Has anyone gone from salon coloring to do it yourself?

[Eeyoreloverforever]

I have been going to a professional salon to get my hair colored and cut for about 10 years now.

I am getting annoyed at myself for the money I spend there. I spend on average $250 every 5 weeks.

I was wondering if there was a way to keep my hair looking as great while spending less money.

Are there hair coloring kits you can do on your own that look as good?
What hair products work as well as Redkin?

I would really like to reduce that bill, but I still want to look good.

 

[tinkerbelletreasure]

Do you have a Sally's Beauty Supply in your area? The professional salons really do shop at those places. You can buy the exact same color for about $5. The hard part is learning to apply it correctly. I had a niece who took cosmotology and she showed me the correct way. I have never had my hair professionally colored.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

I used to go to a salon as often and as expensive as you do. It's crazy! I now do my own hair coloring and go back to get it cut every few months (and my hair stylist compliments me on my coloring job ). I colored my hair before I started going to the salon so I did have some experience in it. When I first stopped going I bought a box of Loreal Excellence (I also like Preference and Feria but I haven't been as pleased with other brands I've used) that was close (and a little bit lighter) to the color my hair was already dyed to (I use "Ash" toned or "cooler" colors as anything golden will make my hair look brassy/orange). I just did the roots and maybe 1/2" past (be careful with ash toned dyes going over blonde highlights, they will more than likely turn gray or have a gray tint to them). The next day I used a highlighting kit and just did a few small pieces around the top of my head and around my face to kind of blend in the colors.

It really does take some practice to really find what works for you (also you can always test something you're really unsure of close to your roots on a section underneath your hair). If you have two shades and can't decide go with the lighter one. I ended up a dark brunette once because I picked up a box of "dark blonde".

I now only dye my roots and don't even highlight anymore. I also always use coupons with a sale and buy my dye for $2.99-$3.99 a box .

 

[NeverlandClub23]

Do you have a Sally's Beauty Supply in your area? The professional salons really do shop at those places. You can buy the exact same color for about $5. The hard part is learning to apply it correctly. I had a niece who took cosmotology and she showed me the correct way. I have never had my hair professionally colored.

I love Sally's. Usually the people there are very helpful too .

They have a purple shampoo called something like Clairol Silver Lights that I used when I would end up a little too yellow or brassy.

 

[dakcp2001]

I use Feria! The first few times it is hard & you make a big mess, but then you get used to it. Few tips I have learned along the way:

Dont dye immediately after washing your hair, wait a day or two.

You need a mirror to see the back of your hair, a big plastic wide tooth comb that you can rinse dye off of later, a couple of plastic clips, a tshirt you can throw away after you get color on it, and an old towel

Buy two boxes if you have long hair, better too much than not enough when you are mid dye.

Put vaseline as a barrier line around your hairline, ears etc, anythign you dont want "dyed"

When you get dye on your skin, use shampoo (no water) to scrub it off. Someone here on the Dis once told me that water makes the dye set, I have no idea if that is true.

If you have a friend that can help, you will make a lot less of a mess!!

 

[secretpantssam]

I have only gone to a professional once and it was the worst dye job I've ever had!!

I dye my hair red and most people tell me how lucky I am to be a natural red head!! So I must be doing something right.

I usually like the Loreal hair dyes... Preference and Excellence I feel are the best quality and the most natural looking. If you are doing the highlights yourself, the kits work well. My tip for highlights is make the sections of hair your highlighting very small....the first time I did it, I highlighted too much and I just had top lights!

 

[Kathi OD]

Just gotta say that I tried to color my hair by myself more than a few times while DH was unemployed to save money, and I SUCK at it. It's really hard for me to do. I always had to go back to the salon, which ended up costing me more money.

BUT...I don't pay anywhere near $250 to get my hair cut/colored. I went just last week and it cost $75 for cut/color.

 

[Justsyd2]

Have you shopped around for a better price? I pay $60 to have my hair colored and cut. Have you asked around for a better price? I've tried doing it myself, and I'd much rather have someone else do it.

 

[helloirishkitty]

I used to dye my hair myself, and Feria was by far my favorite. It is a little more $$ than the other options, but it was the only one that didn't make my hair brassy and orange when I died it blonde.

Now I get a cut/color every five weeks and it's $90... if I had to pay $250, I would be doing it at home too!

