I've been a fan of Paramore — especially Hayley Williams — since their "All We Know Is Falling" days. Before abandoning the real world in lieu of following Phish around, I would follow Paramore around as much as I could in my teenage years. Now, 13-ish years later, I still find myself in awe of everything Williams does. She's a creative genius, not to mention an authentic, down-to-earth gal trying to help others embrace their inner creative genius as well. And her latest venture into the world of hair color does just that.
Williams and her longtime stylist, makeup artist, and friend Brian O’Connor created Good Dye Young, a vegan, cruelty-free hair brand, "with a vision to create a community around self-expression, color, and happiness about being who you are." Known for her own ambitious color transformations, it makes perfect sense that a hair color brand was in the cards for Williams.
Good Dye Young, still in its infancy, features semi-permanent dyes, a brand-new line of hair care products, and a mysterious product called "Poser Paste." Naturally, with a name like that, I was curious and had to try it for myself.
According to the website, Poser Paste is hair makeup you can use to add fast, fun color to your hair whenever you're feeling dull.
It's described as
• Versatile and easy to work with
• Transfer-proof
• Easy to wash out
• Safe for all hair types, all hair colors, and all ages
My hair is naturally pretty dark, so achieving fun colors is usually a long, impatient process, but the brand photos make Poser Paste appear incredibly vibrant on every hair shade and texture. So, I was excited to try it out for myself.
In the artistry tips on the site, it says to "consider the color of your hair when choosing a shade, as it may impact the undertone of your Poser Paste." Currently, I have a severely overgrown golden-blonde balayage (see below), so some pieces are much lighter than others. With no earthly idea of which colors would work best, I basically closed my eyes and prayed.
I ended up choosing "Narwhal," a deep turquoise shade; "Ex-Girl," a vibrant pink; and "Riot," which is supposed to be Williams' signature orange shade. Each jar is 2.5 oz and costs $18.
It's also available in "PPL Eater," a shade of violet; "Kowabunga," a shamrock green; "Rock Lobster," a pinkish-red; "Blue Ruin," a royal blue; and "Steal My Sunshine," a fluorescent yellow.
Narwhal is described as a "mythical shade of icy teal that’s almost too good to be true." I've always wanted to see how teal would look with my warm-undertoned hair, so this one was mostly chosen out of pure curiosity.
Much to my delight, the color looked exactly like it did in the brand photos. It's a deep turquoise with enough pigment to show up on even the darkest hair shades. Oh, and the packaging is adorable!
The directions say to stir it up, take a small amount out of the jar, rub it together in your fingers, and apply it to clean, dry hair. I'll be honest, the first time I tried it, I didn't read the directions and it was ... not pretty. So these photos are from my second try.
The texture is reminiscent of pomade, but chalkier. I was a bit intimidated by it at first, nervous that it would dry out my already bone-dry locks, so I opted for a very subtle look and rubbed the paste on my roots. My roots are a pretty deep brown, and it showed up way brighter than I could've imagined.
It also colorfully covered up my terrible roots, just like makeup — hence the name!
It smells amazing, BTW, as it's infused with Bergamot and Sweet Orange essential oils, so you won't walk around smelling like icky chemicals. I'm also pleased to say the color lasted all night and never faded from its original vibrancy.
Next up was Ex-Girl, a "high-kickin’ hot pink that’ll make all your exes wonder what they’re missing."
Somehow the shade was even more electrifying in person, if you can believe it. Since I already had the teal on my roots, I enlisted my best friend to test it out.
Her hair is currently purple, so the mission was to give her a whimsical gradient. We built up the pink on her roots, and the results were better than we could've imagined. And since her hair is short, it was much easier to style using the product (as it's similar to a pomade).
The product dries quickly, BTW, so only work it into small sections at a time. The pink worked so well in her hair, we decided to add some of the Narwhal paste to her ends. She was worried the shades wouldn't work in her hair, as it's already pretty bold, but the results definitely exceeded both of our expectations.
And last, but certainly not least, I had to test out the Riot paste, described as "Hayley’s signature shade of neon orange." I washed out the teal, which took just a little more effort than a typical shower would. I shampooed twice and used a 60-second conditioning mask and a Wet Brush to ensure all the product was out and that I didn't dry my hair out in the process. It worked like a charm and I had a clean slate to work with.
The color was definitely not the same as the photo on the website, but honestly, I kind of liked it better. It's more of a peach than a carrot, and a bit more pastel than the other colors.
One of the artistry tips on the website says to mix the colors together to make your own custom shade. And to create a more "natural" look, it says to brush the product out right away. I decided to go full throttle and try both these tips. I mixed together two parts Riot with one part Ex-Girl to get a peachy-pink, spread it all over my hair, then combed it out with a wide-tooth comb.
This was definitely my favorite look using the Poser Paste, but it was not easy to achieve. Combing out the product gets more difficult as you build up the color, and it makes a MESS. Since the paste dries quickly, it starts flaking and sticking to everything — your comb, your sink, etc. The good news, though, is it's very easy to clean up. Pro tip: Use makeup remover wipes to break down the product and then rinse with warm water.
Since the product dries so quickly, the more I combed it out to achieve that "natural" look, the flakier it got. If you look close up, you can see how the product breaks down.
Overall, though, I'd totally rock this look for a night out. The pros definitely outweigh the cons, and I'll definitely use it time and again when I need to spice up my life with a little color! It's easy to use, a breeze to wash out, and a little bit goes a long way. After messing up the first time, then creating these three looks, I still have about a half to three-quarters left in each 2.5 oz jar.
The verdict? Williams and O’Connor are taking creative expression to new heights, and I can't wait to see what they do next with Good Dye Young. If you want to try Poser Paste for yourself, head to gooddyeyoung.com, sephora.com/good-dye-young, or sephora.ca. It's beautifully obnoxious!
