Being a Blondie

I have a personal philosophy about hair: it doesn't matter what you do with it because in most cases, it will always grow back. I will never, for the life of me, understand why girls on America's Next Top Model cry about getting their hair cut. Hell, if someone told me that in order to make one of my greatest dreams come true I'd have to cut my hair, I'd be the first one to snip off a strand.

I used to dye my hair by myself, at home. And when I did, I sort of hoped that the blonde color I picked out at the store had been switched with some wild, unexpected color so that when my hair was done, it would be bright flaming red or deep, rich dark without having to consciously make that sort of decision. But it never happened.

I've always been a blonde (even those times when I dyed my hair purple, pink, blue or some other funky color my base was always blonde). My natural color is, I think, falls in the dirty blonde spectrum. Lately I've been going platinum, with the help of my hair stylist.

If you have ever wanted to go platinum or wondered what women like Gwen Stefani have to do to keep their hair looking that white, let me tell you about somethings you'll have to deal with if you opt for the good old bleach and tone:

1. A bleach and tone is harsh as hell on your hair and scalp. You have to really want to be a platinum blonde to endure the trouble you'll go through.
2. During the process, my head/scalp often itches and, at times, burns. Waiting for the bleach, ammonia, etc. develop, I feel like I am a little too twitchy. I wiggle my legs around to keep my mind off my itchy, burning scalp. My stylist tells me I seem to handle the bleaching process pretty darn well. She says I seem to have a high tolerance for the scalp pain.
   
3. Bleach and all the other harsh crap my girl uses on my head causes my scalp to flake the first few days after being done. It's like I have a sunburn and am peeling. It's gross (and probably an overshare), but it feels good to pick off the skin flakes from my scalp those first couple of days (ick, right?).
4. Being a platinum blonde means battling with dry hair. And to keep hair from looking like straw, you really need to be good about trimming the ends. You can't have a lot of damage when going for a bleach and tone because the chemicals will only further weaken the hair and will make everything look crunchy and terrible.

I like my hair being ultra blonde, which is why I put myself through all this bad stuff. I trust my stylist, and she's already told me that she'll be honest with me about whether my hair is in good enough condition to continue the harsh process. She knows I don't want fried looking hair, and I'll let her professional opinion guide me.

Who knows, though...one day I may decide to do something totally crazy and dye my hair goth-girl black. Like I said, hair grows back...why not have fun with it?!