I was hesitant as anyone would be about bleaching my hair. You must pay close attention to the condition of your hair (Can it handle the strain?), the type of products to be used (20, 30, 40 volume?), timing (Too little time & nothing. Too long & uh-oh!). It's a lot to consider, so you must really give it a lot of thought. If you decide to do it yourself, make sure you have an answer to every question that may possibly come up. If in doubt, have a professional do it. Once you do bleach it, the colors available are amazing!
I had great success with Manic Panic's Vampire red, so I expected nothing less from Manic Panic's Purple haze. After my red washed out & I attacked my roots, I applied the purple. Unfortunately, I did not realize that red tends to literally bind itself to your hair. Even though I did lighten my hair slightly, it wasn't enough, so the color came out a very dark purple. It was nice, but I had expected it to be a brighter purple.
I waited again through shampoos & deep conditioning, till it was ready to color again. This time I switched products thinking that it might come out the purple tone I was after. I tried N'Rage in Purple plum. It smelled like a bad packet of gum & could only be left on your hair no longer than 20 min. The color was even darker than Manic's purple haze & you could only see the purple in direct sunlight. After 2 weeks the color & thankfully the smell was gone. Feeling defeated, I did nothing to my hair, but condition it for months.
I tried yet again, this time using ION Fuschia. It was very, very thick with the consistency of spackle. The directions said to leave it in for up to 40 minutes, but it had such a strong smell of chemicals that I was afraid to, so I washed it out after only having it on my hair for 10 minutes. Even though it said it contained no ammonia, it smelled like it. I just couldn't get past the smell & what it might be doing to my hair. I did an emergency wash out. This is where you immediately wash out semi-permanent color with dish soap, clarifying shampoo or hair color remover. Any of these choices will probably remove almost all the color & pretty much every bit of moisture in your hair. Immediately condition, unless 70's frizz is your thing.
In the end, I wasted not only my time & my money, but I also felt a little dumb. I felt like I left a good man that treated me wonderfully & went out thinking that there was something better out there. I've watched enough chick flicks to know better!
I love Manic Panic. I would recommend it to anyone who loves bold colors. The price is slightly more than the other two, but well worth it. You get plenty of product, it's also conditions, it's cruelty free & vegan based. It can be left on your hair for longer period of time & you won't smell like a bad packet of gum. I know, that I made the mistake in not picking a lighter shade of purple dye to combine with my leftover red tones. Next time.
If you have even the slightest doubt in bleaching or coloring, Go to a professional! It will save you worry, time, money & maybe even your hair. I have been been bleaching & coloring my hair for awhile now, I still get nervous every time. I am not a professional!! I just wanted to let anyone who is interested in hair dyes, know what I thought about these products. Mind you, how or what they did to my hair, may not apply to your hair. Everybody's hair will react differently to each product, so any one of these could be better than the other.
I hope this helps in case you may be thinking about using any of these three products or deciding that you would rather go to a salon. I will say it again-I am not a professional. I'm just someone who wants to have fun with my hair and dye it any color of the rainbow with a little help from a jar.