Maintaining Red Hair

[Adiemus]

I see there are a lot of questions about red hair in this board, but I have one of my own as well!

My hair is naturally a very light blonde - my stylist says it is a level 8. I have dyed my hair dark red in the past, but it fades so quickly and I could not afford enough salon trips to keep up with it.

Well, I'm starting to miss red hair, and I really want to try a shade like this picture

http://www.hairfinder.com/hairstyles2/glamup-hairstyle2.htm

I could go to a salon and ask for something similar to this, but I still cannot afford a salon trip every four weeks, which is pretty much what it would take to stop this from going orange on me. (My previous shade of red was a bit darker than the picture and it faded to carrot-orange after a little over a month)

Does anyone know of a home dye I could use to help maintain the color, at least so that I could extend the time between salon visits to something fairly manageable?

I have not tried home dye before because I am worried about its effect on my blonde roots - people have warned me about getting "hot roots" from red hair dye.

Also, I've been browsing dyes online and I haven't found anything close enough to the tone in that picture. I'm really interested in something close to that.

 

[CrimsonQuill157]

I hope you get a response - I am interested in this, too!

 

[gildedangel]

I've been a dyed red-head for over 5 years now, and my current color is very close to the picture you posted. I get my hair done professionally every 8-10 weeks so I can't tell you what color my hairdresser uses (I know that it's a mix of several), however I can share some tips on what I think you should do.

I do not recommend switching back and forth from professional dye to home dye like you want to do. Most professionals use demi or semi permanent hair color and most at-home dyes are permanent hair color, meaning that your permanent hair dye in-between hair salon visits will affect the color that the hairdresser tries to use, meaning you might not be able to get the color you want.

If you insist on dyeing in-between visits, ask your hairdresser what type of hair dye she uses and use that same level of permanence. You can find a better variety of those kinds of dyes at a beauty supply store like Sallys. Plus since you're blonde, you will likely need to darken your roots first to achieve that color, so that means your probably going to be buying 2 colors of hair dye and spending more time dyeing at home.

My personal recommendation is that you do everything you can to keep the color from fading in-between visits. What has honestly worked the best for me is to wash my hair separately in water that is as cold as I can stand it (I have a detachable shower head and lean my head over the tub). Since the molecules used for red dyes are larger, when the hair cuticle opens up with heat, those molecules wash out. The cold water keeps the cuticle closed and the hair dye in. It's really uncomfortable at first, but it helps so much with fading. My hairdresser always is impressed with how little fading I get in-between visits, especially since I only go every 2-3 months (when the roots are embarrassing). I also recommend washing your hair less. I only wash mine about twice a week and this also helps a lot with keeping color in.

You may also ask your hairdresser if you can get a color that fades prettier. I know that sounds weird, but my red fades to a pinker tone instead of orange and it looks so much better.

Sorry for the long post, I hope this helps you out!

 

[Adiemus]

Thank you, all that was very helpful! I never thought about the difference between color types. I think my stylist currently uses demi permanent, but I'll have to ask.

Has anyone ever tried a product like this? http://www.beautybay.com/haircare/revlonprofessional/nutricolorcreme500purplered/

I've heard that although the results don't last for a *long* time, it can just help to boost the color a bit when it starts to fade. Do you think it would still work on demi permanent color?

I've been doing a "cold water blast" type thing on my hair at the end of showers, but I'll have to try washing it in cold entirely. I don't have a detachable shower head, I just kind of face the water, flip all my hair over, and try not to get my body wet lol.

 

[matchachoco]

My personal recommendation is that you do everything you can to keep the color from fading in-between visits. What has honestly worked the best for me is to wash my hair separately in water that is as cold as I can stand it (I have a detachable shower head and lean my head over the tub). Since the molecules used for red dyes are larger, when the hair cuticle opens up with heat, those molecules wash out. The cold water keeps the cuticle closed and the hair dye in. It's really uncomfortable at first, but it helps so much with fading. My hairdresser always is impressed with how little fading I get in-between visits, especially since I only go every 2-3 months (when the roots are embarrassing). I also recommend washing your hair less. I only wash mine about twice a week and this also helps a lot with keeping color in. You may also ask your hairdresser if you can get a color that fades prettier. I know that sounds weird, but my red fades to a pinker tone instead of orange and it looks so much better.

