How to: Dye Your Hair Successfully

June 27, 2017

Hair colouring - How to dye your hair

Smart Beauty products have been on the market since 2002 and have been regularly used by many happy customers. Most people using our products get amazing results and enjoy the process for many reasons. We use amazing products that smell nice, don't make the eyes water, are vegan, PPD free (except a few browns) and ammonia free (except a few bleaches) and are Not Tested On Animals. However, periodically we get feedback from customers about their hair dying results and these are the questions; 
• My hair colour was patchy
 • My hair went the wrong colour 
• My hair didn't dye
 • The hair colour didn't last 
• My hair green not blue
 • My end result colour is no where near electric blue
So, to answer your questions about why the colour didn't take, why shade is wrong, or why the colour didn't last, we are doing a step-by-step guide to preparing your hair for dying.
Preparation
Wash your hair the day before with a clarifying shampoo to remove build up of chemicals, hard water mineral deposits, spray, mousse, gels, chlorine and conditioner residue from your hair. If there is a lot of build up the results could be patchy, faint or not at all.
For Smart Colour Semi-permanent colours, Smart Highlights, Dipdye and Smart Pastel colours, hair should be sqeaky clean.
For Permanent hair dyes and hair lightening where the chemicals are harsher, wait a day or two after cleaning off your hair - the oils in your hair from a day of rest will protect your scalp from the harsh chemicals and help to keep the hair healthy.
Don't use a silicone shampoo designed to leave your hair glossy – it will act as a barrier to the dye and stop the colour from taking hold. Clarifying shampoos do not include oils, though I recently found a Moroccan oil based product claiming to be a clarifying shampoo. Try; 
• Anti-residue shampoo by Neutrogena
 • Coppola keratin complex clarifying shampoo
 • Clarifying shampoo three by Paul Mitchell (good for swimmers) 
• Quantum clarifying shampoo
 • Or as a last resort use a baby shampoo, mix a small amount of fairy liquid with a non conditioning shampoo or mix 2 tablespoons of bicarbonate of soda with 3 cups of warm water and massage into hair & rinse.
*Smart Beauty are in the process of producing a clarifying shampoo, which will be available in sachets. We can't include these in our products because we are under pressure by the retailers to keep prices down.
The technical bit.... Conditioner is a thick substance that coats the cuticles of hair. It contains oils, silicone, sunscreen which protects the hair by penetrating the hair shaft and changing the ph. Hair is made of a protein called Keratin. Keratin has a high percentage of negative charged amino acids that stick out of the follicle. Shampoos are also negatively charged, which removed dirt as well as natural oils. Conditioner contains positively charged molecules (oily and wet), which bind to the negative charges in the hair. The wet molecules contain the positive charge, the oily molecules smooths the hair and gives weight. These molecules don't completely rinse out of the hair, protecting it longer term.
Dying your hair
• Hair dye will stain your skin. To prevent this use Vaseline or thick conditioner around the hair line. Remove stains with vinegar
 • Wear protective gloves.
 • Apply to clean, dry hair and follow the instructions that come in the hair dye packaging.

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