So I feel like a hypocrite

[calmyogi]

On a whim I decided to color my hair black and I really like the color on me. I just wanted to try something fresh, but now I'm tossing the idea around of maintaining this color for awhile. My predicament is that I feel like a fraud or hypocrite if I continue to maintain my color with conventional dye because I try so hard to use natural products in every other aspect of my life (on a regular basis).... Does anyone else have this problem, or a solution?

I have read about henna abd indigo, but idk if I'm brave enough to attempt that OR if it would even work on my roots now that I have used a conventional dye.

[Addy]

I won't scoff at you for using any kind of dyes. I feel like this... If you like the color, it doesn't harm your skin (allergy wise) and it looks good on you... who am I to say otherwise?

Now show us some pics! lol

[Carolyn]

If you like the color keep it as long as you wish. Don't feel guilty. There is nothing to feel guilty about. It's your hair. Natural schmatural as far as I'm concerned.

[Anje]

Henna and indigo as a 2-step process will give you a good black, but I see a lot of people give it up, probably because of the time commitment it takes. Sometimes the henna still flares in the sun, too, but it depends on the person.

My first though is that you should at least try some of the deposit-only dyes out there. Manic Panic, Special Effects, Adore, and so on should ask be completely non-damaging and you can leave them on longer for deeper staining. Failing that, get to Sally or a similar beauty supply store. You should be able to purchase the components for conventional dye separately and get a considerably lower volume peroxide developer than typically comes in the boxes of prepackaged stuff.

[chen bao jun]

Everybody has their little inconsistencies. Nobody will notice but you, or if they do notice, they won't care. But actually, truly nobody will notice. It's not like it's polite to come up and ask someone, are you dyeing your hair and what are you using exactly?

[meteor]

My predicament is that I feel like a fraud or hypocrite if I continue to maintain my color with conventional dye because I try so hard to use natural products in every other aspect of my life (on a regular basis)....

Well, the reality is that it's practically impossible to use only natural products in our everyday life, even for the toughest purists, so what's wrong with going natural where you can and want to and using commercial products when you want to?
Don't worry about this! :blossom:

[MidnightMoon]

I wouldn't worry about that at all, and hey, it's better to use some natural products than any at all :)

[Rushli]

Well, the reality is that it's practically impossible to use only natural products in our everyday life, even for the toughest purists, so what's wrong with going natural where you can and want to and using commercial products when you want to?
Don't worry about this! :blossom:

This is pretty much what I was going to say. I try really hard to have natural products in our house, but sometimes I just have to fudge to make it more simple.

[CurlyCap]

Nah. Don't worry about it!

I also tend to gravitate towards natural products. On a daily basis, especially for leave-ins, I find them less irritating and it just seems to make more sense to me.

But to detangle I often pull out Science Project Level Conditioners because the natural stuff rarely works.

So if you walk into my bathroom, you'll see beautiful jars full of oils, and EOs, and butters, and flax seed gel.....and giant bottles of discount commercial conditioner.

DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU!

:blossom:

[Rosetta]

My first though is that you should at least try some of the deposit-only dyes out there. Manic Panic, Special Effects, Adore, and so on should ask be completely non-damaging and you can leave them on longer for deeper staining. Failing that, get to Sally or a similar beauty supply store. You should be able to purchase the components for conventional dye separately and get a considerably lower volume peroxide developer than typically comes in the boxes of prepackaged stuff.
I second the suggestion of deposit-only dyes, as they're so non-damaging and also better for your health in the long-term (not that I'd be judging you for using boxed dyes!). :)

As for the peroxide in boxed dyes, it is actually quite easy to dilute the peroxide included and thus get a lower volume developer - I often did that when I was still using chemical dyes. For example, just pour away half of the peroxide (or put to a separate container), add conditioner instead, and voila, you've halved the peroxide strength ;) (Of course you have to make sure the overall quantity still stays the same.)

The "boxed stuff" gets such a bad rap, though there's no difference in ingredients to what you get in buying them separately, the peroxide volume being the only difference, and even that's easily amended as I said above.


It's not like it's polite to come up and ask someone, are you dyeing your hair and what are you using exactly?
No, but it's surprising how many people still do that ;)

[MINAKO]

maintaining black hair is fun. i think you can get away with a base of convetional dye and then layer on the good stuff, like henna, indigo or deposits. if you keep using box dyes it can get dull and lifeless looking after some time, especially with jet black. i would suggest a one step henndigo for the touch ups and to keep some blueish deposits around. aint nobody got time for a two step process anyways :)

[lapushka]

I'd stick with the regular dye. You'll have *lots* of issues with even more chemical products to get henna/indigo out than you are now maintaining this color. What harm does that do? Unless you develop sensitivity to PPD, I wouldn't start messing with henna/indigo - ever.

