They also sent a handy mixing guide which shows which shades you can blend to get different colours.Previously my routine had consisted of twisting and manually blending the pink into different shades like in the video I did on it. Works like a charm as long as you have a very forgiving colour. When I switched to Paintbox it became harder to do because the dye is a different consistency and stains the second you get it on the hair. I found I had to dilute it with conditioner to make it easier to work with for the gradient. Still worked very well but because Pretty Flamingo was such a bright colour, making the fade effect was a bit more effort than I was used to from the others.So I was interested to see the different in using “Whiter Shade of Pale” than conditioner for diluting, I’m not really sure what I was expecting but it worked really well and made it a lot easier to blend the 3 colours together as well as move them around on the hair while controlling how much stain actually went on. I would definitely repurchase it because I found it better than conditioner. That said, if I didn’t have the money or I ran out and desperately needed to do my hair I would still use conditioner as a stop gap solution because the dye goes on so much better than by itself.

Lasting power is longer than the Wakk Stain too. Previously if I was washing my hair every 3 days the dye would have noticeably faded within 7-10 days. Now it lasts 2-3 weeks before I feel I need to redo it, it also fades to nicer pastels so I could easily leave it longer and still like the colours.

Affordability-wise the tubes are around $14 from Priceline and considering how much I dilute them to get the pastel effect they last forever. Even when I was using just one colour, and with my gigantic amount of hair, a tube would last me around 4 months+ so I think it’s reasonable.

So more importantly, how did I mix up the colours together? I wanted to do my same gradient but just give it a bit more depth so I basically touched up the orange at the bottom and used the Pink Moon so smooth the lines of the gradient. This was the colour order:

And crappily Photoshop blended so you get the general idea:

I won’t be taking you into the shower with me so here’s a step by step example using a hair extension 😉

Squeeze some of each of the colours and some of the mixer on to a plate. I just use my hand when I’m in the shower.

Wet and brush through the hair so there are no tangles.

Mix the orange into a pastel tone, it should be bright but not too bright, I used 1/3rd dye to 2/3rds mixer. Apply the orange to the bottom.

Mix the Pretty Flamingo with mixer, it’s already really bright so 1/5th dye to mixer. Blend it into the orange really well with your fingers and continue upwards. These extensions aren’t my colour so it all looks a bit dark but you can get the idea!

Repeat with the Pink Moon but because this is a fairly pastel colour use 1/3rd dye to mixer. Apply and then do the section about it diluting the pink a bit more. Mix it all in with your fingers so there are no harsh edges and then wash out.

So you should have a nice smooth gradient like this. Of course these extensions are synthetic so the dye just washes off but in real hair it looks much better! Speaking of dying synthetic extensions, tomorrow’s post is how I actually coloured these ones permanently ^_^

And here’s the end result on real hair…

So overall, the stand out colour for me was Pink Moon, it’s a much bluer pink and so when it’s diluted it gives the most beautiful colours. I didn’t fall in love with Gold Finger but that was just personal colour preference. I’ve decided going forward that I want to keep a small amount of orange at the tips but mostly concentrate on the pastel of Pink Moon and use Pretty Flamingo to deepen the shade and give definition to the bottom half. So I would definitely continue purchasing Paintbox colours, yay for finding a good replacement!

That said, everyone and their dog has pink hair these days so maybe I’ll do something completely normal and go dark brown or something 😉

Actually what I *really* want to do once in my life is dye my fringe into a pastel rainbow! That’s something I’m a bit too scared to attempt myself though so I’m waiting until I can actually afford to go to a salon. Sometimes I think it would be totally nice to actually go to a salon for everything and have a whole pampering make over XD Do you guys cut/dye your own hair too or do you get yours done at a salon?