Colour me a rainbow! (A history of hair colour).
I was stumped for a topic for my next blog post, so figured I would write about something I have done many many times and have had mixed experiences with; Hair dye and dying your hair. I thought a little trip down memory lane would be appropriate place to start and then I will do a follow up blog on how I dye my hair and what I‘ve found does/doesn‘t work.
So let’s go for a wee stroll together down the chemically altered path that is my hair colour history. Unfortunately I can’t find any decent photos which show my hair colour that are more than 3 years old, so you will have to be satisfied with brief descriptions and pics of what I could find.
I started dying my hair when I was in about year 6. From what I remember (and the occasional inch of regrowth) I think my hair is naturally a mousy brown kind of colour. A very plain, nothing sort of colour. I’m going to assume this was why I originally decided to dye my hair, as I honestly can’t remember.
Going as far back as my memory is willing to cooperate with my hair has been burgundy, dark brown, light brown, blueberry, blackberry, mulberry (lots of berries!), black, black with red streaks, dark blonde with red & brown streaks, dark brown with light blonde streaks, chocolate brown, bleach blonde (luckily this only lasted around 2 days), and the following:
Blonde (with yummy brown regrowth, ha ha). This was done by a professional hairdresser. Yes, I actually went to a hairdresser.
Dark chocolate brown. From memory, I used the Garnier Nutrisse dye, but I cannot remember the name of the exact colour.
All Black. This was using Indola Profession, in “1.0 Black Natural”.
Black with pink underneath. The black was the same as above (Indola Profession). The pink was Fudge “Raspberry Beret”.
There was also a black with purple underneath in the middle here, but I couldn’t find any pics in which you could see it. However, it was using Fudge “Purple Haze”.
Black with blonde underneath. Again using Indola Profession for the black. The blonde was simply a mix of peroxide and a lightning powder.
Plain black (again). Indola Profession again.
Pink (This was a yucky pink I used when they ran out of my favourite colour). This is Fudge “Pretty Flamingo”. This is the equivalent of WAKK Stain in “Pink”. Not too bad fade-wise, but a bit too cotton candy pink for my liking.
This is my current colour (and my favourite so far). I used Fudge “Red Corvette”. This is the equivalent of WAKK Stain (also made by Fudge) in “Red”.
So, that is basically my hair history. Well, a few highlights anyway, no pun intended. There have been a multitude of colour combinations in between as I experimented my way through different styles, brands, colours, combinations etc.
I am going to do a follow-up post to this and go through exactly what I do when I dye my hair, and which products I use and which I steer clear of. If you have any questions you would like me to answer about any of this please feel free to post your question here or email me and I’ll do my best to answer it.
Tagged as Bleach, Colour, Dye, Fudge, Garnier, Hair, Hairdresser, Indola, Pretty Flamingo, Purple Haze, Raspberry Beret, Red Corvette, WAKK Stain + Categorized as Everything Hair, Me, myself and I
Hi, did you bleach your hair before you used the fudge dyes?
Hi,
Yep, I did bleach before using the Fudge as my hair is naturally a dark colour and I wanted the Fudge to be vibrant. Unless your hair is really light, I would recommend bleaching it first.
when you dyed your hair did you go to a salon everytime? because i want to dye my hair black and red (black being the top color) and im pretty much a broke college student..and hate the color of my hair now..do you think its a smart idea and how would i be able to pull off the separating issue?
Hi Sara. I think I’ve only actually had my hair dyed at the hairdressers about 4 times in total, and was not particularly impressed with any of those visits. Especially the cost! That’s the main reason I now do my own, or find a willing friend/sister to help me out. I am a uni student as well, a to be honest, finding a spare $200 to go to the hairdresser and have them dye my hair is almost impossible. Plus seems ridiculous when I can go and buy exactly the same products they use for approximately $14/tube (I use 2 tubes for my hair). I buy my products at Price Attack, where I’ve found the staff very helpful and knowledgeable, and I regularly harass them to find out how a certain colour is likely to take and what volume peroxide I would need etc. Yes, dying your hair yourself is a bit messy, and yes is awkward the first few times, but the more you do it the easier it gets. And you can save yourself HEAPS of $$.
When I did duel colours in my hair (underside purple, top black) I first bleached the underside and wrapped it in glad wrap whilst I dyed the top black, being as careful as possible to keep the sections separate, then after that was all done and washed out I dyed the bleached underside section purple. Alternatively you can just dye the top black (try not to get it on the underside as black is the hardest colour to lift) then in a separate session bleach the underside then dye it. I try to give my hair at least 1 day rest between sessions so as not to totally destroy it.
But I highly recommend the money you save on doing it yourself, that you invest in good quality products. Especially something like the Redken Protein treatment, a re-hydrating shampoo & conditioner and a good leave-in conditioner. These will maintain your hairs health which in turn will help it hold colour better, saving you more money in the long run.
thank you very much for posting this, i’ve recently bought the red corvette by fudge and wasn’t sure whether to lighten it or not. My hair is a permanent red but it obviously fades very quickly, so hopefully this will work
hi kate , i am planning to die my hair black from the top and light pink from the bottom…what should i do to get the best results in light pink…and how should i do it?…i mean the sections…should i use foil :S…or wrap?… i did red under my natural hair color before it turned out good but wasnt pro!…and i was wondering how do you keep your hair so silky with the Fudge “Red Corvette? and which black hair color should i use to not to ruin it and make it infact silky and shiny…(my hair is naturally good texture and shiny)… but i dont want to ruin it … please help me out and tell me which product would be good for my hair
im only 13 so i wanna dye my hair blonde or black underneath. im very very close friends with my hari dresser… do you think if i brought the color to her it would be cheaper???? and if not then how did you do it at home… and how long did it last???
thanks, carissa
Hi Carissa,
I would probably ask your friend/hair dresser first as I wouldn’t want to assume she is happy to do it for free etc.
