5.3 how can I find good hair dye colors and brands?


General info.:
Brand names: Some more brand names that have been suggested on a.g.f. (particularly in reference to burgundy and red hair dyes) include:


Temporary Dyes

Directions and Manic Panic

Gnat comments: With Directions and Manic Panic stuff, the darker colors have a better chance of showing up on dark, natural, or otherwise healthy hair. Just be sure to layer the stuff on thick and leave it in as long as possible. Normally, this stuff is supposed to work for weeks at a time, but on healthy hair, you're lucky to survive two washes.

Sande comments: Manic Panic and Directions are pretty much the same thing. The color that Manic Panic has on its guides is what you would get if you had White Hair. So don't even bother thinking you can get that color with your ultra-dark hair. Manic Panic will also lovingly dye everything else but your hair. To help Manic Panic take, don't rinse it out for a long while, and then when you do, use conditioner afterwards.


Fudge

ghoulie comments: my hairstylist used Fudge hairdye on my hair, and i've been very happy with it. she bleached strips in my hair to a white-blonde color, then put the Fudge on, a mixture of "blue velvet" and "raspberry beret" to achieve the perfect purple i wanted. placed me under a hairdryer, and washed it out after 45 minutes. the dye has gradually faded out from the un-bleached hair after a month, but the bleached strips are still a _very_ vibrant magenta. the blue tones seemed to fade out, tho, it's a lot more on the "magenta" side than "purple" - which is what it originally was. that's just my small warning, because you want _blue_, right?

Zevaluz comments: A colorist that I know said that they use Fudge only when they want a color that's bright AND washes out superfast. She said for staying power she uses Special Effects, and for color blending, she prefers Fudge and also uses Manic Panic and Punky Colors. Fudge is made for color mixing and mixes together superawesome, so I hear.


Punky Colours

Corinne comments: I use Punky Colours, and it stays in for months after a little initial fading. Before dyeing, wash hair with shampoo once or twice, and dishwashing soap or hand soap afterward to get it really clean. It helps the dye take, but isn't really good for your hair. The drier your hair when applying dye, the better. For long hair (actually anything over about four inches), do sections, put them into pin curls, and let it stay in overnight. When you go to take the pincurls out, you'll end up with interesting "dreads" that wash out. I usually leave mine in for a few days, and once the dye is dry it doesn't much come off. Just be careful about rainstorms and sweating. If the dye does happen to drip, I've had some luck with cold cream, but GOOP hand cleaner (get it at hardware stores) works the best, and it is really gentle, smells OK, and works on just about everything, even clothing stains.

Julia comments: I just tried Punky Colors hair dye which is a US brand but you can buy it in England too I think. Anyway, my medium-dark brown hair usually laughs hysterically at hair dye and ignores it. However, one container of tulip red and half a plum have dyed my hair dark reddish pink and purple. Mind you, the dye is still bleeding when I wash my hair (3rd wash) but the color is staying in and looking better. I left it on my head for 14hrs which may explain why it's in my hair so well. Put a plastic bag on my head and slept on it, which I highly recommend doing. Also, for people in the US, use Apple brand pectin conditioning pack. Makes your hair happy after making it sad by chemically abusing it.

Thessaly comments: I also like Punky Colour creams in rubine, and while it seems to last as long as far as the colour of the suds when I'm washing my hair, it doesn't seem to be *visible* as long as Special FX is. I've found Manic Panic gels to be crappy on everything but completely bleached-out hair.

Lauren comments: For purple hair, you could just use Punky Colors plum, which is a goregous purple. I used plum on my natually medium brown hair, and it turned out *very purple*, so it would have even better results on blonde hair. Just be careful with it, it stains like crazy (for me, it stained more than any other colour I have ever used).

Samantha comments: Punky Colours Pillarbox Red. It is the best red in the world. (though I wonder if people are getting sick of my constant raving about it. ;)


Special Effects (SFX)

Thessaly comments: Special FX is my *favorite* weird colour hair dye, and was responsible for the BRIGHT as **** purple that I had for most of December and January. I did not have to bleach first, and my hair was noticeably purple for at least 3 weeks. I highly, highly recommend it.

Basinke comments: Special Effects Pimpin' Purple. A nice, true purple and a kickass name as well! Blue Velvet is good as well -- a very dark purply-blue. I love Special Effects. The colors are good, and it lasts for weeks, especially on bleached hair. Though actually, on very short, healthy hair, the purple didn't hold well (it's very difficult to get a lasting color in those conditions). Right now I'm using Iguana Green (on cropped, bleached hair). It's been in for over two weeks and has faded only slightly to a BRIGHT go-light green.


