When I dyed my hair baby blonde, three years ago, I swore I’d never go dark again. The colour felt much more ‘me’, and suddenly I was able to pull off red lipstick. But over the last few months I suddenly felt tempted to try something new. Before I made any dramatic changes I consulted my colour guru, Jessica Speechly. As Head of Colour at the Errol Douglas salon, in London, Jessica is an expert at colour transformations, so I knew my hair would be safe in her hands.
I described the colour I was aiming for – something similar to Sarah Jessica Parker, Jennifer Lawrence, Olivia Palermo and Lauren Conrad’s warm tones – and Jessica immediately vetoed the darkest shades. “You are going to hate me if I dye your hair that brown,” she explained. Instead we decided to focus on Lauren Conrad’s golden brown/blonde hue, as it would be much closer to my natural hair colour but still offer the California girl look I love.
Arriving at the Errol Douglas salon I was ready to say goodbye to my light locks. Jessica applied a toner in mocha brown to my hair, and then framed my face with honey blonde highlights. The colour would initially look very dark, she warned, but after a few shampoos the shade would lighten and give the desired result.
The dyeing process went by quickly (I had an Essie manicure whilst my colour set, which passed the time) and as the big reveal edged closer I got a little nervous about how dark my hair would look. After the bleach and toner was rinsed out I took a seat in front of the mirror for a cut and blow-dry with the man himself, Errol Douglas MBE. Even though my hair was wet and looked totally brunette I instantly loved the difference.
Errol cut away the split ends, adding shape and structure to my flat, limp hair, and then used a medium sized barrel brush when blow drying to give volume and movement. I’m always amazed at how healthy my hair looks after a proper blow dry! I’m sure I’ll lighten my hair again at some point, but right now I’m enjoying life as an almost-brunette. I used to wear a lot of blue and pink, but ever since the colour change I’ve been favouring purple, red and green. It’s to mix it up now and again.
If you’re tempted to try a new hair colour you can get 50 % off your first colour appointment at the Errol Douglas Salon (for bookings up to end of June 2013) when mentioning Grazia*. Telephone 020 7235 0110 for more info.
