Coloring gray hair at home

To dye your hair at home, you do not need special skills: just understand the technique. Together with an expert, we have compiled a small guide for this cosmetic procedure.

Now it is not necessary to go to a beauty salon to dye your hair. On sale you can find a lot of cosmetics that will help get rid of gray hair at home. It often seems to women that the task is not easy and it is quite difficult to hide gray hair. But it turns out that with the knowledge of technology, you can even make staining yourself. In our material, we have collected useful tips from a professional stylist and tell you what paint to choose and what color to paint if you notice the ill-fated gray hairs.

What color to choose for dyeing gray hair

Gray hair appears due to the fact that melanocytes stop producing a certain pigment. In addition, the hair loses its shine, becomes dry and stiff. Therefore, when staining, it is important to choose a remedy: it should not be aggressive.

To begin with, it is worth deciding on a shade of paint for painting over gray hair. Every year, natural shades are gaining popularity: light chestnut, light brown, honey. Brighter options fade into the background. If earlier the coloring of gray hair was often monophonic, now stylists and hairdressers use various techniques to give volume, shine, additional color to the hairstyle: at the same time, the masters work with gray hair without leaving a trace of it.

How to achieve a similar result at home? It is enough to choose the right shade. If a woman has blond hair: light brown or chestnut, then a color 2-3 tones lighter is quite suitable. Ash blond will look interesting, it makes facial features softer. But for such coloring, it is better to take several shades and do coloring in order to get a more complete palette.

Another option is caramel. It is between blond and chestnut. Most of all, this color is suitable for women with peach or dark skin and green or brown eyes. If you choose a chestnut shade, you need to pay attention to the undertones: you should avoid excessive copper. This color will go well with fair skin and green, blue eyes.

How to choose the type of paint for dyeing gray hair

Shading and semi-permanent paints are not suitable for coloring gray hair. When buying a suitable paint in a store, you should pay attention to this. Manufacturers often write on the packaging that the product is well suited for dyeing gray hair. At the same time, the composition should not be ignored: more and more natural paint options are on sale. They do not contain ammonia, a lot of natural ingredients, oils to restore the hair structure.

In addition to tint and semi-permanent paints, you need to refuse to buy mousses, sprays and creams. They will give only a temporary effect, and with strong gray hair they may not work at all. If we talk about a good, even shade and high-quality coloring, then only paints should be preferred.

Natural dyes

The popularity of natural hair dyes is growing. But most often, such coloring is done in specialized salons, using special techniques, combining shades and building a whole coloring cycle.

Henna, basma, chamomile are suitable for home coloring. To get a richer shade, cinnamon, nettle root or linden are added to henna. Major manufacturers of cosmetic products have lines with semi-natural paints. They can be used at home: the main thing is to test for an allergic reaction. There is a stereotype that this type of paint does not cope well with gray hair. Like chemical paints, natural dyes in the composition of the paint mask gray hair well: chemical technologists have worked on this. Of course, a completely natural paint is unlikely to cope with the complete painting of gray hair. Or you will have to tint the roots too often. It must be remembered that you should not dye your hair more than 1 time per month.

Chemical paints

These paints usually contain ammonia and hydrogen peroxide. Manufacturers usually add components such as protein and keratin, various types of oils and vitamins. Permanent or permanent dye is suitable for dyeing gray hair: when dyeing, it penetrates into the cortical part of the hair, where it is fixed for a more visible result. A significant drawback of this type of product is that the composition severely damages the hair structure with constant dyeing, making it dry and weakened. Usually resistant paint lasts up to 45 days on the hair and is poorly washed off when washed.

Semi-permanent paint contains a much lower percentage of ammonia and hydrogen peroxide, and stays on the hair for about 30 days. It does not harm the hair so much, but at the same time it often does not completely paint over the gray hair.

Preparing for staining

The composition of the mixture for coloring depends on the percentage of gray hair, their localization and how the hair “holds” the coloring pigment.

There is a type of gray hair when the hair is shiny and looks glassy. Due to the peculiarities of the structure, paint does not penetrate well into them: the coloring pigment remains on the surface and is washed off too quickly. At home, before dyeing, you can apply an oxidizing agent to your hair and wait until it dries. Only then should the main composition be applied.

For too pronounced gray hair, almost white, prepigmentation is needed. This is what is called the saturation of the hair with pigment before the main painting. To do this, mix two natural shades or take one natural tone lighter than the native color. The method helps the coloring pigment to better gain a foothold in the thickness of the hair. It is necessary to mix half the coloring tube with water: one part of paint to two parts of water. On the hair, this mass should be held for no more than 10 minutes. After that, mix the remaining paint with an oxidizing agent of 6% and distribute it over the hair, leave for 30 minutes and rinse with cool water.

It is best to mix the paint in a non-metallic container, a plastic or glass bowl works well. To make it easier to separate the strands, you need a comb with fine teeth and a brush for applying paint. To fix the hair, it is worth preparing clips, hairpins or crabs in advance.

It is not necessary to wash your hair before dyeing. You need to dye only dry hair. Be sure to test for allergies: apply a couple of drops of paint and an oxidizing agent on your wrist. If after 10-15 minutes the skin does not turn red, you can safely proceed to staining.

How to color gray hair

We will tell you step by step how to properly dye gray hair at home.

Step 1

Divide your hair with two partings: vertical and horizontal. Secure each of the 4 sections of hair with a clip.

Step 2

Put on gloves and mix the paint as directed on the instructions.

Step 3

Apply the paint first along the partings, going through them well with a brush.

Then paint over the strands at the back of the head. Even if the hair is long, it is worth starting with parting, and only then move on to the strands.

Step 4

For high-quality staining, separate one thin strand from the bundle and color it with a sufficient amount of paint, and then put it back again.

Step 5

Keep the dye on your hair for as long as indicated on the instructions. You should not keep less or more, as well as cover your hair with a bag or cap.

Step 6

The paint should be washed off with warm water, and then, if desired, rinse with shampoo and apply care products.

Fashion trends for gray hair coloring in 2022

Coloring gray hair is increasingly performed in popular techniques. Below are some of the ones women are choosing in 2022.

Balaj

Ash balayazh is considered the most fashionable this season. When it is performed, part of the strands is tinted in light gray, the front curls are made in warm colors. Work in the balayage technique does not have to look “smooth”: abrupt transitions are also acceptable.

Toning

For toning, tint paints are used, which give gray hair a lighter tone. And the natural color of the hair is made brighter and richer. Usually, before toning, lightening is carried out so that the paint shows up better on the hair, but it is possible to do the procedure without it. In 2022, visible gray hair that is slightly toned is still in style.

Chatou

With this technique, the hair is dyed with a gradual distribution of color along the entire length: the shade gradually changes from roots to tips. Masters, working with gray hair, control the intensity of the color by mixing shades, using different colors. Dyeing your hair with this technique at home is quite difficult.