Why I Went Brunette & How to Repair Damaged Hair

Repair Damaged Hair

Remember when I went blonde? The truth is that I never intended to be that blonde! If you swipe through on that Instagram post, you can hear my dismay at how my hair turned out and the impact it had on me. Until I was 20, I never even thought about having such light hair! Since that age, I have gone back and forth between blonde and brunette — mostly having a balayage style where I had natural roots and blonde ends. As you can imagine, going from dark brunette to blonde is hard on anyone’s hair! Recently, I went back to my dark color as a way to try and repair damaged hair.

Back to Brunette

The initial change to brunette happened back in November. I had grown tired of the upkeep that came with having blonde in my hair. When I had a balayage, I didn’t have to get my hair done much because it didn’t show root growth. As my blonde/brunette hairline crept up closer to my roots, hair appointments became more frequent. Not only was I trying to make sure that the roots didn’t look grown out, but I was battling a serious case of my hair turning orange (not sure if having orange or green hair is better)!

Having naturally dark hair meant that my blonde faded to an orange tint within about 6 weeks. At this point, I would absolutely hate my hair until my next appointment! Keeping my hair blonde was expensive ($200+ every 6 weeks), time consuming (4+ hours in the chair each time), and damaging to my hair. Ultimately, I made the decision to go back to brunette so that I didn’t have to deal with all the maintenance.

Was there a transition going from blonde to brunette? Absolutely, but it was much easier than you might think! Of course, like any major hair color change, the first few days were a bit strange every time I looked in the mirror. It’s a bit of an out-of-body experience when you are trying to get used to a change in hair color! I thought that going darker would make me appear more pale, but it was the opposite effect! I now feel less pale than when I was blonde! Interestingly enough, I also feel that it is easier to wear a range of clothing colors (when I was blonde, yellow, green, orange, and red were hard to wear). It was an exciting transition that I welcomed with open arms.

Damaged Hair Treatment

As I said before, constantly bleaching my hair was hard on the hair follicles! When I bleach my hair, the bleach must get into the shaft and break down down the pigment (melanin) in each strand. Unfortunately, this also breaks down the natural fatty acids in hair leading to dry, brittle strands. Repeatedly bleaching my hair led to the cuticle scales becoming permanently lifted, further damaging my hair. Couple the hair coloring damage with heat styling damage and my hair was looking like a splintery and frizzy mess. Luckily, there are ways to repair damaged hair — even at home! Saving money is a priority for me (salon visits are expensive), so I was excited to hear about a new damaged hair treatment that can be used without professional help! Another way to repair damaged hair is by taking vitamins for growth– check out this Hairfinity review!

Deep Conditioner

Namely, Pantene Pro-V Rescue Shots that hit US shelves January of 2019! For the past eight years, the Intense Rescue Shots have only been available in Brazil, but Pantene felt it was time to being the magical strengthening formula to The States! Each individual tube contains a deeply absorbing blend of Pro-Vitamin B5, strengthening lipids and natural glycerin meant to target the damaged areas in my hair. What makes the shots different than other deep conditioners? Pantene Pro-V Intense Rescue Shot’s strengthening lipids absorb into my hair rather than coating the hair strands and weighing down my locks!

Feel like taking a shot? After shampooing, simply apply the product generously from root-to-tip, saturating as much as possible. The single-dose tube is meant to be used all at once and formulated to prevent overdosing, so go crazy and use the entire bottle in one go! The package says to leave it on for 30 seconds; I like to shave my legs in this time! Once you’ve let it sit for 30+ seconds, rinse out for 30 seconds and no more! You want to keep the deep conditioner in your hair, so it is essential not to over-rinse. This should be used this weekly instead of your normal conditioner.

As if you still aren’t convinced, the shots come in a pack of three for under $6 at many stores. You can pick this miracle hair treatment while you are grabbing your weekly groceries! As you know, I only work with brands and promote products that I truly believe in and I 100% back this product up! Try it out yourself, you’ll have luscious hair, I promise! This post is sponsored by Pantene. All thoughts and opinions are my own.