Let’s think back to that first time you dyed your hair. It was probably from a box, right? If you’re anything like us, you were probably, oh, fourteen, or maybe a particularly rebellious eleven. Chances are, you saw Reese Witherspoon in Cruel Intentions and thought, 'Oooh…I wonder what it would feel like to be blonde (among other things...).' Or maybe you were already blonde, but noticed that around February, your bright summer highlights tended to look better in the summer. Don’t you dare screw around with your hair!!! Your mom warned. But screw around with your hair you did, because, really, it was just too easy—that row of boxed hair color in the beauty department is like teenage-girl catnip. And in 8th grade, you were probably just wise enough to know exactly how many minutes it’d been since that one guy last called you, but not quite there yet when it came to hair color chemistry. And, let’s face it, you still might not be. In our book, d rastic changes are something best left to professionals, but small changes? I mean…you already know how Emily feels about at-home haircuts. So, imagine our delight when L’Oréal Paris announced a new addition to Féria, their long-standing haircolor line, for going ombré—you know, lighter at the bottom (think: Gisele hair)— in your own freaking bathroom. It sounded too good to be true…but it also sounded like a challenge, and from figuring out how to pluck your eyebrows to nearly razoring off your legs the first time you tried shaving, there are few things in life that get us going like a beauty-oriented rite of passage or initiation. With Wild Ombré, you can do as little or as much color as you want, satisfying the art-school-nerd in all of us, and it’s pretty difficult to go overboard (just don’t try to be a hero—it's called wild, you don't have to get wild). And, you know what? It worked. And it was easy. And kind of really fun.

Without further ado: check out this how-to we made with our pal Lauren Levinger, the new Director of Communications at VFILES and the brains behind The Food Life, in collaboration with L’Oréal Paris. We think your weekend plans just got a little bit more interesting.

And if you can wait a beat— click here, because we’re giving away 50 sets of all three shades (060 Medium to Dark Brown, 070 Dark Blonde to Light Brown, and 080 Light to Medium Blonde)! ** * ***

Happy experimenting, everyone.

XOXO Team ITG

Filmed at The Standard, High Line in New York City on February 3rd, 2013.

** * Contest now closed. Winners will be notified shortly!*