How to - Dip Dye / Ombre Hair on Dark Hair (COLOUR)

A while ago I decided that I wanted to dye my hair purple but was too much of a wimp to go around school with a full head of purple hair. I mean, have you seen Katy Perry's hair? It's to die for!! She pulls it off so effortlessly as well!!! *goes cry in a pillow*

Anyway, I decided to go the safer route and dip dye my hair purple instead. Now this was very hard because I had just dyed my hair black a month ago. Yes, BLACK. The hardest hair colour to dye over... it's literally impossible. 

Step One - Bleach (lots of it)
Before I could dye my hair any colour, I had to bleach the heck out of it.  Different hair dyes have different amounts of bleach in them and therefore work differently. Unless you are 100% sure that the dye will show up over your natural hair colour, I recommend doing this if you have naturally dark coloured hair (e.g. medium brown to black hair) or if you want a very vibrant colour payoff.

The bleach that I used was from the Jerome Russell B Blonde line. I mixed a packet of the powder bleach along with their developer, and applied it onto the ends of my hair. Since I was going to apply another over it anyway, I didn't make any special effort to blend the colour in. 

I basically applied bleach on the red areas in the above picture. As you can see I applied it in streaks so that I wouldn't end up with a straight line of where the bleach stops in my hair (this is very important!!!). 

Since I had a limited amount of time, I put my hair in a plastic bag and blow dried the ends for 30 minutes (this causes the bleach to develop faster). I recommend leaving the bleach in for 60 minutes and blow drying it during the last 10 minutes for optimal results. After I washed the bleach out, I was left with ginger ends. Bright ginger. 

Step Two - Colour
Finally, onto the actual hair colouring. I used Live Colour XXL Colour Intense in Mystic Violet (review here) for the perfect purple shade. Obviously you can use whatever hair colour you desire. I simply followed the instructions that came with the dye but only applied it only to my ends. Waited for 30 minutes and... TA DAA!! purple ends :D

Unfortunately I was silly enough to not take any pictures of my hair before and after. Now I've chopped it all off so I'm left with no evidence whatesoever. If you're interested in how long the colour lasted on my hair, I've done a review on the hair dye here. Anyway, I hope you found this helpful and have fun dip dying your hair!!

-Tiffers xx

~DISCLAIMER~
If anyone's going to follow this, it WILL be very damaging to your hair, especially if you bleach it. My hair is comparatively strong (and doesn't take dye very easily), but it still felt dry and strawy after the first few washes. I strongly recommend using leave in conditioner as often as possible after doing this.

Product Review: Maybelline eyestudio 24 hour colour tattoo

Product Review - Maybelline Magnum vs Colossal

My current favourite mascara combination has been the Maybelline Magnum and Colossal (applied in that order). I have very thin and short lashes, and when I say short I mean VERY short (they're practically invisible!!). They also stick out straight or droop down which really doesn't help with my hooded eyelids. So naturally I have to apply quite a lot of mascara to get long and luscious lashes. I've tried quite a few of high end mascaras (which I 'borrow' from my mum) but they never really impress me that much. I find drugstore mascaras work much better on my lashes (and my purse!) and I was delighted when I found out about this perfect combination. 

When I first tried the Colossal mascara, I wasn't looking for much (I just wanted a waterproof mascara). So I was pleasantly surprised when it naturally lengthened my lashes and didn't clump up at all. This mascara features quite a big brush which does get annoying when trying to apply it on your lower lashes. It thickened my lashes and lengthened them slightly. A second coat is necessary if you're looking for a more dramatic look. However, it tends to clump your lashes up when you apply a second coat. For people who prefer much more dramatic looking lashes, this might not be the one for you. Lasting wise, I never find any of Maybelline's waterproof mascara's smudging on me. It definitely lasted for the whole day for me (it didn't even run off when I took a shower!!)

Overall, it's nice but doesn't do much compared to other drugstore mascaras.

