| Tom Goes Blonde With L'Oreal's Feria Bleach Blonding |
| Karen Marie Shelton |
| Date: 2/27/2000, 12/15/2005 |
Introduction  Tom is a very talented, vivacious, writer. Tom is also a charming member of various philosophy clubs and discussion groups. If I started my raves about either Tom or philosophy I would sway off the point of this whole article.
(Image of Tom from HairBoutique.com - all rights reserved). To cut to the chase.......while women are currently leaving the blonde and beautiful colors behind for shades of walnut, chocolate and mocha, men are moving in opposite directions and becoming blonde in record numbers.
Men Are Going Blonde Is this really true? Are men realizing that blondes have more fun, get more attention, have the edge over other colors? Or are men doing the blonde thing because men have recognized the importance of wearing their hair to enhance their overall appearance. A debate could rage over the cause of the current blonding behavior patterns of men. However, there is no question that all men, not just entertainers and rock stars, are becoming bolder about embracing color and chemicals for their hair.  Hot Latin singer Ricky Martin is famous for his blonde tipped spiked do. Recently for a trip to Nepal Ricky went completely platinum.
(Photo from Louie D/C Burton - People Magazine). While the average guy is becoming bolder about adding highlights, covering gray and even adding blonde tips to his newly formed spikes, many men are hitting the blonding kits that used to be available only for women. L'Oreal, one of the leaders in the home haircolor industry recently introduced a complete line of haircolor for men. It is called Feria For Men and it is permanent haircolor shades that covers a range of colors from blonde to brunette to red.
Tom Goes Blonde With Preference  When I first met Tom over a year ago, he had longer hair that he wore in a variety of styles for his medium brunette hair. While Tom's hair looked good, it was "basic everyday standard guy hair".
(Image of Tom from HairBoutique.com - all rights reserved). A few months ago Tom appeared with a new shade of blonde. It was quite a different look. Being a fanatic about hair I asked Tom what he had used to transform his brunette locks into a dark blonde. He explained that a friend had given him a L'Oreal blonde kit in the Preference line. Although Tom was happy with his first journey into blondeness, he was also disappointed that he was not platinum. It was true. Although Tom was no longer a brunette, he was not a platinum blonde. His newly blonded do had lots of red tints and shadings. I explained to Tom that when you go from brunette to a platinum blonde you have to use bleach to remove all other colors first. Although Tom was happy with his first journey into blondeness, he was also disappointed that he was not platinum.
Tom Goes Blonde With Feria  Tom informed me that he wanted to try for the platinum look and wanted to try yet another color.
(Image of Tom from HairBoutique.com - all rights reserved). For his next step in the blonding process Tom opted to try L'Oreal's Feria for Men. Tom chose the Feria Bleach Blonding kit which is a permanent color that is designed to give you a very light shade of blonde. I did tell Tom that the Feria may or may not give him the platinum shade he desired but that since his hair was a dark blonde, it might still get close to the color he wanted. Tom applied the Feria appoximately one week ago and the photos in this article show the results. While Tom's hair is much lighter than the first blonde color, it still has a lot of yellow tones in it. The red tones are gone but the blonde is still not stark white like Tom would like. As Tom said "it's blonde. I wish it was a little lighter. Almost white. It's that yellow kind of blonde" I asked Tom if the blonding process with first the Preference and then the Feria had dried out his hair. Tom reported that with all the blonding his hair is not any drier. Tom explained that he has been using "Mastey 'Traite" creme shampoo and it "seems to work pretty well". Tom also mentioned "the Feria came with a special conditioner and that it actually made his hair feel very soft".
Next Step: Bleach With Toners Tom is not going to give up his quest for platinum. When I talked to Tom last night (2/27/00) he told me that he is going to buy hard core bleach, mix it with a platinum toner and strip all the color from his hair. Tom pointed out that since his hair is relatively short and grows pretty fast that if it doesn't turn out the way he wants he can just cut it and start over. This is a luxury that most women don't have when experimenting with hair colors. Tom and I discussed the fact that the bleach may actually cause some varying levels of dryness to his hair since the bleach will be the third chemical process that he is taking with his hair in the past few weeks. I told Tom that he should try a color shampoo to help him preserve the colors and that PhytoKarite, Rene Furterer's Karite or some other deep conditioner could help him add moisture and condition back to his hair. Tom plans to check out a good color shampoo and good conditioner when he makes the bleach trip.
Conclusion Tom has been very gracious in sharing his adventures from brunette to light blonde. He has provided insight into the working of L'Oreal Preference and L'Oreal's Feria For Men. Note: 12/15/05 - Tom has abandoned his blonde look and is living life with his natural light brown locks. |