Purple Hair, Don't Care

The goal: For quite a while, I had been wanting to get dark purple highlights in my naturally black hair. I wanted more of a “peekaboo” look, rather than big, chunky streaks. 

The plan: I went with Carole Flamant Salon De Beaute in Miami based on a recommendation from a friend. I went to Amelia for the color and Kristina for the cut. I loved that they worked together to make sure that the result would work well together. 

The color: I basically spent the entire day with Amelia since the majority of my appointment was the color. She was very kind and knowledgable, and I felt comfortable with my hair in her hands. I would definitely go back to her and I would definitely recommend her. She actually grew up near Atlanta, and since that’s where I was living for the past few years, we had a lot to talk about. She was super sweet and kept offering me water, coffee, and magazines. She was also clearly really good at what she does. Not only did she do a wonderful job, she listened to what I wanted, and she was able to answer any questions I had throughout the process. This was my first time having color put in my hair, so I especially appreciated how well she took care of me. It was a long process since she first had to bleach the sections of my hair that I wanted to color, and then go back and color those sections using Paul Mitchell Ink (I believe she used blue ink with a bit of pink ink mixed in to get the purple color). 

The cut: I wasn’t planning on cutting much off the length of my hair, but it turned out if I cut it all off, I could donate it, so I went for it. As a result, it’s way shorter than I would have liked, but I keep telling myself that it’s just hair and it will grow back. It’s a cute angled bob where it’s longer in the front than the back. It’s a chic haircut, but my favorite look is a high bun and I can’t do that with my three inch long hairs. I also can’t put all of it in a ponytail for the gym without at least 100 bobby pins because the bottom pieces are too short. 

Kristina did a bit of "undercutting" which basically is a few shorter layers "underneath" the hair. I LOVED this technique for thickness, but it does mean that the pieces at the nape of my neck are shorter than the hair you see in the upcoming photo. 

The result: Six hours and several hundred dollars later, I came out looking fabulous! The color placement was natural and the purple color shined brightest in sunlight and in direct light. 

The first wash: The first time I washed my hair after the salon, there was a purple waterfall. I was very concerned, but I figured it was just some residual dye. 

Subsequent washes: Since then, every time I shampoo my hair, there is a purple waterfall. The areas where the purple has washed out are orangey-blonde. The color seems to be holding a lot better near the ends of my hair compared to near the roots. 

Final thoughts: Overall, I am happy with the result! I love the color (I’m keeping an eye on it to see how long it lasts) and I’m still learning to make the cut work for me by experimenting with new ways to style it :) 

Two month color update: The color washes out SO quickly! I picked up Manic Panic semi-permanent dye in the color ultra violet and I use a highlighting brush to touch up every few washes. Fortunately, I don’t have to be too precise because the color only picks up on the bleached parts of my hair, but “every few washes” is VERY often. I leave it in for at least 30 minutes (because that’s what Manic Panic recommends), but I leave it longer (a few hours or so) if I don’t have anywhere to be. It’s a vegan, vegetable based dye and I have to say, it is VERY conditioning. My hair feels so soft after using this! 

Two month cut update: My hair has grown juuuust a bit which makes it a lot better! I think it’s the angle cut that doesn’t work that well for me. In this Miami humidity, the longer bits in the front curl up a bit which is hard to deal with. 

This isn’t my first time with hair this length, but it is the first time I’ve had so much trouble enjoying it. Thus, I took it as a personal mission to figure out what was different than before. I can think of two previous times (where I was at least a teenager-- childhood mushroom cuts don’t count for this analysis) when I had hair about this length. The first time was freshman year of college. I really liked this one! I had the same angled cut where the front was longer than the back, but at that time, the “short” back was even shorter than it is now and it was layered in the back so it didn’t “poof” out. I grew that out, and then a few years later, I cut it all off again. This time, I had a more even cut, but no layers, so it appeared thicker and fuller. I liked this one too. It was a pretty basic look, but my hair looked shiny and healthy. Currently, I have a combination of the angle with the no layers, which I don’t think I like as much. I don’t want to add in any dramatic layers because they tend to make my hair look a little thin at the ends, but next time I go in for a haircut, I think I’ll get it evened out a bit and then go from there. 

Two month style update: As far as current styles, as an alternative to my usual high bun, I have opted for a lower bun! I think it’s cute, and I like that it doesn’t have a chance to frizz as much because the hairs are so short. I can still do both curly and straight styles, but I think I have been preferring the straight look with the shorter hair. Curls on my hair at this length are making my face look a bit wide. Either way, I have been needing a bit more texture with my hair at this length, so I experimented with Oribe Dry Texturizing Spray (I can review it if you like) which I would say made a big difference! 

Overall, I do like this haircut a lot more than I first did! It has really “grown” on me ;)