As for the Magnum, it features a thinner and slightly curved brush, which I think helps curl the lashes. I can apply this without curling my lashes beforehand and it still gives me nice and perky lashes. It lengthens and thickens beautifully which I absolutely LOVE. What's better is that it doesn't clump on me even on the second coat. The first coat gives you natural looking, but long lashes. For a more dramatic effect, applying a second coat definitely helps. However, I would stop there because a third coat seems to be pushing it and it doesn't do much (other than making you look like you only have three lashes).

I definitely prefer this over the Colossal, but the two applied together gives me the perfect effect since one is more volumising than the other one.

xx Tiffers :)

Drugstore Products I Want to Try!!

Everyone's been having the winter blues and as usual, and I've been craving to go on a massive shopping spree!!! Drugstores have been releasing new products lately that I really want to try, so hopefully this would lighten up your mood!! :) 

I saw this in my local drugstore the other day and it reminded me of YSL's lip stain. I've always wanted to try it out but the price is a big turn down, so I was delighted when I found out about this new product. The red shade 'Endless Red' (how original) really caught my eye since I don't have any red lip products. Reviews online seem to be quite widespread: some people say it's a lovely stain with high pigmentation but some say the complete opposite. I guess it depends on the shade (?) Unfortunately these haven't been released in the UK yet but hopefully they will soon. They retail at around $9.99 in the US.

The Maybelline colour tattoos have been out for quite a while now, but I never got one because it didn't seem like a necessity. Everytime I go to Boots I swatch it but then somehow convince myself that I don't need it. It does seem to be very long-lasting and pigmented which is always nice. I wish they would make more shades because the ones they have now are quite peculiar.

Filling in my brows is probably the most important part of my daily routine. However, all I've been using is a dark brown eyeshadow from Natural Collection. It's working well but this brow kits seems to be perfect for brow lovers like me. 

xxTiffers

Drugstore/High Street Makeup Top Picks December 2012

Clink! 'Tis the holiday season! And what better way to celebrate it with some drugstore/high street makeup top picks? Here I have selected 10 makeup products and if you fancy, add them to your collection for a brand new year's start.

Face Mask for Combination Skin

Since I have combination skin, I find it difficult to look for a face mask that targets my needs properly. I need something that would moisterise without being too greasy for my T-zone, but deep cleanse without drying out my cheeks. To solve this trivia, I've decided to use the 'face zoning' method. 

 

Basically I use a deep cleansing mask on my T-zone to unclog pores and cleanse my skin. At the same time I use a moisterising mask on the rest of my face. I've found that this gives my skin the most benefits all at once. 

Left - Soap and Glory, Right - Origins

For my T-zone, I like to use Soap and Glory's The Fab Pore Facial Peel. It deep cleanses, unclogs pores, and leaves my skin feeling refreshed. As for the dry areas, I'm loving Origin's Drink Up 10 Minute Mask. It moisterises beautifully and leaves my skin soft and glowing.

xx Tiffers

Product Review - Bourjois Délice de Soleil Bronzing Powder

 

A while ago I was desperately looking for a new bronzer as the cold weather has arrived and my skin has become pastier and paler than ever (despite my arms being super tanned as usual). I've always had my eye on this bronzer - I mean, who can pass up a product that looks and smells like a massive chocolate bar? (definitely not me :P) I looked online and saw both negative and positive reviews, so I decided to try it out for myself.

  This product retails at Superdrug for £6.99. Looking at the swatch, it's definitely more of a warm, orangey shade rather than a cool toned shade. So if you're want to focus on contouring and sculpting your face, this is not going to be the product for you. However, this is great for warming up your complexion and giving you an overall glow.

It definitely looks shimmery in the pan, but when it's applied onto the face, the shimmer is very subtle and is nearly invisible.

Left - Sleek Contour Kit, Right - Bourjois Bronzer

I like to apply this with my Ecotools Blush Brush using the 3 and E method. But I've found that the top layer of the product isn't as pigmented, so you have to really work your brush into the product to get decent pigmentation. Fortunately, once you've gone through that top layer, the rest is much more pigmented and easy to work with.  

As for the scent of the product, I don't mind it neither do I love it. If you're not a big fan of having sweet scents on your face, this might not be the product for you.

xx Tiffers