 

[beansmom]

i used to color my own hair but now i go to Fantastic Sam's about every 6 wks and pay $55. It looks much better than when I do it myself. It's cheaper to do at home but doesn't look as good.

 

[DawnM]

I use L'Oreal with the highlighter step added.

They go for around $14 per box but are the best I have found for my hair. I get a lot of compliments.

I also found the color I like on sale and had coupons, so I got 12 boxes for $2 each and they are in my bathroom closet right now!

It is this kind:

http://www.drugstore.com/products/p...dBrandFilter=45885&fromsrch=loreal+hair+color

Dawn

 

[dakcp2001]

Another option is a local beauty or cosmetology school. Call the ones in your area to see if they need volunteers. There is one near me that charges only for supplies and it is ALL SUPERVISED by the instructors, so it always came out good. I stopped using them because it just took so long to get an appointment. I still go there for facials (20 bucks)!

 

[zoie101]

Coming from a stylist view, talk to your stylist before you do anything, tell her what you told us. I am sure she will have alternatives or suggestions for you....

 

[mistysue]

Having been a stylist I have to say that home colors are much better than they used to be.

It is not unusual for a person who colors their hair at home now to actually have better color than somebody who goes to a salon. Just buy a box and go for it. Apply to your "roots" first, then draw it through the rest of your previously color treated hair.

If you don't feel comfortable, I would look into a cosmetology school because the students are supervised by somebody with more experience than the average stylist. I saw a statistic that most people are only in the industry for 2 years, so chances are when you walk into a salon you are being helped by somebody with little experience. The "best" stylists are often not the most skilled, but the ones who are loud and promote themselves the best.

 

[rewok]

At that price, I'm guessing you have some special effect with different colors, because it does seem very high for a plain color, even if you get a cut & style. (I pay about 200$ if I get full hair high/lowights). This kind of effect is very hard to do at home if you don't have a very handy friend, so you'd have to go for a solid color. Can't you ask you stylist for that, it is much cheaper at my place, and then you can go just for the roots, every other time, even cheaper!

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

I used to have my hair cut and colored professionally... but then my regular stylist went into rehab and I got tired of taking a chance wherever I happened to be traveling. One day I was in desperate need of a cut and found myself at the Supercuts around the corner. The manager who cut my hair was outstanding so now I see her once every 8 weeks ($20.95 plus tip!) and I do my color myself. I use a demi-permanent color on my roots in a yellow-based color one shade lighter than my natural medium brown and it makes my grays a nice shade of golden highlights. I get my supplies at Sally's and it costs me roughly $4 each time I color (about once a month). I get more compliments on my hair now than I did when I was having it done professionally. YMMV

 

[amberjack]

Talk to your stylist. Maybe she/he could suggest something that requires less maintenance. I am a stylist and have worked with clients regarding prices many times. Even bartered. One cleaned my house for a while while in college in exchange for getting her hair done. I also give discounts for referrals.

Oh, and I don't buy my color at Sally's...

 

[badblackpug]

I pay about $180 every 6 weeks for cut/2 process color/blow dry. I think prices really depend on your area. This is about the norm here. I tried once, a very long time ago, to color my own hair. It was a disaster. It cost more to fix than it would have if I had just let my stylist do it. I have very thick hair and I cannot manage to get the color on evenly. Also, I am "blonde" and it is a difficult color to get right.

I worship my stylist................

 

[Wigit12]

I explained to my stylist that I had to stop because of the cost. She recommended using Loreal and told me which shades to try. Used to get highlights/lowlights and now (4 years later) no one can tell I ever changed. I don't love doing it myself but it saves a ton of money and time. Can't imagine ever spending all that money again.
When I went back once for my son's wedding to treat myself I actually didn't love the old colors anymore. I love mine much more.
I had my daughter-in-law help me the first time because I was petrified and she had done her hair a zillion times. Now it's a piece of cake.

 

[StephMK]

I have only gone to a professional once and it was the worst dye job I've ever had!!

I dye my hair red and most people tell me how lucky I am to be a natural red head!! So I must be doing something right.

That happens to me too! I have a lot of freckles so that helps w/the image. People comment that none of my kids got my red hair and I always respond, if they choose to color when they're older, then they can go red too.

My girls have really dark brown hair & DS is blond so I'd be very unhappy if they change their colors. Mine was a mousy blondish brown and I've colored it since I was 13! I always choose a "golden" named color because it gives the red without being too red. I'm more of a very light auburn color.