The Long Hair Community - Temporary hair colours & punky hair style advice.

Pegasus Marsters · May 23rd, 2005, 04:04 PM

I was wondering if any of you know where I can get temp hair dye in punky colours? Wash in wash out type of stuff. Basically, when my band start gigging (Theres a nearby club that lets teen bands play) we want to do different stuff with our hair. The three girls, me, Becca and Claire are ok for different styles because I'll be making us hair falls to wear for most gigs. However, our keyboardist Charlie has really short hair and we want a way to punk it up without making it hard and horrid. And, as falls are heavy and will make our heads hot, we'd like an alternative too, so colour would be great.

Spray in stuff is fine for Charlie, since his hairs short and won't look daft if it goes stiff, but as Becca, Claire and I all have long(ish) hair it'll look really crap if it goes stiff, and when we sweat the likelyhood is the stuff'll rub off on our clothes. Not fun.

Basically, we want nice, easy to use, hair colour that won't last too long and won't require bleaching. I'd also like it to be conditioning, thinking about not only my hair but Beccas seriously blowfried hair. I've heard Manic Panic is supposed to be quite good, but that lasts a fair amount of time doesn't it, and works best on bleached hair. I personally won't bleach, but Becca, Claire and Charlie might be willing to, I'd have to ask.

Also, if anyone could think of some punky hair styles for us that'd be good. Updos would be particularly nice as it'd keep our hair off our faces and necks while we perform, but we still need a punk look to it. *flutters eyelashes* My hairs longest at BSL, Beccas is shoulder, and I'm not sure about Claires.

Apologies for the huge rant, but advice would be great

Sapphire'sWings · May 23rd, 2005, 04:42 PM

You can always make little braids,and then tie them up in any way you like.You can do those pigtails that are high on your head.It might be too little girly though.Maybe not if you dye your hair?And even if not,I think it would be nice,especially if you use your hair falls.Dunno how that would work out since you want te hair off your neck though,but it might work for the other band members.You can always see if you can tie the hair up in many ponytails.Dunno how that would look,but I've seen similar styles.

Other than that,I'm completely dry out of ideas.

Larz · May 23rd, 2005, 04:50 PM

At my local beauty supply store there is this cream type stuff that washes out. I don't know if it will run or if it makes the hair stiff like gel or not. The guy that worked there said he loved to put it on his hair for raves and such. They had TONS of colors, and unfortunately I don't recall the name right now.
One thing I used to do when I went to concerts and stuff and wanted a different look was food coloring and small rope braids all over or just on the canopy. The colors washed out easily except for the red, it stained my blonde hair and made it pink for quite a few washes. It was still cool though for temporary color. I never had it run, but it might be something to test out before you get up on stage.
Good luck to you and congrats on the gig!

Ursula · May 23rd, 2005, 05:16 PM

For styling, you might try unusually positioned small buns - maybe a row going down the center of your head, like a mohawk. (Somehow, punk=mohawk in my mind...)

For color, you could try wrapping fake hair swatches to the buns, or wrapping them in pieces of colored cloth.

Sapphire'sWings · May 23rd, 2005, 05:27 PM

Oh,yeah,you could do a mohawk made out of braids!I know it was mentioned here in LHC.

1953Diygal · May 23rd, 2005, 06:53 PM

Hmm....I would go the braid route. Please don't take this the wrong way, but I just think that if you do the spray in thing, the diehards will be able to smell a fake a mile away, and your credibility will suffer.

At least that's the way it was when I was in the scene.....

Just be yourself...but more rockin'. Don't try to fake it, or folks will know.
-Anne

Catrin · May 23rd, 2005, 07:18 PM

Well, I used to color a lot with the brands Manic Panic and Special Effects. they are both good brands, but I can't tell you about how temporary they are, since I left them in for hours to make them more permanent. I think they are both vegetable based and not as chemical-ish as other dyes, and they never made my hair feel dry or fried. (However, when I was asked to dye over it and beehive it for a musical production, that did fry it. I still have strands that are lighter down at the ends of my hair from the sections I had to dye over.)
I never bleached it, but I'm a medium-dark blonde naturally. The colors were a bit muted for being on unbleached hair, but it was okay, 'cause I've seen what bleaching can do. I don't know how much would show up on your brown hair, especially in dim light or under colored lights (depending on your show setup). To be honest, punk colors and mohawks are almost meaningless nowadays. They don't say "I'm a badass" anymore, they say "My mommy and daddy pay for me to shop at Hot Topic and be a poser". In my opinion, I think it would be much cooler to do new styles with mini buns and braids. If you can take the heat of the lights, try some styles with some of it down.
I agree with Pegasus: don't use spray in, it makes you look like not just a poser, but a 13 year old poser. And it's full of alcohol, which will dry out your hair like mad.
Anyway, I think you will make more of a statement with cool hairdos instead of colors.

Merlin · May 24th, 2005, 12:36 AM

You might want to look at pictures of Ani DiFranco - she's not big into colour but does do wild hair (she's also one of the GREATEST female singer/songwriters in the universe).

