Dying your own hair

[CleaningAngel]

I currently have my hair coloured every 4 weeks, due to grey showing , one month its just the roots, next I have it combed through to mid lengths and ends and roots, it's costing approx £600 a year, which isn't a huge amount, however as iam trying to cut down, I see £600 as a holiday.
Has anyone had success with box dyes? Going grey is NOT an option at 51 iam just not ready to be grey.
My hair is an aurben/chestnut/redish colour, I love the colour and would want it as near as possible, iam worried what is on the box isn't what you get!!
Would it be cheeky to ask my hairdresser advice on the colour name/numbers? Iam not worried about the process of applying it, iam worried about looking like a bright orange aurangatang!!!
Any help/ advice appreciated 🙏

Always dye my own hair as mine grows out so quickly too and roots are bright grey.
I have a dedicated hair dying towel and a hair dying dressing gown that I don’t mind getting stained.
One thing I have found is that sometimes when I sleep my dye can stain the pillowcase in a way it doesn’t on the odd occasion it’s been ‘professionally’ done (dunno why, but I do get quite warm when I sleep and peri hasn’t helped!) but I use a dark pillowcase to sort that, or sleep with a towel on my pillow.

I use Esalon, it's an online colourist so you upload a photo and say what you want and someone can advise and then mix it for you and it comes in the post on a monthly subscription for about £25. It's kinder on the hair than shop bought dyes and at any time you can log into your account and request changes to the shade and a real person sorts it and contacts you if they need to clarify or advise. There are other similar services, Josh Wood is one I think. Also it comes in the post so I never have to remember to buy it.

Ok so
i I see both sides of this a client perspective and stylist perspective as a qualified stylist and ex salon owner of 20 years and the education I’ve put myself through then I would say when you go into a salon your colour is custom made it’s not just one colour or very rarely is it that situ , I can mix around 3/4 colours together for most hair on a root colour , they’re made for you and your hair so the trouble with a off the shelf colour kit is it is not designed custom for your hair and the swatches you see on their very rarely come out as that .

grey coverage can be hard and stubborn and it depends what undertones you have along with a whole Host of other considerations in the mix .

as a stylist it was a pet hate of mine for a client to come in and ask my professional opinion on what off the shelf £5 box they could put on their hair .

number one being it’s my income and the roof over my family’s head .

number two the money I have put into my education to give my clients a fantastic result .

number three I point blank would not advise off the shelf colours they’re full of nasty”s and “ very rarely do what they say on the box “
number 4 experience told me half the time those said clients would end up coming in to me after using said off the shelf colours only to have to pay double for a colour correction .

Understandably we are all struggling with money however everyone’s allowed a feel
good treat once a month , we all work hard for our money and for our families and you have to question sometimes whether the daily slog is worth it if you can’t even treat yourself now and again .

one thing I would suggest is …. Over the years grey is very much on trend and have you considered trying the grey look and going it out ? So many of my clients that had the same feel as you I advised to #growoutthegrey and they thanked me for it after .

xx

I’m 50 and have been home box dying my (used to be!!) dark brown hair for 20+ years. I’ve had several hairdressers say to keep going as I am rather than go to the hairdresser as it grows in so fast (now solid white and grey at the front) that it would cost a fortune. I use L’Oreal Excellence natural brown. They have some good chestnut colours too. I tend to just do the roots, with a bit of all over every now and then. I get them when they are on special, usually 2 for £12 or something like that, And do it every 3 or 4 weeks. Costs less than £100 a year, so worth it compared to your £600!

@Homegrown11
You’ve answered the questions I was planning to ask - thanks!

I always dye my own hair, needs to be done every 2 weeks, I don’t use box dyes though, I buy professional dyes online, Alpaparf, my hairdresser was using those too, I found out what shades she was using( she was mixing 2 together) then I bought online, when I do it myself it is as good as when I get it professionally done….very hard to tell what the colours will be like unless you know what shades to buy though, for example I mix a light and medium ask blond to produce a mid brown colour

I have box dyed my hair for years on and off (I had a break for a few years when I went back to my natural colour- I had forgotten what it was by then) even before the grey came. I’ve pretty much always used Clairol’s Nice n easy. My hair is in great condition and the colour is very close to my natural colour, so when it grows out, I don’t have to rush until the greys start to bother me again. I do it probably every 6-8 weeks. I have been to the hairdresser for colour (when I had highlights) but otherwise had huge success with doing it myself. The grey coverage works well for my hair (I don’t have loads) and I have friends who have more grey hair but successfully do the same. My hairdresser always complements the condition and colour when I go for a cut- she knows it’s nice and easy and hasn’t ever said anything detrimental about it.

