The Science of Hair Color

I only started to really care about my hair a few years ago. Only when I grew it out did I start to notice and appreciate it. For starters, mine is dark brown (as opposed to black like most Filipinos) and texture-wise, it’s soft and pin-straight. I love this. It’s really low maintenance, I don’t have to straighten or do much to it. The only thing I would like it to be is fuller and thicker. The strands are so fine that it’s always limp and has zero body. That’s my main frustration.

Before

Aaaanyway. While I love my natural hair color I’ve always toyed with the idea of getting highlights to bring out the brown even more. Last week, I spent an hour in Watson’s trying to decide what at-home color kit I should buy. I couldn’t commit so I figured I’d put that off for a different day. However, that same afternoon, I went on Facebook and saw an open call for models for a salon. The requirements would be color and a trim. After a lot of hesitation I responded. I figure it was a sign and I might as well leave the color choice in the hands of professionals. I was still really apprehensive though.

Long story short, yesterday, I spent about 6 hours in a Salon Chair getting my hair trimmed and colored. I was terrified and excited. I had no control since they chose the color that they thought would fit well with my skin tone and of course, their campaign. I could tell though that I was in the hands of professionals which made me feel at ease.  They spotted my split ends right away. They spoke in numbers to refer to the color shades and percentages to refer to the ratio of hydrogen peroxide versus the color. They analyzed the way the light hits the top of the head and accordingly made my crown a darker shade. It was an amazing insight into a whole different world. I didn’t know that hair could be so technical.

So the outcome…. this golden reddish brown:

I think it’s really light and I still have to get used to seeing myself in the mirror. I feel kinda self conscious cuz I worry that it looks fake.  But everyone seems to love it, I’ve gotten nothing but good feedback on it. They say I no longer look Asian and I look more American. Which I suppose is a good thing. I just really need to get used to it. But now I’m also scared that I’ll get addicted to color and that I’ll never go back to my natural shade. Yikes. Haha.

What do you think?