I Went Blonde! NOW WHAT?
"OMG I love her curls so much I want mine to look just like that, I am going blonde."
That's how it all starts!...Blonde curls are like hair porn right now….it’s the hot commodity that is starting to become very coveted in the beauty world. C'mon How can you resist? It is so beautiful, so sexy, so striking and draws so much attention to your hair. However, the process on the hair is so traumatic to both your hair and the relationship you may have with it. Healing your hair is a long process and the patience required is massive. So if you ultimately have your mind set on taking the dive and going blonde despite your current hair pigment, this is the post for you!
Post-Blonde
It's the day after you bleached/lifted your hair. You can't comb it because its too dry. Your ends look like an old brush you've had for decades.You do not want to look at it because it is limp and dead. You can barely see a curl pattern! You instantly panic from the thought of no longer having beautiful curls, and begin to google every blog post or article on how to save yourself or reverse it. Luckily you stumble across this post and instantly regain hope and learn from my experience.
Before- Unbothered
After- Limp
After- Stringy
Yes! I was that person who saw the beautiful blonde curls and instantly wanted my hair to look like that. I was more focused on the finished product instead of the toll it would take on my hair. Instead of seeking advice from a professional colorist I went with my instincts and focused on the finished product and not the effects of the process. Hair is not bionic, it outputs what you input and reacts to the environment, just like living things. Bleaching your hair strips it of all the Keratin and Protein, which is what makes it healthy and strong. So Now what do you do!
Patience
You just put your hair through massive and traumatic surgery. Healing your hair is not going to be an overnight process. It is going to take some time to restore the protein and Keratin that was stripped in order to make it blonde. So my advice is to be very patient and allow your hair to heal and give it all the time it needs to restore.
Protein
Super important to incorporate a dose of intensive protein into your hair regimen. During the first week or two after the process, apply a protein mask to your hair about every 3 days and let it sit in your hair for at least a half hour. Products with any of these ingredients is what you need: Hydrolized Wheat Protein, Hydrolized Keratin, Hydrolized Collagen, Hydrolized Silk Protein, Hydrolized Almond Protein.
Moisture
Even if you did not bleach your hair moisture is absolutely important, but now it is even MORE important! Get yourself a very intense leave-in and deep conditioner that "tangos" with your hair. There are some conditioners that just do not work well with everyones hair despite how great it may be. Conditioner and hair need to be able to "dance" smoothly together when detangling. If your conditioner is not making your hair easy to detangle or if it simply just does not feel moisturized, then that product is not for you. Deep condition often and seal your hair with some oil, coconut and castor are GREAT!!
Styling
Protective styles that do not strain your hair is what's best during this time. Tucked pony-tails, up-dos, head wrap styles. Your hair needs to retain as much moisture as possible, especially with the amount of protein you will be using. Allow your hair to hibernate and be in "its bag" for some time, it will come out to play when it's ready.
Trimming
Lets face it, no matter how much you treat it there is going to be parts of your hair that may be too damaged to reverse. Be open to trimming often, your hair is in a fragile state so it prone to breakage, however trimming those fragile and dead ends will do your hair so much more JUSTICE! Also get a nice funky cut, see Nevilla @Devachan Broome st. NYC!
3 Months Later...
All of this advice is not made up! I am only 3 months in and I think my hair needs at least 2 more months to heal. My curls are beginning to define on their own and gain more volume and bounce. Above are all the products that I have been using since my process. I do not use them all at the same time...I like to switch it up to ensure my hair does not get acclimated to a particular product.
nough about me! I hope this post gives you hope and optimistic thoughts during this time. You are your hair will make it through this tough time I promise. Just be Patient
-Rose