Thursday, April 10, 2008

Hair today: A darker color and some layers

I've been in a pretty deep hair rut. Seriously, I've had the same hair for about ten years. And it was the same for another ten years before that except I had bangs. I'm a sort of cheapskate on hair: I spend a lot on cut and color, but I don't go very often. I think it has more to do with sitting still in a chair for more than ten minutes, the salon not really being my scene. And heaven knows I would be happier spending less money (after all, I could spend it on other things).

So I went in with a bold request: To begin the path back to my natural hair color. Not that we're totally sure what that it. When I was a kid through my teenage years growing up in a southern California beach town, it was naturally blonde,* although a lot of that was the result of time in the sun and water. The roots are sort of brown, but hair that grows out lightens up pretty easily. So maybe we're talking light brown. Or dark blonde. What I want to avoid is mouse.

Could Daniel, my super-adorable hair god, do that?


Why, yes, he said, he could. Did he think it was a good idea? Yes, now that I mentioned it, it was. He thought it would be a little softer, which is his tactful way of saying it would look better and be more appropriate for a woman of my age rather than continually chasing my high school hair color. All true. And, he noted, I have no grey (yet), which was nice of him to say. You can see why I like him so much. So he added to the highlights some lowlights (three pots of color!), which is to say he lightened the top a little and darkened the bottom. We're planning on going a little darker each time, with some highlights remaining, until I cry stop. Unfortunately, it ended up costing more, which was a lot because he did color work on the whole shebang, not just the roots. Oh well. At some point it will mean that I spend less on color.

I liked the way the color turned out, and since I was feeling so bold I asked for some long layers in the bottom. He said I could have them. (He doesn't let people have just anything. I noted to him that bangs seem to be coming back and asked whether I should consider bangs. He said "No, you cannot have bangs." End of that discussion.)

So here's what we ended up with:

 He also sold me some of this in response to my complaint that a friend said to me at a party a few weeks ago "What's with the fuzzy hair?" Can you believe someone said that to me? Good thing I love her a lot. If I love you, you can say almost anything to me. 

I like it. You can use it with wet or dry hair, and it doesn't make it stiff or gooey. And it smells nice. And moisturizes my hair.

So ends my first and probably last beauty blog post. Back soon to food, where at least I have some idea what I'm talking about.

* Blogger's spell check incorrectly flags this spelling as wrong. Webster's 11th specifies blond when used of a boy or man and blonde when used of a girl or woman. I think that's a nice difference. It doesn't seem there are many like that. 

13 comments:

Monica said...

Looks great...I like it all blown out. I have super thick hair, too, and coloring ($$) can be insane!

Anonymous said...

I love it! Anything that leads to less time in the salon is okay by me. Sadly, I am entirely gray, and therefore, in the chair every three weeks on the dot. I should be there every two weeks, but a girl has to draw the line somewhere.

sabi said...

my dear it looks beauteous, but hardly different, just more ashy and less "golden" i like it! and whoaaa--layers, you wild gal, i see your layers growing too along with the tempered color. happy spring makeover.

Anonymous said...

The hair looks bee-u-tee-full!

I think the blogger spell check was perhaps altered back in the "Freedom Fries" era... it won't stomach the French gender-based difference in spelling.

Anonymous said...

Looks great Cindy!

Trish said...

Love your hair! What I wouldn't give for super-long, golden locks. (Sigh.)

BTW, happy Friday news for you over at Three's Company! Drop me an email!

k e r r y said...

It looks great! I love the length - will mine ever grow out again? boo hoo. Never cut yours - it's too pretty!

KK said...

Oh, I'm so jealous - no gray hair at all??????

Your new cut and color looks great!

Kate said...

Your hair looks wonderful:) I just went blonder than normal & am finding it a bit too much...I may have to have some low lights put in & get a little cloer to my natural shade too. Wish I had locks that thick - but then, you probably find them difficult to tame - the grass is always greener;)

Gretchen said...

Looks great! What salon does Daniel work out of? I was going to HairTaylor in Montclair and since they have disbanded, I haven't found a great place that does good blonde color. Pleas help!!!

KatieGirlBlue said...

Love it!

I am really into low-lights, too; we have similar natural hair, it seems, and the low-lights really make the blond(e) appear more sunny and natural.

I'm also a huge Bumble & Bumble fan. Their products rock, even though they're cost more than, like, a month of groceries.

Cindy said...

Gretchen: Daniel is the owner of Jaujou Studio. I put a link to the web page in my post. I don't think he's taking new customers, but he could recommend someone there who would be good. Or you could just beg him! It's in Oakland, near Lake Merritt. They have a very friendly, casual atmosphere as well as great stylists.

Thanks for all the kind words, everyone!

Beth said...

Looks beautiful! You're ready to rock spring!