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02:07:2006 Entry: "Ann : The Kool Aid Kronikles, Part 1"

The Kool Aid Kronikles, Part 1

I decided to try a streak of Cherry Red Kool Aid in my hair. Cherry wasn't my first pick of color, but the reason why I chose it was due to a lack of Kool Aid selection at the store. If there is such a Kool Aid color/flavor as Hot Neon Magenta, that would be my first choice. Back in 1982 or so, when I was in college, I had a patch of my hair professionally colored hot magenta and bright teal/turquoise. It was gorgeous while it lasted. It was even gorgeous while it faded. Once it was pretty much gone, I tried various other colors. Since the punk store in Denver was always out of the best punk hair colors, I had to settle for the leftovers like a sort of natural green--not that green is natural in hair, but I mean natural in that it looked like the color of leaves. Or olives. I also tried red hennas on the patch. Even bluing, ala old grey-haired ladies. I added color to my hair a lot in the 80s, and then recently up to a few years ago.

In the early part of this decade I got tired of coloring my hair, and most importantly, I don't want to put caustic chemicals on my head anymore. My hair is now, well, up to a few hours ago, was, completely chemical-free. But it was also a bit boring. And I have these nagging grey streaks that I want to play with.

There was a TV ad for hair color in the past few years that featured a middle-aged/aging baby boomer that decided she wasn't going to age gracefully, she was "going to fight it every step of the way." Screw that. Who wants to fight age, because it's a losing battle. I'm going to play with it and enjoy it. Grey hairs mean blank palettes for art, not something to be ashamed of. This is something that I'd been saying I'd do for ages--dye my grey hair fun colors.

Well this was just a preliminary trial, and I had a short amount of free time this morning to let my hair sit while I worked on stuff before I took a shower.

At around 8 this morning I took a full packet of Cherry Kool Aid, poured it in a bowl, added maybe 1/4 cup or so of boiling water to it, and dipped my strand in it. I didn't soak the strand all the way up to where the grey is the most obvious near my head because I was dealing with a very liquid form of the Kool Aid dye and didn't want it running on my head. (Next time I will try a different approach.) I soaked the strand in the bowl for maybe about 5 minutes, took it out, and wrapped it in tin foil. After about 30 minutes, I unwrapped the tin foil. It was damp, but pretty dry, so I let it air dry. At around 10:45, I took a shower and washed my hair (shampoo, rinse, repeat, condition). As expected, most of the Kool Aid washed out since my hair was not bleached beforehand. It's most noticeable on the lower part of my hair, probably because it was most concentrated in the dipping bowl, and also because that is where the older part of my hair is, so it has been more exposed to the elements and sun, moreso than on the top, so it has been "naturally bleached" a bit. The result is EXTREMELY subtle, and pretty, but because it was only one small strand, very minimal. It leaves sort of a reddish/pinkish/orangeish cast in that area. I think I'd like to try that all over my head some time.

For now, I'll try to find other shades of Kool Aid (no blues...turquoise might look great on a patch of bleached hair, but over natural hair light brown or dark blond hair, blue will look awful, turning it an ugly grey) mostly in the red/pink/orange range. Purple, if it would leave a cast or highlights, would look great on dark hair, but not dark blonde hair.

Why Kool Aid?

1) No Caustic Chemicals. I don't know what Kool Aid is made of exactly, and although it doesn't seem natural, it certainly isn't caustic like other hair dyes. People, children, have been injesting this stuff for decades--certainly if it was toxic it would have been long gone from grocery store shelves.

2) Can't beat the price.

3) Pleasant fruity odor while dyeing...no stink of developer or ammonia.

4) Enjoyable array of fun colors.

Next time, when I have more time to busy myself at home alone while the hair is dyeing, I will try a different method. Instead of mixing the Kool Aid in boiling water, I will add it to conditioner, giving it more viscosity so I can get it closer to my head where the grey is.

I did a lot of googling on this subject, and along the way found some good information, and then some anecdotes that are a bit contrary to my experience, mainly, the permanency of the Kool Aid. Some people say that it leaves their hair with a fruity essence. Well, that is only if you never wash your hair after you apply it. Others say it will run in the rain. Again, that is only if you do not wash your hair after you apply it. Still others say that they applied it and couldn't get it out, ever, that it had to grow out. I'm sure if your hair is bleached the color will last longer than than if your hair is untreated, however, I've never had any kind of hair color that didn't eventually wash out. I do wonder...do these people ever wash their hair? And although I wore gloves for the most part, I did get some on my hands. They warn that you should always wear gloves because it will stain your hands and you won't be able to get it out. Again, I wonder if these people actually tried to wash their hands...with soap? I came across one Q&A about one person saying they wash their hair once a week and they were wondering how long the Kool Aid would last. Once a week?!?! That's like chronic flu frequency of hair washing! When I had the flu recently, I didn't wash my hair or shower for a week because when I tried to stand up for a long time, I felt dizzy. Oddly, because I was sick and just lied around all day and didn't exercise, I wasn't that stinky, but my hair was a sopping grease mop. It was so greasy it felt cold and wet. How can anyone (who is not sick) wash their hair only once a week? It really makes you wonder how human beings could stand eachother before indoor plumbing. Yet I digress.

