In this crazy economy, many of us barely have enough money- let alone enough time- to make it to the salon for our usual hair coloring treatments. With color service costing upwards of a hundred dollars a treatment, no one can blame you for considering a do-it-yourself version at home. Coloring your hair yourself at home can be an easy and successful feat if you know what you are doing. Color novices can get salon-quality results while saving enough money to fill up their gas tanks by simply following a few easy instructions.
Choosing Your Color
Whether or not you are making a drastic change to your mane, you will need to pick out a color that will best suit your needs. I recommend staying away from box dyes that you purchase at drug and department stores- not because they don’t work, but because they don’t provide as much control over your products as they could. Instead, visit a beauty supply store that doesn’t require a cosmetology license, such as Sally Beauty Supply. (Many of these stores require a license just to enter through the front door because they carry products that are to be used only by professionals.) You will notice at Sally’s that you will be able to choose from hundreds of shades in each brand- something that you’d never be able to do with box dyes. While there, you may consult with a licensed cosmetologist to pick out your color, if you’d like. (They usually have one on staff.) The cosmetologist will be able to tell you what hue will look best with your skin color and tone, as well as which ones work the best for your hair type. A color’s ‘hue’ is the undertone that appears in the color, making it look different from others. Some colors have an ‘ash’ hue- which have a bluish gray cast, a ‘warm’ hue- which have an orange-red cast, or neutral, which has a greenish cast. The color’s hue should compliment your skin tone, otherwise the color can look fake.
Choosing Your Format
Choosing a Developer
The developer- a mixture of emollients and peroxide- is an integral part of the color mixture. Without the developer, your hair color wouldn’t change your hair at all. In fact, it could even cause burns to your scalp or skin. Choosing a developer, however, is fairly simple. Developers come in different strengths called ‘volumes’. A ‘volume’ measures the amount of peroxide that is in the developer. The smaller the number, the less peroxide there is in the developer. Developers typically come in 10, 20, 30 and 40 volumes. The standard ‘default’ developer is a 20 volume. If your desired shade is within four shades of your current color, choosing a 20 volume developer is recommended. Higher volume developers are typically used on someone who wants to significantly lighten their hair more than five shades. A 10 volume developer would be good for someone who wants to enhance their current hair color or lighten by one shade. You should always choose the lowest volume to meet your needs, as the more peroxide found in a product, the more it will cause damage to your hair.
Application
When applying hair color, you will need to make sure that your hair has not been washed within the last 24-36 hours. Freshly cleansed hair can be more susceptible to breakage and split ends. Hair that is a little dirty is often coated in your body’s natural oils which will protect your hair from becoming over processed or damaged. If the ends of your hair are at all dry or damaged, applying a quick spritz of leave in conditioner to the ends is a good idea. Dry hair will ‘take’ the color more readily than will healthy hair, and the conditioner acts as a buffer to prevent this.
Mix your color and developer in a 50/50 formulation just prior to use. Wear an old t-shirt or wrap an old towel around your shoulders to prevent stains on good clothing or exposed skin. Comb your hair so that it is untangled and smooth. Apply the color to your hair in partitions. Start in with the middle part, and separate into one inch sections. Do one side of your head first, then the other. If you can, recruit a friend to apply the color mixture to the back of your head. If you can’t, feel out a part in the middle and apply using an application brush. Break the back into sections as well, fully saturating hair root to tip.
After the colorant has been evenly applied, one of two methods can be chosen. Either wrap your hair loosely in plastic wrap and blow-dry your hair on low heat, carefully monitoring color progression until desired results are achieved (usually 15-45 minutes, depending on results desired), or simply leave hair down, checking it’s status every five minutes until desired results are achieved. Remember, the hue of the color you picked may be misleading when the colorant is still in your hair. Ash hues can make your hair look bright purple; warm hues a deep red or orange. Do not be alarmed, and don’t wash the color out too soon because you think you’re about to look like a Skittle.
Washing it Out
First rinse your hair with warm water until it feels as if all of the colorant has been washed out. Unlike box dyes, you will then follow the rinse with a mild shampoo to completely wash out all traces of colorant. If you’re not sure whether or not your shampoo is ‘mild’ or pH balanced, mix it with some water to dilute it slightly. Work up a good lather and rinse again. Next apply a heavy conditioner (you may want to pick up a conditioner that is specially formulated for color treated hair) and leave on for 3-5 minutes. Rinse with cool water.
Drying and Styling
Dry your hair on medium heat. Don’t use high heat immediately after coloring, as it can damage hair. Use as little heat styling devices as possible- or at least use them on medium or low heat settings.
You’ll be surprised when you head over to the beauty store- you won’t have spent much more than you would have spent on a box dye at the drug store, and the results you’ll achieve are salon- comparable.
Just one more thing before you head off to the beauty store. If you’re lightening your dark hair to blonde, or if you have hair that has been previously dyed a color that is more than four shades in either direction of your desired color, seek professional advice before attempting your own color treatment. Changing your hair drastically may require a multiple step process that will require more attention than described in this article. Talk to a licensed cosmetologist before giving yourself the green light to complete such a drastic change.
Most colorants come in a liquid or a cream formula. The cosmetologist on staff can help you decide which method is right for your hair type. In general, if you have thick, porous hair, a liquid color may be easier for you to apply and produce more even results than a cream. Creams, however, tend to be less messy than their liquid counterparts. If you choose a liquid, you will also need to purchase a bottle to mix it in. (This can be done in a plastic bowl as well, but it’s easiest in a bottle.) Choose one that has a comb-tip, as it dispenses the product evenly through the hair. If you choose a cream, you will need to purchase application brushes and a plastic mixing bowl if you don’t have one. The cosmetologist on staff can recommend brushes that will best suit your hair type.