[calmyogi]

Thank you everyone for your advice.

My husband always says that it's virtually impossible for human beings to be fully "natural".

My gut tells me to stick with the box dye in case I want to do something else later on. My friend who is a hairdresser told me that if I want my natural color back in the future it would be fairly easy for me to do a bleach wash because my hair is maybe two levels lighter than black anyways.

[calmyogi]

I won't scoff at you for using any kind of dyes. I feel like this... If you like the color, it doesn't harm your skin (allergy wise) and it looks good on you... who am I to say otherwise?

Now show us some pics! lol

I'll try and post some pics for you Addy :)

Also the funny thing is is that I was having dandruff and itchy scaly scalp before I did the color and now it's been gone for the last few days. If my scalp seems to stay healthier that would be a major plus!

[arr]

My only suggestion would be to keep using the permanent dye on your new growth but dont use it on the lengths. To refresh your length use a semi or demi dye. It will be better for your hair health and in the long run it will look more natural because as Minako stated above, permanent dye can build up over time and start to look very unnatural.

[MINAKO]

thats true, its much more of a commitment then any other color. just be careful with those box dyes. i think very dark hair has the most impact when its shiny and still has some depth to it in the undertones.with indigo you can build that up beautifully without damaging your hair, same goes for deposits.
maybe its different for me, because what grows from my scalp is already black, but im pretty sure i will never want to expiriment with lighter colors again. the high contrast monochrome does so much for the rest of my features. if thats the case for you, you most likely will stick to it anyways.
you could try coffee and molasses rinses for now, does give a beautiful shine and is also pretty great for the scalp.

[pastina]

lots of good advice in this thread.

i also suggest staying away from the henndigo (unless you're sure you want black FOREVER. the only safe way to remove henna is to chop it out). and i second only doing roots with permanent dye from now on and refreshing your color with a semi--- you can even add a bit of the semi to your conditioner to give yourself a little color boost each time you wash. i'd shop around a bit before choosing a black semi, though, some are green based, and i'd imagine that a red based black would be a better option for you.

one thing, though-- when you decide to ditch the black, please don't use bleach to get rid of dye. use color oops. and don't expect it to take you back to your natural color-- permanent dye does lift pigment before depositing color, so your hair will appear a bit lighter than natural and a bit brassier when the black is removed.

[meteor]

^ Yes, I was going to suggest the same as pastina. ^ Color remover (e.g. Color Oops) is going to be a lot gentler on hair than bleach right away. So many hairdressers, unfortunately, skip the color remover step, because it takes longer and you have to rinse it like crazy and then some to avoid any potential color problems. But it's really a lot better for your hair in the long run. :)

Also, I really agree with everyone who suggested not using henna or indigo, since you aren't sure you want it permanently, but instead use Manic Panic, Directions, Adore or other temporary, veggie, non-damaging dyes. No commitment, no damage!
It's so easy to go darker temporarily without damage that I don't know why people even bother with damaging permanent dyes (unless they already love the product and want to keep that exact shade forever).

[calmyogi]

Well I already did it so I'm stuck with the black until I either remove the color, some how, or grow it back out. I was going to def only do my roots and not all of it. Will the less permanent dyes work on my roots to blend them in as they grow out with the permanent dye? What can I do to keep the shine and avoid a blah look later on?

[calmyogi]

I'm really niave when it comes to coloring hair. I always thought things like Manic panic and the like aren't permanent by any means.

[meteor]

Well I already did it so I'm stuck with the black until I either remove the color, some how, or grow it back out. I was going to def only do my roots and not all of it. Will the less permanent dyes work on my roots to blend them in as they grow out with the permanent dye? What can I do to keep the shine and avoid a blah look later on?
Yes, I think so. :) You should strand-test first though!
I'd research a lot and then get a jar or two of Manic Panic (or other deposit-only temporary dye) to check on hair and blend if needed, to get the right shade that you are looking for.


I always thought things like Manic panic and the like aren't permanent by any means.
Yes, Manic Panic, Adore, Directions and other veggie dyes are only temporary. That's the beauty of it, if you don't want to commit. :flower: They can still stain for a very long time on some hair, especially if it's light and was bleached before. Always strand test!