As others have said, just be quick to wipe up splashes. They do stain- and put Vaseline on your skin around your hairline to prevent staining your head too. Good luck!!

I used to use eSalon and found their colour matching extremely good. But I decided 18 months ago that I just cannot be arsed with the faff of it anymore and have let my grey grown in. I get WAY more compliments about my hair now than I ever did when it was dyed!
Obviously going grey is a personal choice as is continuing to dye, but I’m just saying my experience in case anyone reading is wavering as it honestly doesn’t have to be the terrifying, “ageing” process you think it is.
I’m very early 40s.

I dye mine with any old cheap one from Home Bargains. I found originally buying my natural hair colour (very dark brown) it looked too dark and was aging. I mentioned this to my hair dresser who said don't buy your natural colour - go lighter. I go for a mid brown now and it looks natural. My hairdresser always comments on how much he likes it. I only have a bit of grey at my temples - and so put it on there and then wap the rest of it all over towards the end.

L oreal Execellence ,whole colour hair dye .Really good .Sometimes 2 for 1 or half price in Boots or Sainsburys .Been very pleased so far!

Good plan. I tend to put the dye all over my head for the whole 30 mins but I need to stop that, as it makes the ends too dark...

Can recommend Josh Wood - hands down the best home hair colour I’ve ever used!

I’ve also been dying my own hair for a while now - use clairol nice and easy and very happy with it.
My hairdresser explained/showed me how to section my hair and apply the dye. I bought a mixing bowl and brushes (big selection on Amazon) and some hair dividers from Sainsbury’s.
I hate the gloves that they give you so I bought some medical latex gloves.
Also hate the conditioner they give you, so I shampoo and condition with my normal products. ( I actually use the box conditioner to shave my legs).

I use semi-permanent (from the aupermarket); it’s about £5 a go, do it once a month, and it only takes about 20-30 mins. It also grows out in a much less stark way (no really harsh lines at the roots). And, it ends up with a sort of natural highlight look, as the dye comes up as slightly different tones on your hair (if some is grey, and some isn’t). I really recommend semi-permanent dye, and in terms of choosing the correct colour, the ones that I use tend to match up with a range of ‘permanent’ dye tones, so it all doesn’t have to be exact. No sitting in a hairdressers for 2 hours at a time either!

Superdrug Colour Effects is a wash in wash out toner which blends away greys. I use it as a shampoo once per week and it works brilliantly. Each little bottle is only a few quid and they last ages. It takes a few washes to build up and I shampoo and condition as normal afterwards. The good thing is that if I decide to go grey one day I can just let it fade out rather than having to grow it out. They come in different colours and after several years of using them my hair is in much better condition than when I used boxed dyes every 4-6 weeks.

I have to dye my hair every 4-6 weeks due to greys and I’m only 34! I’ve gone blonde now as if it were brown I think I’d probably did to do it every 2-4 weeks.
Hair started going grey when I was about 12 and I’ve been drying it since. I used to mainly go to the hairdressers but since having kids and the frequency needed increasing I can’t afford the hairdressers.
Ive found the box dyes great tbf. I use garnier nutrisse and I’ve had no issues. You have to be a bit more standard with your colours. I use to have a lot of ombré, highlights etc and I’ve found doing that at home useually looks a bit naff, but for all over colour it’s great.
I have mine on subscribe and save from Amazon so it’s always here when I need it!

Look into a brown henna product. I think you add coffee or something to get it to cover grey better.

let’s you age a little more gracefully. Super conditioning too, which you probably need after all that colouring

I was going to ask the same! Planning Easter break and it's £3k!!!! At Eurocamp!

Excellence 8.1- medium ash blonde is a good one. Quite dark when it first goes on but lightens after a couple of washes. It doesn’t have any red tones.

Just looked up Tui and there are week long holidays in spain and portugar for around £300.

Sorry pic failed a bit but is £320

You could always get a semi-permanent due and do a strand test. I think most home colouring disasters happen when people are trying to lighten their hair. Just covering greys, you should be fine.

Go on love holidays , you will be suprised

I always go all inclusive, and in may Portugal won't be thst hot

Try esalon. I started using them in lockdown and still using them 4 years on.
They mix your colour to your specifications, you can adjust and also set the frequency of delivery.