Stargazer

insijma comments: I have got relatively boring darkish brown hair and have been trying to dye it purple for years. I have found the solution Stargazer magenta (2 bottles) stayed purple for 2 washes then faded to a pinkish red color that lasted a month. There was no need to bleach it. I did however be a tad naughty and leave it on for and hour and a half. I can get in Glasgow and Edinburgh only.


Semi-Permanent and Permanent Dyes

Clairol

Jen comments: My family got the July '98 issue of Consumers' Report with a feature on hair colours! They tested dark browns and blacks (perm and semi-perm) and lightening/blonding kits. The article is rather lengthy, but for permanent dyes, Clariol Hydrience in some dark brown shade came in first. The dyes were judged on such things as how they covered grey and how long they lasted. There's also a sidebar on hair colour and health risks.

Leigh Gardner comments: I've had a good (!) experience with Hydrience -- mixing St. Tropez Red (medium red) w/Hibiscus (dark red) didn't lighten my dark hair, but instead gave it bright burgundy-red coloring in the light -- and it really hasn't faded after a week!

helena kim comments: i will *never* bitch meanly about clairol again. i filled out the consumer reply form on the website. i complained nicely about the ridiculous fade i experienced with hydrience, i asked about the availability of torrids/beautiful red in ireland/uk, and i asked them a few other questions.

the us division of clairol forwarded it to the uk division, and lo and behold! today a received a lovely polite letter from clairol uk, answering all my questions, and enclosing a box of the exact dye i experienced the silly fade with! (also saying, if it happens with this box, please send a small hair clipping so they can advise me more.) like, wow! free stuff! not a form letter, was signed with by an actual person... quite charming really. i am impressed.

if you have any problems with clairol products, i highly recommend that you outline *exactly* what they were and tell them! (hell, it can only make the products better, and, well, i got free stuff!)


Clariol Natural Instincts

Christabel La Motte comments: I've been dyeing my hair with semi-permanent (Natural Instincts) red shades for about two years now. Reds are particularly notorious for fading quickly. However, I've had noticeably good luck in keeping the color brighter longer by using hair products, like L'Oreals Colorvive conditioner, that contain a UV block. If you're tired of having to do touch-ups before your roots have even grown in, look into using a conditioner or styling product with a similar UV blocking effect.

Basinke comments: Natural Instincts Exotics Malaysian Cherry -- I've had it in for about 3 weeks now. I did it over bleached hair and left it in for about 45 minutes -- which stung like blazes since my scalp was still all irritated from bleaching. :( Memo to self, exercise patience next time. The dye smells like cinnamon -- and feels like cinnamon too. But it came out an absolutely beautiful dark coppery red, just like the color on the box if not purer. So -- forget "medium brown to black" hair, use this over bleached! Three weeks of reasonably frequent shampoos later, it has faded quite a bit. It's almost the precise color of a new penny now, maybe a bit darker. The "red" quality is still there, it went only slightly orange. I would definitely recommend this. just disregard the instructions on the box. Why they *always* give directions that are guaranteed to turn out wrong, I will never know.

Ice Princess comments: I got the Natural Instincts Exotics in Egyptian Plum (I usually use NI Currant), and left it on for an hour. It's burgundy; no one, including me, can decide if it's more red or more purple than the usual color, but it's definitely more *noticeable* as burgundy. Oh, and it rinsed out in about half the time that the Currant usually takes. Odd.


Clariol Torrids

Trystan comments: Another interesting dye is the Clairol Torrids series (only available at beauty supply stores, btw). They're permanent dyes that you mix with peroxide, tho' the colors don't veer *too* far away from natural hues. Their Bodacious Burgundy is pretty cool, and the blue-black has a lot more blue than any I've seen. The rest of the Torrids are variations on bright reds and blondes.

Morella comments: I got this tip from a very nice girl at a beauty supply shop I've been frequenting. The Torrids Ravenous Blue will be very bright after a bleaching BUT the main thing is (from what she told me) is that you'll get a good blue if you use twice as much developer and the strongest. So per one bottle is usually four ounces of developer (I assume liquid. I don't know whether to use the cream). So I first used 8 ounces of 40 volume developer and got great results, but they did wash out to a light color, but not completely, AND I have never gotten that green tint that Punky and Manic has given me in the past. So the next time around I used a mixture of half 40 and half 30, and it's still obviously blue. In the areas that were recently bleached, it's still quite vibrant (especially in the goth-forsaken sunlight). So I'm wondering if a mixture of the Ravenous Blue and the Burgundy or a red or something would work to create a purple. As far as has worked for me, this a very permanent hair dye.

