Are box dyes really that bad for your hair?

[Tinks15]

I hear lots of people say they aren’t good for your hair…is this true?

I use to box dye my hair all the time when I was younger now I get in done in a salon but occasionally I am tempted to go back to box dying. Tell me your thoughts?

No. Otherwise every single person that used them would have shit hair.

I currently have a self done balayage. I used a kit (think it was the Bleach London one) and it looks great even if I do say so myself .

You can of course over process your hair which will ruin it but in general, box dyes are fine - just follow the instructions!

Well hairdressers like to tell you that because then you’ll pay the big bucks to have them colour it.

I do a bit of both, had my hair vomited professionally a couple of months ago. At the hairdresser’s for a cut last weekend, she picked up a hank of hair goes ‘do you always colour your own hair from a box dye?’ with a wrinkled nose.

I took great delight in telling her it was her who’d coloured it last and I’d not touched a box since.

Vomited

COLOURED obviously

I always use a box dye and they do dry my hair a bit. Lately I have been using Josh Wood hair dye and it is fabulous. More expensive than my normal dye but has left my hair in much better condition so I don't mind too much.

No, they're fine. Particularly if you don't use the lightening ones. They can look a bit shit if not chosen well, though. I also found that they looked far too bright once I got more than a smattering of white in my hair.

I think they vary, just like everything else. I used to use the cheaper ones years ago and my hair looked flat and awful, plus it went a horrible colour when it started fading after a few washes.

I had the old box dye stripped out and my hair coloured at a hairdressers and it was the best it had looked in years at the time, but I've been doing my own with esalon kits for the last eighteen months or so (including the balayage kit which I was really impressed with) and I think I like it even better .

I used box dyes for years and my hair was fine. It was only when the grey took over and I had to use the dye much more often that it had a drying effect. I took the decision to stop and give in to the grey. If I could go back to colouring and not have to do it as often as I did by the end which was every two weeks I probably would.

Some of them are great, others are not so great. What you do get in a salon is somebody who understands about the right tones, so that you don't accidentally dye your hair with a green or orange tinge, but if you only ever use one colour, apply it evenly, don't mix and match across different brands, then that colour could be as good as a salon colour. It is really hard to accurately apply a full head of colour on yourself though, and so most people end up over dyeing their hair, so that each time they dye it they aren't just colouring the root section, but doing more of the hair which over the time can become damaging and drying. It can also look patchy if not applied evenly throughout. Of course all of those things can happen with a substandard hairdresser too. But a great hairdresser should leave your hair feeling better condition after a colour than it did before, because they know how much colour the hair can take (so won't over dye or over process the hair) and use the most effective products to get the desired results.

I guess it's like anything else, you are paying for the product, the service and the expertise. Whereas at home you are only paying for the product. The service depends on your own ability, and your lack of expertise may or may not be an issue. So of course many people 'get away' with home dyeing. And then if or when it goes wrong, they go and seek a professional with expertise to fix it. So the professional thinks that the disasters they are representative of box dyes as they only see the unsuccessful ones. The successful ones never come onto the hairdressers radar, they don't even know they exist.

I dye my hair 'natural black' usually a nice 'n' easy or nutrisse box dye.. I've been doing it for well over 10 years. My hair is genuinely in amazing condition.

I think they're fine. I've been using box dyes since the early nineties (now I feel old!!) and they don't seem to affect the condition of my hair.

Hairdressers will obviously advise against them because they want your money!

I used box dyes for years when I didn’t have the time or money for hairdressers. Obviously the hairdresser does a better job, but I can’t say I notice the difference in condition.
The best condition my hair has ever been in, was during lockdown when I didn’t blow dry or use my straighteners at all.

I took great delight in telling her it was her who’d coloured it last and I’d not touched a box since. hahaha

I’ve noticed a massive difference in my hair since stopping box dyes and getting it professionally done instead.

Maybe my hairdresser is just amazing (she is), maybe I’m shit at applying dye.

@Bobsyer

No. Otherwise every single person that used them would have shit hair.

I currently have a self done balayage. I used a kit (think it was the Bleach London one) and it looks great even if I do say so myself .

You can of course over process your hair which will ruin it but in general, box dyes are fine - just follow the instructions!

Sorry to jump on the thread but was it easy to self balayage? I would love to do this but daren't!

I swear they’ve discontinued a lot of the Garnier colours I used to use, there aren’t a lot of red tones anymore.

I tried Josh Wood and it did nothing!

I use them (Josh Wood) and find them fine. I don't dye mine dramatically different to my own colour though. For that, I probably would go to a salon.

I used to get my hair coloured at the hairdresser and was often irritated when it came out a darker or more plummy colour even though they claimed it was the usual one.

During lockdown I did my own and got a much more consistent colour but, as my hair grew much longer than usual ( husband in vulnerable category so I'd not been to get it cut) it was in poor condition.
Back at the hairdresser again and still colouring my own perfectly happily. I've found a conditioner for longer hair (Kerastase extentioniste) which actually makes my hair look as though it is in better condition (and thicker) than it's been for years.
The conditioner is expensive but nothing compared with the cost of having my hair "professionally" coloured.

@Helpstopthepain

I’ve noticed a massive difference in my hair since stopping box dyes and getting it professionally done instead.

Maybe my hairdresser is just amazing (she is), maybe I’m shit at applying dye.

Or maybe she uses shampoo, conditioner and products which make your hair look better>

I use box dyes (the Garner or L'Oreal ones at the supermarket). Haven't had any disasters and they look fine. I have shortish hair so it seems a bit of a waste to have it professionally dyed as it's mostly cut off a few weeks later.

I stopped using because of all the plastic - all those bottles and sachets and gloves. I guess it’s better to go to a salon in that respect as they buy bulk

I’ve used them for 25 years with no ill effects. Had my coloured a few times in a salon and couldn’t tell the difference.

I have an all over colour though. If I was getting highlights or balayage or something that required skill, I’d go to a salon.

I agree with pp that it’s a line hairdressers spin.

The key is to comb it right to the ends. Sometimes you can see where people have put it on top/roots and then it’s lighter at the bottom.

had my hair vomited professionally a couple of months ago

This is the best autocorrect I've seen on MN since "boil in the vag curry"

I don't think so OP. I think if someone gets their hair coloured regularly at the salon then it'll be in great condition because of the products used, but you can get great conditioning etc products to use at home too.

I did a home job ombre just before covid and loved it, but when I went to the salon a few weeks ago I got severely told off for attempting it as I paid £80 just to have to blonde cut off I really don't think I could stretch to whatever a balayage would cost there, so I've just bought another box dye for £8 to dye it again and await my telling off at my next cut

@LifesTooShortForYourNonsense

I stopped using because of all the plastic - all those bottles and sachets and gloves. I guess it’s better to go to a salon in that respect as they buy bulk

Same, then stopped altogether. The relief is immense!

I used to regularly (past 20 years) go to the salon for blonde highlights. During lockdown I realised that my hair was thinning, snapping, frizzy and dry. I started using a home tint kit since lock down. I found a gentle blonde hair tint (home kit) without bleach, my hair now looks healthy and amazing. The all over tint looks better as it covers all the grey instead of partially. I'm never going to the salon again!