How to Switch From Brunet to Blond Hair

By eHow Fashion, Style & Personal Care Editor

We've all heard the rumor about the connection between having blonde hair and having fun. Tempted to find out if it's true? The upkeep may be well worth it. Follow these few steps to get blonde hair like Pamela Anderson, Paris Hilton and the like!... Read full How To Article

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How I Did This

Paula K. Parker
published this on
May 02, 2009

Paula K. Parker on How to Switch From Brunet to Blond Hair

When I was young, my mother described my hair color as towhead; an almost white blonde hair with hints of strawberry. As I grew older, my soft strawberry blonde began growing darker, until by junior high, my hair was a nothing like my youthful curls. I convinced that whoever coined the term ‘dirty blonde’ had dark...

hair and was merely jealous. However, by the time I was in college, that is exactly what my hair color resembled. Coloring my hair became a regular part of my monthly home beauty ritual and-in my thirties-I left my blonde roots behind me and ventured into the world of brunettes. Although, when I turned forty, I wanted to return my hair to the hues of my youth.

I knew that I could buy a color remover to strip the dye from my hair. However, I had heard horror stories about hair dye stripping moisture as well as dye, leaving hair resembling straw and leaving the owner with the no recourse but to cut the damaged tresses. I didn’t have the courage to try this on my fine and slow growing hair.

I consulted a friend who was a hair stylist. She recommended that I change the hair color gradually. She went to Sally’s Beauty Supply with me and helped me pick out the colors I needed. One product was a light brunette hair color and the other was a medium blonde. I also purchased a color developed formulated for sensitive scalps and an after color conditioning pack.

I resigned myself to changing from brunette to blonde gradually, over a period of months. The first month, I used 5 ounces of light brunette with 1 ounce of medium blond for a total of 6 ounces of color. The results was subtle, just a slightly brighter brunette. The following month I decreased the light brunette by 1 ounce and increased the medium blonde to 2 ounces. The third month I used equal amounts of light brunette and medium blond; by that time, my hair began to look more blonde than brunette.

The summer was only a few months away, and I decided to live on the wild side and go even blonde. I purchased another bottle of medium blonde and bought a bottle of light blonde. The next time I colored my hair, I used 5 ounces of medium blonde and 1 ounce of light blonde. The following month, I decreased the medium blonde to 4 ounces and increased the 2 ounces to light blonde. By the time summer rolled around, my hair was a golden blonde; I decided to stick with that hue.

Knowing that dye can harm hair, I treated my hair carefully. Even though my hair was oily, each week I used an intensive hair conditioning pack on it. I got a hair cut that did not require a curling iron and used a blow dryer only when I didn’t have time to allow it to air dry. My hair coloring patience has paid off; not only is my hair look a natural-looking golden blonde, it is silky to the touch.