Kool Aid, my epic hair dye fail

I may have mentioned it on my blog - I don't know for sure, but any one who talks me has heard more than once about my really frustrating allergy that I developed towards hair dye. I think I have already mentioned it, but I will say it again because saying it has some sort of venting power. (Like if I say it loud enough, with enough feeling, enough times, the hair gods will hear me, be moved with pity, and will right this egregious wrong.) It also explains my stubborn determination with trying kool -aid to color my hair.

Now, it works. With mixed results for various people, depending on natural (or starting point) hair color. It also depends on how much and what colors of kool aid you try. In theory, the lighter your hair color is, the better kool aid takes to it. In theory. My hair is in the dish water blonde category, so *in theory,* mine should take to it much easier than say, someone with dark hair. I have tried 4 different colors, with 4 different methods. And here are my (unfortunately) photo less results. (I wish I had pics of it all, but never took the time to really try except once to capture any of the colors.)

First off, I went with grape. (Come to find out, that is a harder color to actually have success with. Should have known I was doomed for failure from the start.) I first tried the "make a paste and mix with conditioner" method. I let it sit for over 4 hours. I couldn't take any more of the smell after that much time, so I was pretty much like "the hell with this" and rinsed it out with conditioner only, per instructions. (Later I found some people advised only rinsing initially with water. I did that later....)

Result: nothing. Maybe a slight, slight frost look that managed to mellow out the grays (yep, I got them) and that was about it.

Next attempt landed me with choosing - yet again - a very hard color to get results with. Orange. (I have a fantasy of having orange and black hair. More achievable than my ultimate fantasy of black and white/silver.) This time I boiled some water, made a paste and brushed it via a tooth brush on to my hair. I let it set the recommended 45 minutes. Then I heat set it with a blow dryer, and washed it with conditioner. (No, its not color safe conditioner.)

The result:
A little color stayed, albeit, predominantly on my scalp. But, it did give a bit of orangey tones to the blonder hairs that have an orangey tone more naturally. It was more visible in he sunlight. This washed out when I did actually wash my hair with shampoo.

Attempt number 3. I went with Black Cherry. Surely if success was to be had, it would be with red. After all, people have had it last for MONTHS merely dip dyeing their hair! So, I did followed the instructions which said to bring water to a boil, add the kool aid, boil for one minute, then soak for 20-30 minutes. I did have a slight hiccup in my prep time, but I figured I'd go ahead with it. So, after soaking my head in a large plastic bowl, bent over on my knees, and the allotted time had passed, I was extremely excited. The color of the liquid was beautifully bloody, and I had visions of having this deep blood red hair. I also heat set it without washing. And then I looked in the mirror.

The result:
Barely a thing. I did not wash my hair out that night, figuring I would leave it until morning. I ended up leaving it longer as I wanted to keep that slight burgundy frosted look. As soon as I washed it, it was all gone. (Save again, the stubborn residue on my scalp. I don't have a shower which would make it much easier to wash out than just having a bath tub.)

Final time - the vinegar method! I went with blue. (2 cups water, 1-2 T vinegar) This time I boiled the water, then added the powder and boiled for the suggested 10 minutes. I let it barely cool before dunking my head, and stayed put in that uncomfortable position (which would have been so worth it....) for 35 minutes. Once that was done, I heat set it once again, and left it in my hair to be taken care of in the morning. This was my best attempt.

Result:
It ended up not being that gorgeous shade of blue, but instead turned almost greenish teal-ish. (Not unusual.) It did not color my hair over all, but just sort of gave a sheen to it. Some strands had zero color. Some were teal, and some a frosty silver blue. When I did wash my hair with shampoo and conditioner like normal, most of it washed out. A little color lingers, which you might only be able to see in certain lighting.

I have definitely given up on kool aid at this point. People might say I did this or that wrong and that's why it didn't work for me. There are quite a few different tutorials on how to do it (believe me, I have spent way too much time researching this), and I tried 4 different methods. So I think at this point, I will throw in the kool aid towel. If it works for you, good for you. (grumble, lol)

I will take my impervious- to-kool-aid-hair and just go the henna & indigo route. I really only want black hair any ways. The reasons I have not done it yet have been the concerns over the messiness, from application to washing it out, as well as where to buy it to begin with.

Trying Kool Aid as hair Dye and some new make up

Since moving back to KY, I am pleased to once again find that they offer much more colors of lip stick that I might use instead of the basic colors that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole. They have Hard Candy at Wal-mart that does offer a black. The reviews of it are plain awful, and in pics it look greasy with poor, poor coverage. It would be salvaged with some black pigment, but I find that after awhile it can get a wee bit uncomfortable, although it looks fantastic. I do plan on trying out the purple, purplish black, green and blue one of these days.

At the General Dollar they have a different line up of make up, but still a lot of L.A. Colors. Which is fine, as some of their products are good, some none so much. They had a sale, so I went ahead and grabbed one of the Matte lipsticks (Broadway Colors line), and 2  L.A. Colors eye shadows. (I desperately need a new black, as mine busted into pieces on the move, but its still usable.) I bought a cauldron color that has a bit of a sparkle to it without being sparkly, and a wine color that has black undertones. I like both quite a bit. The lipstick is a brownish, burgundy, blackish. Great color, matte finish, and one I can actually put my lip liner on top of to finish out the edges. I plan to buy the black of this brand, since it is also a matte. One of my blacks I use only as an emergency fix while out and about, as it tends towards greasy and required the pigment over. My other (Portland Black Lipstick Company) is seriously awesome, so another black isn't really important, but one I plan to try. I will also be buying the purple, dark blue and possibly the lighter blue. That one might be too light, but it might be fun to play with. Here's a couple of pics. They made them look lighter than they are. I'm struggling to get good pics up here in the attic.

Like the title says, I am trying out kool aid to dye my hair for the first time. Since my untimely reaction to hair dye back last fall, my hair has just been growing out in its natural color. I miss my hair being all black. I do plan to eventually go the natural route (henna/indigo) an idea my friend in another state and I talked about doing some time last year. Neither of us have thus far. So, I decided to try using kool aid. I went with the grape, as I would love purple hair. And adding purple to what's still black might look cool, right?

I didn't have enough to cover all the natural colored hair, but I got the top and some of the under stuff. If it actually does as advertised, I'll be happy. If not, well, no real harm done. The cloying grape scent will eventually leave my nose. :P Just 3 hours to go, and we'll see if it works!