Hair-raising experiences

Attempts at personal hair care can be detrimental to your head

Attempting to give your locks a new cut or color by yourself can be a hair-raising experience, especially if you don't know what you're doing.

Although some students are brave enough to pick up the scissors and a box of hair dye to do it themselves, there are risks involved which can make every day a bad hair day.

The biggest hair problems often result when trying to change hair color at home, said Linda Heverly, manager of Regis Hairstylists in the Nittany Mall.

Highlighting, or lightening sections of hair, can cause problems when the color doesn't turn out as expected.

"Chances are, it's going to get gold or red," which may not be the intended effect, Heverly said. The highlighting then has to be fixed or colored over, she said, which could end up costing more money than students on a tight budget want to spend.

Another coloring problem results when one tries to dye the entire head of hair at home, especially when using darker colors, which can be hard to strip out if the results are less than perfect, Heverly said.

"They really penetrate into hair," she said, referring to the many do-it-yourself hair dyes on the market today.

Many over-the-counter coloring products contain lead, she said, which can be a form of protection for the hair, but it can also cause disastrous results for people with certain hair types.

"What can happen is, it may turn green, it may turn orange," she said.

That's exactly what happened to Karin Frantz (freshman-health and human development) when she recently tried to dye her blonde hair a darker color.

"My hair is so blond that it just soaked up the color too much," Frantz said.

In some places, she said, the dye didn't take at all, and the other parts of her hair turned a brownish-green color.

Frantz said although she was upset at first, she would still recommend coloring hair at home because she has dyed her hair many times before and has gotten good results. This time, though, she plans on getting it fixed by a professional.

"It's a learning experience," she said.

For an inexperienced hand, picking up the scissors and giving yourself a new style may not be a good idea, either.

When it comes to cutting hair, Heverly said many students wait too long between haircuts, and some students might be tempted to give themselves a trim at home, especially their bangs.

"If they attempt it, they have to remember -- cutting straight across isn't as easy as it looks," she said.

The best method for trimming bangs is to cut small pieces at a time, she said, and not just cut straight across in one motion. She also said people should leave the back of their hair alone, because using mirrors to see can get complicated.

Not all at-home haircuts make students want to cry afterward, though.

Maureen Brindle (junior-film and video) has been cutting her own hair since she was 16, she said, although sometimes the results aren't exactly what she wants.

However, she has been largely successful.

"I never let anyone else cut it," she said. "It's fine for me, because I've never done anything too bad to myself."

Brindle said she pays attention to different hairstyles and uses a decent pair of scissors. She recommends using mirrors to see the sides and back while cutting.

She has known people who have paid money for bad professional haircuts, but she said it doesn't make sense to pay $30 for one.

However, Heverly said paying more to get a good haircut is important if you want to look good.

"If you spent more money on your hair and less on your clothes, you'd still feel like a million bucks," she said.