Get to the root of your hair color problems at home.
In a time when going to the salon is not just a hassle, but can be limited due to covid concerns, many are taking hair color into their own hands, literally. With the help of box dyes, people have been making their own things forever, but many with questionable results.
however, those who have been on tiktok recently have seen some hair color disasters at home, either in videos of the person himself or in viral recreations of accounts run by siiri parks (@siiriparks), theresa van dam (@theresavandamstylist ) and taylor burgos (@madeandtaylored), now dominating the subsection of the app called hairtok.
Since we don’t want your dye job going viral for the wrong reasons, we decided to chat with each of these colorists to see if they can give us some tips and tricks for at-home success. dye session sans major fails. We also asked each to recommend her favorite brands, so he can revive his color between appointments or try a color at home as safely as possible.
Is it safe to dye hair at home?
First things first: All of our interviews were with professional stylists and colorists, so obviously they all recommend going to a reputable salon to color your hair. however, they understand that not everyone can often afford professional treatment, and with covid-19 concerns, many have opted to go the at-home route.
“I mean, the quarantine taught us that it’s not always possible to get to the salon,” Parks said in an interview with the publication. “Obviously, I’m a professional, so I can’t lie, I will always prefer professional products and colors. but I feel like if the last couple of years have shown us anything, it’s that sometimes things happen and it’s not always within your budget or availability to get professional color. So I definitely think there’s a stigma attached to [home hair color] that’s necessary, but I also think there’s a stigma attached to it that isn’t.”
That said, there are a few things you can do to make your home-colored hair as safe as possible, from the ingredients used to the dyeing process and the color you choose.
“The most important thing of all would be to make sure it’s free of ppd,” parks said, referring to the chemical ingredient in some dyes called paraphenylenediamine. “it’s not harmful to everyone, but it can cause allergies and is known to be associated with cancer, which is why a lot of hair care companies, both at home and professional, have really moved away from including ppd in their color formulas For the hair”.
Added to that list are metallic salts, van dam warned in an interview with the new york post, which can be found in many henna hair dyes.
“I would say that the metallic salts are like the big ones because they are the ones that actually cause the chemical reactions,” he said. “They are basically very flammable. therefore, when peroxide is mixed with metal salts, or placed on top of metal salts, it can cause smoke and combustion if you let it sit long enough. I’ve had that happen to me several times where I put the bleach in and his hair starts to smoke and goes up to 450 degrees, it’s intense.”
other tips and tricks from our expert stylists:
- don’t play chemist by yourself: “if you go to a store like sally’s, talk to your stylist first about what you should buy and how they would suggest you mix and you know what developer use,” said van dam
- the color does not lighten the color: “people try to go from a very dark color to a very light color and think that once they put light color on dark color everything is going to be light. that’s not the case unfortunately. then people will get those really hot routes and wonder why,” burgos said.
- do a patch test first: “a lot of people are impatient and don’t want to get an allergy test, but you’re supposed to put a little crayon behind your ear or on your arm and leave it alone to see if inside Within 24 hours you have had a reaction. most of the time, the color goes right onto their scalp, and the next thing you know, their head is literally swollen because they were allergic to the dye. It’s better to be safe than sorry, even if it means prolonging the hair-dyeing process for a day,” Parks said.
how to choose the right color for you?
Apart from what to avoid, choosing the right color can be a challenge, but our hair color experts have a few tips and tricks to share, many of which are as easy as opening an app on your phone.
“I’ve always used editing apps, and one of the apps I’ve used for a long time actually gives you the option to edit your hair color,” Parks suggested, referring to the facetune app that’s free on the internet. app store. “Sometimes I give people a chance instead of just putting a swatch on their face so they can see if it suits their skin tone or whatever. I’ll take a picture of you from the front and we’ll change it to honey blonde or neon blue, if that’s what you’re thinking. and then they really like to see the full essence of what they would look like.”
Another way to ensure you’re happy with your result is to start small and use the color at home for touch-ups or gray coverage between professional appointments. Burgos suggests this, as what you see on the in-box model may not be what it will look like in the end.
“I really believe that if you are going to dye your hair at home, it should be like a gray coverage and try to maintain your natural color,” Burgos warned. “So if you’re a brunette, don’t grab the box that a blonde has, because as much as you want to look like that picture, chances are that’s not the reality of what’s going on.”
how to remove hair dye from skin and hairline?
this was one of the most googled questions we found as we can only imagine hands stained red or purple frantically asking how to remove hair dye from skin. Fortunately, there are products to help with removal, as well as some tips for avoiding stains in the first place.
igk is a brand that parks suggested and mentioned that they include a color blocker that you can put around the perimeter of your hairline and a packet of stain remover that you can apply to any dye left on your ears or hands at the end. . however, to prevent stains from the start, van dam had a tip for the home that’s even easier.
