn to it for some reason.  I know I can't dye my hair that colour right now, there's no way I'd be allowed on stage with pastel pink hair, but in another universe, that would be me...... long pastel coloured hair flowing in the wind, flowers in my hair.  Ethereal and pixie like.  I'm sure that it's extremely difficult to pull off in real life outside of an arty fashion shoot!  I remember when I was shopping at Topshop in Oxford Street I saw this new hair salon called Bleach on the bottom floor that seemed to be doing this very thing!

I would probably have to just get the ends of my hair done as my skin is so sensitive I doubt it could tolerate bleaching.  Sigh.

For now I might have to go for this comb in-wash out colour that I saw in Urban Outfitters!

Much safer and less permanent for now!
xxx

Red hair

Hello!

Even though it's summer here it's not been particularly warm yet.  I'm really hoping it will heat up soon!  As I've been spending a bit more time indoors I've had the chance to make a few more pairs of earrings :)

The past year I've been dying my hair red.  I had a bad reaction to some highlights I had put in my hair as a teen and had been too afraid to have it dyed since.  However I became desperate to have red hair a couple of years ago and after some internet research decided to try the least toxic sounding one I could find.  I took the necessary precautions (allergy test etc.) and luckily it turned out just fine!  All the reviews that people have written on the internet of their experiences with various hair dyes were so useful that I wanted to share my own.
First I used HennaPlus Long Lasting Colour in Henna Red.  I really wanted a dark red colour and although this is what I got initially it faded pretty quickly to more of a warm ginger red.  Luckily I still really liked this colour and it seemed to warm my skin tone and suit the summery weather.  I was expecting the dye to ruin my hair but my hair seemed to be in really good condition after using this dye.  The hair colour really stayed in my hair so when my darker roots grew through I decided to re-dye it with the same dye again as I liked the colour so much!
A few months later I decided I wanted to try a darker colour so that when it grew out my roots would be less obvious. I went for Tints of Nature Dark Henna Red as it contained no ammonia.  This dye actually seemed a bit more chemical than the HennaPlus one and my hair didn't feel as nice after using it.  The colour was a bit more purple than red and quite soon after using it I felt that I needed to use a lot of treatment to repair my damaged hair.  It was darker but not as dark as I would have liked and it faded pretty quickly to a colour between the warm coppery one from HennaPlus and the darker shade.  I did get a few compliments on the colour of my hair at this time but I wasn't satisfied with the colour so a couple of months later I decided to really go for it and bought some Garnier semi-permanent dye called Glowing Red with no ammonia that was really quite bright on the box but just what I was after.
I did some more research on getting the best results from your dye which told me to do some intensive hair conditioning for a few days before the dye as well as getting it cut.  I also washed my hair the day before with as little conditioner as possible to give the colour a chance to grab on to my hair and didn't wash it for 3(!) days after colouring it.
I love the colour it is now!  It's bright and bold and very me.  Hopefully I will get some pictures of it up soon.  Now I just have to figure out how to hold on to the colour as long as possible!  My research has led to me upgrading my shampoo and conditioner to slightly more expensive 'sulphate-free' versions that shouldn't strip hair colour.
 

Red Swarovski Crystal Drop Earrings

Now for my latest earrings!  Going with the red theme I've created these pretty little red Swarovski crystal drop earrings with sterling silver chain and ball and post ear studs.  It's the first time I've used a ball and post finding and I really like the security they give to the earring. 

I just can't get enough of Swarovski crystal drops, they're so pretty :)  I've also made some for myself of course!