Looking Good, Feeling Great - Best brand of Box Hair Color??

Hi y'all...I need to color my hair, and don't have the extra cash to go to the salon this time around.

What brand do you recommend?

I've been using Revlon ColorSilk for years. About $3 a box. Looks very natural, people don't realize I color my hair:)

Do you guys do wash outs or permanent? My husband "politely" commented on my grey around Thanksgiving, but I've only been brave enough to do the wash outs.

I discovered a website makeupalley.com where there's reviews on products. Everyone there seems to like Excellence the most. Go look at the reviews for different hair color products, while there you might as well see about makeup and other stuff. I've dyed my hair for years, it got so dark that now I have to bleach it, then tone it with haircolor, not recommended at home but I'm a risk taker. If you want to go to Sally's to buy haircolor you have to know more about hair - what your base haircolor is, if you are covering grey, and how to mix the color. This site is meant for professionals but I learned a lot there - google clairol professional, this isn't their main store bought site. Unless it's a salon you can't really change your haircolor more then one or two shades, so go there, find your shade then look one or two shades lighter, most people look best lighter not darker, especially as they get older. But if you go to makeupalley you can read about women who have tried various brands and colors, and how it turned out, it's sort of interesting but I like hair. There's also a new book out I bought at Barnes and Noble called the Hair Color Mix Book, although one of the formulas to get Jennifer Anniston hair didn't work for me.... yet it has some great ideas in it if you want to try color and some highlights yourself. I'm going to streak some small highlights on my hair as it's a little flat at the medium blonde I came up with. This was more then you asked for, my favorite haircolor is bought at Sallys, it's the Clairol Professional with Soy, mixed with a 20 vol developer. I tried medium blonde this last time but next time I'm going to mix light and medium blonde so it's not quite as dark. It takes some playing around but if you don't know a lot you don't have to be too nervous because everything - almost can be fixed even if you mess up.

I'm a fake red-head :) For years I used Herbal Essences "Radiant Ruby" (I have tried other brands for red, and I got the -best- result with this color). Recently, for my red, I've switched to using body art quality Henna (I get it at www.hennaforhair.com). I get a longer-lasting, beautiful red with Henna--it looks natural and it doesn't damage my hair like the boxed stuff did :)

Shelby, if you have grey hair the best coverage is permanent hair color or it'll wash out quickly with a semi perm. But if you are just playing around, start with semi perm. until you find a shade you like, then find a perm. version similar to the color you like...

If you want to do it at home and want to do it correctly then I urge you to see if there is a Sally Beauty Supply in your area. I work there and can tell you that you will be very happy with their products. I "box" colors are o.k. BUT...it's sort of a "one size fits all" and for alot of us that does not work. If you go to Sallys they will show you what colors to mix to get a color that is close to your natuaral color (if that's what you want to do) and they can also help you with the developer. I don't think you'll spend more than $10. I would personally recommend the ION hair color. It's very true to color and is very easy on the hair. You'll get nice coverage with it.

I wanted to add that you do not have to know alot about hair to shop at Sallys. That's why they have staff there to help you. You just have to know what you want the final results to look like. I know the store that I work in is owned and managed by someone that use to have their own shop for years and she's great at teaching us about the products and helping the customers.

You can go and get something in a box and you'll get the color gel or liguid you'll get 20% developer (that's where the "one size fits all" comes into play) and you'll get some conditioner. When you go into Sallys you'll get your hair color gel or liquid the developer that is best suited for your level of color and the level of coverage that your looking for and really good advise. They also have products there to add to your coloring to ensure that you will not come out looking like a copper penny or brassy.....it's really for everyone not just the pros or the people that know alot of hair...Trust me when I first started going there over five years ago I knew nothing about hair!! LOL!!

Hope you have fun

I might be headed to Sally's :D

I only have probably 20 gray hairs, but I have dark brown hair with some red highlites, so they show up a lot!! Funny, when I was younger I was either blonde or a red head -- but I actually really like my own color now!!

Thanks for your replies....I've been coloring my hair in the red family for a long time. I'm a medium brown naturally, with gray (of course!) I'm having some photos taken on Saturday and want to cover my gray, cover my roots and get a fresh new color.

I do like excellence because it is a creme--it seems easier to apply.

Shelby

When you go into Sallys they will show you how you can mix two color together to get close to your natural color. I have to do that with my hair. I like a little golden (red) highlites in my hair but will not color it with a golden blonde because it's just too much red. I mix a blonde neutral with a golden blonde and it's perfect. I wish I could help you!!! LOL!!

