Hair coloring question for all you ladies out there..

klynn08
klynn08 Posts: 151 Member
edited November 11 in Chit-Chat
I have been getting my hair highlighted for years and I like it but I think im ready for something different. (No my hair is not dead from coloring so please don't lecture me about it being bad for you) But It's so expensive I dont do it as often as I should and lately Ive been getting sick of the top of my hair being nice and highlighted and the underside being an ugly dirty blonde. Ive been really thinking about dying my whole head, im just nervous because ive never done that before Ive only highlighted. My hair is naturally dirty blonde and when I get it highlighted I used one shade of bleach blonde and another of caramel. I think I would want to dye it a light blonde. My next issue is whether I should box dye it or have the salon do it? Which do you girls prefer to do? And which is more of a pain to keep up with?
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Replies

  • Johnnyswife
    Johnnyswife Posts: 1,447 Member
    Go for it! Since your going blonde and its your first all over dye job, get it done at a salon. Highlights have special needs and a good hairdresser will make your hair look amazing.
    You'll still have to deal with upkeep and a dye job with highlights will be expensive. If you get just a dye job, you might be able to do the touchups yourself.
  • clydethecat
    clydethecat Posts: 1,087 Member
    i just dyed my hair on friday and it turned out awesome. but i've been dyeing my own hair for 20yrs. doing blonde is a little harder, if you're not comfortable doing it yourself, definitely see a professional.

    a professional will help get the perfect color. i went to a hair dresser for a few years, and she always did my hair the perfect color. they have way more options then the box colors.

    good luck either way :)
  • rc630
    rc630 Posts: 310 Member
    I have yet to see someone (other than a professional) go blonde by dyeing it themselves and have it turn out looking good. I would highly recommend seeing a professional colorist so you don't run the risk of frying your hair or having it turn out orange.

    If the cost might be a problem for you, you also might want to think about if you'll be able to maintain it. You can also try groupon; if you live in or near a big city, they usually have good deals on salons every one or two weeks, but, of course, you'll have to be a new customer there.
  • nikkilou1978
    nikkilou1978 Posts: 146 Member
    Please go to a salon. I tried to go blonde a few years ago by dying my own hair. BIG DISASTER! I wound up with pumpkin orange hair! So yes, go to a salon!
  • DO NOT BLONDE YOUR OWN HAIR!!! Just my opinion. I love my highlights and have them done about every two or three months, depending on the growout. Granted, it took some time for me to find the right person, but she does such a awsome job. To me the upkeep is way worth it.
  • Naughtybiscuit
    Naughtybiscuit Posts: 71 Member
    My hair is naturally dirty blonde too, and I've just dyed my hair bright red, out of a box. It looks cool I love it! I don't think there's anything wrong with box colours, salons are sooooo expensive.
  • klynn08
    klynn08 Posts: 151 Member
    Just want to clarify that a friend would color it for me if I did it from a box. haha How often do you guys touch up your roots? with my highlights I should go every 6ish weeks but because its so expensive I wait a month or two
  • Jules0336
    Jules0336 Posts: 137 Member
    Going to blonde from a box dye sounds risky to me, I would see a professional for sure.

    My hair was so dry and had such build up from using a box dye, I just went to a colour specialist last week, had my hair stripped ( the product isn't as harsh as it use to be), coloured and highlighted and it was worth the price. My hair has never felt so healthy.
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    Definitely have a professional color your hair.
  • CoryIda
    CoryIda Posts: 7,870 Member
    If you are going blonde - you should use a professional.

    Darker and/or warmer shades are more forgiving out of a box, but you don't want to end up with a big splotch of darker hair and a bunch of overly bleached strands.
  • skierxjes
    skierxjes Posts: 926 Member
    I dyed my hair blonde once, it came out orange. For lighter colors, go to a salon :)
  • mes1119
    mes1119 Posts: 1,082 Member
    Don't dye your hair blonde from a box. It has taken about 2 years for mine to recover. Only time box hair color is good is when you are going a darker shade or different tone. I went through so many times where my hair was straight up ORANGE because if you don't pick the absolute correct color it turns out weird. Like you, I have dirty blonde hair that gets really light blonde in the sun. I seriously urge you to get it done professionally, you have no idea how awful it is to have orange hair.
  • I have been blonde my whole life..and platinum mostly. I would never try to do my own hair at home. Blonde is something that is very easily messed up, you can turn gold, gray, white, orange...the list of mishaps can go on & on. It does get expensive but the salon products are so much better for your hair AND you know it's getting done right. (This is just my opinion). :)
  • bebreli
    bebreli Posts: 227 Member
    I am a dirty/golden blonde too and I like to do (top only) highlights 1x a year in the spring to freshen it up but then in the winter the grow out makes me crazy! This year I did a darker demi-perm (less damaging) over the highlights myself to cover the highlights. My hair is darker now and I am ready for blonde again. If you are going blonde all over I would definitely recommend having it done professionally because going lighter is more tricky than going darker. This year I am hoping to be blonder from the sun which means LOTS of outside exercise (and maybe a little lemon juice). Trying to keep my locks healthy :o)

    Good luck!
  • Try herbatint - look up online - they have a list of stockists - it's a natural product and far kinder to your hair - can buy it online or go to hairdresser - I have just started using it and have no complaints - (obviously be careful with having a patch test first as you never know if you might react - but that is the same with all products)

    If not - would recommend a salon as their tints have less peroxide - the box ones are really harsh on your head and hair as they are 12%..

