Sorry to read about your hair problems. I am not a hairdresser by any means - hair challenged if anything. But I owe the state of my hair at almost 56 to not over-processing during the years. I greyed in my 20's (iron grey unfortunately - natural shade being auburn). I single processed it over the years to its natural auburn. Note that I have dry, coarse, naturally wavy, extremely thick "Irish" hair. I did not do highlights - actually hair is porous as it is due to coarseness so I appear to have highlights. What is your natural colour - can't tell from your post if it is indeed blonde. Frankly, I think at age 16 you need to give your hair serious rest. I know you won't want to hear this, but I think the best alternative is to cut your hair - as short as possible to still look feminine and to suit your face shape. The fact that your hair is thin makes over-use of the chemicals harder on your hair. I know a woman my age who also had easy access to hairdressers thoughout her life but at age 50 she was told enough was enough - perms, highlights and drastic changes in hair colour - had taken their toll and basically her hair was toast. I would hate for this to happen to you. I see 8 year old kids at the hairdressers having their hair highlighted - by my age, despite the gentler formulas available these days, hair will not be in good shape. I would start first with the haircut and then work from there. And I would steer clear of the black - if it is too start against your skin now, it will be even more so later in life - many black haired ladies go dark brunette. I too am very pale but with a serious yellow undertone. My sisters inherited the gorgeous Irish blue-black hair - how I wanted it - but during 50s and 60s they peroxided it blonde - well they ruined their hair. Actually they didn't even suit the blonde. I once tried on a black wig and laughed so hard - this is when I realized I had such a yellow undertone so had I been born with the black hair, it would not have suited me. So then I tried on a blonde wig - and I thought the black looked bad. This was during the days when everyone wanted hair like Farrah Fawcett's - but did not have the basic necessity - the proper hair type. I have the proper hair type - but don't suite the colour/styles. I really hope you can sort your hair out - it will take some time - this is for sure - but a year from now things won't seem so bad. Just too bad about your prom - so I would do whatever is necessary to start the fix-up now. When I was 5 I had a Toni permanent - my hair looked like Shirley Temple's before the perm - hairdresser should have refused to do it. Had to have it because my cousin with the straight hair refused to have one unless I had one too. My hair, which had been to my waist had to be cut to about 1 inch in length - while my cousin of course was pleased. I have hated going to the hairdresser ever since. And Saturday is hair dye day - can hardly wait. So best of luck to you - and since it is always on my mind - please watch what you use on your skin as well - take it easy on the acids/retinols as they are not for everybody - especially me.

She used foils but I think she did thinner sections than I wanted and so it turned out darker and more subtle than I had asked for. I called and she seemed nice and is planning on adding some lighter tones (or something). I'm guessing she won't try to charge me more; I guess I'll find out. Thanks.

I would use this: http://www.krudkutter.com/testimonials2.asp It's fabric safe and nothing works better! I use it on greased stained laundry all the time. I've never had any of my clothes discolor where I've sprayed it. The only problem is that if your recliner is dirty all over, you may have to clean it all over because if you use Krud Kutter on the oily spot, it will get it 100% clean. For example, I used on spots on a kitchen runner that my blender exploded on, and the spots where I used it are perfectly clean, but the rest of the runner needs to be cleaned now. I haven't cleaned the runner in years. Anything that will take the oily spot off of your recliner will leave the spot clean, so my guess is that you will have the same problem with any good cleaner....you'll have to clean the whole chair if it's dirty. Try this- the worst that could happen is that you have to do it to the whole back of your chair: Spray it on well and let it sit for a while, then take a clean WHITE terry bath towel and put pressure on the spot, blotting it to get as much out of the chair as possible as you keep turning the towel to a clean dry spot on the towel. Check to see the oil/dirt coming out onto your white towel. You may want to repeat another round of the K.K. or two and blot until you see no more dirt/oil coming out into the white towel. Then spray clean water on the spot and let it sit for a couple of minutes. Repeat the blotting/pressure with clean area of towel. Spray with water again/ blot again, until you think it's rinsed well. Krud Kutter dissolves grease/oil like nothing I've seen. I use it to clean my oily paint brushes after I have cleaned them in mineral spirits first. It's great for all kinds of stuff, indoors and out. I buy it by the gallon at Home Depot.

Flak unfortunately I don't think there is any miracle cure for removing the dog hair. If it's excessive I take the garment outside and shake vigorously. Then hit it with those rollers with the sticky tape, and throw into the wash. Then sometimes when it comes out of the dryer you have to use the sticky tape again. I actually have a roll of the sticky tape that hangs by the door that we use to enter/leave the house. Sometimes someone needs a touch-up before leaving the house. My pup has long hair and sometimes the only way to remove the hair is to just pull it out with your fingers. The hair just intertwines with certain fabrics.