Tuesday, January 5, 2010

I May Dye

Today's Works for Me Wednesday is a backwards edition where rather than posting a tip, the blogger asks the reader a question. And this really could not come at a better time, because I need help!

I am . . .

doing the math. . .

born in 1976 subtracted from 2010, but I haven't had my birthday yet this year . . .

33 years old!!

Am I the only one who seriously has to go through that logic to figure out their age? I truly don't remember most of the time!

Oh, but back to my issue in desperate need of help. I have never officially dyed my hair. Nope, not even as a teenager. I am a hair wimp, which explains why I've had the same hairstyle for years and years now! I have used the John Frieda temporary color glaze every once in a while for the last couple years and it has masked the gray well enough to allow me to delay the permanent dye this long.

But now?

I'm seeing gray more often (like more than I can pluck out in one sitting), and the John Frieda just isn't working for me anymore! I totally blame my 3rd child, or maybe my 1st. The combination of my 1st and 3rd is definitely what did it!

Enough with the blame! I need help!

Help that doesn't involve the salon because I'm way too cheap and time-crunched to spend over $100 and 3 solid hours every few weeks on my hair!!!

I have no sisters, so I'm counting on you, dear blog friends!

Is there any drugstore product you recommend? My hair is brown with some reddish tints and sadly, some gray-highlights that must go!

And are there any tricks to applying the stuff?

Any advice you can offer is much appreciated!

9 comments:

  1. I've had decent results with name brand hair dyes that you can find at Walgreens or CVS. Don't be afraid! It really isn't hard. Just be sure to wear a shirt you don't want anymore when you apply it (cuz it might get stained), and make sure the kids aren't around when you apply it (cuz the chemicals are dangerous!)

    I hope that helps! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Beauty schools often offer SERIOUSLY reduced services - and the teacher guides the students esp. when it's a chemical customer.

    ReplyDelete
  3. As a lady who was FORCED to color her hair some 24 years ago I feel like I have become somewhat of an expert on the subject, haha. I went a little bit more gray after each pregnacy. You know how your hair falls out after the baby is born, or mine did all 4 times anyway, and then when it would come back in all the new hair (or it seemed like it anyway) was gray!! So by the time that 4th child was born I was seriously REALLY gray and I was only 32 years old. Sooo began the various different processes I tried to color my hair. Over the counter hair dyes, weaves, all over hair colors, MANY DIFFERENT PROFESSIONALS etc. etc. etc. You name it, I've tried it. And for me here is the bottom line. Anytime I did it myself, unfornately that is what it looked like...eventually. It would start out OK, but eventually with touch ups, (you will always have roots, no matter what) it just did not look right. Then I would have a professsional "fix it" and try again, and again, and again. I have even found a HUGE variance between professionals who are good at it and TERRIBLE at it. If you really can't afford it (and I had many times that was the case) beauty school students are a good alternative, or talk to someone in a local beauty supply store. Walking in and selecting a "box" over the counter for me was absolutely ALWAYS a mistake. haha I ended up with a vague shade of green, or brassy orange, MANY MANY times. If you don't have alot of gray you could just start with a highlight which somewhat masks the gray and you don't notice it as much. You can get a mini highlight every 4 months and be OK. I would HIGHLY recommend this at first if you can get away with it. If you have too much gray, you will have to color your hair ALL OVER....which means of course you will have to do your roots every 4 - 6 weeks depending on how fast your hair grows. But if you do this yourself (or even professionally) you will cover all you own natural highlights etc., and your hair ends up eventually (like I said) looking kind of dull etc. You could do your roots yourself and have a professional highlighting every 3 to 4 months to solve this problem. I did this for years. Now, I have a WONDERFULLY talented neice who is soo good with color and hair I am very blessed indeed. She does it all for me. Roots, high lights, low lights, and cuts for 65 dollars. It is a steel and I am sooo grateful. I do mine every 6 weeks. I am sorry I have written such a novel, haha, I am somewhat passionate about hair color...Can ya tell? haha But for me, if you have the money, spend it. It is worth every penny and you might save yourself tons of mistakes and problems. If you don't, then get professional advice somewhere (the beauty supply store, or the beauty school, or some professional who is willing to help you. OK, guess that's it. I'll stop now, haha Good luck with this. Hugs, Debbie

    ReplyDelete
  4. I would go to a professional. I have had several friends that have had seriously horrible results with going to a beauty college with damage to their hair, tears, extra money spent for it to look halfway decent, etc. I'm contemplating getting my hair done before dh gets home as this deployment is putting too many extra grays on my head. LOL!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I found my first gray when I was 21. I'm 38 now and I have what my Mom called "Snow on My Roof". I color my hair every 5 weeks now to keep those silver roots at bay. I started coloring it when I was 22. At that time, I used the temporary, wash-out color that lasted 20 shampoos. Then I took a deep breath, chose a color and went for the permanent one. I use Preference. It costs around $8, it's easy to do, doesn't run down my neck because it's a cream, and it looks good. I can do it by myself (wear an old, button down shirt when you color... I keep an old work shirt of my husbands and use it only for coloring my hair) and use a nice comb to part your hair. You could have a friend direct you as you do it the first couple of times, so you don't miss any areas. It is easy after the first couple times. I've never paid a stylist to color my hair, and it always turns out just great. (OK, once I got purple hair, because I didn't realize that 'dark auburn' is actually a burgundy color. I cried.) But why spend the big bucks when you can do it yourself?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Another option is to accept and enjoy your changing hair color! I have very dark, longish hair (looks like you do, too) and I usually French-braid just the front part of it, so that it stays out of my eyes but I have long hair covering my ears and around the back. Silver hairs woven through a braid look pretty cool! I like to think of them as a decorative accent, like pinstripes. With long hair, good figure, reasonably youthful clothes, and young child, I still find a lot of people assume I'm in my late 20s although I'm 36. I don't spend time or money on dye, don't have to worry about getting an unnatural-looking color, and will never have to decide when I'm too old to fake it. Works for me!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I've been coloring my hair since college, and I've pretty much tried everything out there. I am very frugal by nature-- which is why I've tried most products-- if it's had a coupon/sale, I've probably bought it.

    I always figure it's just hair, it will grow out if I don't like it. But, I've only had two bad experiences, and neither was a tragedy-- just the color went a little more red than I had anticipated both times. (I'm blond and occasionally try reddish shades!)

    But back to your question... I really, really, love the L'Oreal Coleur Kits in the red & silver box. They are about $15.99 most of the time. You apply the base color just like any other color... squish it in your hair kind of like shampoo, wait the allotted time, and rinse out. THEN, you can do the highlights... which, to me, eliminates the obvious roots as things start to grow out. The highlighting couldn't be easier--- you mix two things together and apply to strands of your choice with a little wand or tongs (both included). The easy part is that the highlighter is blue when you apply it, so it's not hard to see right where you're putting it. (And no, I'm not affiliated with this company in any way- just love their product!)

    Wow, that was a lot of rambling about hair color...LOL! :) Good luck with whatever you choose!

    ReplyDelete
  8. PLEASE go gray with me :) I used to dye my hair when younger and now will not go near the stuff. Your scalp is just as absorbent as the rest of your skin...

    ReplyDelete
  9. I get my hair colored by a professional. She only charges me $40 and I only get it done 6 times per year...well worth the peace of mind that it won't get ruined.

    I tried to dye my sister's hair once and it turned out bad...very, very bad...

    ReplyDelete

I'd love to hear what you think!