One of my favorite things about blogging is the cool opportunities and experiences that come along with it! This week I took a day off work to go on set with Nexxus as they took Molly Sims from blonde to red! I got to chat with both Molly and her {amazing} colorist Aura Friedman.
As someone who likes playing around with hair color {it’s been blonde, red, brown, and back to blonde in the past year} it was fun to see Molly make such a dramatic change. I mean, she’s always been this iconic blonde – what a departure!
When I spoke with Molly, she said she just wanted a big change – without cutting it. I didn’t realize this but for ten years she actually had black hair. Her natural hair color is a reddy brown, so going red would actually be going closer to her natural shade… who knew! Of course she was a little nervous… to quote her “Will my baby recognize me!?” but she loved the idea of making a fun change… and also giving her hair a break from blonde {which as pretty as it is, can be pretty damaging.} She likened going red to playing a new character. In her words, she said that it is kind of like how heels make you walk differently and feel like a different person… hair color has the same effect. Isn’t it amazing how something as simple as switching up your hair color can make you feel like a new person? 
Another thing I find interesting is how you can change up the colors you wear when you change your hair. As a redhead, she looks forward to wearing more white and cream… and pale pinks – which would have washed her out before but look so beautiful with red hair. And black of course… but black looks great with everything.
In speaking with Aura, she knew red would work with the yellow-tones in Molly’s complexion… and that it would really make her hazel eyes pop. She took it a more strawberry color with plenty of highlights for lightness and dimension. The challenge was to make it as natural as possible… I’d say she succeeded!
I asked Aura for a few tips and tricks to share with you guys {it’s not every day you get to interview a celebrity stylist!} and here is what she said.
Don’t wash your hair more than a couple times a week. It will extend the life of your color dramatically. Typical hair color lasts about 20 shampoos. If you can get by washing your hair just twice a week, it will last ten weeks.
Water is the enemy for hair color – it’s not just shampoo! This is especially true if you live in New York . I found this particularly interesting as I used to just rinse my hair and add conditioner. Water will still fade your color!
Buy a filter for your shower – it will help.
To combat hair color fade, both Molly and Aura spoke so highly of Nexxus’s new Color Assure Pre-Wash Primer. You apply it right before you shower… it repels water and keeps hair color from fading. {After applying the primer you can get your hair wet and shampoo/condition as normal} Regular use of the primer before shampooing/getting hair wet will allow the color to last for twice as long – up to 40x longer!
Anyway, it was such a fun day. As part of my collaboration with Nexxus, I will be sharing more hair color tips + tricks… and visiting Aura for my own hair color transformation. More to come soon, I can’t wait!
Disclosure: This post was part of my collaboration with Nexxus + Style Coalition. All opinions are my own.