How to Get A+ Haircolor at Home
It used to be that a do-it-yourself dye job would probably get you an F: for flat, fake-looking,
or fried. Not anymore.
By Jenny Bailly
The Goal: Lighten Up
Irina Belkovskaya, 26
Irina Belkovskaya, 26
She was a full-on blonde for a few years, but when we met her, Irina, a student, had scaled back to only a handful of subtle blonde highlights in her light brown hair. She'd never done her own color and was curious to see if she could go all-over blonde again without a trip to the salon."
See Irina's results
The Lesson Plan
"Going lighter at home can be a little tricky because in order to get an even blonde from roots to ends, you can't use the same color all over," says Sharon. That's because when you're going lighter, the heat from your scalp causes the color to process more quickly near the roots. Sharon had Irina use one color through the midlength of her hair (L'Oréal Superior Preference in Light Ash Blonde, $9, drugstores) and then go a shade lighter (L'Oréal Superior Preference in Lightest Ash Blonde, $9, drugstores) on the ends.See Irina's results
From the November 2009 issue of O, The Oprah Magazine