modern mom beauty series: before + after going blonde as a natural dark brunette | out with the brassy, in with the sassy!

My Greek genes gave me and nearly every member of the Greek side of the family dark, dark locks…which I do love when I have a nice tan in the summer but overall my favorite hair to have is blonde.  And this isn’t exactly easy as a naturally dark (dark!) brunette gal. I do really well at those orangey, brassy shades that no woman wants – those I can maintain no problem – but it’s the sandy, creamy, pretty blonde that is almost impossible for me to keep for more than a few weeks. The toner fades and my beautiful blonde starts to look ruddy and brassy and is less than stellar. I suppose I could go in for a new toner every two weeks but let’s face it – that just adds to the regularly scheduled upkeep that is needed to maintain life as a blonde. And really, should you have to get new toner put on every few weeks to maintain your new hair?

When Ivory Noir Salon announced that they were carrying the new blonde color system from Schwarzkopf Professional that promised beautiful, creamy shades of blond for all I was intrigued. Ivory Noir Salon understands and treats blonde more than just a hair color. It takes an expert in color correction and a complete and  total approach to blonde in order to achieve beautiful blondes and maintain it from month to month. And of course, a color correction expert will only use the best products to achieve the amazing results they’re known for. Enter BLONDEME. The very first lightener able to lift 9 levels (i.e. make you very blonde) without damaging and drying hair that’s only available at select hair salons. I don’t know the exact science behind the BLONDEME system, but these products coupled with color correction talent at Ivory Noir Salon gave me the prettiest blonde this brunette has ever had.  By the time I was in Andrea’s chair my “before” hair was a sort of brassy, light reddish brown which was the result of a darker toner over previously highlighted hair with an inch or so of dark brown re-growth. It wasn’t shiny, looked unhealthy and had zero personality to it.

After an amazing hair cut, a super deep moisturizing treatment followed by full head of hilights glossed with a creamy, sandy blonde color, I was left with these beautiful shades of blonde!!

Before // After

I wanted to wait several weeks before bringing you the complete “after” to see if my new blonde locks would remain in their original brassy state. I’m happy to say my hair looks just the same as it did on day 1, plus a little bit of re-growth of course. My hair is still extremely shiny, hasn’t gone brassy in the least and looks and feels great. No  breakage or extreme dryness.

But will it go brassy?

Nope. I haven’t had to use any purple shampoo to help brighten my blonde over the past several weeks which is something I’ve always had to use in the past. The difference is definitely in seeing a hair stylist who specializes in color correction. Andrea made sure to add on a gloss to protect the integrity of my new color which is preventing it from becoming brassy. It usually lasts around 4-8 weeks so this is great for those of us who might have some damage and want to go a little longer in between hilights. A gloss is something that I’ve never had before and I’ve noticed a world of difference in how my blonde has kept over the past month. Usually after a couple weeks I’m in need of a toner again but now it’s all sass and no brass!

Ivory Noir Salon is the first and only salon in Edmonton to specialize in color correction. Their knowledge when it comes to color correction and hilights is incredible and ensures that you’ll leave the salon with beautiful color every single time. Be sure to check out their facebook page for tons of pics of the amazing colors they’re doing in the salon. Lavender ombre anyone??? I’m tempted!!

Do you ever get “funky” with your hair color?