DIY Ombre Hair

before & after

Committed to my new year's resolution to go after what I want in 2012, I decided to be bold and color my hair for the first time.  I have been drooling over the ombre hair trend for months, and I finally worked up the nerve to go for it!

Turns out it's actually pretty tricky to dye your hair for the first time.  But I'm pretty persistent, and after one useless Internet purchase and three trips to WalMart I'm finally rocking some DIY ombre highlights!

Attempt #1

I selected a gorgeous shade - "dark golden blond" - in the hopes of amping up my natural highlights.

I mixed the dye according to the directions...

...then applied the dye to the ends of my hair.

After rinsing the dye and applying the conditioning treatment, there was no noticeable difference.  Convinced that the shade must have been too similar to my natural hair color, I decided to try a lighter blond.  This brings me to...

 Attempt #2

For my second attempt, I used a lighter shade - "light natural blonde" - in the hope that I'd achieve a more noticeable outcome.  Again, there was no difference in color.  I asked around, and apparently it's not uncommon for "virgin hair" to reject hair dye.  

Frustration set in, and that could only lead to one thing: the stupid online purchase of lightening creme something-or-other from Sally's Beauty Supply.  It took a week to arrive, and the less-than-helpful directions said something about adding it to developer and activators that I didn't have.  Say what?  

Realizing I'd gotten myself in over my head, I searched WalMart's website for hair bleach.  Umm hello!  Why didn't I do that in before ordering mystery products from professional beauty sites?  Anywho, the product I really needed was sitting on the shelf of my local WalMart all along, which leads me to...

 Attempt #3

L'oreal Paris Bleach Blonde Creme Lightening Kit 

(aka Blonde Hair for Dummies)

I cut a test strip from the underside of my layers and got to work.

After 40 minutes, I'd achieved the ombre effect that I was hoping for.  It was time for the real deal.

I applied the lightening creme to the ends of my hair that I wanted to be the lightest and let the bleach penetrate my strands.  After 10 minutes I added more bleach, working a bit higher up the length of my hair.  Ten minutes later I repeated the process.  This method allowed me to achieve a more gradual and natural-looking dip-dye effect.  After 30 minutes and three applications, I rinsed the bleach from my hair using the provided cleansing conditioner.

Voila!  Ombre hair!