I finally dyed my hair!

I have been wanting to dye my hair for such a long time and this morning I finally did it.  YAY!  I used the 'Adore' hair dye in 'Wild Cherry'.  I was a little nervous about the colour, but it turned out really nice IMO.  Please be aware that this post is picture heavy. :D

Apparatus used : Hair dye/applicator bottle, gloves, old t-shirt (for drying hair), old clothes, wide tooth comb, plastic cap, hooded dryer, blow dryer, and  a lot of PATIENCE!

Products used: Adore hair dye in Wild cherry, Hollywood Beauty Castor oil, Aussie 3 minute reconstructer, HE Hello Hydration, Organix Pomegranete Shampoo, aPHogee keratin and green tea reconstructuriser, Virgin Coconut Oil, ORS oil moisturiser, ORS smooth-n-hold pudding.

Firstly I shampooed my hair with ORS Creamy Aloe Shampoo, I then towel dried my hair and split it into four sections.  I then took the castor oil and applied it around my hairline and ears to protect my skin.

I added the dye to my hair in sections starting with the front two sections.  I added the dye liberally layer by layer, parting my hair and saturating the strands in the dye then rubbing it through.  The bottle did say to comb it through, but I just rubbed it in instead.  I then added the dye to the back two sections but less liberally.  I was running out of dye and wanted to make sure that there was colour all over.  I think next time I will need two bottles.

  

I then covered my hair with a plastic cap and sat under the dryer for about 15 minutes.  This was the recommended maximum processing time for the dye.

I then rinsed out my hair with luke-warm water about three times, shampooed with Organix pomegrane shampoo.  The water was still quite red, but I figured that if I continued to wash my hair, all the colour would come out. Lastly I added Herbal Essenses Hello Hydration conditioner to my saturated hair.  I had no leave in conditioner, so that was my make shift leave in conditioner.    I then t-shirt dryed my hair, and a whole lot of dye came out on the t-shirt!  But this is how my hair looked.

    

Next I added the aPHogee Keratin and Green Tea reconstructer and combed it through.  As a heat protectant, I used Virgin Coconut Oil and I blow dried my hair.  After blow-drying my hair I moisturised with ORS Moisturiser and then gave my hair a well needed trim.  I LOVE IT.  I know it is not a great picture, but I have to use my phone and I have no-one to help me take the pictures.  

I put my hair into flat twists for the night, I used some of the ORS Smooth and hold pudding to help set the curls.  And here is how it turned out:

PS.  Dyeing/colouring your hair is messy - wear gloves old clothes and put down newspaper to avoid messing up your bathroom.

I sometimes wish I was natural

I have said this many times before, but never committed it to paper.  I sometimes wish I was natural.  Both my sisters and my mum is natural, I also have friends who are natural.  When I see bloggers/youtubers like Naputral85, SimplYounique and FusionofCultures, I look at their hair and the styles they do and get a bit of hair envy.  I sometimes wish I could wear a wash and go or do a braid out with volume and lift, but alas, that is not my portion.  I have relaxed hair.  Are we now the minority?  I do believe that the balance is shifting and more and more people are opting to cut off or grow out their chemically processed hair, to embrace their natural curls.

I started my hair journey in 2010, about 6 months after I relaxed my hair.  Prior to that I was natural for about 6 years, and transitioned from relaxed to natural without even realising.  I had just decided to stop relaxing my hair.  Had I known then what I know now, I probably would not have relaxed in 2009/2010 and just stayed natural, learning how to do my hair.  When I was natural, I would go to the hair dressers to get my hair hot-combed every 6 weeks, but found that my hair was thinning, and so I decided to relax to get the straight look without the constant heat.  We live and we learn.

I have now decided, that I am in it for the long haul.  I will try to grow my hair to MBL as a relaxed lady and then, when I become pregnant with my first child, I will transition for about 6 months and then do the big chop. Sounds like a plan to me!

Blessings
Naddy x