Beauty by Ginger: Going Ombre

When I was at uni, I decided that after years of just being ginger, it was time to experiment with my hair. I started out with deep red streaks, just to see how I felt about it. 

And then in 2006, when I was going through a really hard time, I decided I wanted to distance myself from my red hair as much as possible. 

And dyed my hair this colour.... 

Looking back, I wish somebody had told me not to do it. It was such a big mistake because once I had decided to go back to being a redhead, I had to grow all the dark brown out of my hair. So for about 6 months, I had a huge orange stripe of roots and the rest of my head was darker....I look ridiculous. But I learnt my lesson and never went that dark again, instead, opting for (semi-permanent) deeper versions of red if I fancied a bit of a change. 

And then, a few moths ago, I decided to go for a completely new look. As much as I love my hair, I had got to the stage where I felt like it was just sitting on my head. It was really long, the layers had grown out, and it just looked like I had been continually dragged through a hedge backwards. 

I affectionately called it my "Woodland Creature" hair. 

I didn't want to go for something that would colour all my hair, so decided that  it might be a good chance to give ombre a go. It has been a style that I've always seen and thought how pretty it was, and thought that, if it turned out how I envisaged it, that I would look like a sizzling ginger lioness and banish the woodland creature hair forever!

I booked myself in for an appointment with my amazing hairdresser friend Helen at Glam Hair & Beauty. I couldn't have had anybody else help me with such a drastic change. I'm far too protective over my hair now, and with Helen, I knew that she wouldn't do anything that would make me look ridiculous! 

I think you can tell from the pictures what a difference getting the ombre has made. The fabulous curly blow dry aside, my hair feels like it's got so much more life. I had the layers cut back in, and my fringe re-styled, and now I feel completely revamped! 

Even when I've had sloppy days this week and not felt like doing much with my hair, the ombre has meant I still feel put-together and feminine. And because the colour is at the tips, it should last a good long while. I've just got to make sure I brush it regularly and use a really moisturising conditioner to take care of it. 

Have you ever/Would you ever ombre?