Lady Winter comments: Clairol Torrids Outrageous Cherry, a permanent dye, the colour is nice, the highlights are a bit closer to purple.

GothFaeri comments: i do mine with Torrids every 3 weeks, and my hair is healthier than it used to be. i use... 40 vol developer (i have DARK hair naturally, and i lighten it a lot with the dye. i don't bleach first, but i still get a very light colour), and my colour lasts very well. actually, it lasts better now than it did at first.

Madeleine comments: I went to the beauty supply place and picked up 4 bottles of Clairol Torrids Audacious Red, plus a big bottle of the 30 volume developer, neutral protein filler, and a squeeze bottle. I went home, and did the neutral protein thingie. I towel dried my hair and slapped three of the bottles of the Red on my head. Cooked for about 45 minutes. Rinsed. Used the free conditioner samples and rinsed again. I waited for it to dry... but it never did. My hair was greasy and nappy like an old dog... ew ew ew... I had to wash it a few times and go to a pool to strip the crap conditioner off... and there is still some in my hair. :P But my colour is as bright and loverly as the day it was done!!! It is a very bright natural red, like I was born with the colour (pssstt... and my curtains match the drapes if ya know what i mean). The most important thing I learned from this is:
  1) Torrids rocks so hard
  2) Doing it your self is much cheaper
  3) Beware strange samples with instructions in another langauge
  4) Neutral protein filler is a gift from the Goddess... no more split ends!!!!
  5) Be careful putting colour on eyebrows and naughty bits... a washcloth is your best friend.
No Maddies were harmed in this dying process... eyes, naughty bits, and hair are all in tact.

Bridget comments: [What Tori Amos has used] Clairol Torrids Torch Crimson, in conjunction with something called Beautiful Reds. I've never actually tried this combo. But this is what she purportedly said on some Prodigy chat. In my experience, there was a L'Oreal Preferences (Copper Penny? something like that) that gave me a similar colour. A strawberry henna didn't. And now I get a similar effect from Jazzing Red Hot with occasional Aveda Prescriptives in their dark red color.

StrangeGirl comments: Audacious Red by Torrids is a fairly permanent red. It is *not*, however, a primary red. It is a primary-red based 'natural' red. I usually mixed it in equal parts with Torch Crimson and used a high-volume (30-40) developer to get the best bright flame red. Lasts well too, and when it fades, it fades to a natural looking red. This combo will invariably leave your shower looking like you have killed someone in it! It does wash away mostly, but be careful, this stuff does mark grout/formica/vinyl floor/etc.

If Clairol Beautiful Reds are still available, find one that has a swatch kinda like your hair after you dye it. These are no-developer toners that hold nicely on processed hair (I think they are meant for use on permed hair, for a light color cast). I usually used one about 2-3 weeks after I dyed my hair to keep the color bright.


Feria (by L'Oreal)

Atalanta Pendragonne comments: I used the Feria Starry Night last week. I didn't have as much trouble with blotches, some staining got on my hands & arms, but I scrubbed 'em right away, and had only faint marks for the next, oh, day I guess. The result? It's a nice, glossy black. Not FANTASTIC, but the generous amount of dye would probably be enough to do my hair twice, so if I get it again, I'll get a cheap bottle to mix half of it in. The unusually foul stench has already been mentioned, as well as the mitigating effect of the scent packet. There is a very faint blue tinge. I just wish it were more pronounced! It is very pricey stuff, though. Almost $10 at HEB.

Katie Glick comments: I am happy with Feria as well. I used the Starry Night and while it *has* faded, it hasn't faded that much, and I have to wash my hair every other day because it's oily. It's been almost a month, and I'm actually happy with the way it has faded because it started out as this really blue-black and it was a little much. Now it's just black with a little bit of dark, dark brown. Anyway, it's better than most of the stuff I've used before which looks perfect for maybe a week and then it looks like I never even dyed my hair at all.

nikole comments: argh! wait 2 weeks and i bet your beautiful new hair color will fade to some horrible brassy orange. i used the black Feria Starry Night and my sis used some dark purplish red color (i think it was #42). well, my sister's hair turned a *beautiful* deep purplish red which faded to a light coppery orange and mine faded to a dark brown. i had to redye my hair after only 2 weeks (the roots were REALLY noticeable) with my regular dye. :sigh:

Ruhiel comments: Well... I broke down and bought the Feria Chocolate Cherry. The stuff is way expensive compared to what i usually get, but it comes with some good stuff. You the two good gloves and plenty of the conditioner. I have short hair, so it'll last me a few more washes. The scented stuff knocked out some of the smell, but not much. It did help.

