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Maybe blondes do have more fun: U.K. researchers say that women who dye their hair blonde are more likely to ask for a raise, initiate a romp and register a complaint over poor service.

In a Clairol-commissioned study, researchers from Nottingham Trent University found those who color their hair a lighter hue experience confidence boosts and feel less inhibited. About half reported feeling more "impulsive, sexually exciting, rebellious, creative, attractive and able to deal with criticism" after a dye job. About 80 percent chose a blonde shade.

While stereotypes about blondes having more fun have persisted for decades, research is mixed on whether or not gentlemen really prefer them. In a 1985 study, New York University scientists found no hair color bias when measuring how often men stopped to help female pedestrians, half of whom were blonde and half of whom were brunette.

But a 2007 article in "Psychology Today" pointed to evolutionary logic behind men wanting to date Cameron Diaz lookalikes. Many people, the authors said, have blonde hair as children, but then become brunettes in adulthood. Men seeking out blondes may be "unconsciously attempting to mate with younger (and hence, on average, healthier and more fecund) women." Whoa.

Tell us: Do you prefer being blonde?

Going blonde can be fun -- or it can be a pain in the butt. Root touch-ups! Bleach smell! But that's nothing compared to these bizarre beauty treatments. Click the pictures below to see some weird ways to get gorgeous.


Scary Beauty Tools

    Tända Regenerate Anti-Aging Starter Kit
    Press this sci-fi contraption on a wrinkle or zit, wait for it to light up, and hit "zap." The Tända uses LED therapy to boost collagen production, fight signs of aging and help you feel like a really cool astronaut. ($275, Sephora)

    Beauty is Easy

    Lancôme Ôscillation Powermascara
    This so isn't just another tube of mascara. Vibrating at 7,000 oscillations a minute, the wand -- available in November -- can double as a food mixer, neck massager and female pleasure inducer. ($34, Lancôme)

    Lancôme

    Serious Skin Care Air Coverage Air Brush Makeup System
    Looks like a cross between weed killer and an IV, but this complicated system of tubes and spray wands -- you use it to blast makeup onto your face -- will actually make you more beautiful. Supposedly. ($79.95, HSN)

    HSN

    Leaf & Rusher Derma Roller Kit
    This device is inspired by ancient Balinese healing massages, but looks more like a torture tool to us. Brave ladies: Coat your face in the serum, then roll the wand over it. Ten times. Let us know how that goes. ($122, Beauty.com)

    Fashiontribes

    Vector Electrolysis Hair Removal System
    Call us unadventurous, but we're not up for grabbing each hair, then shooting electricity into it. (Other at-home kits let you put a needle directly into each follicle. Yourself!) We pay experts for a reason. ($199.95, Folica)

    Folica

    Zeno Pro Acne Clearing Device
    Finally, an acne solution that matches your Barbie Dream House! Hold this battery-powered gadget up to a zit for two and a half minutes, and the heat-emitting metal pad will blast away that poor pimple. ($159, Sephora)

    Zeno

    Baby Quasar
    It may look like a "Night Court" prop, but this gavel actually emits light wavelengths to smooth wrinkles, shrink pores, fight acne, even discolorations and stop hair growth. Still, our inner Carol Anne is freaking out. ($449, Bliss)

    Bliss

    Safetox
    Nostalgic for the headgear days? This straight-from-"Star-Trek" Botox alternative is your dream wrinkle-warrior. Tragically it's only available in Britain, so let's have a moment of collective prayer that it soon reaches North America. (Safetox)

    Safetox

    Blinc Heated Lash Curler
    When/if we're abducted by aliens, we think their torture tools will resemble this heated curler. (Or they'll be friendly and we'll all enjoy a cup of tea, but that's another debate.) Like normal eyelash curlers aren't scary enough. ($25, Blinc)

    Blinc

    WAO-1 Robot
    It isn't available at your drugstore, but this scary piece of steel is too good to leave off the list. The robot, from a Tokyo lab, rolls ceramic spheres over the face for a "therapeutic massage." Look for it soon in a hospital near you!

    AP Images


Bizarre Spa Treatments

    10. Arctic Ice Room
    The Qua Spa at Caesar's Palace Las Vegas offers an "Arctic Ice" treatment room, where "snow" falls from a domed ceiling through mint-infused air chilled to 55 degrees Fahrenheit.

    Jae C. Hong, AP

    9. Golf Ball Massage
    After hitting the links at Scottsdale's Four Seasons Resort at Troon North, you can have a "therapist" warm up some golf balls, and roll them along the large muscles of your spine and neck.

    Jupiter Images

    8. Doctor Fish Pedicure
    A type of carp called garra rufa, or "doctor fish," are used during a pedicure treatment at Yvonne Hair and Nails salon in Alexandria, Va. Doctor fish have been used for years in Turkey to treat skin diseases like psoriasis, eating dead areas of the skin and leaving the healthy skin to grow.

    Jacquelyn Martin, AP

    7. Doctor Fish Pool
    In case you want more than your toes nibbled, you can bail to Chongqing Municipality, China and hop in a Doctor Fish therapy spa.

    China Photos / Getty Images

    6. Gold Facial Treatment
    Japan's Umo Inc. claims that covering the face with sheets of 24-carat gold is an effective (if not cost effective) method of fighting off wrinkles.

    Junko Kimura, Getty Images

    5. Snake Massage
    Stop in the Israeli village of Talmey El'Azar, where reptile farmer/aesthetician Ada Barak uses tangles of king, corn and milk snakes in her massage treatments. Barak claims once guests get over any initial misgivings, they find physical contact with the creatures to be soothing.

    Yonathan Weitzman, Reuters

    4. Nightengale Droppings
    If gold and snakes just aren't cuttin' it, you can always rely on good ol' fashioned bird poo to get that natural glow. Spas such as Shizuku of New York City use Nightengale droppings, which contain an enzyme called guanine which brightens and heals the skin.

    Jewel Samad, AFP / Getty Images

    3. Leeches
    Demi Moore may be using these bloodsuckers for detox treatments, but in the Himalayan region of Jammu And Kashmir, leeches are used to treat a variety of ailments including blood disorders and immunity problems.

    Awar Nazir, Scoopt / Getty Images

    2. Bull Semen Hair Conditioning
    Bull semen conditioner is one of the new offerings of Hari's Salon in London. Hari's claims that the substance, when combined with a protein rich plant root, Katera, strengthens and adds shine to hair.

    Morry Gash, AP

    1. Knife Therapy
    A man cringes as he receives a "knife therapy" massage during a free procedure in Taipei. Local practitioners in this ancient form of massage claim it can cure sinus infections and headaches.

    Steven Wang, AP