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Hair Color Ideas: Is A New Hue The Way To His Heart?

Hair Color Ideas: How To Dye Your Hair

Fall is here, and while you're trading in ice coffee for a hot cup of joe, flip flops for boots, it's also the perfect time to change up your hair color and attract Mr. Right. Invite love into the new season with this expert hair guide.

You Love Being Blond

Whether your golden locks are natural or you work hard at maintaining that most famous of hair colors, you've likely considered giving different blond intensities a whirl. But before you decide to go lighter or darker, remember the top rule of hair color change: The farther you stray from your current color, the more damaged your hair will be. Overall, pros advise remaining within two levels (the scale by which hair color is measured) in either direction. "When you go too far, the hair texture that you feel today will be gone tomorrow," warns Gretchen Monahan, Dove Hair Care celebrity stylist and owner of Grettacole Salon, in Boston.

Blond: Go Lighter

Before doing anything else, consider your skin tone. If you're fair-skinned, don't go too light to avoid looking washed out or tired. Do you have medium to dark skin with olive undertones? Then choose shades that are described as "cool." Next, how long do you want this new color to stick around? Permanent color lasts until the next time you dye it, demipermanent color lasts about a month, and semipermanent color lasts approximately a week.

We like: L'Oreal Paris Natural Match, $11.99, a permanent formula featuring three new ultra-light blond shades, and Clairol's Natural Instincts, $8.99, a demipermanent formula with color-protective antioxidants.

Go Darker

Going a bit darker usually suits most blondes more than going lighter does (a la Jennifer Aniston), so try out a semi- or demipermanent shade first before fully committing to it.

Hold On to Your Blond: Cleansing with blond-specific shampoos and their matching conditioners will help you love your color longer. (They are formulated with a gentler pH level than traditional versions.)

We like: John Frieda Collection Sheer Blonde Highlight Activating Shampoo with Light Enhancers, $6.50, and Suave Professionals Vibrant Blonde Shampoo, $2.49. Or try a glaze made just for blondes, such as Sunsilk Blonde Bombshell Color Boost for Blondes, $7.89, a cationic dye formula that binds to the hair for a visible change and fades after four washes.

Read the rest over at LHJ: The Best Hue For You: How To Dye Your Hair

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By Patricia Reynoso for LHJ.com