Lightening and darkening

Even though not many of baby D's clothes are purchased new (or even purchased at all- many are gifts or hand-me-downs), I want to get as much use out of them as I can. I also want to encourage baby D to eat all manner of healthy foods, even the ones that have a propensity to stain. Bananas and avocados, I'm looking at you. Straight out bleaching works well, but only for whites, as most people have known forever and as I discovered through trial and error. A friend of mine blogged awhile back about an oxygen-based bleaching agent, so I'm testing it out on some stained clothing. The unfortunate thing is that D has outgrown most of these things, so I'm really only cleaning them to put them away again. Here, for your viewing pleasure/horror, are some of said pieces:
This one actually was purchased new, on clearance for 3 or 4 $. It's meant to be kept at my parents' house for emergencies, but I forgot to leave it there.

This was one of the outfits D wore the most this summer, at least until she stained it beyond wearability. I attempted line-drying it in the sun to no avail.

This is an adorable shirt from neighbours' girls, which I had been longing for D to wear. I'm all about yummy cakes, tea and biscuits. It got stained on the first or second wear.

I should probably have worn gloves or something. My fingertips got a bit bleached (although I've just re-examined them, and they look fine now).

In other news, after a lifetime of being blonde, I had my hair dyed dark on Monday! This is a huge deal for me. I did it at the request of Hubby, who has long wondered what I would look like as a brunette, and who alone recalls a conversation in which I promised him the opportunity to find out. He reminded me again some time ago, and even offered to pay for a subsequent appointment if I hated my hair so much that I wanted to go back to highlights. I had been thinking about it ever since, not only because of his request, but also because it would probably be more economical to be a brunette. As it stands, I go twice or three times a year to get my hair cut and highlighted, and even though I have a hairdresser who works out of her home and charges substantially less than any salon, it can still add up. As a brunette, I could probably get away with going once or twice a year. It was decided then, although I was resolved not to tell Hubby about it until after the fact.

A number of timing factors came into play; I wanted to go dark in the fall (because light hair really lends itself to spring and summer, and winter is dark enough), and at a time when I wouldn't unwittingly be pregnant (I made sure to take a test before going to my hairdresser's), and between major life events. We have a bit of a break between now and our big family wedding, so I can go back to highlighting my hair if I want. I'm undecided for the moment.

Every now and then, I'll catch my reflection and get freaked out because I'm still not used to the change. Hubby did the same thing in the kitchen yesterday evening; he had noticed it (and complimented it effusively), but kind of forgot, and then turned around and thought I was someone else! Baby D, sweet little thing with the memory of a goldfish, didn't notice a thing out of the ordinary when I picked her up from my mom's after my appointment. Her demeanor seemed to say "Oh good, you're here. We can play some more now!"

As I continue getting used to the change, I'm going to make a real effort not to care about what other people think about it. I did this for Hubby, who tells me all the time how beautiful he finds me, regardless of my hair colour, and it's not for anyone else to decide how they like it. It sure was neat to see his face light up when he came home and saw what I had done.