You Love Being Blond

November-20-10

Whether your golden locks are natural or you work hard at maintaining that most famous of hair colors, you’ve likely considered giving different blond intensities a whirl. But before you decide to go lighter or darker, remember the top rule of hair color change: The farther you stray from your current color, the more damaged your hair will be. Overall, pros advise remaining within two levels (the scale by which hair color is measured) in either direction. “When you go too far, the hair texture that you feel today will be gone tomorrow,” warns

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Blond: Go Lighter

Before doing anything else, consider your skin tone. If you’re fair-skinned, don’t go too light to avoid looking washed out or tired. Do you have medium to dark skin with olive undertones? Then choose shades that are described as “cool.” Next, how long do you want this new color to stick around? Permanent color lasts until the next time you dye it, demipermanent color lasts about a month, and semipermanent color lasts approximately a week.