Dying hair - professional or over the counter?

Dcubed

I have always dyed my own hair - never had it professionally done.  I dye it red (naturally brown) and like the color so I never felt the need to go anywhere else.  My co-workers are telling me I need to get it professionally done to see the difference.  The only thing when I dye my hair is that it fades the first week and then is settled until it grows out and is time to redo.  Does this happen with professional dying as well?  I am cheap but will try the professional dying to see about the fading if need be.

NalasMomma618

With red? Yes, no matter who dyes it, red will always fade quickly. It's just the nature of the color. Actually most hair colors do fade some no matter who does it, red just fades the most and the fastest. The best thing I could tell you is to freshen the color up with a protein filler every now and then. I would also shop around and try a few different brands, even at Sallys. That way you could find the longest lasting red that you can do yourself. I encourage you to continue it yourself, because the salon will give you similar results and cost more because you will still need to go back every 4/6 weeks. I used to stretch my color for about 8 weeks though.

I loved the red I got with Garnier Nutrisse, and I've also always like Ion Brilliance from Sallys. It's been a while though so I couldn't tell you which one lasted the best. Also try not to wash your hair everyday, if you have oily hair like me that seems disgusting, adn I understand. I just started going two days when I can, and baking powder seems to help. I use that instead of buying a dry shampoo, it works just as well and costs less.

good luck!

TX-Bride

Is there a difference, yes, but that doesn't mean home hair dyes are not good. My mom has never had her hair dyed professionally.

With any hair color (salon or home), I strongly suggest you invest in a good color-safe shampoo. I do notice a difference in fading when I am cheap and use a cheap shampoo like suave, it fades much quicker vs. when I use a salon brand.

 

misspunky

Red fades faster than any other color.  Honestly, when I used to dye my hair red, I never noticed a difference in fading between home and professional coloring.  Be sure to use a shampoo for color treated hair, that helped slow down the fading for me.  I used to also use John Freida's glaze in the red, and that gave a pop of color for a while in between colorings.