As winter gives way to the sunny days of spring and summer, it’s perfectly natural to want to lighten up your look. But the ultimate hair transformation – going dark to light – isn’t as simple as Kim Kardashian makes it look. Leaving dark hair behind and achieving bright blonde takes time, money, and patience.
To keep your expectations in check, we’ve developed the ultimate guide for going dark to light. We know we can help you achieve this new look, but we also want to help you understand the process and the time required to do so successfully. We will never let you walk out of Deseo Salon & BlowDry looking “incomplete,” but to achieve such drastic results, your desired look will likely require 3-4 visits.
If you think you (and your hair) can handle it, let’s learn more about the process of going dark to light.
Why Going Dark to Light Takes Time
First of all, you are not alone. When we see a hot new hairstyle, we’re all about instant gratification. Unfortunately, when it comes to bleaching hair and making a drastic color change, we must be patient and more importantly, fair to our hair.
The number one reason this transformation takes time is that we want to preserve the health of your hair. To maintain a healthy head of hair, we need to take it slow. If you tried bleaching your hair over and over in a single day, it would become brittle and dry. Regardless of color, your hair won’t look or feel the way you dream if you attempt to overprocess it just to speed along the transformation.
*Note: If you have “virgin hair,” or hair that has never been colored, you may be able to achieve your desired look in as little as 2-3 visits.
What to Expect Along the Way
Expect a variety of cute styles before getting to your final result. You won’t walk out after your first visit with a full head of platinum blonde hair, but we will never let you walk out looking anything but put together. Usually, you will leave the salon with hair that’s one or two shades lighter than your starting point. Another way we get the process started is with a full head of highlights.
Your hair will need time in between appointments to “breathe.” Consult with your stylist to find out how long you should wait between appointments.
Understanding the Initial Expense
The cost of going dark to light is more than you typically spend on your hair. If you are serious about making this transformation, we will work with you to price out your visits so you know what the full process will cost. We won’t sugarcoat the numbers and timeframe, because it’s important to us to provide transparency while ensuring our clients understand the commitment.
We have also seen clients come into the salon after trying to achieve this look on their own. The at-home route rarely goes according to plan, and those clients end up spending more on color correction. Additionally, color correction means a longer transformation timeline to restore your hair’s health.
Keep in mind, once you have gone from dark to light, you will also face the cost of upkeep.
Maintaining Your New Look
Congrats, you’ve finally done it! You put in the time, you were patient along the way, and you now have the beautiful blonde hair you hoped for. You and your stylist will discuss touch-ups and keep your color fresh with routine maintenance, but there’s plenty you can do to keep your hair looking its best between salon visits.
Maintaining your hair can extend the time between your upkeep appointments. Use a great shampoo that will help your blonde hair stay bright and vibrant. A great conditioner is also recommended to keep moisture locked into your hair. One of our favorite post-shower treatments is Kevin.Murphy’s Leave-In.Repair. This nourishing leave-in treatment is excellent for all hair types and excels at repairing and restoring health to damaged hair. A few other tips: use lukewarm water when you wash your hair, avoid using hot styling tools when possible, and try to skip a day between washes.
We would love to help you transform your hair! Let’s do it right the first time around, together.
Visit Deseo Salon & BlowDry for the ultimate experience. Because it has to be perfect!
For more information about our salon and the best tips to maintain healthy hair, visit our blog!