I've thought of that, mixing in gold with blonde, my hair seems "flat" with just plain old medium blonde which should have been mixed light/medium blonde. I think maybe next time I'll try medium and light blonde with just a bit of golden blonde mixed in, I bet that would be pretty.

Jen, have you tried the Feria brand. I asked a gal at a coffee shop who did her hair color thinking it would be some top stylist and she said it was feria and it was some color with red in it, whatever it was it was pretty. Another woman I know buys Redken off ebay and has the prettiest red/brown with highlights, I can't remember the name of that either. I don't like a bit of red in my hair so I bleach it to death then tone it. If you lighten dark hair it always turns red, at least mine does.

Feria is only recommended if you have 0-25% gray.

I use Revlon Colorsilk #55 Light Reddish Brown. I've tried others but, I really like this color for my hair.

Thanks for all your input! I took a look at makeup alley and decided to go with Garnier Nutrisse in Light Auburn. It looks pretty good! :)

I only have probably 20 gray hairs, but I have dark brown hair with some red highlites, so they show up a lot!! Funny, when I was younger I was either blonde or a red head -- but I actually really like my own color now!!
same here, I have dark brown hair with a few whites, the whites seem to all be mixed in with the hair around my forehead and they gleam in the light terribly, lol. Ironically, the white hairs showed up just as I stopped coloring my hair and was getting used to the real color. Now I don't know if I should dye again or not. ^_^

I used Feria for a while and the reds were really nice but they washed out quickly for me. I had the same problem with Garnier, though it looked nice for a time too. I haven't colored mine in a while.

I think a lot of women on makeup alley like the garnier, I've never tried it. But I only have less then 5% grey, although that's a crisis in itself for me to SEE GREY. It looks like a good product for multi tones too. Glad it turned out nice!

I had a horrible allergic reaction to the Garnier.

I go black...I used to use the $3 stuff but I love Feria's Starry Black now..It gives a fun blue glow to my hair hehe. Just dyed my hair yesterday actually! My dark brown, red tint was starting to peak through.

I used Clairol Nice n Easy or Hydriance w/the Clairol root touch up for a looong time. Decided to cut my hair short & let the color grow out. Wow, I got salt & pepper gray during that time! :o Anyways, I tried Clairol Natural Instincts semi-permanent color & I LOVE it. My hair is super shiny, the color is the best/most natural looking I've ever had & I don't have to bother with the tell-tale roots. Now when it's starting to fade the greys look more like highlights. Can't wait much longer than six weeks tho'.

(I used to be a salon manager...I am fully licensed.)

Not all Sally Beauty Supply places have ex-salon owners as staff. I have been to some (as a professional getting combs, developer, etc.) and they didn't know anything. I don't recommend them, simply because you don't want to be playing chemistry set, if you don't know what you are doing.

Most people don't know the difference between a level 4 or level 7 color, or between a 10 or 40 volume developer, and you don't want to find out the hard way. :^:

If you are not a pro...I recommend sticking with store box color. This is because store color is meant for gray coverage, and SLIGHT color changes. What I mean by slight, is within 3-4 shades of your natural color. You can obviously add red tones, or whatever-but store color isn't meant to take you from black hair to platinum blonde. Any drastic changes should be done with a professional.

Here is my advice for the best results with box color:

~If you are a going for gray coverage, and are looking at brown shades, always choose a color on the box that looks a shade LIGHTER than what you actually want to go. If you want dark brown, don't buy the darkest brown they have-it will look flat black. When in doubt, choose a shade lighter than you think you want.

~If your hair is already colored, and you are going for the same/similar shade (touching up your roots and grays) don't put the color all over. The ends of the hair can get overprocessed, and "fried" this way. Put it on the root area, and only put the color through to the ends in the last 5 minutes. This will freshen the color everywhere, without frying it.

~Before you attempt a drastic color change, think about your skin tone, eyebrows, eyelashes, eye color, etc. Black hair dye on a woman who is a natural light blonde or redhead looks horrible in most cases. She doesn't have the dark eyebrows and lashes to carry it off. Usually only brunettes can carry off black well...

~The difference between $3 store color, and $10 store color is usually the conditioners and gentler ingredients. The higher priced are usually gentler on the hair, and are less damaging.

