DIY Ombre Hair

Ombre! No, I am not speaking Spanish or some other language, this is the new hair trend that everyone is raving about. Last year, it was all about the dramatic blond-blue-pink-yellow-whatever combo, but now it is all about the gradual change from brown to light brown to blond tips or from the black to brown to light brown tips. This look is so low maintenance because you don't have to keep visiting the hairdresser for your monthly touch-ups, but rather, this hair trend will only cost you a couple of dollars if you do it yourself + maintenance (every 4 months or so).

So, I have been wanting to get my hair dyed this style for ages and I've been asking salons how much it would cost me and they are not cheap.. costing more than $200 for the length of my hair.. SIGH!

But not to worry.. DIY Ombre is doable! So doable that even non-professional hair stylists can do it with their eyes closed (as long as they don't leave the solution on their hair for too long :P).
So I ventured into the local supermarket and grabbed me a box of lightening kit from Schwarzkopf called Nordic Lightening Creme L1 Ultra Intensive Lightener, which comes in a box like this:

I have really black hair and hair dyes don't usually work when I use them. One of my biggest fears when I was lightening my hair was that it might turn ORRRAAANGE! I knew this was a possibility but I still decided to go through with it. 

Here are the steps to achieve DIY Ombre:

1. Make sure your hair is dry and all the tangles have been brushed through.
2. Decide the gradient mark to know where to start applying the lightener.
3. So what I did was, I only lightened half-way through the lenthgs of my hair, although you also have the choice to start 3/4 from the tips to the roots or leave a couple of inches from the roots to start. 
4. Apply the lightener to the chosen length of your hair and distribute it evenly right down to the tips.
5. Keep on applying it till its all gone and make sure it is more concentrated down at the ends of your hair for that sun-tip bleach look.
6. Leave on for about 30-45 minutes if you have dark hair like mine or 20 minutes if your hair is already light.
7. Rinse and blow dry using the lowest heat setting (and don't forget to use a heat protector before blow drying, as your hair is now more prone to breakage and damage caused by the chemicals).
8. If you're not happy with the result, if it's not lightened enough, you can repeat the whole process again but this time lessen the time you leave it on since its already bleached).

I love the result I got and I will definitely be doing it again when it needs retouching.

Ombre Hair Care Tip:


Now that your hair is bleached/lightened, it is now more prone to breakage and damage, make sure that you condition your hair regularly using shampoos and conditioner rich in protein to keep your hair looking beautayfull!