AF Blog — Arctic Mist Diluter

Are you ready to take on your hair color journey from home? Dyeing your hair at home allows for so much creativity with your look, and with the right products and techniques, you can achieve stunning, salon-worthy results. In this guide, we'll explore the must-have tools and techniques that will help you achieve your dream hair!

Choosing the Right Products:

1) Bleach, Please: The foundation for any vibrant hair color transformation, Bleach, Please by Arctic Fox is a powerful, yet gentle bleach kit designed to lighten your hair before applying your desired color. With its unique formula, Bleach Please minimizes damage and ensures a clean canvas for any vibrant colors.

2) Color Mixing Tools: Unleash your creativity with AF’s bowls and brushes! These essential accessories allow you to customize your hair color by creating unique shades and hues. Mix different Arctic Fox shades together to create your signature color or experiment with the color wheel to achieve your dream look.

Preparing for the Dyeing Process:

1) Protecting Your Skin and Clothes: Before starting the dyeing process, we recommend applying  petroleum jelly along your hairline and wearing an old shirt or a color cape to prevent staining.

2) Strand Test: Perform a strand test to determine the exact processing time and final color result. Take a small section of hair and follow the dyeing process to ensure you achieve the perfect color.

The Dyeing Process:

1) Applying the Bleach: Follow the instructions provided with Bleach, Please to prepare and apply the bleach mixture evenly throughout your hair. Make sure to saturate thoroughly to avoid uneven patches!

2) Rinsing and Conditioning: Once the desired level of lightness is achieved, rinse the bleach thoroughly and apply a deep conditioner to nourish your hair (we recommend our Pool Party Hair Mask). This step helps restore moisture and minimize damage caused by the bleaching process.

3) Color Application: Now comes the fun part! Apply your chosen Arctic Fox shade(s) using a brush or gloved hands. Start from the roots and work your way down, ensuring each strand is evenly coated. For a more subtle result, mix your desired color(s) with Arctic Mist Diluter, which allows you to create pastel shades or tone down intensity of our dyes.

4) Processing Time: Follow the recommended processing time on the Arctic Fox packaging OR leave your color on even longer. Our dyes are created with no harsh chemicals or ammonia, so the longer you wait, the more nourished your hair will feel! Use this time to relax and let the color do its thing.

Aftercare and Maintenance:

1) Shampooing and Conditioning: After the recommended processing time, rinse your hair with cool water until the water runs clear. Use a color-safe, sulfate-free shampoo and conditioner (like our Resurrected Shampoo and Conditioner) to maintain the vibrancy and longevity of your color.

6) Extend the Color: To refresh your color or maintain vibrancy, mix a bit of your Arctic Fox dye into your conditioner and refresh while you shower as often as you’d like!

With the right products and techniques, dyeing your hair at home can be so much fun! Arctic Fox offers a HUGE range of products to help you achieve your dream hair color at home. Whether you're using Bleach, Please for a stunning light base or experimenting with Arctic Mist Diluter for a personalized touch, your DIY hair dyeing journey starts here. Happy dyeing!

[Disclaimer: Before dyeing your hair, it's important to carefully read and follow the instructions provided with the products. Conduct a patch test to check for any allergic reactions or sensitivities. In case of uncertainty or concerns around mixing your own shades, consult our color specialists!]

Image Credit: chris0712

Pastel hues have had us all in a chokehold for as long as we can remember. And with summer right around the corner, it’s the perfect time to go for a shade that looks oh, so pretty even when it fades. From blues, to greens, to purples and pinks, the color options are truly endless! And don’t worry, Fox, we’re here to help you safely get your dream head of pastel from start to finish.

