Dying Hair At Home - I am lost, please help!

[AnaViaSalamanca]

Apologies for starting a repetitive thread, but I am totally lost. I have dark brown hair with quite a lot of grays in the front. Never dyed my hair at home so to begin with, I bought a semi-permanent well fresh, which did not take AT ALL, just washed off.

I am not sure what color/brand to buy, go permanent or semi permanent first (to minimize issues), and how to mix.

Any tips, step by step guides or youtube links for dummies is highly highly appreciated!

Which semi did you try?

I used to use garnier nutrisse which is a permanent colour. I used to use a medium brown colour but they always come out darker than you think they might. Put old tshirt on, put towels on the floor to stand on and have baby wipes handy to wipe bits that get on your forehead/arms!

Do a patch test first - the instructions well tell you what to do.

And I just mix in the bottles it provides

I use feria or live for dark hair. Did you follow the instructions and mix bottles correctly? I don't know why it didn't take as it should've. I have grey hair and have never had a problem.

I have mid-dark brown hair with greys at the front and I use Garnier Nutrisse Mocha Brown (I think it's #5). Even my hairdresser admires it and says I should just continue colouring my hair myself rather than get him to do it. My hair is so glossy when I've just done it.
A game-changer for me was investing a couple of quid in a proper colouring brush - with stiff, flat bristles and a pointy end. And sectioning the hair properly. If your worst grey at at the front then do that first so that the dye is on there for ages. Protect your clothes, dab a bit of vaseline on your forehead & temples, put a podcast on and you're all set!

They are really easy to use, it sounds like you’ll need a permanent dye. I buy Nice & Easy but they’re all pretty similar. You squeeze the toothpaste like tube into the bottle of activator, shake to combine the two and use the bottle to cover your hair in dye. I have lots of hair so i section it off to make sure I cover all areas. Wash off after the suggested time and condition with the Conditioner included. Dry and style as usual.

Greys should generally be treated with permanent colour, semis are more for those without grey

Dont worry about how-to - its not complicated and generally just popping the contents of one bottle into another.

Start concentrating on roots first, and especially the hair line, and then take it through to the ends

Semi permanent colours are useless on grey hair. Be careful using ‘brown’ as you may actually be a dark blonde. If you’re trying to decide between 2 boxes go for the lighter one. I’ve used nice n easy but my favourite is Excellence.

I decided that home dye kits do not cover greys well so during this lockdown I brought some professional stuff off Amazon as follows and it has worked a treat:

www.amazon.co.uk/LaRoc-Colouring-Bleach-Brushes-Hairdressing/dp/B01H1S5MYW?ref_=ast_sto_dp&tag=mumsnetforu03-21

www.amazon.co.uk/WELLA-Welloxon-Perfect-6-180/dp/B00JP6NKAC/ref=yo_pop_rec_s_3/261-1800809-8187706?psc=1&_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_wg=YpSsD&pd_rd_i=B00JP6NKAC&pd_rd_w=PdMGB&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&refRID=1TYGDFYZM1JVVNH4DPY2&pd_rd_r=125550da-9add-4a3a-9e28-4cff462e610d

Sorry you also need one of these to mix with the lifting agent:

www.amazon.co.uk/Wella-Koleston-Perfect-colour-Naturals/dp/B07FFFDV8C/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=koleston&tag=mumsnetforu03-21&qid=1589238837&sr=8-1

I use the nice and easy touch up kits. You simply mix the two bottles together and apply. It has a really handy brush which makes applying much easier.