For 27 years, I’ve had the same hair: Brown, long, and comfortable. I never imagined myself cutting it above my shoulders, let alone going platinum blonde. But recently, I just felt like I needed to make a major change. Every other aspect of my life had become so routine: I went grocery shopping at the same store every Sunday, bought the same types of food, prepped the same meals, hung out at the same bars. I felt like a hair makeover could be just what I needed to break out of my rut and, coupled with the fact that I'm started to experience the premature grey hair that runs in my family, I decided there was no time like the present to take the plunge.
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So, despite everyone telling me not to do it, I decided to chop off all my hair and go full-on platinum in a single day. Six hours later, and with red ears and a sore scalp to prove it, I shed 8 inches of hair and got a double process from Natalie and Stefani at Sally Hershberger Salon in New York City. I was afraid that my silky hair would come out yellow, fried, and frizzy beyond repair, but the icy lob is anything but that.
My favourite part of the transformation has been everyone’s reactions. Co-workers didn’t recognise me at first, and it was fun to watch them do a double-take throughout that first week. When my boyfriend picked me up at the airport after a work trip, he almost walked right past me. In many ways, I feel like a whole new woman.
My least favourite part, however, is the reality of the upkeep. Before, I could just wash my hair and go. But now, I've been stocking up on purple shampoo and conditioner, heat and UV protective oils, protein treatments, and moisturising masks. The shorter (and drier) cut takes significantly more effort to style, and since it doesn’t fall the same way my virgin hair did, I had to invest in new tools like a wand and a round brush.
I also learned, the hard way, that the sun is not my friend — and neither is regular old water. Two weeks after I left the salon, the soft platinum faded into a brassier colour because I wasn’t rinsing it out with filtered water. Getting it touched up isn’t cheap either; I’ll need to bleach my roots and trim my ends every six to eight weeks, and that comes with a hefty price tag — like a "half-my-rent" price tag.
I plan to keep my hair platinum through the end of the year, before going back to my natural colour for winter. Yes, being blonde is fun. I love the look and it definitely broke me out of my rut, but truthfully, the upkeep is too tedious and expensive to keep up long-term. Maybe next time, I'll just switch up my grocery list.