Image credit: @mynameislanes

Step 1: Bleach, Please

The first step to going pastel, is to completely strip your hair of any color. Pastel will only show up on a level 10 platinum blonde or lighter! Depending on your current shade, you might need a few bleach treatments to get your hair to the appropriate level. You can safely bleach at home with our Bleach, Please Lightening Kit, but if you don’t fully trust yourself, or your hair is already fairly damaged and contains previous color treatments, you’ll want to head to a salon first! We don’t recommend using Bleach, Please to remove color from hair - doing so can cause unexpected color results or permanent staining of the hair! If you do need to remove color, please use a color remover formulated for the type of hair color in your hair. 

Bleach, Please can lighten your hair up to 8 levels and includes a 35 Volume Developer. Its 3 oz tube of violet-toned bleach is packed with tons of ingredients that help protect and repair your hair during the bleaching process. Although we’ve formulated Bleach, Please to be as safe and healthy as possible, bleaching will still damage your hair to an extent. Bleach opens up the hair cuticle to remove pigment from the strand, which can result in a dry, rough feeling on your strands. Before and after treatment, nourish your hair with our Resurrected Shampoo and Conditioner, which is color-safe and sulfate-free, to keep your strands as moisturized as possible. 

Carefully follow the instructions on the Bleach, Please kit to safely color your hair, or read our Bleach, Please spotlight here, for more detailed instructions. Once you’ve let the bleach sit for 30-45 minutes, rinse it out and see if you’ve reached your desired result! If your hair is dark and you need several treatments to get to a level 10, make sure to space out your lightening sessions at least a week apart.

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Step 2: Do or Dye 

Now comes the fun part! 

Arctic Fox hair colors are formulated to be a bit thicker due to their conditioning properties, so you want to make sure that you divide your hair into small sections and fully saturate each with color to achieve your desired shade. 

Arctic Mist Diluter is your BFF when it comes to going pastel. Start with Arctic Mist as your base, then add in your shade little by little until you get the color of your dreams. The lighter you’d like to go, the less your color ratio will be to Arctic Mist. Remember, you can always add more Arctic Mist to lighten your mix to get that perfect pastel hue, so go slowly! 

If you want a one-step application to a pastel, check out our very own pastel formula favs, Frosé, Neverland, Periwinkle, and Girls Night! The best part about going pastel is how truly endless the possibilities are. You can mix, match, lighten, or darken, and as long as your base is at the appropriate level, you’ll see those light hues shine through! 

Image Credit: neutraljacqueline

Step 3: Color Care

Now that you’ve got the pretty pastel, hair care is a must! Care for your color in the shower with a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner duo (try our Resurrected Formula for color-safe treatment), and cool water. 

One thing to note is that pastels are not as pigmented as other dyes, so in the coming weeks, give your locks a quick refresh by adding a few drops of dye to your conditioner in the shower, or giving your entire head of hair another coat of dye for a more pigmented look. Pastels fade in the most stunning way, so you can let it go or touch it up, depending on the look you’re going for. 

Shop our Perfect Pastel Starter Kit, find your next color, and show us those hues, pretty please!

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Guess what Fox Fam? 👀 It’s our birthday and we’re celebrating ALL 👏 YEAR 👏 LONG 👏 🥳 We’re celebrating by continuing our mission and partnering with a brand new, very special rescue. For the next ten days, we’re increasing our donation amount by 10% (that means 25% of our net profits) to Pup Culture - a non-profit animal rescue dedicated to saving dogs and educating the community about the importance of adoption.

And of course, none of this would be possible without our incredible Fox Fam. We’re shining the spotlight on the iconic colors that started it all and celebrating YOU for being a part of our mission all these years. Support the cause while we take it back to the OG iconic colors that made us who we are 🌈 🦊

Purple AF: Purple AF is one of our FAVES! Formally known as Purple Rain, this deep, true purple is a versatile color that works well on a variety of base colors from platinum to light brown, giving deep tints of color to darker hair and showing vibrantly on pre-lightened hair. It even works well to cover up other faded colors effectively!  

