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associatedhairprofessionals.com 5 You've seen the unicorn trend everywhere and can't escape the spectrum of fashion colors—pastel, bright, dark, muted. You've finally mustered the courage to dive in and give yourself a bold new look. But what can you expect from your first plunge into the trend? You Need Healthy Hair Unfortunately, there's no way around this. Your hair needs to be in prime condition for the change it's about to undergo. You'll no doubt need to have your hair lightened at least once before any color can be applied. If your hair isn't healthy enough to withstand possibly multiple lightening sessions, it's best to wait until your hair is in tip-top shape. You Need Patience These trendy looks can be very tedious and time- consuming to achieve. But the steps you need to go through to get that amazing look are important. If the proper steps are not taken (and done correctly), you'll no doubt end up with less-than-stellar results. And if you're going to make such a dramatic (and expensive) change to your hair, why not do it the right way the first time? Plan to be at your hair salon a minimum of four hours, but you can always check in with your stylist ahead of time to verify how long the process will be. You Need To Listen To Your Colorist This type of service is not for the fair-weathered client— the one who likes to get her hair colored once every six months, or once a year. Depending on what type of look your stylist has given you, proper care is needed By Bianca Rose @hairbybiancarose to keep things looking good between appointments. They'll set you up with a game plan of when you should return for your next service and what types of products to use between services. From sulfate-free to color depositing, there are many shampoos and other hair- care products on the market today to help these looks stay beautiful throughout your new hair color journey. You Need To Have Fun If you're going to don the bold hues, you need to have fun with it. You'll get plenty of attention with your new hair color. Your hair will be a conversation piece wherever you go, and you'll find people coming up to you with all sorts of questions. Make sure to let them know who your hairstylist is and where they work. They'll be thankful you did! Now that you have an insight into this fun hair trend, you should feel better prepared for the next step—which is to make your appointment! ■ Bianca Rose is an award-nominated colorist based in Cincinnati, Ohio. She travels the country as an educator for several hair-care brands at trade shows and teaches independently in salons. When she is not traveling, you can find her at Generations Salon in Fairfield, Ohio. Bianca Rose is most known for her bold fashion colors, as well as on-trend techniques such as valayage (vivid balayage) and metallics.