DIY Ombre Hair

At the weekend, I decided it was time for a change. My blonde locks were going dark at the roots and I wasn't happy with the brassy, yellow tones that seemed to be coming through. Whilst I've changed my hair countless times over the past 14 years (take a walk through my hair history here), blonde has always been my default shade but recently, it hasn't been looked quite right to me.

So, after a quick search on Google, I decided to opt for ombre. I know, I know - it's been around for ages now but it's a look I've always liked and one that seems to be quite low maintenance, which is just what I'm looking for right now. If it works for Drew Barrymore, than that's good enough for me - I love that woman!

With Cheryl Cole's new 'do hitting the headlines last week, courtesy of L'Oreal, the ombre look can't be over just yet. But with light blonde locks, I wasn't sure how to go about achieving this look myself. I popped to the shops and chose a dark blonde shade from L'Oreal called Rimini for the darker shade then selected L'Oreal Wild Ombre shade 3 for the lighter ends of my hair.

I prepared the dark blonde shade first then worked this through the top layers, focusing on my hairline and roots and then worked this through to the mid-lengths, leaving the ends dye-free.

After washing out the dye after a development time of 25 minutes, and drying it quickly, I separated my hair into two bunches. Using the brush supplied with the ombre kit, I worked the dye through from the mid lengths downwards, concentrating more on the very ends of my hair. I then washed and dried my hair again after keeping an eye on the dye before washing it off after around 25 minutes.

I was pleased with the result but I had started the fade to the lighter shade a little too high up for my liking, so I repeated the dark blonde shade on top and blended this into the lighter shade around my ear level so after 15 minutes, this had darkened. I then put a little more of the ombre lightener on the ends of my hair to give it a little more lift.

Here's the before and after - it's a shame I couldn't get a better 'after' photo but the daylight had faded and I couldn't quite capture the finished look.

I'm pleased with the results though. It's a natural shade for me to have and I like the fact I still have blonde in my hair without it being to harsh. I think it will be easy to look after too and I'd definately recommend the ombre kit as it was easy to use and you could clearly see the colour lifting as the dye developed, so you knew when to stop when the shade you wanted was achieved.

All the phone pics I've taken seem to make my new hair colour look a little strange but the finish does look pretty professional in real life, even if I say so myself! I might be inclined to make the colour change more dramatic in the future, with a dark shade on top, but we'll see how I get on with my new ombre locks...