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Creating Hair Special Effects Using Dramatic Hair Color
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Creating Hair Special Effects Using Dramatic Hair Color
Does your wildest imagination ever yearn to completely annihilate the mask of convention and leave it a smoldering pile of burning, blackened rubble? Does it? Huh? Well, DOES it???

Hmmm, okay... mebbe that's just me. And John.
o/` You say you want a revolution;
Well, you know; We all want to change the world o/`
When you're John Lennon, you set out to change the rest of the world, hopefully for the better. When you're like us, you change your own world... by dyeing your hair an outrageous color, of course! Also for the better. Well, it will be for the better if you pay close attention to the directions that follow!

Now, there are several ways to ago about dyeing your hair a dramatic color. There are hair-safe ways, and there are not-so-hair-safe ways. If you're a natural light blonde, the world is pretty much your oyster and no peroxide need ever touch a strand on your head. Unfortunately, if you have dark hair the only way to significantly change your color to a vibrant one is to do it the not-so-hair-safe way because you will have to lift your own color before you add the new.
All that being said, I will not personally recommend an unsafe method as anyone's best choice because LongLocks is all about long gorgeous hair in fabulous condition and using peroxide to color your hair is not exactly how to achieve that. On the other hand, I'm not the dimmest bulb in the box and I know if you're determined to do it you won't listen to me (afterall, what do I know about hair?), so if you're going to do the dirty deed at least I can help you do it with the least amount of damage possible.

Now, I do feel the need to point out that this is definitely a "Do as I say, Not as I Do" thing. I have to be completely honest and admit that after decades of sporting a head full of virgin hair, the bottom couple inches of my mane at the nape of my neck (the only hair on my head I was willing to put at risk) is now platinum blonde all the way to the ends underneath my butt-length, naturally dark brown locks. I think it was actually a "mid-life crisis" thingy, but hey, I'm diggin' it. Or at least that's my excuse and I'm stickin' with it. Besides, it makes for the kewlest braid ever (see the photo to the right of about 14" of my braid). Still ain't recommending you do it to your hair though. And if you choose to do any of this, in safe mode or not, make sure you read our disclaimer first.

All done reading? Good. Now, I strongly suggest you read this entire article before doing anything to your hair. You'll get a good idea of what you can and can't do with the different methods, and it will give you some time to consider which approach you want to take.
A 14-inch section of my multicolored braid

Using Kool-Aid to Add Sheer, Very Temporary Color

Before using harsh chemicals on your hair, you can always try Kool-Aid or food coloring. Unless your hair is very light brown or blonde, Kool-Aid is not likely to give you more than a sheen of color you will be lucky to see even under extremely bright light. On the otherhand, both the Kool-Aid and food coloring methods of dyeing hair are temporary, safe and easy to remove if you don't like it, or just want a wild color for Halloween or something to make those Prom photos really stand out 20 years from now.

If you don't have any issue with the statement, "I want my hair to smell like Jell-O," Kool-Aid is definitely the dye that's screamin' yer name! Here's how to do it:
1. Add a liberal layer of petroleum jelly to the skin around your hair, especially your ears, and on any hair you don't want the dye to affect.

2. Put at least three packages of unsweetened Kool-Aid in a small bowl. Make absolutely sure you use the unsweetened variety or you'll end up with a sticky, horrible mess. You can choose whatever electric Kool-Aid colors you like: want to rock the blues? No worries. Kool-Aid can grant your wish. Just mix flavors: blue raspberry with a little grape.

3. Add a few drops of water and hair conditioner. Mix until no lumps remain and you have a paste that will distribute the color evenly.

4. Put on some rubber gloves and massage the paste into only the hair you want to dye, not your scalp.

5. If you're only doing a strand, wrap the hair in plastic wrap and tape it (the plastic wrap, not your hair... duh). If you're doing your whole head, you can either use the plastic wrap method or use a large plastic bag (this is not toy, etc... you know the drill), edges facing front and back, and twist it at your forehead until it's tight. Tuck the end under the taught bag right above your forehead and slip a bobby pin or clip over the edge to keep it secure. You sooooo do not want whatever you choose to cover your hair to come off in your bed.

