If possible, avoid conditioner when you wash your hair the day before dyeing it. Conditioner eliminates your natural oils, which you need for the dye to set in more easily. If your hair is extremely dry, condition it every night for at least five minutes in a hot shower for a week before you plan to dye your hair. Then, do not condition your hair the night before dyeing. This will keep your hair from drying out after you dye it.
If you are new to dyeing, you can also try dyeing your hair with a temporary or semi-permanent dye first. Using one of these types of dyes ensure that if you mess up, you won’t have live with your mistake for long. Keep in mind that you have to apply semi-permanent dye to damp hair. Temporary dyes, such as chalk and mousse, usually wash out after 1 to 2 shampoos. Semi-permanent dyes will rinse out after 20 to 26 shampoos. Permanent dyes are permanent. The color may fade after 6-8 weeks, but will need to grow out. [2] X Research source
If your hair dye does not come with a paint brush, you can buy one at your local beauty supply store or just use your gloved fingers to apply the dye. Be careful picking colors based on what they look like on the box, as that may not be what you actually get. For instance, if you have black hair, you’re too far on the color spectrum from blonde to easily achieve that color.
If you need to purchase your own developer, choose a 20% developer. Each increment of 10 represents one level change of color. For instance, a 30% developer will move your hair up three levels. If you’re a sandy blonde, then you can get to a bright, sunny golden blonde with 30%, because that’s a level 7 to a level 10 change.
For virgin (first time dyeing) hair, start applying dye about 1 inch (3 cm) from your roots. For touch-ups, start applying dye about ½ inch from your roots. Work the dye into your hair well so that you do more than simply color the top layer of your hair. The thicker your hair is, the smaller you should make your sections so that the dye can saturate the hair fully.
Never leave hair dye in overnight. Leaving it in overnight will dry out your hair and it may cause severe skin irritation as well.
Once you have put a shower cap on, you can wrap your head in a towel so that the cap retains the heat of your head. This will speed up the dyeing process.
Don’t panic if you see the color run in the shower - this is totally natural and does not mean you’ve messed up the dyeing process. Keep in mind that if the dye is temporary, the dye will continue to run each time you wash it until it is completely gone.
Almost every kit comes with conditioner, but if yours did not you can just use what you have at home.
