Sometimes I like to do the opposite of whatever I should be doing, just because. A sort of purposeful defiance, like drinking hot chai in summer, or taking up running in winter when it's dark and cold all the time, or staying in low-paid fashion jobs because why the heck not?

So of course I've decided to go blonder for autumn, rather than reverting to the standard glossy chestnut tones prevalent across Pinterest and Instagram right now.

My hair is naturally very dark, thanks to my dad's Indian heritage and my mum's Celtic roots, so it's been an extended journey. Throughout the years I've been red, and lighter brown, and even tried my hand at DIY ombré. I wanted to go back to my roots for our wedding though, so last year, at our engagement shoot, it looked like this:



As a perennial user of heat styling tools to battle the dreaded frizz, I was a little concerned about my hair's condition, so I've been working on the colour for nearly a year now - starting with a bit of ombré/balayage last autumn and getting it refreshed and toned again in spring. This is what it looked like in March at my best friend's wedding:



The blonde was mainly focused on the lengths and ends, with a couple of strands around my face. I loved it and at first I was religiously using purple shampoo and violet toned styling products to keep the colour as light and ashy as possible. But as time wore on, my hair began to suffer and the damage began to seep through. So I gave up purple shampoo, dropped my hairdryer and used a weekly conditioning treatment in the hopes of preserving as much of my hair as possible.

After a summer of seawater and horse shampoo (yes, really) and air-drying, it looked like this: a bit brassy, a bit scraggly, a bit of a mess.


In my hour of need, I turned to the lovely Teri at Headlines Salon in Shenfield. Teri understood my brief straight away (accompanied by many photos) and made lots of helpful suggestions, such as using the L'Oréal Smartbond system to help treat my hair during the colouring process. My hair genuinely feels like it hasn't been dyed! We decided to take the colour up a bit higher this time, gradually moving towards the roots without covering up all of my natural shade, and finished with a blunt cut to get rid of my split ends.











It was such a relaxing experience, the salon was so quiet and they played The 1975 album so my usual hairdressing anxiety wasn't able to rear its head. I booked my next appointment as soon as my blowdry was finished - so by November my brunette to blonde transformation should be complete!

I'm so happy with it, I know it's trendy to go darker for autumn/winter, but I am not a fan of the gloom. I need brightness wherever I can get it!

Love Dani
xoxo