Saturday 23 February 2013

I wanna model for Zipper / The Science of Hairdye

So I got my little brother to take these shots (his first time ever using an SLR - didn't he do a good job?! He's a natural!) the afternoon that I got home from my overnight, overseas flight, and I am pretty surprised that I don't look entirely exhausted - Japanese concealer/foundation does WONDERS. I spent the afternoon in bed reading the many Zipper magazines I bought, blubbering over the fact that I wasn't still in Japan, so for my own sanity I had to dress up in a Zipper-inspired outfit and pretend I was back there.
I actually think I was scratching my nose in this shot but it also looks like I'm crying so let's pretend this is me being distraught about no longer being in Japan, haha.

A fantasy plan that I've concocted over the last few days is that I'm going to go back and live there for a year, in a few years time, and model for Zipper magazine as my job. It's totally  do-able!(...)
wearing
sweater - c/o Romwe
skirt - ICE
mint green tights - Tutuanna
climbing man tights - Ebay
socks - Tutuanna
shoes - Bodyline
necklace - Claire's

Remember when I had real pastel pink hair? I realised that I never learnt exactly how bleaching and dying changes your hair colour. Today I came across a cool experiment for kids that teaches you how hair dye and bleaching works, and I decided to do a little research ;)

Firstly, important in hair dying are two types of (dead) cells in the hair: cortical cells and cuticle cells.

When you bleach your hair, you're permanently changing the melanin in the cortical cells. Melanin is a protein in the cortical cells that exists in two types - Eumelanin in darker hair and Pheomelanin in lighter hair. Melanins vary in the ability to reflect or absorb light, which affects the colour you see when you look at someone's hair. Bleach (H202) oxidises melanin - which doesn't remove it from the hair, but makes it colourless. That annoying, lingering yellow-tinge when you bleach your hair is due to the keratin (structural proteins) in the cortical cells, which are yellow in colour.

Semi-permanent hair colour tends to just coat the outer layers of the hair with acidic dyes, rather than going inside the hair to the cortical cells. However when you dye your hair permanently, the hair dye first "opens up" the cuticle cells (often by using ammonia, a basic solution). In permanent dyes, bleach is often used to remove colour from natural melanin, before dyes (there are various numbers of these, made in various ways, depending on the colour that you want) are deposited. The dyes bond with the cortical cells.

Conditioners are acidic, and you use it after bleaching or dying to replace the lipids that you destroyed opening up the cuticle cells. This also "seals in" the deposited dyes.

And that's a quick crash-course in how hair colour works. Now I want to experiment on my own hair again, which I know is probably most likely a very bad idea... but... for science! Right?

Much love!

22 comments:

  1. oh goodness I would LOVE to model for Zipper as well T_T favorite magazine <3 and you look so cute always!!

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  2. Sooo pretty Annika! ♡ᴗ♡ I adore your shoes and the tights/socks combination was genius :D

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  3. this is so pretty , you look very lovely Annika

    http://ryokogurl.blogspot.com/

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  4. I LOVE your outfit! That sweater is soooo cool!
    xo

    thecleverfoxblog.blogspot.com

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  5. I think I am actually in love with your outfit ! And your pink hair :)

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  6. cute outfit and lovely wig! I like zipper magazine too I have many scans and I can stop reading it!
    (i'm wearing creeper shoes too today!)
    have a nice week end

    xoxo
    alice c'n'r
    http://cutenroll.blogspot.it/

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  7. This outfit is sooo adorable!

    www.laceandpearlsbyroos.com

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  8. Aaw my little brother is a natural with my camera too. I love your hair like this! Have you styled the wig or was it already like this?

    Becky
    xx

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    Replies
    1. I styled it! It was getting a bit thin and crappy so this was a good way to rejuvenate it! Haha

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  9. Great outfit, especially that sweater! Thanks for the cool tidbits on hair dying. My cell bio professor said hair isn't really dead cells, so I'll have to ask her about that.

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    Replies
    1. Whaat, really? Please do! What does she say that they are? (What else could they be?) :)

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  10. You look so so so stunning <3 you are just the cutest <3
    http://coeursdefoxes.blogspot.com/

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  11. IN LOVE! That sweater is adorable :)

    nancywilde.blogspot.com

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  12. ah, i love this wig! i just adore how you styled it too! i also envy how you add a bit of science into your blog posts! i am currently enrolled in a ecology course in school right now, it is actually extremely interesting!

    lindsey louise

    hellomrrabbitblog.com

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    Replies
    1. You should write about ecology a bit in your blog posts then! If you find it really interesting im sure other people would too. That'd be awesome!

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  13. Everything about this outfit is awesome :) Specially love the tights though x

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  14. Annika Nice outfit! the white creepers are very cool. And do not get depressed thinking that you've been to Japan and I hahaha I would join your plan to make a model for the magazine Zipper and I get so great and gorgeous as Ayumi Seto!

    The drawing in the stockings is fun!

    xxoo from Barcelona! www.thehappypotatoes.com

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  15. heh...good thing I bleached my hair about 4 times.

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  16. Gorgeous outfit!! So cute...and love the pink hair. Another cool piece of science!! ❤ ❤ ❤
    Just followed you via Bloglovin too and on Facebook.

    ♡ Regina ♡
    Margarita Bloom: Beauty & Fashion
    Blog / Facebook / Bloglovin

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