Hair to Dye For: Silver

Last week, I successfully made the transition from platinum blonde to silver, and couldn't be happier. In turn, I'm going to share the process with you. All I ask is that you keep the following things in mind:

• I am not a professional hairdresser. I dye my hair at home, and have done so for the past ten years. Please do not leave me comments about how I am going to melt the hair off my head. Been there, done that. Had it done to me by professionals. At least if I do it, I'll be able to assume responsibility.
• My hair is naturally brunette, thick, and prone to dryness. My hair is also typically heavily dyed. All of these things affect the bleaching process. What works for my hair might not be ideal for you! Although I am happy to provide my experience, I can't be responsible if you melt your hair off, either,

So: continue at your own risk.

Starting this, I am assuming that you have some prior experience/knowledge of hair dye. Platinum and silver are not beginner colors in the DIY world of dyeing - they require careful steps, a certain level of patience, and a lot of upkeep. (If you're dark haired like me, let me repeat that last bit for you: expect intensive upkeep.) Whether this is true or not, however, I'm going to do my best not to skip over anything.

Long before you get near your head with dye, have your favorite conditioner on hand. We all know bleach is damaging. Don't make your hair sad. Help your hair help you.

I change store-bought brands of conditioner a lot (if I'm discount shopping, I favor OGX Keratin Therapy, which comes in a fat, round bottle at most supermarkets; if I'm in the mood for a splurge, I opt for Bumble & Bumble Straight). My staple deep conditioner is organic coconut oil (which should also be readily available at your local supermarket. I found mine at Kroger for $10.99). I use the OGX or Bumble & Bumble every time I wash my hair (usually once every three days) and the coconut oil overnight every other day.

I am not going to outline the initial bleaching process here; however, I will say that I personally always have two variation of bleach on hand: one with blue tones, and one with purple. I use the blue for my first bleaching, and the purple for my second. Then if there's brassiness left behind, it is light and yellow-toned, not that scary "I'm a beginner" orange.

Let's start at the bleached, but not quite ready stage, for our purposes here. 

You need to be very blonde for white/silver to work.

Not orange blonde.

Not mostly blonde.

VERY BLONDE.

This is where I was immediately before I went silver. You can see there is a very minor amount of brassiness to my bangs, but for the most part, I had successfully achieved white blonde.

If you're there, great! Skip the next part. If you're still a little more yellow than this, no worries.. let's get you there!

Get the good stuff:

• Toning shampoo/conditioner. Clairol's Shimmer Lights is an excellent choice. I've read some reviews that say it is drying, so be wary of that. Personally, I use the Generic Brand shampoo/conditioner combo, which is available at Sally's for about half the price. These are purple shampoos that help keep that dreaded yellow at bay in between bleachings.

• Blonde toner. Manic Panic offers Virgin Snow as an option, but I can't in good faith recommend it. I've attempted to use it on multiple occasions, and have never seen any results. What I recommend is Wella's T18, Lightest Ash Blonde toner (pictured above). This comes in a small blue and white box at Sally's. If you don't remember Lightest Ash Blonde, some old school Sally's associates will also be able to locate this for you if you ask for Wella White Lady. This is a fairly small bottle, so pick up two or three if you aren't sure. It's worth it. (My hair at this length - with the undersides shaved - is thick enough that I use three bottles.)
• Developer for your toner - you probably already have some, but if you're running low, don't forget it! I use 20 volume Wella Color Charm.

Mix the Wella toner with developer. It has a 2:1 mix ratio, twice as much developer as actual toner. After mixing, I leave it sit for about five minutes, long enough that it begins to turn purple in the bowl. This is not mandatory, but personally, it helps me to see anywhere I may have missed. I apply this to dry, unwashed hair. If some parts are brassier than others - and they probably are - apply the toner there first. 

The toner is going to get purple. Very purple, in fact. This is good. In fact, this is why it works. Without getting in to too much detail: purple and yellow are complimentary colors, ie, opposite each other on the color wheel. Violet, in turn, neutralizes yellow tones, giving you - voila! - beautiful, white hair. 

The box states you should leave this on for about 15 minutes - I, on the other hand, live dangerously and usually give it an hour. It doesn't particularly dry out my hair, and the results are way more noticeable. Check at about ten minute intervals, though - if you do leave it on for too long, you'll wind up with a very light lavender tint. Don't panic, it goes away.

NOW STOP.

REST.

CONDITION.

Seriously. I don't actually want you to melt your damn hair off.

You need more good stuff. (Do the Sally's ladies know you by name yet?)

• Blonde toner. This time, you aren't looking for the T18. Instead, right next door, should be its equally helpful neighbor, T50. This one doesn't have a catchy name, it's just called Cooling Violet. It mixes up exactly White Lady, so you shouldn't have any problems using it.

How long you leave this on is extremely dependent on how silver you want your hair to be. I lost track of time and left mine soaking for about forty minutes - a full twenty minutes longer than I intended. I personally am happy with the dark gray I achieved, but if you're looking for a lighter silver, keep very careful track of your time.

Hopefully this helps you! I'm happy to try and answer any questions, and would love to see your before and after photos. As I touch up my silver, I will have more photos (including some of the toner application process, never fear!)

Trying to keep up with my dye decisions? I'm on Instagram as @ohmisskitten!