Colouring your hair at home might seem straightforward...
But between the colour you want and the colour you get, there can be a world of difference.
The truth is, a little knowledge goes a long way — and most of us have had at least one at-home colour experience we'd rather forget!
The good news? When you make the right choices and use the right products, you can achieve truly impressive results.
- How do you choose the right shade and apply it properly?
- How do you maintain your colour between treatments?
- Do you need to bleach first?
The more you understand about hair colour, the better equipped you'll be to make smart decisions.
In this article:
- 3 Types of Hair Colour
- Before You Begin
- Drugstore Hair Colour Products
- Helpful Tips & Tricks
- Three Unique Products for Your Hair
Whether you want to experiment with colour at home or prefer to leave it to a professional, this guide will help you feel confident. Those who colour at home will be better prepared, and those who visit a salon will better understand the colourist's work and vocabulary.
Professional colour products are now available in many salons, and they'll be covered here alongside drugstore options. The choice is yours.
Trying a new colour is an adventure. That's why, before you take the plunge — whether at home or in a salon, with professional or drugstore products —
there are a few key things you should know. They'll help you communicate more effectively with your stylist or achieve better results on your own.
Your personality and the look you're going for are the first factors to consider when making your choice.
Next, take your skin tone into account, followed by your current hair colour.
These factors will help you determine whether you can reach your desired shade in a single step — and what risks might be involved.
2- Types of Hair Colour
1 - Dark Shades
Very dark colours tend to emphasize facial features, fine lines, pale skin, acne, and rosacea.
Before venturing into a dark shade like black, think carefully — going back is no easy feat.
You may even need professional help to reverse it, and the chemical colour-removal treatments can be costly.
And as if that weren't enough, your hair could sustain significant damage in the process!
And as if that weren't enough, your hair could sustain significant damage in the process!
Thinking about going darker?
Start with a shade lighter than the one you're aiming for.
Assess the result, and if you feel you can go darker, do so within 48 hours of your first application — or, ideally, wait until your next scheduled colour treatment.
2 - Light Shades
Before we dive into light or very light shades, let's review the most important rule of hair colour:
COLOUR CANNOT LIGHTEN COLOUR.
This means you cannot lighten previously coloured hair simply by applying a lighter shade over a darker one — not even after several weeks or months!
As long as a strand of hair carries dark colour pigment, it will not lighten.
Only new growth will accept the new colour,
which creates visible bands of different shades. You'll need to apply a colour remover or bleach to the sections that still carry the old colour — or cut them off, if you're willing.
You'll need to choose between these two options before applying the new shade.
If your hair is medium brown or even dark blonde, try not to get carried away with the desire to go platinum or very light blonde.
A drastic change can damage your hair, especially if it's already been coloured.
Take a gradual approach instead,
going about two shades lighter each month. This makes it easier to adjust to your new look, and your hair will thank you.
For a significantly lighter colour change, it's recommended to use protein hair treatments before and after, once or twice a week.
3 - Red and Copper Tones
Before diving into fiery shades, it's important to know that wearing red means drawing attention to yourself.
Red pigment is also the most unstable of all colour families by nature.
This means colour fading happens more quickly with intense reds after just a few washes — and even faster on porous hair.
As a result, red shades require diligent upkeep. It's also worth noting that red tones can accentuate rosacea and broken capillaries, and may call for more polished makeup on fair or very pale skin.
Freckles will also become more prominent — though in many cases, that can be absolutely charming!
Key Takeaways
- Very dark colours emphasize facial features, fine lines, pale skin, acne, and rosacea.
- Start with a shade lighter than the one you're aiming for.
- Only new growth will accept the new colour.
- A drastic change can damage your hair, especially if it's already been coloured.
3- Before You Begin
To find out whether a colour will complement your skin tone or create the effect you're looking for, here's a simple method to follow.
- Find a piece of fabric or paper that closely matches your desired colour.
- Slick your hair back (with no makeup on) and cover it completely with a white cloth or towel.
- Standing in front of a mirror, hold the fabric or paper near your face. This will give you a clear preview of how the shade works with your features.
For a simple, natural, low-risk result, remember that fair complexions pair beautifully with warm, golden, and coppery tones — they add warmth to the skin. Olive and darker skin tones, on the other hand, don't always harmonize with very light colours.
To determine whether your undertone is warm or cool, stand in front of a mirror and hold a sheet of aluminum foil (cool undertone) on one side of your face and a piece of gold-coloured fabric or paper (warm undertone) on the other. You'll quickly see which one flatters you most.
Eyebrows
Don't forget that in some cases, your eyebrows should be tinted to a shade that complements your new hair colour.
If you have naturally dark brows and go blonde, a light brown tint is usually enough for a natural look. For red or copper hair, stay within the same tone family — but there's no need to match the red or copper highlights exactly on your brows.
Since tinting eyebrows carries certain risks, it's best to have it done by a professional.
Drugstore hair colour manufacturers advise against using their products on eyebrows and especially on eyelashes, as this could cause blindness.
4- Drugstore Hair Colour Products
For a long time, drugstore colour products were dismissed by many — especially hairstylists — as being low quality.
That may have been true at one point, but today there's little reason to complain. The same manufacturers that produce professional colour lines also make the drugstore versions.
Of course, the range of shades and undertones is more limited at the drugstore than in a salon. On the