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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Akron chapter.

I, like many others, like to do fun things with my hair, whether through styling, coloring, or cutting. I also however, have extraordinarily dark hair which makes coloring hard unless I bleach it first. While it may be smarter to go to the salon and get your hair done professionally, it’s expensive and you need to find the time to go to a salon. So here’s 5 tips to help you bleach your hair at home.

1. Use more Bleach than you think you need

While we all think we know how much bleach we’re going to need to cover our head, you will always need more than you think you need. Whether you miss a chunk of hair or there is simply more hair that you need to cover than you first thought it is always a good idea to make just a little more than you think you’ll end up needing.

2. Make Sections

Now it’s common knowledge that you should section your hair but the easiest way for me is to first split my hair into 4 sections and then work on each of the 4 sections, dividing them smaller as I go along. Not only does this make bleaching your hair seem like a less daunting task, it also helps to get more even coverage across your hair.

3. Don’t be afraid to use your hands

Most of the time, bleaching is done with a brush and gloves are on but sometimes, it’s easier to use your hands to ensure every strand is covered in bleach. Obviously the gloves should stay on since bleach is a dangerous chemical that you don’t want coming in contact with your skin but don’t be afraid to put down the brush and use your hands to help coat your hair.

4. Put developer in the bowl first

This tip is mostly for if you like to use cream bleach rather than powder bleach. I have found though, it’s easiest to first pour in the developer and then add the bleach and watch the developer level rise until the ratio is correct. Make sure you mix it and add more bleach or developer as necessary though.

5. Use your phone camera to check the back

This tip is a personal life saver since I bleach my hair by myself most of the time. When you can’t have a friend to check the back of your head to ensure you got every piece of hair, you can use the video or photo function on your camera to record the back of your head in a mirror to see if there’s anything you missed. Obviously it’s still possible to miss some hair but I’ve had much more success at getting all of my hair when using my phone camera to help.

Hopefully these 5 tips make bleaching your hair at home a little easier. Re

Halle is a First Year at the University of Akron. Her major is AYA Integrated Sciences and she plans on being a high school science teacher. She loves costume design and her pets, which include her cat, dog, and mice. Halle loves watching anime and writing in her free time.