Anyone who has ever colored their hair knows that it’s always worth the effort, and unicorn hair is completely worth every minute you spend dying it.
But with salons closed during a global pandemic, it’s not easy to get your hair done professionally. So therein lies the question: Can you do this at home?
But before we get into that, what is unicorn hair in the first place?
What Is Unicorn Hair?
Unicorn hair is a colorful and gorgeous way to dye your hair. What you do is use a few different pastel colors to create a rainbow on your hair.
In short, unicorn hair is just a fancy term for having pastel, rainbow hair.
Choosing the Right Dye
One of the most important parts of getting the best out of your hair is choosing the right dye for you.
There are tons of different dyes on the market, and you should try to choose something cruelty-free from a trustworthy brand.
Your dye should also be softer, pastel colors, and semi-permanent. That way, you get to test out a few different colors.
Unicorn hair dye by Lime Crime
Some dye that is simply made with this style in mind comes from Lime Crime — rightfully named unicorn hair dye!
They carry tons of different colors, all of them vivid and gripping.
Their semi-permanent colors are sure to make you feel like a real-life unicorn and are perfect for bright and bold unicorn hair.
Lime Crime’s unicorn hair dye is vegan and cruelty-free and is for home use. It’s also made to keep your hair healthy.
If you do choose unicorn hair by Lime Crime, make sure you use it properly! Always take care to read the instructions on the bottle before using any dye.
Creamtones by Manic Panic
Manic Panic is a tried and true brand that has, time and time again impressed countless customers. The author of this piece included.
And while they’re known for their vivid, loud colors, that doesn’t mean that they don’t have some seriously sweet pastels.
They carry five colors: Velvet Violet, Dreamsicle orange, Blue Angel, Sea Nymph green, and Fleur Du Mal pink.
All of Manic Panic’s dyes are vegan and cruelty-free, and their 40 years of experience speak to how they really know their stuff when it comes to great dye.
Punky Colour
Our next picks for pastel colors are pastels from Punky Colour. These semi-permanent dyes come in tons of different shades that will give you more vivid unicorn hair.
These dyes are creams that are easy to apply at home.
All you need to do is apply the dye, comb it through, and then leave it for between 15 and 30 minutes. Then rinse your hair, and enjoy your brand new unicorn hair!
And the best part is that this dye is also cruelty-free and vegan! From vivid violets to pastel pinks, your hair can be every shade under the sun.
The Best Color Combinations
If you’re not sure what colors you want to pair together, don’t fret!
There is a variety of magical color combinations we’ve come up with that are sure to leave you dazzled.
We’ll start with the classic rainbow. This color combination is made up of baby blue, baby pink, gold, violet, mint green, and pink.
Another is the enchanted garden. To get the enchanted garden, combine mint green, violet, pink, buttercup, and bluebell.
And finally, you can choose to dye your hair in lost treasure, which is silver, gold, baby blue, and pearl.
But remember that you can go with whatever colors truly speak to you. What matters is that you love your hair.
How to Do Unicorn Hair
Giving yourself unicorn hair isn’t difficult if you have some experience under your belt.
It’s as easy as gathering your dye and setting it to work in your bathroom. Just make sure you have some gloves and Vaseline to keep the dye off of your skin.
Let’s dive right into step one.
Bleach your hair
This first step can be daunting and requires a lot of care. Bleaching your hair at home is possible, but it’s important that you gather the right supplies first.
Start by setting down some parchment paper to protect your counter, put on an old T-shirt you don’t mind getting bleach on, and an old towel that you won’t care about ruining.
Then get together some hair clips, the hair bleach you want to use, and shampoo.
You should wash and dry your hair before you bleach it and make sure it’s free of styling products, excessive oils, and dry shampoo.
Once your hair is clean and dry, section off your hair into four parts to make sure the bleach is applied evenly. Make sure you follow the instructions on your bleach very carefully.
Planning out your hair
After you’ve bleached your hair and it’s a nice blank canvas, it’s time to plan out exactly what you want your hair to look like.
We’re sure you’ve already planned out exactly what you want, but just in case you haven’t, now is the time to take a look around.
Browse the internet, Pinterest, or have a discussion with your fashionista friends to make your decision. Decide how many colors you want to use and where you want them.
