Thanks for all the feedback, everyone! I really appreciate the honesty. I think Shiny hit on something when she said it looks stark. I think I agree with her, which is why it was such a shock. However, I have only washed it once, using my shampoo, which is color preserving and very gentle. Not much color was stripped out, and Bobby said that it should end up being a few shades lighter after I wash it a couple of times. Also, my blonde highlights will start to show more. I am going to wash it with Brendan's shampoo once, and then use mine after that. I think a medium brown would be good. Bobby's original idea was to dye it the same darkness as my natural color, but to make it a warmer golden brown. I thought that might be too "blah." He said we could do darker if I wanted, so I said let's go for it. It's fun, but now I've got the darker color out of my system, heh. I might keep it medium brown though, if it looks good. I like that it makes me look a bit more serious and grown up. Of course, I will post more photos as it get lighter (I also want to start posting what I wear daily, since it keeps me in line).
Thanks again everyone!