“a good thing to keep it from getting on your skin in the first place if you do your hair at home is to put Vaseline around your forehead first without getting it on your hair, and that can help prevent staining the skin first,” he said.
where to buy ink remover recommended by professionals:
- igk permanent color kit: step 1 of their system is a color block barrier gel, to be applied around the hairline and on the ears. then use step 5 which is a stain remover cleanser to treat any remaining dye on the skin.
- Vaseline: An easy-to-find product that you may already have in your closet is Vaseline. all you need to do is apply it to your hairline and ears to prevent staining.
- Roux Hair Color Stain Remover: Head to Sally Beauty for this hair color remover, which works to gently remove hair dye stains from your skin.
- makeup remover wipes: This was another suggestion from our stylists as a great way to remove mistakes, as long as you do it quickly while the color is still fresh.
- dawn dish soap: “dawn dish soap is really nice and very mild,” said parks. “I mean, they use it to skim oil off ducklings!”
the best brands of home dyes
1. black hair
This brand was recommended across the board as one of the best. Not only do they have a great shade range, but as mentioned above the kit comes with stain removers, a post-treatment mask and everything else you’ll need to color your locks at home.
“My favorite for virgin hair, I’d probably have to say IGK hair color,” said Parks, who actually wears this brand. “It’s a beautiful color combination and makes my hair super soft and shiny.”
2. kristin ess
This is a great brand to use for a gloss treatment, which is even more temporary than semi-permanent dye, but can be great to use between professional treatments or as a fun tint to test the colored waters.
“She’s also a celebrity stylist, so her tools and color lineup are done by a professional,” Parks said. “Since highlights aren’t permanent, that’s a really good way, especially for lighter-haired people, to experiment with a touch darker or maybe a rose gold hue or a nice honey blonde. It’s a great way to experiment without the permanence of dye.”
3. manic panic
This is a beloved brand for many, Parks included, who revealed that her TikTok famous black and red look was due to using the vegan hair color, sold at Sally Beauty.
“I love manic panic,” he said. “every time everyone was obsessed with my black and red hair last year, the red that was in my hair was literally vampire red from manic panic.”
4. arctic fox
If you want to go for a vivid shade of red, blue, purple or any other rainbow hue, a top brand is Arctic Fox, as recommended by our pros. It is sold at Sally Beauty in a range of shades, which is also one of Van Dam’s recs.
5. Moroccan oil
For stunning color and healthy, shiny locks, our professionals love Moroccan Oil, and specifically their color depositing hair masks. These are semi-permanent, and like glosses, wash out after a few shampoos.
“oil of morocco is also a really amazing color-depositing hair mask, and you can get it at sephora,” said burgos. “they have regular natural tones and brighter colors that deposit color, so you can do it as a brunette, blonde or red, or you can get a more vivid color like pink, red, green, purple, whatever you want.”
6. wella professionals
This is another gloss brand, that you can easily apply yourself for a touch of stunning color and shine that washes out after a few shampoos. It is sold on Amazon and comes in an array of natural and bright colors, too.
“I actually got a chance to wear wella firsthand with one of my friends and it was a beautiful shade,” said parks. “It was an easy application and really runny, so it spread especially well.”
7. ion color
This one is used by professionals and DIY-hair colorists alike, which is why our experts recommended this brand. It is sold in a variety of vivid shades and natural hues at Sally Beauty, easily accessible to purchase.
“I’ve used ion before, and I’ve actually heard of a lot of salons that have recently been introducing ion and wella to their salons,” said parks. “I think they have like an outside professional line that professionals have been using.”
8. dphue
To find a hue for you, the brand dpHUE has some great options that won’t leave your hair as damaged as trying to do full color on your own. This is why Burgos likes it, especially for gray coverage and root touchups.
“dphue is good and a lot of people use it, and they also make a lot of wonderful spray colors to cover gray,” said burgos. “I’ve also seen people on tiktok just spray all over their heads and go from blonde to brunette or whatever they want to do.”
9. madison cane
This salon-quality brand is a great bet for both permeant and semi-permanent colors, approved for use at home and designed by a reputable salon. They also have a new gloss treatment that is great for a subtle change or a refresh between colors.
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