~If your hair is getting very gray, stay away from super dark browns, and bright reds-unless you go to a salon. Gray hairs don't absorb the color as well, and a gray haired person going bright red, can get "pink" instead, etc. because they don't have the base tones in their hair already. This is why many senior women have color their hair light brown to blonde.

~If you color, use shampoo and conditioner for color treated hair. It will keep the color truer longer, help it from fading out so much.

~Remember that a store color is meant to keep you within 2-3 levels of your natural hair color. They only have a moderate developer in them. Basically, hair has shades from level 1 to 10. This doesn't mean the "tone" (reddish, goldish, ash) but rather, the lightness or darkness from black to platinum blonde. Don't try to go more than 2-3 shades lighter or darker at home. If you have ever seen a woman who is obviously a brunette, and her hair is the "light orange" this is from using store color to try to go blonde. I guarantee that Velveeta wasn't the color she was going for. ;) The box color isn't strong enough to take a dark brown to platinum blonde.

If you have any questions...feel free to ask.

I remember reading an article in glamor where professional hair stylists admited that you can get salon quality hair color from drugstore hair color if you pick the right colors. I have been using Loreal Prefrence for years, I had a hair dressor friend who used to do my hair (at my house) and would insist that I buy that stuff. For the past 5 years I have had my hair the same color golden blonde, only touching up the roots every 2-3 months.

I recently went brownish blonde (not yellow at all) and then a week later took a highligher cap and had my roomie give me highlights in a golden blonde color 2 shades lighter, then a few days later she gave me low lights in a reddish dark brown 2 shades darker. I spent no more than $30 for the 3 hair colors and the cap and my hair looks incredible. The light really catches the red and blonde highlights in it and it looks very shiny.

For a few years I've been dying my hair black with Garnier, and that one lasted the longest out of all the colors I've used.. (my hair is not black anymore, it's purple right now :lol: ) As soon as my purple fades, I'm going to dye my hair a shade slightly darker than my natural color (light mousy brown.. bleh) with Garnier. My poor hair has pretty much every color you can think of, from black to blonde to purple to purple-ish brown to dark red, you name it, and I've used all different brands but Garnier is my favorite.

I have been coloring my own hair for forty years. On occasion, I have had a salon do it. I hate to admit this but 90% of the time I do a better job. HOWEVER, I do want to also say it wasn't because I had a knack for it, although I do have a good instinct on what shade looks good on me, but because I have listened to different hair colorists over the years and went home and applied what I "heard".

I was born a platinum blonde and my blonde hair went to ash blonde until I was 13 when it began to turn a dirty blonde (more ash than splash). I decided that I wanted to see what I looked like in red hair and so I colored it different shades of red for so long most people thought that was my natural hair color. Then, like a lot of you younger girls, I had to go black. There is such something mysterious and dangerous about black hair; especially if you aren't born with it. I returned to my baby light ash blonde in my early 30s and I have been that ever since. BUT......

NOW, fast forward to today, and I do mean today. I am nearing 55. I have watching my natural hair color start out with some white streaks in the front and slowly work its way back. I too have tried a couple of different times to let it go natural only to find out that it was mostly salt and pepper, mostly pepper---that old dirty blonde from when I was thirteen, remember?

As I am sure the others will attest to, the gray can be stubborn in accepting pigmentation. I too am tired of coloring after doing it for so long. I should own Clairol by now I have given them so much money over the years.

My gray or white is coming in a really attractive soft silvery and white color. It is really soft to the touch and it does look like I highlighted my hair when I pull my hair up in a ponytail. In fact, a few hairdressers have asked me who highlighted my hair and I have said, "Mother Nature!"

So, I want to grow out the remaining chemically processed hair that is on the top layer of my hair and from my ears back. What kinds of thoughts do you all have on that?

I like that idea of a couple of different highlights. When the roots grow out they are white. What does the resident hair dresser here think?

I use Garnier Nutriesse all the time, my hair fades out and turned this weird reddish brown color that i dislike, and I love the dye. It stays really well and stays looking shiny. Hopefully you enjoy it too!

LOreal Excellence is by far my favorite counter color out there. It lasts long for me, as well as leaves my hair shiny and healthy looking.

I really like to use NaturTint. It isn't as harsh as the mainstream colors. It doesn't have ammonia and some of the other chemicals either. I used it a month ago and it still looks good.

The only one that I have found to cover my grey and really last a long time. I've tried about 3 diff brands and not too happy w/ the grey coverage until I tried Revlon Colorist It covered my grey and the color lasted a very long time!