Professional Tips for DIY Hair Color

COLOR SELECTION

Choose a color within two shades of your natural color. Going outside of this range could look

unflattering and unnatural.

READ THE INSTRUCTIONS

The box you use has directions based on your hair, to ensure you get good results. FOLLOW THEM! Hair color can go really right or really wrong. Leaving the color on too long can leave you with color much lighter or much darker than you planned. You can also suffer chemical damage that can permanently loosen your curl pattern as well as major breakage. We don’t want that, so certain details, such as the developing time is important.

STRAND TEST

I know you are probably anxious to see your new hair color, but don’t skip the strand test! The strand test is extremely important in making sure the color you get is the color you want.  There’s nothing worse than planning on a rich red and you end up with an ashy brown. Or you expected a nice honey blonde and you look like a Halloween pumpkin.  And a personal favorite, your color looks exactly the same and nothing like the color on the box. If you don’t do the strand test you risk all of the above happening.  The strand test doesn’t take very long to do and can save you from color mishaps

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How do I perform the strand test? 1 Put on gloves to protect your hands. 2 Choose a strand of hair for testing the color. You may want to choose a strand that’s usually hidden when you style your hair. Or you can use shed hair from your last detangling session. 3 Separate the strand from the rest of your hair using plastic clips. You don’t want the strand to touch any hair after you’ve applied the color to it. 4 Using a plastic utensil (not a metal one), mix 1 teaspoon of hair color and 1.5 teaspoon of developer. Immediately reseal the bottles. 5 Apply the color to your strand following the process described in the Instructions. 6. Wait 24 hours for the color to settle and see if you are happy with the results on the strand. 7. f you are happy with the color results, you can go ahead and do the full application following the Instructions.

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MAKE GOOD SECTIONS

The biggest trick to achieving an even, professional application is creating four sections of hair and coloring one at a time. Start by parting your hair down the middle into two pigtails. Then make a horizontal part just behind your ear and trace it across the crown to the other ear. Clip each of the four regions and you’re ready to color!

CALL A CURLFRIEND

It may not be possible all of the time, but getting help from a friend can make it much easier to get even coloring, especially in the back. You can make it a girls night or day and have some fun!

START WITH THE ROOTS, THEN ENDS

Always apply color to the regrowth (or roots) first. If you’re doing an all over application, color the ends right after the roots. The “ends” means all of the hair below the regrowth at your scalp. (So it’s not just the very end, but the whole length of hair that is previously colored). If this is your first time coloring your hair then of course you won’t have any regrowth and you can just work from roots all the way down to the end.

CONDITION

After your color application, follow-up with a moisturizing conditioner. Do NOT skip this step. This will help seal in the new color and prevent fading, while also adding healthy shine to your locks.Hair color is a chemical treatment that often strips the hair of moisture. If your hair is naturally dry, you may even feel scared at the harsh dryness of  your hair. Don’t fret, add a deep conditioning to your final step for maximum moisture restoration.

Check out our tips for Dry Hair

Source: kinkycurlycoilme