I think I am going to give myself a reward when I have lost 50 pounds. I would like to dye my hair! It's so silly, because I have NEVER dyed my hair, ever! I really don't care enough about my appearance to spend money on my looks, but I want to do it to celebrate losing 50 pounds. I am learning that I deserve to feel pretty. Right now, I'm a brunette, but I think I'm going to go blonde!!
We are living with a very tight budget, so going to the salon is simply out of the question. Does anyone have a favorite hair coloring? (such as Clairol, etc.) What have you used that you liked? What would you never buy again?
When I used to color my own hair I liked L'Oreal Excellence Creme the best. I always got great coverage and the color that was on the package.
Second best was Garnier Nutrisse Permanent Creme. It always ended up a little darker than the swatch. I would usually mix 2 close shades together (Truffle/Chestnut I think) for the best color. It would always be a little red and brassy for a few washes and then be fine. When I discovered Excellence I was happier with it overall.
Worst experience was with L'Oreal Feria. It lasted maybe 2 weeks and the color looked flat on me.
You might be able to go to the various websites and get coupons sent to you too? Good luck!
I personally use Garnier Nutriesse because I think the color lasts longer than the others. I have tried them all at one point or another, but I almost always stick with Garnier. I also like it because the smell isn't too strong. Some of the others can get overwhelming and actually make me dizzy.
A few of my own hairdying tips:
Depending on the length of your hair you might need to get 2 boxes of dye to make sure everything is thoroughly covered. When my hair was below my shoulderblades I needed 2 boxes now that it is above my shoulder blades I am good with one, but it sometimes is a stretch
If you can have a friend do it, doing it yourself is a pain. It also can get kind of messy.
I would definately do a test sample on an underneath piece of hair if blonde is different from your natural hair color. Since this is your first time it is good to know that you will like the color and that your hair will be OK with the dye.
This might not effect you as much since you are going blond (mine is dark brown) but put vaseline around your hairline and you can wipe any dropped dye right off. If you do drop any use some regular shampoo on the spot and leave for a minute and then rub off.
I loved Feria (I stopped dyeing my hair last year and now just use henna). I think the color is more dynamic than most bottled products, and it smells nice and isn't overwhelmingly chemically. That was my favorite brand for years, and I've been dyeing my hair with every product since I was 12. =D
I'm a recovering hair dye queen! It's a fun thing for me, but something I haven't done in a few years.
If you're on a budget I recommend Sally's Beauty Supply, or other beauty supply house if you have one nearby. Your initial purchase will be a bit more (but under $25.00 or so) because you'll need a few supplies like developer, mixing bottle, the dye, gloves, ect. The clerks are more than helpful, can hook you up with what you need and explain how to do it.
Once you've got your 'pantry' items, the upkeep dyes should be very inexpensive, like under $5.00.
Sally's (and other beauty supply stores) sells the same dyes as drugstores but without all the fancy packaging. They have all the big brands, Feria, Clairol, Garnier, Revlon, ect... but have a wider selection, and on the cheap!
Honestly, if you're going up more than two shades I probably wouldn't try it at home. You could fry your hair (as I have in the past) big time. Home hair coloring is great if you're staying within two shades of what you currently are.
If you're set on going blond and it's more than two shades up you could ask the clerk for something called 'Clear Blue' (I think, it's been awhile- I'm sure 'blue' is in the name) which is a potent bleach. Read all the instructions and warnings carefully! After bleaching, you'd then proceed with the blond dye.
I've had every color in the rainbow, and then some. I want to stress again that hair damage is irreparable (whether done at home or at a fancy salon) and is a big ego blow. I've ruined and chopped off my naturally red hair gone wrong more than once.
However, done right and carefully it's a huge stroke to the ego!
I've been dyeing my hair for the last 5 years. I have a lot of gray and I refuse to age gracefully! I like Preference by L'Oreal. The color seems to stay fresher longer. And, don't forget to use shampoo and conditioner for color treated hair. These products are gentler and will keep your color looking fresh. And, when you do a touch-up, only touch-up the roots and not all of your hair. Too many applications of hair dye on the same portions of hair will damage the hair and there might be a big color difference between the new hair and the old.
Last edited by GirlyGirlSebas; 02-08-2008 at 07:43 AM.