Image Credit: chris0712

#AFProTip: Purple AF pairs well with tons of other AF shades; try mixing it with some Wrath for a burgundy, or Poseidon for a deep indigo. (glitter)

Poison: This fiery shade should honestly come with a fire extinguisher! This is our most vibrant and truest red and it does not disappoint. Because Poison has a slight orange undertone, it will not fade to pink, it will fade into a lighter version of itself. Poison will give a dark, subtle tint to darker tones of hair but will turn out most vibrantly on hair that is pre-lightened to around a level 8.

Image Credit: jezzharding

#AFProTip: For a super sweet peach add a few drops of Poison to an Arctic Mist base

Aquamarine: Let the mermaid vibes flood over you with this unreal blue. It is one of our most pigmented blues with aquamarine/teal undertones. It'll turn out most vividly on pre-lightened hair, but will still work to give a deep teal tint to darker shades of unbleached hair.

Image Credit: cozywithsam

#AFProTip: To cover a more brassy-toned blonde, try mixing Aquamarine with a little bit of Purple AF to get a perfect cobalt or a deep indigo!

Wrath: This bold classic never goes out of style! Not even after 10 years 😉. Wrath is a deep red with berry undertones which can become more pink as it fades. It shows up well on brassy tones and gives dark, dimensional tints to darker hair. This shade turns out best on hair pre-lightened to a level 7.

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#AFProTip: Try mixing Wrath with a drop of Transylvania to create a deep crimson red!

Arctic Mist Diluter: Want the perfect pastel? Arctic Mist diluter is the ideal base for mixing up a custom color or pastel using any other AF shade. Start with Arctic Mist, then add your next shade in (little by little) until you get that perfect hue. Want to learn more about achieving the perfect pastel hue? We got you! Head to our blog to Read about Pastel Hair Levels! 👈

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* Note: Arctic Mist is not a dye, toner, or lightening product. This diluter will have no effect on the hair if applied by itself - it’s meant to be mixed with other colors to create custom shades 🧪 ✨

Virgin Pink: Ready to bring those tropical vibes everywhere you go with Virgin Pink? This vibrant hot pink will give a deep magenta tint to light brown hair, and will turn out most vibrantly on pre lightened hair - no need to fear brassy tones with this shade. 

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☝️ #AFProTip: Want a lighter pastel pink hue? Start off with an Arctic Mist Diluter base, add drops of Virgin Pink until you've mixed the hue you want! 

✌️ #AFProTip: Try mixing with some Wrath for a deeper pink! Want all the pink mixes? Read our Pink Mixology Blog! (pink emojis)

Violet Dream: Ready to stop and smell the violets? Violet Dream will give you a hint of spring in any season! This floral purple color does have some strong magenta undertones and will generally fade into a pink shade. As a highly pigmented color, Violet Dream will give a deep warm tint to darker shades of hair, and will cover up brassy tones without any issues. It will turn out best on hair that is around a level 7 or lighter!

Image Credit: dedearartistry

Want to read more about Violet Dream? 💜 Check out the color spotlight on Violet Dream HERE.

#AFProTip: Try diluting this shade with Arctic Mist to get a gorgeous pastel pink/lavender!

Poseidon: Make some serious waves with this mythical shade. She may be the last but she is far from the least. Poseidon is a vibrant, medium true blue. For the most vivid results, this oceanic color should be applied to hair that has been pre-lightened to a cool-toned level 8 or lighter.

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#AFProTip: Add a dash of Purple AF to fight those unwanted brassy tones.

We thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for your love and support of our brand for 10 amazing and colorful years. We can’t wait to celebrate and see where another 10 years of color takes us because this is only the beginning. So stay tuned Fox Fam 📺  We have some VERY exciting announcements to come 👀

What is your favorite iconic OG shade? Let us know in the comments! And as always, if you have questions on how best to use any of our products, feel free to reach out to us at support@arcticfoxusa.com. Stay colorful! 🎨