I’ve only been to a hairdresser three times in my entire life and those times were in the past three years! The only exception to this was when I turned 16 and my Mum organised for a mobile hairdresser to come to the house. This didn’t turn out well. In fact, instead of giving me the tousled 90’s Mariah Carey look she’d promised I ended up with the “Jonathon Creek” look. If you don’t know who he is he was a magician turned detective on British television played by Alan Davies. No offence to Alan, but his look really isn’t the look a 16 year old girl is after . I should have read the warning signs really. The first day she didn’t turn up and the second day she walked a mile in the pouring rain because she didn’t want to park outside the house because it was “on a gradient”
My Mum always did my hair as a kid whether it be perms, cuts or colours. In my teenage years I always experimented with my hair myself. When my thirtieth birthday came along I decided I was going to take the plunge and go to a hairdresser to have blonde
balayage. I’ve never attempted to go blonde before (I’m naturally medium-dark brown) and didn’t feel confident enough to do it myself. It turned out really well and my confidence in hairdressers was restored! After the third time I had been to the hairdresser I decided to take the plunge and do it myself for 2 reasons A. Its expensive going to a hairdresser every couple of months and B. I love having a go myself!
So I went ahead and bought a bunch of gloves, mixing bowl an applicator brush and apron along with Bleach and Toner.
L’Oreal Colorista – Superdrug £7.99
I wanted a lightening kit that had a powder and developer. This worked really well. It was gentle and did the job and worked with the kitchen foil that I used. I used the balayage I had at the hairdressers a few months before as a rough guide and went a few inches above. I then took a section and back combed my hair at the area of the section that I wanted the colour to blend. I then lightly painted the bleach over this and heavier towards the ends of the hair. I did this all over and left for 45 mins.
I was impressed at how it turned out but it was brassy at the middle section where the hairdressers had dyed that part darker at my last appointment. Not to worry! Toning time!
Wella Colorcharm Toner & Developer – Ebay £14.49
If you’ve looked into toning your hair at home you will no doubt have come across Wella professionals Colorcharm. Its what they used at the hairdressers when I went and so I had no qualms buying it to use myself. #T18 “Lightest Ash Blonde” is the most widely used product. Its perfect if you have yellow tones in your hair.
Its important to take a close look at the colour of your hair you are trying to tone down.
Using a colour wheel like this one is a big help when deciding which toners to buy. For example, If you have primarily Orange-Yellow hair then a Blue-Violet toner (opposite on colour wheel) would be the one you’d go for.
#T18 was great for light brassiness and yellow tones.
One thing to bare in mind though if using Wella Colorcharm for balayage/ombre is that this also lightens the hair. some toners or semi permanent dyes go on like a “paint” but this isnt the case with colorcharm. It lifted my roots but I didn’t mind that. You could always use a 10% developer or leave it on for less time/avoid the roots.
Before & After 1 & 2
Most recently when I re-toned I tried something a little different. I used Schwarzkopf IGORA Royal developer 20% & Wella colorcharm T18 & T14 mixed 50/50.
T14 is much cooler and great for those wanting more silver tones. It is also perfect for those trying to shift orange tones. For me, I found it a little too silver and next time I will probably stick to my trusty T18.
I will do a video tutorial the next time I balayage and tone my hair. For now I hope this has been helpful!
Have you used these products before? Have you had a nightmare hairdressing experience? Comment below and remember to hit the follow button and also subscribe to my YouTube Channel
Thanks all! xx
Victoria Claire Beauty - Be Bold, Be Brave, Be Beautiful. 