Buying the dye yourself and doing it at home is always going to be cheaper. When I bleached and dyed my hair a funky colour it costs about $50 for all the stuff. If I went to a salon it would be in excess of $200 (mainly due to the bleaching required). Even when dyeing a normal colour, it is at least 1/4 of the salon price to do it yourself. But you have to decide if you are willing to chance it doing it yourself.
If you get it done in a salon you also have the bonus that if it doesn’t work or isn’t what you were after they will normally redo it/correct it for free (if it is their mistake).
See here for instructions on how to dye your hair: http://www.slightcaseofinsanity.com/2009/05/hair-dye-how-to-triumphs-and-failures-from-the-confines-of-my-permanently-stained-bathroom/ .
If you are wanting to just do the underside, simply follow the instructions above, but clip up the section you don’t want dyed.
Whenever I buy my peroxide/bleach I ask the sales assistant what volume (strength) they recommend. They are normally very good at advising on developing times etc as well. But if in doubt PLEASE go to a professional. Bleaching is very very risky and can go MAJORLY wrong very easily.
Hi Ursa,
When I had a lighter colour underneath, I always sectioned my hair in 2 parts, clipped up what I was dyeing on the top and plaited the bottom section in one plait. I wrapped the plait in gladwrap to protect it, then dyed the top bit as normal. Rinse etc as normal, then do the opposite to dye the underneath (just clip the top out of the way).
If you want the pink to last and be a rich bright colour, unless you have blonde hair already, you will need to bleach. Simple as that. You can dye over darker hair, but it will not come out the colour it looks in the tube/box.
When dyeing your hair it is crucial to keep it healthy. See here for the products I use & highly recommend: http://www.slightcaseofinsanity.com/2009/12/my-hairproduct-tips-and-advice/
For my black, I used Indola Professional (which I purchased from Price Attack). It is a professional hair dye, same as they use if you go into any normal salon.
Hi, I have naturally really dark brown hair (black I suppose). How light should I bleach it if I’m planning to try do my ends a pastel blue? (my reasoning is, if anything goes wrong, i’ll just cut off the tips and no one will be the wiser
By the way I’m planning to use the Hawaiian Blue from Fudge
With any of the fudge colours you are going to need to bleach pretty light, especially if the colour you’re after is a pastel colour. Anything darker than a light yellow just isn’t going to show the light blue. Also Fudge fades pretty easily, so avoid washing your hair when possible and when you do, only wash it in cold water (not the most comfortable thing in the world, I know!) as doing both of these will help maintain the colour longer. Also try and use a shampoo & conditioner designed for coloured hair.
Good luck!
hi, my hair is naturally dark brown, a little lighter than the color you posted, but I love that color!!! I was wondering remembered the bame of the colorr?? By the way, I love the pink
Hmmm it was a few years ago now. I know it was the Garnier Nutrisse brand, and after looking at the colour chart on their website, I would say was probably either the “Dark Mahogany Brown” or the “Dark Brown / Chocolate”. From what I remember the colour came out fairly true to what was on the packet, so you could probably safely go by the colour guide on the side of the box and find the one you like.
Hi, I’ve just bought some Indola profession and 20 vol developer – I was wondering what proportion you mixed them in? I was thinking 1:1, but not really sure…
Thanks for your help!
Hi,
Yep, you’re right, just mix them 1:1.
Hi, my favorite color is pink, and i want to do the black on top and pink underneath! But i’m not quite sure if that would look good on me, because my skin is tan, so i’m not sure if that would look right on me, what do you think ?
I guess it will depend how dark a tan you have. The black should look fine. Best idea would be to try a pink rinse (or even just one of those spray can ones) first to see how the colour looks on you. Then if it looks crappy, you can simply wash it right out.
Otherwise, a few times I have used photoshop when uncertain about how a hair colour will look. Just photoshop a pic of yourself, changing your hair colour, and this will give you a good idea what it will look like.
Hellooo….So my hair is light brown ishh Like the photo and i was wondering if i have to bleach it before dying it
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://lh3.ggpht.com/_F9yEJP1jukY/Rwzcn56LuHI/AAAAAAAAALQ/B-U6HqzeNHA/hair%2B002.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.teenspot.com/boards/showthread.html%3Ft%3D547235&usg=__g-K0Zv-C5YSu3uRlVR862n43LG4=&h=1200&w=1600&sz=339&hl=en&start=18&zoom=1&tbnid=xNgWpgdmQcmV0M:&tbnh=123&tbnw=147&prev=/images%3Fq%3DLight%2Bbrown%2Bdirty%2Bblonde%2Bhair%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1003%26bih%3D567%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C3400%2C340&um=1&itbs=1&ei=8vQYTeOtM5HGsAPendHDCg&iact=hc&vpx=365&vpy=227&dur=671&hovh=167&hovw=223&tx=124&ty=72&oei=4vQYTep3krqxA6Cr4IgK&esq=2&page=2&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:18&biw=1003&bih=567
i want to dye it pink underneath…ive done my tips red before with dye from hot topic and i didnt have to bleach it….
If you have dyed your hair previously without bleaching and it turned out as you wanted, then I would suggest you don’t need to bleach it this time either. As I have discussed in previous posts, if you dye pink over brown hair, it will be a bit darker and browner than it looks in the bottle. If you want the exact shade/brightness/purity of the colour in the bottle, then you would need to bleach it to a fairly light blonde.