[spidermom]

Hypocrisy is the human condition, I think. The only concern I have for you is that people can develop severe allergies to ingredients in hair dye over time, so don't take it for granted and skip the step where you test for allergy. I've read more weeping scalp stories than I wished for already.

[pastina]

honestly, in my experience, semi-permanent black and semi-permanent red both stay truer for longer than permanent dye. i actually used a permanent black dye right before i got pregnant with my first son-- i took weekly tummy shots, and in the pictures you can actually see the black fading down to brown!

[calmyogi]

honestly, in my experience, semi-permanent black and semi-permanent red both stay truer for longer than permanent dye. i actually used a permanent black dye right before i got pregnant with my first son-- i took weekly tummy shots, and in the pictures you can actually see the black fading down to brown!

It's funny that you said this because I was actually freaking out (for a second until I realized I really liked it lol) after I did it and my friend was telling me that it will fade out so much that it won't be much darker than my natural color in a month or two anyways.

[swearnsue]

I try to use natural cosmetics and beauty products whenever possible. But I enjoy using the conventional stuff now and then. Life is meant to be enjoyed! If I could bleach my hair blonde and not have it dry out I would do it in a second!

I used box dye for years on short hair and I loved how it made my hair shinier and felt thicker too. It was fun to do, quick and fairly inexpensive. Even the better dye, L'Oreal for example, was only about $12 a few years ago.

You are not a hypocrite in my opinion and my opinion doesn't even matter, it's how YOU feel.

Henna and indigo is a pain frankly. Might be worth a try if you aren't working and have no social life. Well, I'm exaggerating a bit, I just want you to be happy with your hair.

I'm waiting for pics too! Please share with us. Before AND after if possible!!

[calmyogi]

How do I post photos on the thread? I have only done it once abd I wasn't even able to post it so it came up on the thread, I also don't even remember how I did it before either.

[Sarah08]

I haven't read through all the other responses, but to address the guilty feeling you may have of being a "fraud or hypocrite", all I can say is that using natural products on your hair is a preference, not your religion/ideology (unless of course it IS, lol), so don't sweat it. If people judge you negatively for that, then they're frickin weird!
Peace! :heart:

[Rosetta]

Hypocrisy is the human condition, I think. The only concern I have for you is that people can develop severe allergies to ingredients in hair dye over time, so don't take it for granted and skip the step where you test for allergy. I've read more weeping scalp stories than I wished for already.
The problem is that the test part does in no way prevent you getting a bad allergic reaction anyway... This has happened to many who have had a truly bad (even fatal) serious reaction. And the longer you use chemical dyes, the more likely it is that one day you will have such a reaction... (And even apart from allergic reactions, all those chemicals in dyes are doing nothing good for one's health in the long term.) That's the main reason I ditched PPD dyes for good.

So, while there's nothing wrong with wanting to dye your hair, I'd stay away from PPD dyes as there are so much better & non-damaging alternatives available, i.e. deposit-only dyes and plant dyes (though the latter might be out in this case). :)

[JadedByEntropy]

I love chemical dye, but i only use it every year or so and stick with colors close to my roots so when it fades, it looks natural. I'm 3-4A (in hair color code) which sounds like you too, so really, we can get away with most colors with our roots. :toast:

Don't worry too much about damage, unless you're dying too frequently and / or using bleach!! Bleach turns hair to straw so as long as you go darker, its actually not that bad.

and if you think off all the damage nature does to our hair....it can't be much different.

[sumidha]

I'm pretty sure (and someone with more conventional dye experience please correct me if I'm wrong) that if the dye you're using comes with two separate bottles that you mix together before applying then in addition to dying your hair you're also bleaching it, which seems kind of counter productive to me if the color you're going for is black.

I used L'oreal Feria black dye several years ago in a moment of silliness and ended up with all the black color completely washed out in about three months, leaving me with bleach damage and brassy bleached looking ends. After that I switched to Manic Panic, which also gradually washes out, but without permanent damage. Of course it also somewhat depends on each individual's hair, some people use a conventional box dye once to go darker and find that it stays for. ever. Sadly that was not the case for me...

So yeah, if you are using one with bleach for root touch ups be careful that you aren't applying it to previously dyed hair, if you're concerned about possible bleach damage. And enjoy your black hair, this thread is totally making me itch to get out my Manic Panic and go darker again! :)