6. Go to bed. The plastic will seal in the moisture while you sleep. Of course you simply must dream about how Blake Shelton will think you're sooooo incredibly hot when he sees your new 'do that he'll immediately leave Miranda for you, and show up on your doorstep holding a sparkling clean boar bristle hair brush. Oh wait... that's just me again, isn't it?
WARNING: Do NOT, I repeat, do NOT let your dog sleep with you. Nothing good can come of this, especially if you have a white dog. Or four white dogs. Bichons. Not that I would know anything about this. [koff]

7. Remove the wrap come morning. Wash and rinse, rinse, rinse until the water runs completely clear. You don't want your white Moschino blouse to suddenly be sporting a blue collar now, do you? No, if Moschino wanted blue, the blouse would already be blue and you really can't improve on a Moschino design, now can you? No. Rinse again.

8. Deep condition your hair. Use a conditioner formulated to help preserve color, especially if you are relatively sure you'd like it to hang around awhile ("awhile" being relative, nothing is going to make this last very long). If you are fan of natural and organic hair products (this is why you chose the Kool-Aid method, right?) you can even check out our Hair Care Recipes Cookbook for a slew of free recipes that will teach you how to make hair products yourself. Alternately, you may want to check out the incredibly yummalicious organic skin and hair care products over at JustNatural. Simply to die for! Must... have... all of... them...
9. Dry your hair as you normally do. I'm strictly a drip-dry girl myself, and if you are too, you might want to play it safe and put a towel around your shoulders just in case you didn't rinse quite as well as you thought you did.

10. It's mirror time! (I'll try to resist breaking out into my M.C. Hammer impression here but you do not know what you're missing). If you like the results then, YAY! You've triumphed! If you don't like the results, be thankful you used this method to try a whacky color the first time out; the color can be removed in a few washings without any harm to your hair whatsoever. If you really hate it, a hot oil treatment will not only speed up the removal process but give you the added benefit of a deep condition and a good soul-soothing after the fright you just managed to give yourself.

Using Food Coloring to Add Temporary Hair Color

Food coloring is a little more permanent than Kool-Aid, but still much safer than chemical dyes. It will also work a bit better on slightly darker hair, within reason.

Like Kool-Aid, food coloring allows you to freely create your own colors and mix up anything generated by your crazy, rebellious imagination. Even though you'll be using a larger quantity of food coloring to dye your hair than you'd ever put into the batter of a brilliant orange Halloween cake, be sure to use the same ratios suggested on the food coloring package if you're trying to duplicate their suggested hues.

Do keep in mind that food coloring stains skin and just about anything else it comes into contact with, including the grout between your bathroom tiles. Take appropriate defensive action against any future weekend remodeling you don't want to have to do. Or don't, if you're after a good excuse to convince a certain someone it's time for him to install a new floor, and by the way, you just happen to know exactly where you can get the most beautiful Italian granite tile. So, ya ready? Let's go!
1. Add a liberal layer of petroleum jelly to the skin around your hair, especially your ears, and on any hair you don't want the dye to affect.

2. Find an empty shampoo bottle or one of those handy plastic condiment bottles with the screw-on spout. Your desired depth of color will determine how much food coloring you need but it's best to start off testing with a small amount and work your way up if need be.

3. Put on rubber gloves. DO THIS. Don't make me come over there.
4. Combine two tablespoons of food coloring with one tablespoon of shampoo. Fill up most of the bottle with water, but save a little room as you might want to add more food coloring to intensify the color, or more water to dilute it. In this part of the process, you are Monet mixing a color in your artist's palette. Shake the bottle to mix well.

