It's 2012 how I have been counting down to this year for the last 3 years....I was pregnant with the twins and had wished the time away to reach this date - Curly Haired Beauty would be firmly established at school (loving it) and the twins will be starting pre-school (tomorrow). I would be over that small child 'bump' and gain a bit more me time and hopefully its a home run to this parenting lark.
But life has a way of biting you on the bum! I am still in a 'have a job, got no job' and facing redundancy (boo hiss). For the last 4 years I have had the most amazing flexible working hours and had truly experienced that work/life balance that most working women would kill for. This job has given me the chance to earn my own money to feed my Net-a-Porter habit, spend real quality time with toddler, its even given me the opportunity to go away for 9 months to have twins and return to work with even better hours and benefits. But due to a change in senior management I am no longer required *weeps*.
I know I am going to find it really hard to find something comparable working for a dynamic buzzy media company, doing a 5 hour day, lunch breaks/shopping in W1, I was able to do the school morning run and be home in time for the golden hours; 5pm-7pm feed, bath and bed the kiddies.
And to top it all I had to cope with a major hair diaster - my crowning glory which I had been painstakingly growing long, so I could have lovely swishy hair for my 40th.
I had tweeted about getting my hair dip dyed blue - I'm so Jessie J and down with the kids (not). I went to my regular salon (a top quality one) and the colourist said he could bleach the last 7 inches and then colour it peacock blue. Ladies and gentlemen it was a disaster - the effect was great but he had used Krazy Colour and when I left the salon, went back to the office, left the office ...it RAINED. I got dye down my neck, ears, scarf, jacket. I looked like a smurf. I was so upset and ANGRY. I called the salon the next day and the rather unhelpful receptionist recommended I use washing up liquid to get rid of my blue skin. Everytime I touched my hair, my hand would be covered in blue, it was all around my nails and cuticles and took forever to scrub off. No way was I told this would happen, I have never seen Emo's with har colour run in the rain. If I had been told properly about the high colour transfer onto everything I would have declined the idea and asked for another suggestion. After all the colourist is the colour expert.
This is my hair after I had washed it 4 times with detox shampoo to get the excess colour out. Note the greenish tinge.
Exhibit A
When the colourist responsible failed to return my call, I rang the salon again and luckily I got the Manager M, he got his ear bashed but was very sweet and said he would do what he could to rectify the problem. Later that week he used a solution containing ammonia to scrub out the blue but it left my hair a very pale dirty green. He then put a violet toner on top which left my hair looking like it did before I had the colour treatment. I had paid £112 and the results was now I had dry ends.....
People, I had to deal with dry ends during party season and facing redundancy; I was not a happy bunny at the end of 2011. M said my hair had been through a lot so let it settle and he would take some swatches of my to test and see what he could do to give me the high colour impact I had so wanted. So I waited, waited and waited. Finally yesterday I headed back to the salon and was told that the already coloured hair was not possible to treat, M's experiments produced a dirty dishwasher colour and the recommendation was to apply the violet toner again to keep the ends dark (the colour was already fading and was going orange/gingerish - not a good look). He would try another dye to lift the cuticles and give me a high impact shiny bright colour in one step. No bleaching and then applying a colour and assured me no colour would run in the rain! So deep breath I took the plunge and went for Fuchsia red.
I'm happy, so very happy, the colour isn't where I had wanted it but he could only treat the virgin hair and not the coloured hair. It makes me 'dare I say it' more youthful looking. That pop of bright red when I swish my hair it gorgeous. Curly Haired Beauty is inspired and wants pink in her hair but understands she has to be a grown up before she can go to mummy's salon.
Wishing you all a very happy and prosperous 2012 - DM me if you know of any jobs going!
love twosp xxx