Pegasus Marsters · May 24th, 2005, 02:25 AM

Thanks guys. The spray in was just a thought for Charlie because, as I said, his hairs a pretty uniform short guy cut so we're pretty bugered for punky styles on him. I'll get myself some new bobby pins and stuff this weekend and start figuring out new styles we can do.

Sapphire: The reason I think it'd be best with our hair off of our neck would be because stage lights are so damned hot. I know that personally from acting on stage.
(Heh... I got dazzled by the stage lights once and passed out, no fun!) My guitarists probably going to want her hair down for most gigs for headbanging effect, but personally I prefer mine up

*goes off Ani DiFranco hunting*

Morticia · May 24th, 2005, 02:53 AM

I saw Ani DiFranco a few months ago. Her presentation has to do with her presence, not necessarily her looks. Her hair isn't dreaded anymore.

Pegasus - have you seen Ravenlox's gallery? She shows a hairstyle there that might work out for you.

Pegasus Marsters · May 24th, 2005, 03:01 AM

You mean the quiff Ravenlox has there? Yeah, I'd seen that one. I'll have to try that one this weekend when I've got some more bobby pins (Mine are all bent and buggered.. lol.)

Merlin · May 24th, 2005, 03:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by natchen13

I saw Ani DiFranco a few months ago. Her presentation has to do with her presence, not necessarily her looks. Her hair isn't dreaded anymore.

Pegasus - have you seen Ravenlox's gallery? She shows a hairstyle there that might work out for you.

Ani DiFranco's hair is different on every album cover I've seen LOL

Must be great to see her live though - not sure how often she tours in the UK.

Messyhair · May 24th, 2005, 04:10 AM

Manic Panic doesn't wash out completely in my experience. It will fade a bit over time, but I wouldn't try it if you're looking for temporary color. Shoppers Drug Mart carries hair coloring gel, but maybe it's only for short-hairs. It's supposed to wash out right away.

Thursday · May 24th, 2005, 04:26 AM

I've got it into my head that you're from the UK (and you do write 'colour' so hopefully I'm correct!) so here's some UK-centric options.

You may be able to get Manic Panic over here now, but it'll be easier to get Directions, Stargazer or (though since they rejigged it about 5 years ago it deteriorated in quality hugely) Jerome Russell. The first two are available in alternative shops (JR you can get in Superdrug, but I don't really recommend it). You can apply the colours over non-bleached hair, but the colour is not as vibrant, and won't show at all on darker hair.

However, after all that I don't recommend it for temporary looks as it can stain for a long time.

The problem with spray-ons is that they can run if you get overly sweaty. Maybe your male friend could pull it off with a short spikey look, but he'd probably be better off with a coloured putty (you can get them in Claires) to spike the hair (but it may look fake). Maybe he could wear a bandana?

What types of falls have you tried? For years my 'look' when I went out was a pair of high bunches (to keep hair off my neck) with two streaks of white fake hair (put a bobble in the middle of the strand, attach bobble to the base of your ponytail, and you get a streak of colour down each side of the ponytail). This could be plaited with my own hair to make a really nice effect, or bunned with swirls of colour. It's not too heavy and doesn't bulk out your hair too much.

Obviously there are those falls which have the wool equivalent of 8 sheep stuck to each ponytail - I imagine those are incredibly hot and heavy, but just a little bunch of Jumbo Braid isn't too bad.

You can get Jumbo Braid from alternative beauty shops and African-hair-care shops, it comes in a huge range of colours and shouldn't cost more than £5 for a big pack. Obviously you can also use it to put little plaits of colour in, or if you've got a lot of time on your hands, micro-braid your entire head with the Jumbo Braid.

I think I still have a blue temporary colour-mousse; if I do then I don't want anymore it, if you want it (I'm decluttering but hate throwing things in the bin). I used it before I was brave enough to bleach my hair so I could use blue dye. It does go a little crispy but if you're careful it's not too bad; I only did one of my curls with it (I'd imagine your whole head would look silly), but my friend did think it was 'real'.

(Hope this all makes sense; it's taken me about 2 hours to write this as I keep being interrupted!)

ChloeDharma · May 24th, 2005, 06:48 AM

For colour Directions is really good, i was even thinking of using it as they have loads of colours and you can mix them up to create new colours if you want. They are semi-permanent and don't contain any peroxide. A friend of mine used to use them weekly for her red hair and it varied from waist to tailbone shining all the way to the ends of her hair. She did this for years so it can't have hurt her hair. The website is here, have a look around if you are interested
http://www.lariche-directions.com/
Style wise this link might be useful for you to create new ideas, it basically gives instructions for creating all types of extensions and falls. One look i love is yarn braids, especially the collinette type but here's a link to the site, it also has tons of photos to give you ideas
http://quinnster.co.uk/hair/
One thing i would say, i assume like Thursday does that you are in the UK, if you live in or around london one of the best places to buy hair extensions is called Pacs in Finsbury park. They also sell a TONE of products designed for hair care, also many mainstream brands but alot cheaper. Don't go looking for them in Camden because they are rip off prices.
Anyway, i hope that is of some help to you and good luck with your gigs