WARNING: Make ABSOLUTELY SURE, I repeat, make ABSOLUTELY SURE the bottle lid is screwed on tight, and if using the condiment bottle, your finger is also placed firmly over the spout opening. If you don't, you will be an unbelievably messy, repainting-requiring disaster about to happen. And I might add that even though I have spent many years mixing paint colors for my hairstick designs, there is absolutely no reason to believe that I would personally know anything about this sort of disaster. No. [koff]
5. Time to test your color, which is a must. This way if you don't like what you see you won't have to walk around with puke green hair for a month. What would you tell your boss? That is assuming I'm not your boss, in which case you'd just walk in every day and look at me accusingly while pointing at your hair, piling on tremendous layers of guilt. Frankly, I can't take that kind of pressure. Caution doesn't betray beauty in these situations.

If you aren't anal-rentatively fanatic about cleaning your hairbrush every time you use it like I am (or as I am called by He-Who-Shall-Remain-Nameless), take a bunch of hair strands from your brush and use it to test your color. If you do clean your brush every time you use it, would you please teach my husband how to friggin' do this???? No, wait... I digress. If you do clean it, you can either test your color on a snipped strand of hair or if your hair is long enough and you are brave enough, an underneath strand that's still attached to the back of your head. If you choose the latter, just make sure you will be able to clearly see your strand as you test and it will be well hidden if you don't like the color.		 Special Effects Hair Color
Photo courtesy of Suzanne Krizanek of freedigitalphotos.net
Dampen the test strand of hair completely, then thoroughly soak it with the food color dye. After 30 minutes for light hair and up to 90 minutes for dark hair, rinse the strand, let it dry and check the color. If you like it, you're good to go. If you want it lighter, darker, or more on the puce green (electric blue, toxic purple, etc.) side, adjust the food coloring ratios as necessary to achieve the the appropriate color; adding more food coloring or time to intensify the color; or add water to subdue the color. Test again until you have reached the right formula and timing for your own personal shade of fierce fuchsia or whatever hue you're after.

6. Once you have discovered the formula that gives you your desired results, wet your hair and thoroughly work the food color dye into it. If you're only doing a strand, wrap the hair in plastic wrap and tape it. If you're doing your whole head, you can either use the plastic wrap method or use a large plastic bag (this is not toy, etc... you still know the drill), edges facing front and back, and twist it at your forehead until it's tight. Tuck the end under the taught bag and slip a bobby pin or clip over the edge to keep it secure. In this case, you can even use a shower cap to contain your hair since you won't be sleeping on it and don't have to worry so much about it slipping off. Just stay off the white couch, will ya? Sheesh.

7. After the amount of time you have determined is appropriate for your desired hair color, remove the wrap and check to make sure the color is what you expect. If you are happy with it, hang your hair over the edge of your bathtub or sink, and rinse well with warm water until the water runs clear. Do not wash it now, nor the week following if you want to keep your color for as long as possible.

Dramatic Hair Color Using Commercial Hair Bleach and Dye

[Click above]		 Now, if you have dark hair and are willing to go with the chemical napalm method of dyeing, how do you unleash your inner rebel by adding special effects to your hair?

You will need several tools to do this job right: a comb, tinting brush, a plastic bowl, rubber gloves and petroleum jelly. Unless your hair is fairly light blonde, you will also need something with which to bleach the heck outta yer hair, and if your hair is really long and/or really thick, you might need two boxes. I used Feria's Extra Bleach Blonding, which I extensively researched first in order to find something that I knew would work well on my very dark hair, and it certainly did. Oh no, heh heh, you thought I was actually going to recommend that you use that, right? Nuh uh, you won't catch me that easy, I wasn't born yesterday ya know. In fact, we needn't discuss exactly *when* I was born at all, thankyouverymuch. Let's just assume I'm younger than your mother. Uh, grandmother. Mebbe.
Lastly you will need your color. There are many different brands of hair dye for this purpose: Special Effects, Manic Panic or Punky Colour will all work well. You can use more than one shade if you like, or even mix them to make your own color, but it's best to stick with one brand per application. If your hair is thick or long and you're doing your whole head, you might want to get at least two bottles just to make sure you're covered. OK, grab your nerve and let's do it!
1. This is really important, so pay attention. Do a patch test to make sure you aren't going to react to the heavy-duty peroxide you are about to subject your hair and skin to. Even if you've dyed your hair before it's still important to do a patch text because allergies you never had before can develop over time. You soooo do not want to find out you are sensitive to these products after the fact! Be sure to follow the patch test directions in the box of bleach you are going to use.