Excellent advice! I am a natural dark blonde, but I've been keeping my hair various shades of red for 10+ years now. I agree that what you do between visits is critical. Washing my hair only every 3-4 days has made a huge difference. Dry shampoo is a big help. I'm not convinced that color extending shampoos and conditioners do much but it's worth a try to see if they help you. Intense reds need maintenance, there's no way around it. But like gildedangel said, you might just need to experiment (with the help of a hairdresser) and find your shade. The shade I have now is a bit lighter and less intense than your picture but I can go 7-8 weeks between appointments.

 

[SuperMegs]

Can I just pop in here and ask another hair color question??? I have been pondering experiementing with hair color too and wondered if the dye would transfer at all. I had heard that sometimes happens but Im not sure if its because it was done wrong, or the type of dye or color or what

 

[gildedangel]

Can I just pop in here and ask another hair color question??? I have been pondering experiementing with hair color too and wondered if the dye would transfer at all. I had heard that sometimes happens but Im not sure if its because it was done wrong, or the type of dye or color or what

What do you mean by transfer? Transfer onto what?

 

[SuperMegs]

Like onto your clothes or pillows, things like that

 

[gildedangel]

Like onto your clothes or pillows, things like that

Ah, I see. I've never had any hair dye transfer onto my clothes or pillows, and I've used both permanent and semi-permanent dyes. I've had it transfer to my towels before when my hair is wet, but it usually comes right out in the wash.

 

[SuperMegs]

ahhhh, ok then cool. I was worried, this is good to know. thanks

 

[MatildeFullmoon]

I dye my hair red with henna it stays on forever, of course you got to redo the color but is a natural dye and you should really try it, you could find it perfect for you sorry for the poor english, I'm from italy

 

[princessjest]

I am bright red and have been for 2 years, I am naturally a dark brunette and after alot of research went about dying my own hair. For maintenance may I suggest using a vegetable dye or semi permanent dye - they just coat the hair and it will not damage your hair, you don't even have to apply it as a dye,you can simply add a little to your conditioner each time you wash your hair, that way you deposit a little dye back into your hair to keep it vibrant with out resting it as it were. Affinage even offer a product called "red refresher" designed for use in between redyes - its just a semi perm dye. I like Pravana personally, but dyes like Manic Panic, Directs and crazy colour are all easy on your hair and easy to get hold of I go 10 - 12 weeks between and colouring my hair, I do one semi permanent full redye during that time and the dye added to my conditioner - I never fade to orange

 

[champagneshadow]

I've had good luck with Goldwell red hair color! I didn't have to recolor my hair due to fading, only when roots grew out. I'm not sure what exact shade/combination of shades my stylist used but it was a bright red and it lasted forever.

Paul Mitchell was awful!

I also wash my hair in cool water. HTH.

 

[MRV]

I've been dying my hair red for almost 30 years now. My natural colour is about 7. I used to have it done by my hairdresser some 15-20 years ago, but they always dyed it too dark for my taste, so I've been doing it for myself since. I use a perm colour in 7.43 (golden copper). Lately I have noticed that my hair has been darker between the touchups than before. I have not really changed anything. I use colored hair shampoo, but no cold water really. My hair colour just does not fade any more even if I'd like it to do that. One reason might be that my natural hair colour is getting darker (as it has happened to my mother, and her mother). I would like my hair to be even lighter than 7, but I have never really found a perm golden coppery color in 8.

The dyes hairdresses use are actually more powerful than the home dyes. Even though my home dye says it covers grey hair, it does not. You can only get that at hairdresses.

I would not recommend henna though. It is hazardous to your heath.

 

[hawaii02]

I've been dying my hair red for at least the last two years. Naturally, it's a dirty blond. A hairdresser suggested switching to a less-lathering shampoo. The lathering shampoos strip your hair of color. I use Big Sexy Hair now (TJ Maxx often has it or salons).