The world collectively lost its chill when Selena Gomez hit the red carpet on Sunday night. In a move no one saw coming—even her stans were shocked—the singer had gone blond seemingly overnight. Gomez’s shade, dubbed “Nirvana Blond” by her stylists, is shiny and grunge-chic, and looks surprisingly healthy, considering we saw Sel on social media with her signature dark hair a mere 12 hours beforehand. Which left a lot of people wondering if this was the work of a wig. Now, thanks to an Instagram post from expert stylist and Nine Zero Nine salon owner Riawna Capri, we know: (a) yes, Selena Gomez is really, truly a blond and (b) it took a damn long time to get her there.

Going from brunette to full-on platinum is no joke. To do it right takes time, and a rush job, even in a salon, can leave you bald or burned. That’s why it was so refreshing to see Capri get real about exactly how long it took to take Gomez from dark and glossy to peroxide blond. Spoiler: It took a mind-boggling amount of time and manpower. Capri’s caption was directed to stylists who might be faced with clients looking to go Gomez’s particular shade of icy grunge, but to be honest, it’s fascinating whether you’re an expert in a salon or can barely trim your own bangs.

According to the post Capri shared today, the entire process took “9 hours, about 300 foils, and 8 bowls of bleach, all with 2 stylists working together simultaneously.” Also required: an incredible amount of patience, which Capri and her team luckily have in spades. Capri also shared a rare glimpse into the painstaking process from start to finish: “It was a nice long patient process of baby fine slices, then going back and opening each foil and reapplying, but done in one sitting. Anything is possible in one day, it just takes time, no other clients, ha, and patience to maintain the integrity of the hair.”

With white-blond being the year’s biggest trend (and pastel/rainbow shades staying steadily popular), 2017 has brought no shortage of celebrities taking the platinum plunge. But it’s just as important for everyday folks to know how much time and effort it takes to go this blond overnight—if that’s even possible. Back when Khloé Kardashian made her evolution from dark to light, her colorist famously shared this chart of all the stages she went along the way as a warning call to all who wanted to copy.

Shout out to Capri for sharing a glimpse of the journey so we all can, in her words, “now be VERY patient with our stylists.” Obviously, it pays off.

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