2. You'll definitely need to to do strand tests (refer to the directions under "Using Food Coloring to Add Temporary Hair Color" above), going through the entire process in the directions with the products you are using so you can make sure you end up with the perfect shade of vampire red or whatever color you're after. When you are doing the strand test for the bleach, if at any time you notice any breakage, stop what you're doing immediately! Your hair is not in good enough condition to use this method and you are headed for heartbreaking disaster!

3. Once you're happy with the color and timing as predicted by your strand tests, you're ready to go. Follow the hair bleach directions carefully and do not leave it on your hair longer than the recommended time or you will risk doing very serious, irreparable damage to your hair; however, do make sure you achieve the maximum lightening you can using the product you chose or your results may not be what you want.

4. Once your hair is lightened and is a shocking shade of blonde, it's time to add the color. Again you will want to follow the directions that came with your specific brand and make sure that you completely saturate the hair you want to dye using your tint brush. You have more leeway here, you can even leave the color on your hair a little longer than the product says is necessary if you want it really vibrant. You can also wrap your head in plastic and then a warm towel, or sit in the sun. The heat will make the color last longer. Keep in mind that you must not wrap your hair or apply any kind of heat during the bleaching process, you can only do this during the coloring process!
After your hair is dyed, be sure to use a really great shampoo and deep conditioner (you may want to try the decadently luxurious hair care products from JustNatural). Rinse, rinse, rinse until the water runs clear and be sure to wrap your newly dyed hair in an old towel you don't mind staining. Don't wear light colors until you've washed your hair at least one more time, which should be after as long as you can stand to wait to wash it again. Make sure you condition every time you shampoo and use your deep conditioner several times in the near future to help prevent the damage that may result from the peroxide you used on your hair, and at least once a month thereafter. You might also want to seriously consider using a really great leave-in conditioner as well. Once you start using peroxide, you really need to do everything you can to keep your hair strong and healthy.

Hints and Tips for Getting the Perfect Special Effect Hair Color
Emerald Green Hair Color
Photo courtesy of Dundee Photographics of freedigitalphotos.net		 I can't stress this enough: if you have used a product containing peroxide to color your hair, your hair will be much more fragile than it was before and much more prone to irreparable damage. Even if you haven't used peroxide, it's still important to be absolutely sure to deep condition your hair often and treat it extremely gently. You'll find a veritable wealth of information regarding keeping your extremely long hair healthy in our award winning article, The Ultimate Guide to Growing Long Hair and for those with shorter locks, our Ultimate Guide to Healthy Hair: Top 10 Tips to Keep Your Hair Healthy at any Length.

Less is more. Choose a vivid contrast. Take time deciding just how dramatic you want your color change to be. If you have to color correct, it will be costly and can cause severe hair damage. Don't use inferior chemical dyes or take on a project like this impulsively, both can lead to major hair disaster.
Approach this as if you are creating self-epressive art. All art takes thorough thought and consideration and will be subpar if you rush through it; this is something of which I am intimately aware. If you are unsure about anything, consult a professional stylist!

The first time you do this consider just doing a streak or your bangs so you can live with both the style and color choice for a bit before you do something as drastic as doing your entire head of hair. More importantly, you'll also get a good idea of how your hair is going to react to hardcore peroxide if that's the hair dyeing method you choose to go with. You will rarely regret erring on the side of caution with something as important to your self-esteem as your hair. Approach dyeing your hair cautiously and you will love your results. It's exceedingly easier to add to your dramatic special effects than it will ever be to correct hair coloring mistakes after the fact.