If you are light brown you might want to consider a highlighter in a box. You will not have the outgrowth that you will with the above haircolors. You may not like it then you will have to either cut it short and let it grow out or get it put back to your natural color and that will cost more money then the original coloring. Almost all haircolor out there is permanent. If it is strong enough to change your hair to a lighter shade it has peroxide and that does not fade.
I am a medium-brunette with lots of red and blond highlights (natural). For about 4-5 years I dyed my hair black. Then I decided I wanted it back to my natural color. Let me tell you - it is very hard to go from a darker than normal color back to your normal color. They need to bleach the darker color out, then dye it close to what your natural color is. In my case, it was 3 rounds of bleaching and the tips were still really dark (the roots were bright blond, but remember that those were the most recently dyed out of the natural color).
So I think it is good that you are choosing blond because it would be easy to go back if you didn't like it.
I think I used Clairol when I dyed my hair, but I haven't dyed it now for about 4-5 years!
So I think it is good that you are choosing blond because it would be easy to go back if you didn't like it.
I was going to give the exact opposite warning. There is a real tendency of store brand blond dyes to pick up natural highlights and give you an orange tint that gives the impression that you might have been an ooompa loompa in a previous life. (I'd like to emphasize that there is a chance that this did not happen to me days before my high school senior portrait. Not a big chance, but a chance nonetheless.)
Store bought dyes are not the place to make drastic changes unless you've got real experience with them. You can spend a lot of money trying to have a trained professional fix what you've screwed up.
I'd suggest starting out with highlights. It can really change your look and there's a lot less risk of ending up with something that makes you not want to leave the house.
I agree with others that you should definitely heed the warnings about dyeing your hair more than two shades different from your natural color, especially when going lighter. From what I understand from hairdressers I've known, it works like this, developers (the hydrogen peroxide based cream that you mix the little bottle of dye with) come in different strengths. If you're going darker, only a 10 or 20 volume solution is usually used because you don't need the hair to open up to give up the color it's already holding. Your worst case scenario here is that you end up with a hair color that's too dark and makes you look pale and goth. On the other hand, if you're going lighter, especially a brunette to a blonde, you're probably needing to have your hair bleached which means a higher volume developer, usually 40 (I believe, don't hold me to that) if you're going from dark brown to blonde blonde (and not like a dark/dirty blonde). This means a higher chance of frying your hair. It's stronger, it opens up your hair, and if you leave it sitting for too long, you'll end up with fried hair. Too little and you'll end up with orange, because hair lightens in stages... first brown, then brassy red, then orange, then yellowish blonde then white. Basically, I just really really wouldn't do this at home unless you're experienced, which considering you said you've never done it before I'm thinking isn't the case. I'm also fairly certain that unless you buy the box bleach kits that if you simply buy a box of blonde hair dye that it will only lighten your hair at best a couple of shades, simply because they don't put high volume developer in the box to prevent people from frying their hair. They put a shade guide on the sides of most boxes to tell you the result you should expect. So if you go with the supermarket box, you'd probably just end up with lighter brown hair anyway.
So my advice would be to go darker if you must do it at home, and if you've got long hair go ahead and get two boxes just in case... better to have way too much dye than not enough and end up with a splotchy dye job. You're going to want to be able to apply liberally.
Edited to add: If you do go the Sally Beauty Supply route, I really liked the Wella hair dyes. As far as boxed dyes, I liked L'Oreal Excellence Creme.
Last edited by LindseyLouWho; 02-08-2008 at 10:28 PM.
Thanks, everyone, for the replies! I am going to take your advice and NOT do it myself. My mom just told me this morning that she didn't know what to give me for my birthday in May, and that she'd probably just send cash. I told her that would be GREAT, because I could use that to get my hair colored - at a salon! I may not lose 50 pounds by then, but I'll save the money until I reach that goal.
Oh yes! That so much better! I did color my own hair for about a year when DH was in school and $ was tight. While I never *changed* fom one color to another - just covering the grey - there was always so much stress surrounding doing it myself! The occasional shock at the brassy tones and the sometimes dissapointment when it would wash out in 2 weeks. It's so much nicer to get foils at the salon now, and input from a stylist regarding color. GL!
Definitely OT: haircolor suggestions/advice?
There is a real tendency of store brand blond dyes to pick up natural highlights and give you an orange tint that gives the impression that you might have been an ooompa loompa in a previous life. (I'd like to emphasize that there is a chance that this did not happen to me days before my high school senior portrait. Not a big chance, but a chance nonetheless.)
