When it comes to colouring your hair, it may be easy to think ‘I can do this at home it will be cheaper than going to the salon’. Unfortunately this is not always the case and could even have the opposite affect and end up costing more than the original appointment may have.
As hair stylists we train for a minimum of 2 years and continue to learn throughout our careers. There is a lot of science behind colouring hair beyond picking up a box of colour from the shelf in a shop because it’s the colour you desire. All this is before the colour application has started which needs to be precise for a number of reasons.
If you have ever considered colouring your hair at home you may have noticed that colours have a numbering system. This numbering system relates to depth and tone of the colour. You may be thinking I know how dark/light I want to be and what sort of tone I am looking to achieve, so picking out a colour will be easy. The boxes you can purchase from chemists/supermarkets even have helpful pictures on the back with starting colour and what will be achieved. Sounds easy right? If it was that easy we wouldn’t have to go through so much colour theory as well as practical training.
However, those pictures do have their place, but really for those that have no previous colour in their hair and is in optimum condition. Although in this day and age along with the constant heat styling, and covering those greys, those with that specific hair type are few and far between. Even someone who fits that profile could still fall into trouble and may not get the end result they were looking to achieve due to their own natural hairs undertone. Just because that is the colour you want to achieve, does not necessarily mean that would be the colour you apply to achieve that colour.
Technically the first colour you would see on a home colouring kit correlates to the depth desired. This numbering system is the same across all colouring brands including professional. Again sounds so simple, however, some brands can be slightly darker/lighter than others and until you are used to a brand you are going in somewhat blind. If you were to find yourself a darker colour than you wanted, it is not as simple as putting a lighter colour on top. This is one instance where you may find yourself paying out more money for a colour correction in a salon environment.
When it comes to application precision is key. Even those of us who are qualified in colour application very rarely apply our own colour. There are a number of reasons for this, it is not easy, especially if you are trying to cover those pesky greys. Making sure you cover every hair evenly is not easy when you can’t see the back of your head. Something that also needs to be avoided is colouring over previously coloured hair. This can lead to a build-up of colour and you could eventually find yourself in a situation where the mid lengths and ends become darker over time in comparison to root area. Again this could become costly and time consuming to correct if you ever want go lighter or even out the colour.
Of course there is always a place for home hair colour and with prices increasing across all aspects of life it can be a way to help reign in the monthly budget. However, it could also come at a higher cost and this is always something to keep in mind.
Keep an eye out for our next blog which will talk about home hair bleaching.
Laura and Lisa
Arcana Salon