Hair Coloring Advice ... For Dummies!
Hair color is very popular! Millions of people regularly color their hair. Coloring your hair is the quickest and most spectacular way to change your look and beauty.
Healthy, color treated hair feels and looks great. Different coloring methods suit different hair styles. The most basic rule of hair coloring is to have your hair look as natural as possible. The best advice you can get is to stay within two shades of your natural color.
Color should compliment your skin tone and eye color. Take into account your current style.
Make sure you have your hair in the best possible condition before coloring.
Different Types Of Hair Color
• Temporary - color lasts from one shampoo to the next. Color is deposited on the outside of the hair shaft.
• Semi-Temporary - color lasts up to 4-6 shampoos.
• Semi Permanent Hair Color - color is for masking white or light hair and lasts 4 to 6 weeks or 6 to 12 shampoos. Semi-permanent color darkens the hair. Semi-permanent colors are the gentlest way to color your hair. It contains no ammonia or peroxide.
• Demi-Permanent – color last longer than semi-permanent color. It’s stronger chemically and can damage the hair. It last between 24 to 26 shampoos and do not contain ammonia. It contains a small amount of peroxide.
• Permanent - color formulas change the natural color. The permanent colors penetrate the inner core of the hair strand. They can not be washed away. They are used with ammonia and peroxide. Permanent colors lighten the hair.
• Henna: Natural haircolor - least damaging way of the chemical methods to alter your color. It can be drying. Generally lasts 3-4 weeks.
You can find the haircolor in a variety of forms: creams, tubes, gels, and shampoo.
The color will not permanently change the color if it is not the part of an oxidation chemical reaction.
Hydrogen peroxide is the oxidizing agent or Developer. It is available in various forms and strengths.
The Developer allows the formula to permanently alter the hair's color.
The desired results determine the strength of the developer.
Fine textured hair can be damaged easily. The fine hair has less cuticle layers so the penetration of chemicals occurs faster.
Coarse textured hair has more cuticle layers. This type of hair is more resistant to color.
Coloring will damage your hair if the wrong level of peroxide is used or you are over-processing your hair.
If you constantly change your color you must regularly use deep conditioning treatments.
Over-processing is the main reason if your colored hair looks dull.
One of the most important elements of hair coloring is determining your hairs' underlying pigment.
When you combine underlying color and artificial color in the right way you get the desired result.
How To Color Hair
How to Choose a Hair Color
Materials:
• Haircolor
• Developer
• Measuring cup - to measure the developer
• Plastic bowl and flat brush - for mixing the color
• Towel or cape
• Plastic or latex gloves
• Clock
Test for allergic reaction on your skin
• Place a small amount of the color on your skin.
• Wait 20 minutes.
• If there is allergic reaction, do not use the color.
Test the product on a few strands
• Mix together two drops of the color and two drops of the developer.
• Snip a tiny amount of your hair.
• Tape it together on one end.
• Dip the un-taped end into the mixture.
• Leave it for 25 minutes.
• Rinse, dry and compare the results to what you expected.
Home Hair Coloring Tips
1. Deep condition your hair the night before you color your hair;
2. Read the instructions carefully;
3. Put the gloves on;
4. Pour the color and 3 oz. of the developer into the bowl;
5. Use the color brush, mix well;
6. Start at the top front of your hair;
7. Make a part with the tail of the color brush about an inch long and another part parallel to the first one and about inch to the side;
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8. Hold the parted section of hair up;
9. Brush the color mixture on the root area of the parted section and the adjacent un-parted section;
10. Pull the parted section up so that it stands on its own and out of the way to the side;
11. Make another part inch to the side of the un-parted section to whose roots you previously applied the color mixture and hold the section up;
12. Brush the color mixture onto the roots of the held section and the roots of the adjacent section as you just did with the last section;
13. Continue until you apply color mixture to all the roots;
14. Avoid getting the color mixture on the ends;
15. Leave the color for as long as the directions say or 20 minutes;
16. After 20 minutes, apply any leftover color to the ends;
17. Use a wide toothed comb to pull the color through the entire hair shaft, from the roots to the ends;
18. Leave color on the ends no more than five minutes;
19. Rinse your hair thoroughly;
20. Apply a conditioner;
21. Leave it on for two minutes;
22. Rinse thoroughly;
23. Wait at least 24 hours to shampoo.
The above directions do not apply to taking your natural hair color from dark to blonde.
Coloring your hair blonde, especially if your natural color is brown or black, is best done by a salon professional.
Re-touching Color
As your hair grows, new hair appears at the roots. This re-growth needs to be colored. Roots should be done every 3 - 4 weeks with the same color and brand.
1. Part your hair into four sections: left back, right back, left front, right front;
2. Use a clip to hold each section in place;
3. Mix the color according to the package directions;
4. Squeeze the color onto the roots;
5. Go between each section and down the center part;
6. Use your fingers to spread the color across the roots;
7. Apply the color section by section until all of your roots have been colored;
8. Relax and let the color works on your roots;
9. Set your timer for five minute short of your usual timing;
10. Apply the remaining color to the rest of your hair for the last five minutes;
11. Rinse and condition following the instructions on the package.
Touch-ups are recommended every 4-6 weeks.
Maintaining Your Color
• Use hair care products especially formulated for color-treated hair.
• Use rinse-out conditioning products for color-treated hair.
• Condition your hair every time you wash it.
• Use a leave-in conditioner if your hair is very long, thick, dry, damaged or frizzy.
• Use deep-conditioning treatment once a week on coarse or very curly hair.
• Keep your hair away from salt water, chlorine, and the sun. If you swim in salt water or chlorinated pools, wear a swimming cap. Or pull your hair back into a ponytail.
• If you do not like swimming cap, do not use it, but rinse your hair thoroughly after swimming to remove chemicals or salt water.
• Wear a hat when sunbathing or use a hair sunscreen.
• Wash your hair less frequently, but when you do - wash and rinse your hair in cool water.
How often can you color hair?
It depends on the growth rate of your hair.
Every two to four months go in for a highlight application. During the summer hair naturally lightens up, so you don't have to get your highlights done as often as during the winter.
Every six weeks go in for a single process color application.
Two tone hair colors
How to give your hair color a "two tone" look like the celebrities. Two tone hair coloring instructions:
a)
1. Lighten your natural hair color one or more shades;
2. Dry you hair;
3. Wrap thin or thick strands of hair in foil with bleach or color to lighten or darken the hair;
4. The result is a multi colored effect;
5. This works best for long hairstyles.
Repeat every three months.
b)
1. Lighten your natural hair color one or two shades with a tint;
2. Dry you hair;
3. Pull thin or thick strands through a perforated plastic cap and lighten or darkened with a bleach or tint;
4. The result is a two toned look;
5. This works best for short hairstyles.
Repeat every three months.
This has become the most popular coloring technique today because it can look both natural and glamour's.
The Worst Hair Color Mistake
The worst mistake you can make is to apply the permanent color throughout your hair every time you color.
In this way your hair becomes more porous and it grabs more color giving you uneven color. Also, it is not healthy for your hair.
Is it safe to color hair during pregnancy?
Can pregnant women color their hair? Medical experts say coloring does not harm the baby. To be sure, wait until after the first trimester to use semi-permanent and permanent colors.
Or you may use organic vegetable colors. You can also skip the direct color process and have your hair highlighted through a cap or with foil wrapped hair color.