I'll be logging my next Kool Aid Hair experiments...

12 Comments

I tried it in highschool and it didn't work. But we didn't wrap it in foil (aluminum, btw, since there isn't any "tin" foil, lol!) Yes, I am being a smart ass, and some would say i am sassing you.

I just die my hair bright red, Garnier %100 color. I think next time I will get the garnier that is more purpley than red- this turns orange as it fades!

I have super greasy hair, too. It should be washed at *least* every other day! That is just nasty!

Posted by Dawn @ 01:28:2006:03:12 PM CST

"Tin" is easier to type!

We bought a can of beets, so I'm going to try beet juice next because it's closer to the color I want to achieve.

That means I'll have to eat the beets :-p because I don't like wasting food. (I don't consider Kool Aid food) I wish I knew a good beet recipe, but with the exception of borscht, I've never really liked them. Maybe I should've just bought a bottle of borscht.

Posted by Ann @ 01:28:2006:04:24 PM CST

Dawn, how long did you keep it in when you tried it in high school? I kept it in as long as I could before I had to shower and get ready to go out, which in this case was only a little over 2 hours. You don't have to use metal foil to roll it in, I just did it that way to contain the dyed strand so it wouldn't drip all over me. If you're dying your whole head though, I would put a plastic bag over your head and a towel over that and keep it on as long as you can possibly stand it.

I'm really liking this color (even though it's not as magenta as I wanted), and the whole concept of coloring hair without those awful chemicals really appeals to me.

Posted by Ann @ 01:28:2006:04:41 PM CST

Cool Aid Color Girl

Setting us free from those awful chemical smells that come with other hair color procedures.

Posted by Stan @ 01:28:2006:06:02 PM CST

Too bad we can't use Kool Aid as an Air Freshener for other bad odors in the house.

Cough.

Posted by Ann @ 01:28:2006:06:06 PM CST

Kurt Cobain dyed his hair with Kool aid.

At least it's not tested on animals.

Posted by Nico @ 01:29:2006:06:56 AM CST

It looked pretty on him.

Posted by Ann @ 01:29:2006:09:22 AM CST

I don't remember how long we kept it on for. It was a long time ago, lol! I wouldn't eat the beets. You couldn't pay me to eat the beets.

Blaahhkkk!

Posted by Dawn @ 01:29:2006:05:52 PM CST

omg...it's so good to see you here yet again! and dying hair with kool aid...wow.

I confess, i love my Lily Munster silver streak, but you are a braver soul than i to use kool aid. It is very drying. Although being a hair dye & kool aid conessiur, have you tried making a kool aid/conditioner paste? and i wonder if tropical punch & pink lemonaid would get you the color you want. I thought of watermelon cherry, but it's too light when mixed. And gee, if you used a color cap with holes in it- the one they use for streaks, you sure could get an interesting highlighted effect,eh?
or...
you could check out the frozen food isle for canned juices...i would think ones with alot of citric acid would work great....
and have a a fruity taste/scent as well.
sure would beat beats ( yuk! )

Posted by Lori @ 01:30:2006:10:00 AM CST

Hi Lori!

Kool Aid doesn't dry my hair out because the cuticle of my hair isn't damaged, i.e., I haven't permed or lightened or dyed it with products intended for hair dying. And those perforated shower caps...I'm staying away from those! I tried those once when I did highlight my hair, and they might work well if you have short hair, but when I tried to pull a long strand through, it tried to take a huge strand.

Yesterday I painted my hair with more Cherry kool aid...the liquid left over from the day before was thickening and left a more viscous, paintable liquid. I used a paintbrush and the effect is very very subtle, leaving a very natural warmer glow. Unfortunately, it didn't take to the grey at all. Perhaps because this wasn't hot like the first application...I don't know.

I will try the conditioner paste at some point.

The only problem with juices is that they have a lot of sugar added to them, and you definitely do not want to put sugar on your hair because it will make it a sticky mess. The kool aid I use is the unsweetened.

I don't like beets, but I had them so often when I was a kid that I'm pretty immune to them. And I do like borscht.

Actually, there's a couple root vegetables I NEVER had as a kid (don't ask me why) that I tried when I was an adult, and I LOVE them: rutabagas and turnips. Most people hate them, but I LOVE them!

I also never had parsnips as a kid, and I tried them as an adult. I'll pass. Permanently. I don't know how the Unabomber lived on them for a month.

Posted by Ann @ 01:30:2006:10:20 AM CST

you know, you're right about the caps....and here i am with mega long hair too..what was i thinking? oh, that's right....i'm not! it's a side effect of having children...LOL
although, i should have also included that grey/silver hairs are the hardest to color.... dang it all.

Posted by Lori @ 01:30:2006:01:03 PM CST

I wonder why they are the hardest to dye. There's not any color there to mask the dye. And they appear to have a less-silky texture that would seem to hang on to dye easier than natural non-grey hair. Strange, these grey hairs.

Posted by Ann @ 01:30:2006:01:48 PM CST

By Ann @ 17:32 PM CST:02:07:06 ..::Link::..

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