Hair dye that stays on greys

[MrsCravensworth]

I’m 45 and if I didn’t dye my hair, it would be almost completely white. I am not having white hair for anyone, please don’t try to convince me to try it, if I live until 100, I will still be dying it brown!

I’ve tried all the big brands, but I always have a good 2/3 inches of white showing 3-4 weeks in, so it’s not just roots, it’s not staying on the white.

I could never dream of going to a hairdresser- I could probably save up for one professional dye, but I wouldn’t ever have a hope of going regularly. I have my hair cut at the hairdresser down the road for £10, once or twice a year.

I wash my hair about 3 times a week, and I use the shampoo and conditioner that’s £1 in Aldi. I can’t justify spending any of our limited shopping budget on shampoo.

I always look shit and it’s getting me down. My hair will look okay for a few weeks (I mean, it’s never okay, it’s a bad home dye job), and then I look like I going bald, with the white temples which seem to appear over night and I can only afford to buy dye every other month, 6 weeks at a push.

Am I just doomed to have shit hair due to lack of money, or can anyone recommend a dye?

Yeah, I put it on roots first, then all over and I leave it all for an hour.

My hair goes so patchy. If I just did the roots, they would be darker than the rest of my hair.

After two weeks of having dark brown dye on, most of my hair is now a reddy brown.

shite photo again (I can’t see well and I’m outside!) but This is how it goes. All shit and patchy. It’s gone like straw over the last year too. I only had it all trimmed 8 weeks ago.

You’d think I could dye a lighter colour over that, but what happens is, it takes to the white and I look like I am wearing a halo.

Those ends are pretty similar to my natural hair colour (RIP).

I really think you need to go to a training salon and get some help 🤷🏼‍♂️ I don't know if there's a way of searching for that.

Your shampoo is killing your hair and the dye.

Ogx shampoo is £4 and argan oil £4.50 on amazon. They're double the price in most shops. Sainsburys and morrisons has the shampoo at £4 atm. Have you got any vouchers to spend or any topcashback?

No, nothing.

I’ll have a look on Amazon.

I know, but what can I do? We’ve had some shit happen that’s left us reeling financially. Everything is so tight, I’d feel a bit shit taking money out the budget for hair stuff. Dh goes with or everything too at the moment, the last couple of years have been a killer.

Do you have conditioner in the house? Try washing your hair with only conditioner.

Yeah but it’s the same shit stuff. Unless conditioner doesn’t matter so much?

Use the shit conditioner only until you can get the better shampoo.

I use supermarket shampoo, I find with any shampoo it helps to have various kinds - so don't buy and use the exact same one every time. They seem to stop working for some reason.

I use this one: https://www.amazon.co.uk/OGX-Colour-Retention-shampoo-technology/dp/B0BS4BW976/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1KC26X3D88M9K&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.SBoVbWjXXPgMarFfReuHUQWvDXL8Siq9kavs9hrMlFFVHIMVvUvBtJ7VpTlgWqRsimRmcQxCe1TDH9IY1DrrEpaL1EqCXizq3kq4PCRKv2C-8QL1cMKP8OrULSCapnBtlC2zi0Dv8_UCcLCU_cPohhiznqU94Tenu9jwc7f6h0W4ZZ0qe-H1Gpk_s0pGD93ME4CtaaIBs_Cns8fDlkX7bTo_-Jwzvf7iyryFt4EFTDJCcjUB9586F2CtsoV0w2Dnc4P1ZasQj4QfsBITNS4lIvwcVMVoNKcZsXi45GjNbww.Omem9i_KFDBsg6taW4S2Rwj2VWGkxvsJW6G1NUUjtsY&dib_tag=se&keywords=colour%2Bprotect%2Bshampoo&qid=1745763944&rdc=1&s=drugstore&sprefix=colour%2Bprotect%2Bshampoo%2Cdrugstore%2C88&sr=1-5&th=1

Ok, i just double checked. Johnsons baby shampoo is £1.99 and sulfate free, you can use that.

@Dogaredabomb Baby shampoo strips the colour. I've tried it.

Johnson’s baby shampoo will strip the dye out of your hair. It’s quite well known for it!

I’m the same as you OP, and I’ve given up colouring. Last time I went to the hairdressers at Christmas and spent hundreds of pounds on what I thought would be a good colour. Only to look in the mirror under light and see a definite very distinct colour change between where the grey roots had been and the rest of my coloured hair. That was with it being stripped too! It just seems to go a weird colour and doesn’t stick. I also used Redken colour shampoo to try to make it better and last. Within 3 weeks my white/greys were coming back through. Now I’ve got like 3 stripe hair with it black at the bottom, weird light colour then grey. I’ve decided to grow it all out and start again somehow. Hoping that I’ll find a hairdresser with a better idea once my hair is in its natural state.

I know you said not to talk you into going great. I'm not . I'm just saying that if, like me you're going silver back from the front it just looks like a dye job. The front two inches of my hair is silver and the rest of my hair is its natural light brown .

Why not nit do anything for a few weeks or amonth and use the time to gauge what is actually happening as what you think is the problem may not be.

Yea, years ago when I was a teenager I used a horrible purple dye and was told to use baby shampoo, it really helped to get it out!

I’ve found an Amazon own shampoo colour care for really cheap and ordered it, it was £3

It’s mainly my temples and and the front that’s the issue. I’ve got may hair down today, straightened and it looks okay, I’ve got long layers at the front and that hides the worst of it.

It’s just when I tie my hair up that it looks like I’m going bald.

But nothing on this Earth could persuade me to have a fringe again, I had one for a couple of years and my god, it was hard work! I used to have to wet and straighten the bloody thing eveyday or I looked insane 😂

You need a root spray. My hair is pure white at the top and I dye a lightish blonde but it always takes two goes to get the roots fully covered. There would be a band of lighter hair near the roots.
i spray the roots with L’Oréal magic touch - basically make up for hair. It disguises the roots along the parting. I use a medium brown and get a slight root shadow effect which I like.

What a great idea! I'll be doing this in future 🙏

I came to say henna and i see it has been suggested but i dont know if anyone has mentioned 'bigen powder dye' It comes in a few different shades of browns and reds and you can pick up a box for about £3.
Just mix what you need to keep topping up the roots and when the old hair dye is out you could go for a full head application. They also sell a box dye type product now too.

You need good quality salon dye. I recommend Inoa. It's around £12 per tube but will last for at least 4 applications. You do.not need to do all hair, just roots. Maybe do full head the first time and after that just roots. After a while your hair will go lighter at the tips but in a natural way, like highlights. If you carry on with the bad quality dye, you saturate the tips and never achieve full cover at the roots giving that obviously dyed shit hair you're complaining about.

My hair is probably ~70% white and the result is pretty decent (I don't have asian hair which may help)

This is what my hair looks like I dye it every other week, roots only and then combed through the lenths half way through

I was taught by a hair dresser to put another coat of dye on the bits most resistant 10 minutes after the first coat. It really does work.
Also I use tresseme colour protect. Huge bottles that last me at least a year!

@LaCerbiatta What shade did you use please?