Choosing your colors
After you’ve got an idea of what you want, it’s time to choose your colors!
Remember to choose light colors that will blend into one another when everything is finished.
Some of the absolute best colors to choose from are blue, purple, pink, turquoise, and baby pink. Remember that the final colors are up to you, and you should only choose colors you love.
Getting down to business
If you’re all set up, you’re all clear to get started!
Take all of your bottles of hair dye and lay them out, so you don’t have to hunt around for them later. You’ll want to go section by section until your hair is full of chunks of color.
Remember to follow the instructions on the bottles of hair dye and dye your hair accordingly until your desired sections are colorful.
Then once you’ve followed all of the instructions and your hair is dry, you should have stunning unicorn hair! All there is left to do is take the best possible care of it.
Keeping Worries out of Your Hair
Now that you’ve got some absolutely enchanting unicorn hair, you have to know how to take care of it.
From wondering how long your unicorn hair will last to how to get the dye off of your bathroom, we’re here to answer all of your questions and help keep your hair at its best.
How long does unicorn hair dye last?
We know you worked hard on your hair, so how long will your magical colors last?
That all depends on how you take care of your hair, but if you really want a timeframe, it’s best to consult your boxes of dye. Each dye should have its own expected lifespan.
It’s best to choose dyes that are all designed to last around the same time.
How to take care of your hair color
If you’ve ever dyed your hair before, you know that you should ditch the heat. Hot showers can already damage your hair, and when you take hot showers with dyed hair, it will fade faster.
You should also wash your hair a little less than you usually would because the more you wash your hair, the faster your color will fade.
Speaking of shampoo, you might want to skip it altogether if you don’t have a shampoo with a formula for dyed hair specifically.
It’s also important to condition your hair more than you normally would. Bleaching and dying your hair can dry it out, so the more conditioner you use, the better.
Keep away from your hairdryer and other hot tools, too. Unless you have a heat protectant for styling, allow your hair to dry naturally, and avoid styling it with heat.
How to get hair dye off of your bathtub
If you’ve dyed your hair at home, you might have dye all over your sink and your bathtub. Don’t panic — it’s surprisingly easy to get hair dye off of your bathroom fixtures.
Start by plugging up your bathtub and filling it up with enough hot water to cover up the stained spot.
Put on a pair of fresh rubber gloves, pour a cup of vinegar into the water, and mix it. Then add half of a cup of baking soda, allowing it to fizz up.
Then let the vinegar, baking soda, and water mix sit in your bathtub for about 10 minutes and drain it. Rise everything off with warm water, and you’re done!
If you have some stains that are more stubborn than others, repeat the process and consider using bleach spray or another bathroom cleaner.
Just make sure you do not mix cleaning supplies!
How to get hair dye out of clothes
We get that it happens — hair dye gets on clothes. But don’t ditch that T-shirt just yet, because there are ways to get hair dye out of clothes.
Before you set to work, make sure you check the label on your clothes. If it’s dry clean only, don’t try and take care of the stain yourself. Take it straight to a dry cleaner!
If the label says it’s fine to be washed yourself, then you’re okay to proceed.
This method is for brown, black, and blue stains, and may not work on all pastels.
Start by removing any excess globs of hair dye with a credit card or a knife with a dull edge. Then continue treating the spot by rinsing it off with alcohol or cold water.
Next, take a liquid laundry detergent and scrub the spot with either a clean white cloth or a toothbrush. Allow the laundry detergent to sit for between 5 and 15 minutes.
You may have to repeat the previous steps a few times before you begin to see the stains lighten.
After that, fill your sink with cool water and mix in color-safe and oxygen-based bleach, and soak the clothing for eight hours at the very least.
Remember to treat stains as soon as you notice them, and always wear gloves, handling your dye with care.
Don’t Let Anyone Dull Your Sparkle
Now that your hair is an enchanting rainbow, you’re all set to take some stunning selfies and feel magical in the sunshine.
We hope you love the way your hair turned out, and your pastels look beautiful together. Here’s to hoping your colors stick around for a long time.
How did your unicorn hair turn out? Which colors did you choose? Leave us a comment down below and let us know! We’re always looking forward to reading what you have to say.
Mady Oswald is an author and freelance writer in both realism and fiction, with a love for baking and animals.
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