If you end up with something you hate (which you shouldn't if you're patient and have read everything above), remember that hot oil treatments will help to speed along the process of removing any form of hair color, even permanent. That being said, if you used the bleaching method, I strongly suggest you see a professional colorist to have your color corrected or you risk doing devastating damage to your hair (not with the hot oil, but with any other method you might consider, like dyeing over the new color).
It is always important to consider skin tone when choosing hair color, even when you are using unnatural colors. Make sure the color you choose plays up your natural beauty. Your hair shouldn't fight your skin tone. Whether you are looking for a wild or conventional change, the color has to complement your complexion and a mistake here could lead to uber disaster. Just because you feel emerald green doesn't mean green will make the best color choice for your skintone. Your ultimate look shouldn't only reflect what you are trying to express from the inside but it also has to make some sense with who you are on the outside. Our Hair Jewelry Color Chart can be very useful to get some idea of which colors will work with your skin tone based on your natural hair color but it's not a hair color bible, there are always other things to consider. Use common sense and ask like-minded people you trust to give you their opinion of what colors work best for you. You can even try holding favorite pieces of clothing close to your face and consider carefully how they work with your complexion to help you make the right hair color decision. To help make you even more sure of your ultimate hair color choice, do this in several different lighting situations.

For those with light hair and peach-toned skin, the best hair color options include carrot orange, copper, rust, brick red, fire engine red, and burgundy. Icy platinum, cool blue, deep royal blue, spruce green, violet, blue-red, plum, deep purple and magenta hues tend to complement those with darker hair and olive or red skintones. These are only guidelines, go with what works best for you!

Layered coloring is a very dramatic option. Your natural shade becomes the base color and is left alone at the sides and back. A large top portion of your hair is gathered and bleached out to hold a severely contrasting color in the middle. Mad Max, bring it on. You'll promenade in the world as a fashion sensation with an angular, very dramatic look.

If you're really bold and want to express the fearlessness in your personality, try doing streaks in different but complementary or contrasting colors. You'll find an artist's color wheel extremely useful for finding colors that work together perfectly, and you can even use it to create your very own personal colors by mixing shades together (I wouldn't recommend mixing more than one brand of color together however, and be sure you record your color ratios so you can duplicate your color again in the future).		 Manic Panic
[Click above]
If you want to create a monotone gradient look, color the entire strand of hair and leave the color on only long enough to take and hold the color of the lightest tint you want. Rinse your hair and following the directions of the hair dye you are using, repeat the process, keeping the color off the top third of the strand of hair and completely covering it to the ends. Rinse your hair and repeat the process only on the bottom third of your strand. Your hair will now have an ombre effect of light aqua blue, to vibrant aqua, to deep Capri blue (or whatever hues would apply to your chosen color). Very unique and definitely not the look for those weak of heart (or those who don't have the extreme patience to take the time to do this right)! Keep in mind that to do this, you will also have to pay very careful attention to the exact timing your strand test gives you to get each successive shade you want.

Remember that all these methods of dyeing are temporary (or semi-permanent in the case of the peroxide method), except the actual bleaching of your hair. Though using a commercial dye will stay in your hair much longer than Kool-Aid or food coloring will, it will still have to be refreshed occasionaly or you'll end up with that bleach blonde color again eventually. Using shampoo and conditioner that is intended for colored hair will help you keep the color longer than if you use other types of hair products.

And lastly, do not tell your mother where you learned to do this. I will deny everything.
Fekkai Technician Color Care
[Click above]

Special Effect Hair Color as Art

When you choose and apply hair dye correctly as outlined above, your reward will be a complete look; an expression of your inner being. So think, who have you always wanted to be that life has never given you a chance to be? A rebel, an eagle, a prima ballerina, an ancient Japanese ghost, the beautiful oak tree next door, a vibrant spring iris? Whose soul do you carry inside you? What do you want to say? When you've answered those questions and follow our basic technical instructions, your hair will reflect your inner being and will become your own very special form of expressive artwork.
Now, go express yourself and then send us a pic of your new self and we'll post it on this page! Just drop us a line using our Contact form and we'll let you know how to send us your image, then we'll do our part to help make ya famous!





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