A word of warning, though... DO NOT let the stuff get on your face. It's the first dye i've used that WILL NOT come off. I tried everything. It gets on and stays. I went to work yesterday with a blotchy face :\

So far, the colour is great, and I've gotten several complements on it. I usually try to stick to a red shade because it's close to my real hair colour and fits my complexion better. It's a very, very, dark brown with a really pretty bright red overtone. Looks really purdy in the sun. ;) It's looking good so far... we'll see how long it lasts though... colour doesn't stay in my hair very well, and it usually fades into the same shade of red, no matter what colour it was to start.

Becca comments: wanted to tell ya i dyed my hair with Feria's deep currant, and this color is just SOooo gawddamned beautiful! inside it's a really dark burgundy. outside in the sun? WEee nellie!! i'm talking a BLAZING burgundy-cherry-ish color!!!! it's actually the second time i've used the color. this time though it really kicks ass cus i have longer roots and most of my dark ends are cut off. after i had colored it the first time, i noticed that when it fades, it fades out even and into a really nice color... only thing is that damned aroma shit stinks! anyways.. WEeeeee!! i have kickass hair!! WEeeee!!

Thessaly comments: I picked up the Feria in "Sunset Blaze - light auburn blonde" -- which is actually a light dull red. Not as strawberry blonde as they would have you believe. I left it on the roots for about 20 min. and ran it through the rest of my hair (which had been bleached to somewhere around the shade I expected the dye to come out on the roots anyways) for about 10). it looks fine and feels good, and I smell like I've just dyed my hair, but my hair feels really thick and soft and not brittle. The colour isn't my favorite, but it's fine for what it promised; it's a little dull for my personal taste, but I knew that when I saw the box. It came out really well and I had no problems with it.


Framesi

Otterley comments: My hairdresser uses Framesi hair coloring... it comes in primary colors (i.e. red, green, blue) and you mix them together to get whatever color you desire! It's also supposed to be at least semi-permanent. She used it to dye her son's hair a nice shade of blue. Her son is 7! :) She says they import it from Italy, and that it's virtually impossible to get unless you run a salon.

Tahllula comments: I use Framesi... you have to find a beauty supply distributor and have your hairdresser pick it up for ya... I'm a hairdresser and won't use anything but that for color, its long lasting and hardly any damage! They have a burgundy (Framcolor 4mp) which is a very deep purple wine... I love it in my dark brown hair! I haven't ever seen it in bleached hair... hmmmm. You can mix it to be permanent or semi-perm (which lasts six weeks or more). It depends on if you use Framesi developer or use "Mix Color."


Henna

MoonVixen comments: If you want a more natural looking red that doesn't destroy your hair, you should try henna. I use Rainbow Henna (found in health food and vitamin stores or you can call them for a catalog 800-722-9595). Henna comes from a plant and is 100% organic. It lasts 4-6 weeks and fades gradually so there isn't a noticeable regrowth. The color isn't as vibrant as chemical dyes but most people have complemented me on my hair and most people ask or think that it is my natural color. Rainbow Henna's shades are Black, Red, Sherry (my favorite), Mahogany, Burgundy, Dark Brown, Medium Brown, and also some blond shades. It works best on healthy hair and lighter or brown hair because you can't lighten with henna, you can only go darker or redder than what your natural color is. I found Henna to be a great alternative for chickens like me that are too afraid of chemical dyes but still want red hair. I also would recommend leaving it on longer than what the directions say, and you may need to experiment because it is natural so it may not be perfect the first time.


L'Oreal

Elaine Ho comments: That new L'Oreal haircolor -- that stuff is great! Bought it ($9 CND), read the instructions, ploped it in, almost passed out because of the storng ammonia smell (first time I acutally permanently died my hair), and followed the steps exactly. It was very easy to do and didn't totally dry out my hair. I got the Plum one, which seemed to be more apparent than the Indigo one by the hair swatches. Result: my already near-black hair has a redish-purple glow, which becomes quite vivid under sunlight, changing room lights, and in my boyfriend's bathroom. Not places I can normally be found, but it makes me very joyus that it suddenly shows up. I recommend this if you want to be subtle (that is if you have very dark hair already).

