Are You Dyeing Your Hair Wrong? Do's And Dont's Of How To Dye Your Hair

When trying to save money and time, you have - at some point - probably found yourself wondering if you should start dyeing your hair at home. You went through the process at the salon countless times, and how hard can it be? If they sell box-dye at the drugstore, it must mean that people do this every day and it’s safe, cost-effective and works just right, no?

Well, whilst the answer to that can vary depending on many factors, if you’re adamant about trying to dye your own hair at home, then make sure you don’t fall into these easy mistakes.

How To Dye Your Hair At Home: Do’s & Don’ts

You may think that dyeing your hair is like going on a bicycle: once you manage to do it once successfully, there’s no way anything can go wrong the next time you try it - but this couldn’t be farther from the truth. Let’s see the most common mistakes happening when colouring your hair at home, and what to do instead.

DON’T: Do Your Hair “On The Go”

Even if you’re resorting to box-dye for time-saving purposes, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t give your coloring time the proper care and attention. It’s essential that you plan your coloring day in advance so that you don’t keep it on your strands for longer than necessary. Keeping your dye on your hair for too long can cause “hot roots”, a phenomenon in which your roots will be significantly lighter than your lengths/ends.

DO: Prepare For Hair Coloring

Schedule your hair dye date on a day on which you know you will have all the time to check on your color, and possibly a day that is not too close to a hair washing day either. Make sure you have all of your products lined up before starting, including petroleum jelly to protect your hairline and ears from getting stained. If you already had a coloring accident instead, check out our blog on how to remove hair dye stains.

DON’T: Be Overconfident

Just because you’ve done it countless times, if you’re trying a new brand or if your favorite hair dye has changed formula, make sure you always follow the instructions on the leaflet. Make sure that when using hair dye, you’re wearing an old t-shirt and using an already stained towel so that you won’t ruin a good outfit or a new hair towel.

DO: Try Semi-Permanent Color First

If you’re not a seasoned DIY expert, perhaps it’s better to avoid permanent hair coloring at first. Try semi-permanent instead, so that you won’t end up having to resort to a pricey color-correction session at the salon.

DON’T: Pick A Color Based On The Image On The Box

Brands will often pick an enhanced image for the front of their box, for advertising purposes. Usually, this means that the color is perfectly matched to a model’s traits, skin undertone, and makeup - not mentioning any strategically placed background, etc. Always double check on the back the results that you can actually achieve based on your base color.

DO: Keep Your Color Expectations Realistic

If your hair is naturally dark, a single round of box-dye bleach is likely to leave you with bright orange strands. Going from brunette to blonde in one session, especially with box-dye, is practically impossible. Bleaching your hair sometimes needs to happen over time, carefully, to give your hair the time to recover from the bleach application each time. Bleaching your hair is also a damaging process for your strands, and your undercoat will always need toning.

DON’T: Dye Hair That Is Already Too Damaged

If you went from bleach blonde to dark hair, don’t even think about going back to blonde again any time soon - unless you’re a fan of breakage. Damaged, brittle tresses also lead to unpredictable color results, which is something you want to avoid at all costs.

DO: Add Real Hair Extensions

If you’re looking to add some light or a touch of color but would like to avoid bleach and coloring damage to your hair, then you can always resort to human hair extensions. This way you can add highlights, lowlights, and funky colored strands to your mane without having to undergo any color treatment damage. Check out our range of highlighted hair extensions and mixed shades here.

DON’T: Dye Human Hair Extensions At Home

As hair extensions professionals, we have to always tell you that we do NOT encourage dyeing and color-treating your Remy hair extensions at home. Hair extensions do not receive any nourishment and moisture from your scalp as your natural hair does, therefore any dye job might ruin them forever - not to mention that they might not match your hair colour anymore. 

DO: Get Color Matched

If you’re planning on changing hair color, then it is likely you’ll have to buy new hair extensions to match your new shade - unless you want to give it a go and take them to a salon to see if they can help you with dyeing them the same color you’re applying to your natural hair. Anyways, this doesn’t mean that you have to say goodbye to your old hair extensions forever. Check out our blog on how to repurpose your old hair extensions, and click here to access our FREE hair extensions color matching service!

Conclusion:

A DIY hair dye job isn’t a bad idea, as long as you pay attention to the instructions, do a patch test in advance for your own safety, and carefully choose your shade with mindfulness. Happy styling!