Hair Bleach is a preparation which lightens the hair by removing the pigmentation. The bleach reacts with the melanin in hair, removing the color in an irreversible chemical reaction. The bleaching chemicals break down the melanin and replaces it with the new color represented by the accompanying tinting agent. Depending on how dark your hair is naturally, your underlying pigment could range from rusty orange to pale yellow. Strongly bleached hair looks yellowish, because keratin itself is naturally pale yellow. This natural color is the reason why an elderly person's white hair looks slightly yellow at the roots. Hydrogen peroxide is one of the most common lightening agents. The peroxide is used in an alkaline solution, which opens the hair shaft to allow the peroxide to react with the melanin. Tints are added to bleaching solutions to achieve a more pleasing shade to the lightened hair.

Before you start you will need:

A clean towel (one that you don't care if it gets bleach on it),

a plastic or glass bowl,

scissors

a stop-watch or timer.

You will also want to wear a shirt that you don't mind if it gets bleach on it.

Last but not least, of course you'll need your Hot Topic Bleach Kit.

Typically, a box bleach costs around $10. you might need more than one kit though.

There are certain physical consequences to bleaching your hair, foremost of which is severe cortical damage. Breakage, split ends, and frizziness await you and will require constant corrective attention. Also, your hair will lose its ability to hold pigment. Whether you want to add lowlights or try another color entirely, you will enjoy only temporary success. The color will come out over a couple of washings. You will have to wait for your hair to grow back out, in the meantime suffering the embarassment of the reverse-skunk look. Not very appealing.

If you've dyed your hair before, you don't have to test it. It will turn blonde if you have dark hair, but it'll take a while, and you should leave it on for about an hour if you want it to lighten significantly. (To get my black hair to blonde, it took me two hours, but you should never leave bleach on for more than an hour. Wash it out, and do it again if it's not light enough.) You just put it on like dye and wait a while. And your hair will get lighter. You may need a toner because it will most likely turn orange (or greenish, depending on yor undertones), so you shoul get some sort of toner or dye to cover it, other than that, you'll be fine.

Close your bleach powder up tight for storage. Air causes the powder to oxidate and lose its effectiveness. Double protection inside a plastic bag, then inside a plastic tub is a good idea to keep it fresh and ready for action.