Talk to me about dyeing grey hair

[RoseAddict]

I’ve never dyed my hair. Dh likes the increasing amount of grey… I like the colour but not the texture- it’s all wiry. I’m wondering a few things:

If I dye it (darker) will it improve its condition or the opposite?

Does semi permanent dye come off on your pillow?

Is semi permanent or permanent better for condition?

When you initially dye your hair it will feel smooth after the intensive conditioner but in the long term it won't change the texture of the greys. Also, the grey hair can take the dye in a different way to the non-grey hair so depending on the pattern your grey hair is coming in you could end up with a two tone effect. I had to stop dyeing my hair red for this reason as the top was the colour I wanted but the sides were Ronald McDonald red!

Ah ok. Any tips for the wiry ones then? Blow drying seems to make them wilder

I use semi permanent. It colours the hair but not the skin. I sometimes find the grey roots are back before the stains on my skin fade from the permanent dye. It doesn’t come off on anything.

I do find if I try a different brand/shade I do end up with the two tone effect@Leeds3 mentions. I use Medium Ash Brown Semi Nice and Easy. If I try another brown or another brand I can get gingery or red roots!

Hairdresser told me to just dye the roots, not the rest of the hair as this protects the condition. I do have a bit of a frizzy issue with greys at the front - I use leave in conditioner to tame it.

Ok that’s great. I care more about my nice bed linen than my hair so didn’t want dye coming off on it! I’m off to the hairdressers tomorrow so will get some advice there

Use a straightener on your hair to control the grey.
My dark brown hair is salt and pepper now. The grey hairs are a totally different texture. Much thinner and wavy 😬

@RoseAddict

Ok that’s great. I care more about my nice bed linen than my hair so didn’t want dye coming off on it! I’m off to the hairdressers tomorrow so will get some advice there

Don’t let them block dye it. You will end up with roots which are a real pain to keep hidden. Highlights/lowlights are the way to go if you want to dye it.

The thing that will improve the texture is conditioning it well. Bear in mind that growing it out takes absolutely forever, so be very sure before you colour it (bitter experience).

If it’s the appearance that puts you off the greys, highlights/lowlights can be a good option.

Many dyes say they aren’t suitable for hair with a lot of grey, because of how differently grey hair takes on colour.

I have a mix of blonde and dark brown (my natural colour) foils through mine to blend the grey. I also use purple shampoo once a week to tone the blonde and grey from going brassy. My hairdresser uses Olaplex with the colour and it's massively changed the awful wirey greys.

Don't do an overall colour else you're in the dreaded every 4 week root regrowth.......

Ooh lots of lovely tips thank you. Yes I normally go to the hairdresser every 6 months so I’m keen to avoid 4 weekly trips. I’ll avoid the block dye then. I haven’t done the patch test at the hairdresser so I’ll be able to get advice when I get it cut tomorrow but then I can go away and think about it before making any costly mistakes!

I’ve got straighteners but I seriously lack the patience to use them most of the time

Googling olaplex…

L'Oréal elvive 8 second wonder. Cheaper than olaplex and it's amazing

Ok Googling that now too! Do either of them have silicones in? I avoid silicones as the shampoo I like is gentle and doesn’t manage to strip them. I think most decent products don’t use silicones nowadays do they?

8 second is mostly propolyene(so?) glycol.

Before u go down olaplex route, try applying coconut oil when blow drying (on semi-dried hair), spreading it with your fingers. It smooth hair beautifully, I use a hot air blowing brush doing that but I expect a brush and hair drier would do the same trick.

I use multitonal Nutrisse colourant.

I am pretty grey now. I've started dying my hair with semi-permanent dye from e-salon. I think it looks better then when I used to have it done in the (expensive) hair salon. I like that it comes out slightly different tones - it looks more like my real hair used to look, as if it has some highlights from the sun. It definitely does not come out on the pillows. I came across e-salon on MN and it seems to get pretty good reviews. Even my hairdresser was impressed by the colour.