Highlights for long hair

Hi,I go through this about once a year so I totally understand.Here are some things that I do to "perk" up my tush length hair:1. Change look of bangs. I usually wear bangs that are messy and texturized. About once a year I will part them differently, grow them thicker or have them thinned and spiked out a little. One year I suffered through letting them grow out and wore clips in the front to hold the bangs back.2. Add temporary streaks with the new hair mascaras. I had purple, green and orange streaks for about 1 month. It was great. Some people noticed and would look shocked, some never noticed. It was fun watching their reactions.3. Change the type & density of highlights. I have my hair highlighted with blonde chunks about 3x a year. Last year I added some dark chunks to make my hair more interesting.4. Alternate between having a graduated fringe cut around the front of my face and not. It gives me the option to pull my hair back into a ponytail or braid or bun and still have hair framing my face like a shorter look. I love to do that.5. Accessories are a great mood breaker. I just went through several days of wearing the new butterfly claw clips in different ways. I had buns on tops of my head, at the side and in the back. I got lots of compliments.6. Alter the texture. Wear your hair slicked back or sleep in rag curls and have banana curls. I also like to wash my hair, apply Aveda Confixer and then sleep in braids. I get major waves that way.You are right to be cautious about a perm if you are starting to lose your hair. Chemicals of any type can cause more stress to an already stressed scalp and can accelerate the loss.Since you have dark brown hair I would recommend you add mahoney, auburn or lighter brown streaks. The temporary hair mascaras (the pomades are best because you have more control) are fairly cheap and you can play with several colors to see what you like. Try streaking around the front of your face to draw interest to your face.You are right about highlights. To have my hair highlighted 3x a year costs me over $100 a treatment. That is why I only do it 3x a year (as well as to save on the condition of my hair) and luckily my hair is normally blonde so I can get away with only 3x a year.A weave often refers to hair extensions. This is the process where hair (human or synthetic) is tied, attached or glued to your real hair. This process is also expensive and it is best to get the human hair that is dyed to match your hair color.If you spend some time just playing with your hair by experiementing with temporary streaks, you can get some new ways to add personality to your hair. Also, you can use the Aveda or ARTec colored shampoos and conditioners which will alter the color. Aveda's Bixa or Madder Root would add red highlights to your hair. If you want to crank up the color, use the shampoo and conditioner consistently for several days.Good luck. Keep us posted on what you decide to do.Best wishesKaren>> I am trying to find something new for my> hair because it has been in the same hairstyle> for five years. Long, straight, no bangs (all> one length), and dark brown. I thought this was> the kind of hair that I always wanted back when> I had the tall bangs and spiral perm, but after> five years, I am just sick of it. Sure, it's nice> to hear the nice comments about how much so-in-so> would like to have hair like mine, but my hair> just has NO PERSONALITY! I really don't care if> it is even long anymore! I just want to do something> new! I was considering getting a spiral perm because> I really loved styling my hair in the past, but> since I am losing more hair then I would like> to lately, I think I'm going to pass. So now,> I am seriously considering getting a weave or> highlighting my hair. (I think weave means color)> I would like to know what are the best ways to> go about lightening my hair. I don't want it to> look totally fake, I just want to perk up my hair.> My color is dark brown, and I am curious what> color to choose if I decide to go through with> it. Is it better to go to the salon over getting> a store bought kit? Most likely the answer is> yes but I just don't have $100 to get this done.> Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you!> Bored Stiff