This is a brief, cautionary tale about walking into the Beauty Supply store 10 minutes before closing.  It is proof that all the online preparation in the world can’t replace real-life experience, and that major beauty fails pop up when you least expect them.

If you’ve been following me for a while, you probably know for how long I’ve been mustering up the courage to do something bold with my hair.  Going blonde was the first big step for me, next was taking it lighter and lighter up to the point where I had the perfect base for real color.  After much back and forth I decided to pull the trigger and start with cool tones like silver before moving into the warm tones like pink, which brings me current with the story and at the Beauty Supply Store right before closing.

I knew Pravana wasn’t sold there, but for some reason I thought I would double check what was in stock.  That was my first mistake.  Upon arrival I’m being rushed out by the clerk while hastily texting my best friend “HELP! They only have Ion Brilliance.”  I decide to roll with with the punches and start looking for Ion Titanium, the silver/grey from their semi-permanent line, only to learn that the shop has stopped carrying that shade.  Bam.  I’m trying to decide if I’m ready to plunge into blue when I see the most perfect Ion swatch of this almost mauve, smoky pink.  My dream color, if there ever was one– I grab it.  As I’m checking out the bff warns me that the permanent and semi-permanent boxes look the same, so I ask the clerk if I grabbed the right bottle and he says “Yes, demi-permanent.”  I ask him to throw in some white conditioner, “so I can dilute it if needed,” and I’m out with one minute to spare.

I’ve never dyed my hair myself, and the only reason I was willing to try this time instead of going to the salon is because I found solace in the fact that it could all wash out (and that I watched 50 YouTube tutorials).  I failed to realize the difference between semi-permanent and demi-permanent dyes, and all the professional hair dressers are probably laughing at me right now.  Seeing my obvious naivety he could have mentioned that a developer is non-optional for the Ion ‘Smoky Pink.’  Maybe if I had gone earlier in his shift he would have, or I could’ve had the time to google it in the aisle.  I got home to open the tube and find a clear paste, not pink as the tutorials had prepared me for.  I was lost; an utter and complete n00b.  I tried a test strand anyway, and as I’m sure you can guess there was no difference sans developer in the mix.

It just goes to show that all the tutorials on the internet can’t always prepare you for an eventual FAIL.

Share your own beauty fails below!

xxLK