While I’m fortunate to have a great job and some fun side projects that pay for a few extras, money is tight. I’m not alone. I have more than a dozen friends and colleagues who have been looking for work for months. We’re all cutting back with summer staycations, homemade Halloween garb, and Netflix subscriptions replacing movie nights.

So getting by has been a challenge, to be sure.

I remember a economics class in grad school that, when it comes to household budgets in crisis, cable television is the last thing to go.

For me, it’s my hair. It’s my vanity. I’ve paid good money to great people over the years to keep it in the red. When I accidentally went from blond to green, I swore on bottle of peroxide that I would never color my hair myself again.

Me and my professionally-colored hair with Blackberry Diaries author Kathy Buckworth

Well, that day has come. After dishing out nearly $175 every four to six weeks on cuts, colors, and highlights, I had to let it go. No longer could I look at my checking account and reconcile that expense.

It was time to tighten the belt and open the box.

I tried a temporary color which was…uh…temporary. My gray roots came screaming out like James Brown on his first day out of jail.

A few weeks later, I tried a permanent shade from Feria by L’Oreal Paris. It was quite the science experiment with three fluids to combine and heaven forbid if you shake it with the wrong lid. It went on easily with a few drips, but I didn’t leave the process with zombie-like red dye marks streaming down my face (Let’s just ignore the stains on the door where I tried to squeeze out the last few bits. Sorry Madame Landlord!)

Here are the results.

Great hair. Crappy picture, but you can't tell the difference, can you?

Not bad, eh? It got the grey and gave me a fairly consistent color throughout. Processing time was only 25 minutes, so with my amateur application methods and a thorough post-color rinse and condition, it was a total hour of my time. For $10 and a trip to the grocery store. Not a bad deal for downsizing if you ask me.