Box dye to cover greys?

[Zhougzhoug]

I have very dark brown hair and I really like its natural colour so I don't want to change it. It has some interesting undertones which I'd always liked.

Now I have a noticeable few grey hairs, but nowhere near the 10-15% grey my hairdresser said to get to before I started professionally colouring it. Probably 30-50 hairs, mostly in two or three clusters. If I did a box dye in a lighter colour, say mid-light-brown, would that cover the greys without changing my natural colour? Would it still fuck up my hair condition? I'm thinking Josh Wood or a decent brand like that.

What was the reason for the hairdresser giving you a percentage to be at?

You can start covering greys whenever, but be prepared that because there isn't any pigment to change - it doesn't last long. The dye, whether box or professional just slightly tints the hair and washes out, it won't change it for anything longer than a few weeks.

Covering greys is hard work.

No it’ll sue your own natural colour too.

*dye

I think the 10-15% was just a recommendation to try and leave it longer rather than a hard and fast rule.

Wow, so even permanent dyes don't take properly on grey hair? I never knew. If I do a semi-permanent gloss it fades them for a few weeks. They're still sort of there but with a brownish tint so they don't catch the light so much. Sounds like permanent isn't that much better than that?

Permanent will do pretty much the same as semi-permanent to greys.

It can't physically change the colour of the hair - since there is no colour pigment remaining.

I never realised this! I'm starting to get a patch of grey hair, and within a week of dying it, I can see the grey coming through. I was actually going to start my own thread today, to see what hair dye brands people recommend to cover grey hair.

I use Osmo Cool Brown Colour Revive once a week. I use a brush to apply (and gloves, it stains fingers) and it gives the grey hair enough tint to last 7 days (5 washes) it's low maintenance and not too expensive.

I will however use a semi permanet box dye if I want better coverage for a wedding or similar as I have very fine and thin hair and it gives it a thicker appearance for a few weeks. The best one IMO is the Clariol Nice & Easy Semi Permanent.

I've been buying poly color tint. It's about £2 in places like savers and honestly, it's really good. Very easy to apply and seems to be lasting quite well on my brown hair which has an annoying spattering of grey right at the front where I can see it!
I was very surprised given how cheap it is. Hasn't wrecked my hair either.

This is not true!! Hairdresser dye is permanent and does not wash off!

Speaking from experience of dyeing brown hair with a hairdressers product for over 10 years.

Supermarket ones are rubbish and do wash off a bit, whilst oversaturating natural hair with dye, giving that horrible look of roots lighter than the ends

Josh Wood is pretty good. I like it because it doesn't smell too badly of chemicals and feels good to put on. It doesn't feel like it's wrecking my hair quite as much as the cheaper ones.

The permanent one only lasts a maximum of 3 weeks for me though, so it's still an expensive way to do it (cheaper than the hairdresser though!)

I haven't found any way of doing it that is actually permanent, either at a salon or at home. It always fades.

There is nothing magical about what hairdressers put on your hair compared to products you can use at home.

Perhament hair dye doesn't 'wash off', but it does fade, the rate at which it happens depends on your underlying pigment, what products you use, and even things like the water hardness where you live.

I've used both- permanent dye from supermarket and permanent dye from the hairdressers, both done at home and really there is no comparison. The supermarket ones fade 10x faster and saturate more, really flat unnatural effect. Hairdresser ones give a really natural effect if applied correctly only on the roots.

This isn't true. I've been dying mine for about 20yrs, I only dye the regrowth. I also only use semi permanent (Casting) but it takes permanently on my hair. But permanent dye is exactly that...permanent.Yes, you'll have to keep dying it, obviously as new growth will keep coming in.

@MorvernBlack no dye is truly permanent.

It all depends on the condition and pigmentation of the hair that you are dying.

My hair is naturally dark, greys are coming through pure white and only hold a permanent dye for around 3 weeks.
I also bleach my hair (balayage) and use permanent dyes (salon brand ones with developer) to use to tone it, and guess what? The blonde still comes through eventually.

If you're dying brown hair a similar shade of brown and you have greys that are dark grey, the colour will last you much longer but it does fade, you just can't tell how much because you're reapplying when you have regrowth.

I've used both as well and the salon ones are nicer in terms of less chemical, more natural etc., but for me both fade at the same rate. There's no difference in how long they last. That includes supermaket ones, salon ones or 'nicer' brands of home dyes like Josh Wood. All fade.

Permanent hair dye takes better on some people's hair than others.

There is no permanent dye that would permanently dye my hair without fading/ changing after a few weeks - believe me, I've tried for years to find one.

It depends on your underlying pigment and hair type, previous colour treatments etc., but permanent dye does not work for everyone.

Hi, Clairol root touch up is very good, imo, but you have to leave it on for quite a bit longer than the ten minutes it says in the box, otherwise it doesn’t ‘take’. Done properly it covers my grey completely on my dark brown hair and lasts until regrowth.

Tbh, I am quite a big fan of it, (I do NOT work for Clairol🤣). My hairdresser said it wasn’t really different in composition from what they use professionally - the difference is mainly in the application.

I am quite a fan of Clairol root touch up too on my dark brown hair. I see no difference between that and my salon. Saving a lot of money.

I've found John Frieda Defy Grey shampoo and conditioner to be very effective and much easier to use than a box dye. Get it in Superdrug or Boots.

Using a lighter permanent box dye will lighten the rest of your hair too, not just cover the greys.
I use Clairol root touch up on my grey patches in my dark brown hair and find it covers the greys well. I leave it 15 minutes or so.

Thanks all. Might stick with the gloss a bit longer.

I thought this was only if they had bleach in, so a medium brown just wouldn't take on my almost black hair? Or do they all have bleach in if they're permanent?

I also love my dark brown hair and use Superdrug shaders and toners, it’s just wash on and wash out but if you put it on clean dry hair and leave it for half an hour is lasts a few weeks and you get golden highlights or whatever you’re going for. The dark one will make your greys dark red so don’t do that shade! I use honey blonde as my hair is a warm shade of brown

@Zhougzhoug they don't have 'bleach' per say, but they do have a stronger content developer.

I wouldn't use permanent if it's just a few greys.