Please help me - what way do I take my hair?

[Palmsun]

I want to get a vivid colour in my hair. This is something I wanted for years but I wasn't brave enough. I decided recently I want to do it.

I wanted to grow my hair long over the past 18 years but I was never successful. 18 years ago I thought it was case of wanting long hair and just letting it grow. I knew nothing about haircare. My hair did not grow very long and I need regular trims or cuts.

Then about 6 years I started to explore on online forums as to why my hair isn't growing and I learned that I wasn't treating my hair properly and with care. I used to use heat in the form of hair straighteners. I don't even know if I used heat protection. I vaguely remember around about 2010 or 2011 taking straighteners to wet hair. I used to go to bed with wet hair.

I learned a lot about haircare from about 2019 onwards. It was last year when I ramped up haircare even more. There is a lot of work going into my hair. It's a virgin brown with no colour and currently it's approximately armpit length. I was looking in the mirror this morning and I am so happy with the progress that I made with hair health.

I want to get a vivid colour in my hair for the summer time and also for an awareness day and I think it would be lovely.

I decided earlier that it's time to jump forward and get this vivid in my hair. I know what I want. I don't want an all over colour and I would be aiming for a balayage keeping my roots free.

I went ahead and I booked a slot with my hair stylist. I am looking forward to changing my hair for the summer.

Then this morning I was looking in the mirror and I am in awe at the progress I made to achieve health in my hair. I can remember tying my hair up into a ponytail in 2021 and getting a fright with how thin my hair was. I am achieving fullness up on top and coming down to my ears and that's all new growth. I made tremendous work in my hair over the past few years and I am so so so happy right now. My goal for length was always elbow length hair and wreckon I might be able to achieve healthy growth over the next 12 to 18 months all going well and be at my goal.

Basically now I am having cold feet about getting my hair done with a vivid balayage. I am reading horror stories online about bleached hair.

I am already implementing a haircare routine and if I was to get a vivid balayage I would be willing to put in the haircare involved in minding bleached hair cycling between different hair masks and topping up the vivid colour too. I would be willing to do work on my hair at home. I am apprehensive now in case my hair gets wrecked especially after I have come such a long way with my hair journey.

I think I rushed too much into making a hair appointment without exploring properly. I think my best bet would be vivid hair extensions in my hair. I think my hair would be so much more better. Or another option would be a balayage with a softer lift and then maybe add in vivid hair extensions. My hair stylists doesn't do extensions and I checked prices online for extensions and my budget just isn't going to go that far for my hair.

Help me. What way will I take my hair?

Do I continue with a vivid balayage with my hair stylist? Or cancel and get vivid hair extensions?

Checkout this guy… I swear he has saved my hair. Lots of great advice on what to use and more importantly, what to save your money on…

He will have advice re dyeing hair too.

I think the vivid colour sounds too extreme, and is hard to achieve on dark hair.

Maybe start with a more subtle change, possibly more flattering too, as well as gentler on your hair after all your efforts

I started following him in January of 2023 and ramped up my haircare and I swear to god, it is the blowout professor who has changed everything for me for the better.

I am kinda half thinking about changing what I originally had in mind and going down the route of a softer balayage with maybe adding in vivid hair extensions.

Hi op 👋

Your hair length sounds similar to mine at the moment. I’m also trying to grow mine (hopefully to waist length).

I have actually had extensions over the last year and what I would say is they’re not as kind to hair as stylists lead you to believe. I had a weave for length at first which I hated. I took that out and had vivid extensions put in for colour, cut to the same length as my natural hair. They were nano bonds. Both caused matting at the root.
I’ve spoken to quite a few people with extensions and they all said matting is just a price you have to pay for extensions. I wasn’t willing to do that.

I have a hair appointment booked for next month. Originally I wanted to start the process of a blonde balayage but looking at the progress I’ve made with my hair I just don’t think I can risk the damage. I’ve decided to go for a darker balayage to keep the condition. It’s so frustrating!

Thank you so much for your reply and this is a huge help. Extensions is out for me so. I won't be able to deal with any matting. I won't have time for that. No way.

I am so depressed all day not knowing what direction to take my hair in.

I am in awe with the progress that I made in the health and condition of my hair over the past 2 years. Healthy growth and length (bra strap) is my goal.

I have a longing to put a vivid yellow into my hair for an awareness day thats very dear to my heart. It's currently natural and all brown. I know what I want. I don't want an all over colour because that will be too much and a balayage is the most fitting for me. My hair will need to be lightened for the colour.

Something else that has pushed me towards this direction is Kate Middleton's diagnosis of cancer. No one knows what's around the corner for anyone one of us and I could spend so much time and energy and money in caring for my hair for health and length and who knows I might get sick with cancer and lose it all. I would love to play around with what I have now. I figure going to a stylist would surely be the best option and only lightening my hair once and then letting it all grow out would be best for me.

But then I am also eager for a sexy and elegant balayage too.

Definitely get some synthetic extensions from Amazon etc to try out the colour.
Seems a shame to ruin your beautiful tresses

I'm probably the worse person to ask as I treat my hair with utter distain, I color it myself, bleach it, cut it and change the colour constantly.

I have an auto immune condition which means I've lost random patches, but life is short and I'd rather enjoy looking the way I want with it

Bleaching, especially if it's not the whole head, and not down to platinum white shouldn't damage your hair too much. I'd go for the hidden colour look, bleach the underside of your head, where your hair is naturally healthier anyway and when you wear it up the colour with show through, or show through when down with movement.

For a yellow colour you'd probably not have to go much beyond an 8 so should be very doable.

Thank you so much for this reply. I was browsing online and I found what you are talking about and it's called peekaboo highlights. I looked at a few pictures online and I found a picture that kind of looks like my hair with the underside of the hair painted in yellow. This is the way I want my hair now for sure. Originally I was thinking of an ombre with a vivid colour look but I now it think the peekaboo highlights would be the most suitable for me. Get the whole underside of my hair done. It would be subtle and easier to grow out and it would show more in ponytails or hair buns that's how I wesr mt hair mostly.

My hairdresser booked me in for a balayage earlier last week. Now I don't know what to do. I am changing from the reference picture to something else different. I don't know if I should call or text and cancel my appointment or just show up and show my stylist a different picture to what I showed him. I suspect there would be somewhat of a cross over of techniques involved with balayage and under under.