Kayla Young
Going from blonde to dark hair can be really exciting, just a couple of hours to a new you! Using the best products when coloring your hair is important, whether you’re going from a dark shade to blonde or from blonde to a darker shade.
But hair grows! And slowly but surely, your roots will show. What do you do about blonde roots on dyed dark hair?
When those pesky roots start to show, covering them up is not always as easy as it seems. If you have colored hair, this article is for you!
You have a few options:
- Dye the roots to match your hair
- Embrace the color change and rock the ombre look
- Visit your salon for a touch-up
- Try hair mascara on the roots
Read on for a full explainer!
Contents
Blonde Roots on Dyed Dark Hair
You’ve had your luscious dark hair for a bit, are now the blonde roots will be starting to peek out a bit. What do you do?
When there’s a significant color difference between the roots and the hair color, it really stands out. There are a few options you can follow to deal with the color difference.
1. Box Dye
You could try getting a box dye that matches your hair color, and color your too to match the hair color. It’s a lot of hassle to deal with a box dye for a small amount of hair, but it’s probably your best bet for simplicity and effectiveness.
2. Visit the Salon
A more costly, but even easier solution is to hit your salon for a touch up. Often if you’ve got your hair colored at a salon, your stylist will do reduced-cost touch-ups to the roots. The stylist will likely do a better job of matching the color than you will, but you have to deal with scheduling, appointments, etc.
3. Hair Mascara
Hair mascara isn’t at the top of everyone’s list, but it’s not a bad solution for these cases. Commonly used to hide grey roots, hair mascara is basically the same thing as mascara but designed to color hair.
You apply hair mascara with a wand, and it is available in a wide variety of color options. When you’re dealing with just a small amount of roots to touch up, hair mascara is an easy method. However, you’ll have to apply it daily, and it’s vulnerable to washing out if it gets wet.
- 【INSTANT GRAY COVERAGE】 Effortlessly...
- 【PRECISION MASCARA WAND】 The mascara...
- 【SMUDGE-PROOF FORMULA】 Enjoy...
- 【DIVERSE COLOR RANGE】 Choose from a...
- 【EASY REMOVAL】 This root touch-up...
4. Embrace the Ombre
Ombre hair is so in right now! It may not look great if you only have a little bit of your roots showing, but as it grows out a bit further, embracing the ombre look can be a great choice.
Coloring Your Hair: The Ins and Outs of Hair Coloring products
Coloring your hair in your own home is now possible with the wide variety of hair coloring products on the market.
Suppose you want a semi-permanent or temporary color for a special event, or maybe you want to change up your look completely. In that case, box dye is relatively inexpensive and can give you great coverage.
Other factors to consider are using a temporary or permanent color kit rather than going to an expensive salon and having a stylist color or doing it yourself at home.
These choices are, of course, down to personal preference and budget.
Temporary and Permanent Hair Color
Temporary or semi-permanent hair dyes are perfect for a quick change for an event, holiday, or just to see how you would look with different hair colors. Used the same way as permanent color kits, changing your hair color for a week or two is now possible. Temporary hair color kits wash out after a few washes.
Permanent hair color kits are designed to permanently color your hair a different shade. There will, of course, be regrowth, but a good quality permanent hair color can last as long as six weeks if maintained properly. Follow on to read more tips on maintaining your colored hair and extending your color’s lifespan.
Home Vs. Salon Coloring
Home hair coloring kits are great if you know what you are doing, but some coloring jobs should be done in a salon. Going from a dark shade to a color like blonde is tricky. Home dye and bleach kits can be harsh and could cause significant damage to your hair if not used correctly.
Color Maintenance
Maintaining that color is very important now that you’ve colored your hair. Several products, including serums, conditioners, and oils, can be used on colored hair to not only enhance the color but protect the color from fading too quickly.
A good quality color-protecting shampoo and conditioner is one of the best and most worthwhile purchases for your colored hair. Use them together to keep your hair shiny and your color bright.
For those in-between days, dry shampoo will help clean your hair without the loss of color that occurs when washing your hair. Try and stretch the time between washes to keep your hair looking shiny.
Serums and oils are great to add shine to your hair and can put back any moisture that may be lost during the coloring process.
Coloring Cons: Maintain Your Hair after Coloring
If you’re using a home hair coloring kit, you are exposing your hair to chemicals like ammonia and bleach. There are, of course, coloring kits that are ammonia-free, so be sure to read the ingredient listing on your preferred brand.
Coloring your hair can result in a loss of moisture as the dye bonds with your hair strands. Every box of hair dye includes a packet or small bottle of conditioner, but this is often not enough to rehydrate your hair after a harsh color treatment.
Most hair dye companies recommend that you wash your hair with a purifying shampoo the day before you intend to color it to remove any residue and build-up that could prevent the color from “taking” to your hair. This is the number one cause of loss of moisture.
The overall condition of your hair once you have colored it depends on the following:
1. The condition of your hair before coloring
Dry, lifeless hair is not improved by coloring your hair. While the color may “stay” better, the chemicals used in hair dyes can dry out your hair even more. Combat this problem by using a good-quality shampoo and conditioner. Use a leave-in conditioning treatment once a week to give your hair good hydration.
2. The color you have chosen
Dyeing your hair blonde might seem like a great idea, but for those with dark hair, it means bleaching your hair. This strips your hair of color and all the good moisture too. Hot oil treatments can help rehydrate your hair, or you can buy a toning shampoo and conditioner to keep your hair from going brassy while maintaining moisture.
3. How often you wash your hair
The more you wash your colored hair, the quicker the color will fade. Unfortunately, even permanent hair dyes are not completely permanent and will fade over a few weeks. As mentioned above, using dry shampoo on those in-between days can help maintain your color. For dark hair, there are colored dry shampoos available from any drug store.
4. The hair care products you are using
Quality hair care products are not cheap but are most definitely worth the splurge. Buy the best products you can afford to keep your hair healthy, maintain the color, and look great.
Brand names are great, but several generic or store-brand options are just as good and can help you take the best possible care of your hair.
Buy the best products you can afford to keep your hair healthy, maintain the color, and look great.
Conclusion
If you’ve dyed your hair a dark color and now your blonde roots are showing, your choice is to cover them up with a coloring product like a hair dye or hair mascara, or embrace the roots and go ombre.
Most will likely choose hair dye, but hair mascara really works well in these cases.
By properly maintaining your dyed hair, you’ll keep your color looking great for as long as possible.
