Box hair dyes that don’t look rubbish

[Glamgwen]

So I’ve had to stop getting salon highlights due to cost. I’ve spent a year growing my highlights out & have tried to embrace my natural grey hair, but I hate it. It’s dull & I feel it’s really aging me. I’ve always been put off box dyes because they tend to look really flat & one dimensional. Is there such a thing as a home hair dye that looks natural & muli-tonal? My natural hair colour is mid-brown streaked with grey.

I’m a big fan of semis. I will only use Clairol ash colours-anything red, gold or caramel in the shade always looks horrendous. Not a fan of L’Oreal Casting-weird colours which don’t go with my skin tone-but they look good on other people. Be aware that even semis will lift your colour so will fade a bit brassy. Semis are easier to use than permanent and they cover grey pretty well-and gradually fade so if you don’t like it, it’s not a disaster.

Another vote to try with semis. The fade out is good. I do use bolder colours than more natural tones but that works for my overall style.

Wella colour fresh masks are great you can leave on for longer for depth of colour lasts a while.

https://www.wella.com/professional/en-UK/hair-color/color-fresh/color-fresh-mask#/?_k=rkvdn2

I use semis and like them, but I have to say they never seem to wash out completely.

I use John Frieda Hair colours, I've got some resistant grey hair and Clairol never covers the greys for me. John Frieda always does. Garnier Olia is another good one that works for me

Esalon are very good. I can't justify paying their prices (about £30 a semi-permanent pop), but the colour is customised and glorious and does seem to last better than cheaper (Clairol/L'Oreal) supermarket dyes.

Agree with eSalon…thought they were very good.

I appreciate i may be a bit of an oddity but have now used Loreal Casting creme gloss semi (over brown/grey hair) for years and get loads of compliments (even from new hairdresser!) Somehow it manages to look like very expensive highlights. When i made the initial switch (from salon) i asked the colourist for the colour codes used & just selected the matching box - is that an option?

@Boopear same. I've used box dyes for years, lately they look better imo because of the grey hairs, there's a variation in colour 🤣 last year my wedding hair stylist said she wanted the name of my hairdresser as they had done such a good job it, I just laughed.

@Boopear Great idea, thank you.

If covering greys, does anyone prefer permanent to semis?

Josh wood colour
The other thing I would say is look at your local Hairdressing college.
I am in Home Counties, used to pay £120 for cut and colour for highlights inc tip.
The college is less than £20!!!

yes I prefer permanent, they still fade over time they just take longer , I still get variation with the colours I use as well, it's not a flat all over colour

Josh Wood. They do a sort of toner thing thst you mix in which stops the colour being so flat.

I like the Superdrug own brand 10 minute ones. I think they look natural

I use Garnier Nutrisse and it's quick, cheap and easy. I think it's easier for me though as I'm a light blonde, so roots/greys don't look TOO bad, so I can leave quite a while between colours. I think colouring darker hair is always much more difficult.

I get proper coverage with a permanent colour. It's not one dimensional because there is a lot of grey. Not all permanent colors are meant for covering grey either. So check the box to check if it says it does. My mother did use semi permanent which seemed to suit her - an ash blonde colour. I suit a slightly warmer tone.

They lift your natural hair slightly so your hair will never go back to natural.

I got a video consult during lockdown from
Them: it was awesome o

You can buy salon dye from the beauty supply shops.

You buy a tube of colour and a bottle of the developer and you'll get several uses out of the developer so it doesn't work out that much more expensive than regular box dye.

I use salon dye too

In a slightly lighter shade (5) than my natural colour so the colour variation of greys etc comes through a bit more.

It's taken a bit of experimentation. I used to use 4 which was a better match for my hair but it started to look a bit harsh on me after a couple of years.

Another shout for L'Oréal Castings. Used for yrs. I was getting highlights at Salon but couldn't justify the price. Had used castings in my youth & remembered they were easy to use & smelt decent. Took some fiddling with shades - the colour tends to come out darker than the box suggests. Also I stick to the same shade now so it's less noticeable when it's done so looks more natural.
My biggest money saving tip then is, save an applicator & on your next box weigh half the 2 parts to mix bit keep the other halves closed up until you use it again. I get 2 uses out of each box this way & it helps me not overload the ends of hair with multiple layers of colour build up, so I mainly dye roots only. I do this every 3-4 wks. Colour isn't flat due to different shades how it takes differently on coloured & grey hair.
Good luck!

Another L'Oréal Casting fan. I've done box dyes for almost my entire adult life due to cost. I did treat myself to a few years of salon permanent dyes with highlights when a friend offered a discount, but soon even that became too expensive.

I have used them all. I went through the entire range of permanents before I switched back to semi-perm. I often tried the root touch ups between dyes. The reason I gave up permanents was because the harsh chemicals made my hair breakable and so it was getting shorter and shorter. I was having to do it every 4 weeks and my fine hair was getting thinner.

To my surprise, Casting seems to lasts and doesn't wash out really. I think it's called a demi-permanent because it lasts more washes than a semi. It doesn't seem to damage my hair at all and it's now longer than it's ever been.

I use the "cool brunette" colours. I did them much more natural after years of reddish dyes.

I still despair a bit because the roots come through so quickly and I have to dye it every 4 weeks at least.

I've worked out how to do a few face framing highlights. This completely lifts the blandness of my otherwise Ash brown box dyed hair. Can't believe I managed it.