Lolita Charm: Bluehaired Boys

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Bluehaired Boys

As is obvious from my pictures and endless prattle, I'm an advocate for unnaturally colored hair - the entire rainbow spectrum from shockingly sugary pink to deepest violet. In my previous post from this winter, Pink Please!, I talked about the process of becoming - and being - a pinkhead. Being a pinkhead (or pinkhaired person) has honestly been one of the best decisions of my life. I started out in a dorm bathroom with two chunks of raspberry hair framing my face, then moved on the pink hilights on blonde, and from there was just overwhelmed with color. Pink hair isn't just about looking different for me or celebrating my 'favorite color' - it's about expressing part of who I am. Pink hair is because I am some crazy kind of princess; pink hair is because I really don't need to blend in. It's been a very personal choice for me and I am proud to be celebrating over a year of pink hair this spring! ♥

Recently I welcomed another pretty-feathered person into my life - my boyfriend Matt, who keeps his hair with a river-blue turquoise underlayer. So this post is two-fold in purpose - one, about using unnatural dye for male styles, specifically our experience; and two, because some of my readers have requested to see more of my new prince ;)

I did Matt's hair myself, so I can easily give you the basics of what went into his plumage:

-one box of bleach from the drugstore, Herbal Essences (I was lucky enough to pick up a box n sale for $4, most others look about $9)

-a rat tailed comb, the kind with a long handle ending in a point

-one bottle of my favorite brand of dye, Special Effects, in Fishbowl (you can see me wearing it last summer by clicking here!) This color is just the right balance of blue and green. Matt wanted a green, but I thought a blue would pick up his eyes more - and this color is the best of both worlds.

-tinfoil

First things first, we started off with a clean head of hair and a test strand. This means I snip out a chunk of his hair from where it's darkest - the lower layers in the back, closest to his roots - and tap it securely to a piece of paper or tin foil. Then we put some of the bleach on to see just how long it takes for his hair to lighten enough. To recap for those unfamiliar with the process of unnatural color dying: your must bleach hair first to attain any kind of brightness. The dye itself is like colored cellophane - most easily distinguishable when shown against light colors.

Therefore if you are not a light or diamond blonde, it's best if you bust out the bleach first.

In Matt's case, it took half an hour before his hair lightened to a color reminiscent of honey or peanut butter. We wanted a deeper jewel tone instead of a techno-ish neon, so this was the right choice. I used the rat-tail's comb to select a few under layers in his bangs to bleach, then wrapped them in tin foil so they could develop. Half an hour later, the now-blonde strands get the same treatment - except they get smothered in blue dye before being wrapped in fresh foil. Don't forget plastic gloves when you do this! The dye can definitely stain your hands, nails, and clothes. (Protip: put the best brand away when dying your or your signifigant other's hair!)

If you're shooting for a pastel, let the dye sit for only ten minutes or so - refreshing my candy pink means a very short time on my hair, which is especially susceptible because multiple dyings make the hair more porous, or likely to soak up the color. In Matt's case we were shooting for something darker and more in the denim/teal family, so we left his dye on for about half an hour. For super crazy bright color, you can even leave the dye on over night. There's no developer or chemicals, just veggie dye, so it's safe to do so.

The result? One very happy bluehaired boy! (I'm not sure the term 'bluehead' is ever going to catch on...)

Our next challenge is to dye his beard with a little blue to match. Bleach is likely to irritate the sensitive skin of the face, especially since he has sensitive skin to begin with, so it will be an interesting experiment. But the appeal of a modern French fairytale Bluebeard is too great to resist! Hopefully with a little luck, I'll post photos of his new devilishly bluebeared prince style next!

Links

Buy Special Effects Dye from Amphigory!

click the links on Pink Please! for more helpful and how-to articles on unnatural hair dye!

psst! want to see more secrets about Lolita Charm's Victoria Suzanne before it hits the blog? Follow lolitacharm on tumblr - home of all kinds of pretty inspirations and LC easter eggs!

Labels: boys, cosmetics, fashion

13 Comments:

At June 23, 2010 at 6:10 PM , Melody said...: Cupcake Pink and Fishbowl are my two very favorite colors from Special Effects. They are *perfect* together. Yay, you two match!
At June 23, 2010 at 7:09 PM , Hello Naka said...: i love blue great job :3
At June 23, 2010 at 10:47 PM , Unknown said...: ooh this is exactly the color I want to dye my hair! but I want to dye it all and it's long, any advice? and it looks really good on your boyfriend, it brings out his eye color, great job! other guys should take his example too!
At June 24, 2010 at 12:17 AM , Maddy said...: My boyfriend use to have his hair very similar to this. Sadly, due to his current place of employment I can no longer enjoy wisps of blue hair in his lovely mane. =(
At June 24, 2010 at 3:35 AM , Mercedes said...: The blue looks really good ^^
At June 24, 2010 at 3:47 AM , Carlota B. said...: OMG, is Ted Lupin! *v*
At June 24, 2010 at 3:53 PM , Georgie said...: His hair looks awesome! Since watching the anime paradise kiss the ultimate thing I look for in a man is completely light blue hair hehe.
xx
At June 24, 2010 at 4:12 PM , Melody said...: Roselie- You should contact a local, reputable salon and ask if you can get a consultation.

You will need to pre-lighten your hair to a very pale blonde, and it can be very damaging.

Also, you will need to purchase somewhere around 4 bottles of Fishbowl Blue from Special Effects, more if your hair is very thick or VERY long.

Why? Because Fishbowl blue only stays well when applied very thickly, and beware because it fades out rather quickly. You might want to buy two additional bottles and mix it with some conditioner to use once a week!

I recommend having your hair professionally bleached out to ensure even, lovely results. It is WORTH it! :D
At June 25, 2010 at 12:17 AM , Unknown said...: Thanks for the advice Melody!! What worries me the most is how the color will turn out, I don't want it to be neon or very intense, I 'm not sure how much I have to bleach it and how long to leave the dye. I hope that a salon staff will do a good job!
At June 25, 2010 at 3:20 AM , PinkJucie said...: you have a bf YAY!
At June 28, 2010 at 4:31 AM , Psu said...: My boyfriend used to dye his hair in lots of different ways some years ago. He even dyed a yellow star in the side of his head once, it was super cool xD
And now I miss my pink hair...

YAY for rainbow people!
At June 28, 2010 at 2:47 PM , Anonymous said...: It's lovely!
It matches his eyes perfectly! ^^
At July 1, 2010 at 12:15 AM , Violet LeBeaux said...: Oh that looks lovely! And it's great that this is something you can do together <3

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Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Bluehaired Boys

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