Erica comments: this afternoon, i bought L'Oreal's Chunking highlighting kit in red. and i am in LOVE with it! it comes with lightener, the red dye for the highlights, the highlighting cap, and everything. in a span of two hours, i've got beautiful blood red highlights framing my face... its not messy, its easy to use... i am in love with the stuff. its the first stuff i've bought that's actually done exactly what i wanted to.

Thessaly comments: L'Oreal Casting in Stoplight Red. This happens to be my favourite red dye ever, for all that it fades. At least it tends to fade evenly. I used Redwood for a long time; then Stoplight Red came out 2 years ago, and I switched to it because it was not as orangy. It's really the only true red I've seen on the hair dye market: not too plummy/violet/burgundy, not too auburn/brown/orange. BUT -- if you have light blonde hair, be prepared for it to NOT wash out all the way, or at least take a while to wash out. Still, it's a fabulous colour, and I recommend it. In fact, I have two bottles sitting in the other room right now, after having bleached my nearly waist-length hair three times and gone through a brief "Rubine" phase just to get Black Currant out of my hair so I could have it Stoplight Red again... yeah, I love the colour THAT much.

Lauren comments: If you are looking for something that is actual dye-in-a-box-from-the-drug-store, I have recently discovered that Casting's Cherry is actually a purplish-blackish-redish colour, and not at all like the model's hair on the box.


Wella

Lady Kestrel comments: I used to use Wella products I bought from a distribution outlet for hair products (you were supposed to have a professional hair stylist license to purchase products in their store, but they never checked). It was great because when I was indoors doing professional type things, like working, it just looked black, until some bright light hit it. I used Black Cherry and Burgundy, but Black Cherry had the best "purple in the light" highlights. Of course, this is way before I knew about any alternative products like Manic Panic, but I still prefer the Wella. Oh, and fyi, I was using it without any kind of pre-treatment to my hair, which is naturally auburn (kind of a medium brown with reddish-blond highlights).


Hair Dye Recipes

From: Jen Becker
Black Cherry recipe:

i cant vouch completely for these ratios, i sort of arrived at the color you're looking for by trial and error, and i only did it once (then i stripped it and went with bright red). But basically, you want to start with any purply/burgundy based dye and add a much lesser amount of black to it. i started with a few capfuls the first time i tried, then added accordingly. even 1/4 oz. might overpower the burgundy too much. the trick is to not have so much black in there that the burgundy is pointless. my hair was a *lovely* purply/burgundy in the light that looked black inside. my natural color is medium to dark brown.


From: necroangel
i mixed 1/3 of a bottle of torrids blueblack with a whole bottle of torrids burgundy and...wow!! it looks like a normal black under low light, but brighter light makes it glow this nice deep burgundy... mmmmm, PRETTY!!!


From: mayfair
what i was working with was: one head of naturally dark brown hair, has been bleached with color for about four years so the only natural part was my 1/2" roots -- rest of hair currently dyed a combo of Fudge's Strawberry Fields and a little Poppy Red (Manic Panic or Punky Colors, don't remember which) -- it was fading and looking orange-y -- so i wanted to make it happier looking.

resources:

  • 1/4 jar of Punky Colors Violet something or other
  • 1/6 jar of Fudge Poppy Red
  • 1/2 tube of Fudge Strawberry Fields
  • 1/2 jar of Punky Colors Atlantic Blue

being an artist, i figured i'd do a little mixing to make a nice cool red. maybe the Strawberry Fields and a smidgen of blue just to make it less orangey. but i got a little out of control because the blue was so pretty. i put the gunk i made on my hair and a hour later, viola! it's pretty! i made perfect, happy ,really blue-ish grape purple. i *heart* it, seven ppl. have already commented positively on it, and it's very shiny and happy looking (the red was looking drab on my overprocessed hair). plus since the Fudge and Punky Colors don't really MIX very well (they kind of are like vinegar and waterish, but not as extreme) you get this neat look where some strands are just blue, some are reddish violet and some are both. swoony.

so here is my final combination if anyone else feels like mixing this thing up...

  • 1/4 Fudge Strawberry Fields
  • 1/4 Punky Colors Violet
  • 1/2 Punky Colors Atlantic Blue



back to 5.2 dye my dark hair white or
on to 5.4 make my dyed hair color last longer

back to the table.of.contents or
back to the front page