    If you wait to summer - you could always try the old lemon and olive oil trick - but that can dry your hair out as well.

    Good luck
  • I am a trained hairdresser and going full blonde is something you learn in your 3rd year of study because of how difficult it can be, go to the hairdressers for a consultation first to make sure its whats best for you, full bleaching is higher maintainer than just highlights and can end up meaning a trip to the salon once a month for retouching, and the retouching should be done at a salon so that the bleach isnt overlapped that results in lots of colour bands in the hair ( different shades of blonde) and if it gets overlapped for to long the hair can go gummy and break off near the scalp, hope this was helpful :flowerforyou:
  • Faye_Anderson
    Faye_Anderson Posts: 1,495 Member
    My hair has been every colour under the sun and I've always done it myself, if you are confident your friend can manage then go for it. If your hair is already dirty blonde it shouldn't go orange because there are no orange tones in your hair, keep checking until you get the right level of blonde but don't go over the total development time on the box x

    EDIT: I do not claim to be a professional but I have never had any disasters x
  • Jennyisbusy
    Jennyisbusy Posts: 1,294 Member
    If you go for the box stick to just a shade or two lighter than what you normally have. Anything more dramatic and the risk goes up. I have dark brown hair so I use dye colors that are cool or ash to help keep the oranges away :tongue: If you want more warm tones look for words like 'golden.'

    You can also buy highlighting kits to do at home since you have a helper.
  • luvnthenewme
    luvnthenewme Posts: 121 Member
    As a former cosmetologist, I saw plenty of "interesting" hair colors from people who tried to go blonde at home. Trust me when I say that it is much better to go to a professional to get it done. It is much easier (and cheaper) than having to go see one to try to repair the disaster you might create on your own!
  • inetgirl
    inetgirl Posts: 174 Member
    You could always go to a beauty school to get it done. It's a lot cheaper and there is always a "head" person there to assist the person doing it.
  • HisMissus
    HisMissus Posts: 119 Member
    If you want to go light blonde, definitely get it done at a salon.

    Have you thought about going darker, maybe light brown or red? These are definitely easier to maintain yourself at home. I'd get the first colour done at a salon still.
  • Flixie00
    Flixie00 Posts: 1,195 Member
    Been dying my hair blond at home for the last 5 years with no issues (I use Nice'n'Easy). Choose a colour that nearest matches your natural colour and don't go too light 1st time out. Follow the instructions and maybe get a friend to assist.
  • sheclimber
    sheclimber Posts: 176 Member
    I'm a dirty blonde that's been dying my hair red for almost 20 years now. I've always done it myself until recently, about 3 years ago, and I will never go back to doing it on my own, it's so much better quality product and the results are awesome! (I also get highlights done w/ it). And now I don't think my husband will ever let me do my own dying agian either, he likes the bathroom not having errant drips after each time regardless of how hard I tried to cover everything.
  • stef_e_b
    stef_e_b Posts: 593
    Its only a few shades go for it! I colour my own hair all the time and I've never had a problem. plus the highlights will still shine through and it'll look all shimmery. Just make sure if you have longer than shoulder length or thick grab two boxes. I always find I need the second. You can always go semi perm and then it'll just brighten it up.
  • I am a hairstylist. From my experience in this area, I would go in and have it colored darker. If your hair is blonde, all the pigment has been stripped out and it MAY need a color filler put in it before coloring so it doesn't turn grey or green when going darker. It may seem more expensive than doing it yourself, but if you do it and it turns a "funky" color, going in having a corrective color is more expensive than just a color. And a bigger pain for you and the stylist! Also, even when stylists do tint backs, hair doesn't always do what we want it to do and what the color is suppose to do. But we have the knowledge and product to fix it right away. Good luck!
  • I have tried doing a box dye a few years ago because it was getting too expensive for me to get it done every few months. It did not turn out well. It was fine for the first 2 weeks then it went orange! I hated it but couldnt get back to the salon to fix it.
    I too have thought about going all one color, but I really do like my natural looking blonde highlights.
    Good luck.
  • Ezzie
    Ezzie Posts: 665 Member
    My hubby does mine for me and I am frequently asked who does it. Preference by Loreal with highlights does a beautiful job. At about $15.00 and 1 1/2 hours of time. Avoid all the horror stories by actually doing the skin/ hair test before you do the whole thing first time out. IMHO, the times I have had my hair colored professionally have not had as natural looking a result. Also, choose perm OR color...doing both is hard on the hair. My hair is naturally a med mousy brown with gray....
  • kauaibaby
    kauaibaby Posts: 25 Member
    Listen to Richelle- she is an awesome stylist and has personally fixed my 'dirty blonde-"want something different" did it myself WTF is that? oops' moments! :)
  • I would say go for whats the best in your budget
  • owengem
    owengem Posts: 131 Member
    I'm a dirty boring blonde naturally and have had highlights for yrs and yrs at the hairdresser and everytime I was always wanting it that bit blonder do I went for it. Full head white blond no looking back. I've always had it done by a professional cos they are able to use a toner to remove any yellow or orange-ness.

    Go for it

    Feel free to add me x
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