I don't know what to do! (hair colour problems.)

[Erizu]

And now the part of me which I despise has decided to come out and play...

I dyed my hair with henna around three weeks ago and it has faded to a colour which I'm not happy with. It's too orange and dull for my liking and I strongly feel that I will look better with a deeper orangey red. Unfortunately there are so many routes which I can go down and I'm overwhelmed by the choice! :lol:

One of the options I'm considering is henna glosses. I'm not sure about using henna again though as it has loosened my curl, changed the way it behaves and I didn't experience any mind-blowing benefits. Does anyone know if they loosen curl like undiluted applications do? I'm also unsure that I'll be able to achieve the colour I'd like. I'd like to stay natural, though. And then that brings me to trying to remove it with Colour B4; it's tempting to return to square one, get the hair I'm familiar with back and decide what to do from there. One day I'm flirting with the idea of going back to blonde and the next I'm certain that I want to be a redhead! Why must my brain torture me like this? :confused:

Semi-permanent dyes have been suggested to me but there's so much choice. The unfamiliar realm of chemical dyes is also intimidating, but the vibrancy is quite alluring indeed.

I'm just getting needlessly anxious about all this; it's really stupid. It's just hair, I'm telling myself! :p I suppose I'm just really undecided on what I want.

I just realised that this is more of a rant than a plea for advice. I know it's a decision that only really I can make but I could really do with some opinions!

[Anje]

The easiest route if you want something more intense is probably to go to the semi-permanent direct dyes that often come in rather wild colors. If you don't bleach your hair, they're not at all damaging, and they will (generally) fade out over time (though reds tend to be more permanent than most other colors, and often are longer-lasting than the so-called "permanent" box dye reds). I really like Adore as a brand for these (and it comes in both natural and funky colors), but you'll see tons of endorsements for Special Effects, Arctic Fox, Manic Panic, Directions, Punky, and so on. Arguably, the risk of it staining your hair a bit red for the long term is pretty much obviated by the fact that you've got henna on your hair now, so your hair is already permanently stained an orangey red.

Like it or not, you're unlikely to get back to square one after using henna. Some people experience fading from it, or are able to get it off with Color Oops, but many people find that it just won't budge. Even bleaching has poor results and is quite damaging. But that's OK. It's fun to be a redhead. Really.

<-- natural redhead.

Edit: Do be forewarned -- repeated henna applications will darken your hair each time. The henna goes from orangey to brick red to something that's almost burgundy indoors. It'll still flare bright reddish orange in the sun, though.

Also, consider that it's winter, and hair (especially red hair) tends to look dull right now. It was January when I first went after henna to try to make my darkening red hair redder. Take a look at it in sunlight, rather than under the house/office fluorescent lights before you make any decisions to do anything.

[Erizu]

weird failure of posting. :D

[Erizu]

The easiest route if you want something more intense is probably to go to the semi-permanent direct dyes that often come in rather wild colors. If you don't bleach your hair, they're not at all damaging, and they will (generally) fade out over time (though reds tend to be more permanent than most other colors, and often are longer-lasting than the so-called "permanent" box dye reds). I really like Adore as a brand for these (and it comes in both natural and funky colors), but you'll see tons of endorsements for Special Effects, Arctic Fox, Manic Panic, Directions, Punky, and so on. Arguably, the risk of it staining your hair a bit red for the long term is pretty much obviated by the fact that you've got henna on your hair now, so your hair is already permanently stained an orangey red.

Like it or not, you're unlikely to get back to square one after using henna. Some people experience fading from it, or are able to get it off with Color Oops, but many people find that it just won't budge. Even bleaching has poor results and is quite damaging. But that's OK. It's fun to be a redhead. Really.

<-- natural redhead.

Edit: Do be forewarned -- repeated henna applications will darken your hair each time. The henna goes from orangey to brick red to something that's almost burgundy indoors. It'll still flare bright reddish orange in the sun, though.

Also, consider that it's winter, and hair (especially red hair) tends to look dull right now. It was January when I first went after henna to try to make my darkening red hair redder. Take a look at it in sunlight, rather than under the house/office fluorescent lights before you make any decisions to do anything.

Ah, someone who's had experience with Adore! I've been looking at their dyes as they're quite cheap and easy for me to get. What shades would you recommend? I was thinking paprika with perhaps a little bit of one of their reds mixed in.

ETA: You've made me feel slightly better. Thank you! :o

[Anje]

I've mostly messed with Adore in the funky colors, so I can't give you a lot of guidance on the more natural ones. But they're cheap and accessible for me too, and they seem to stick better than Manic Panic with a lot less transfer to everything else.

Uh, Raging Red has pink undertones, and Truly Red has orange ones. Paprika is probably great, but I don't own it.
I did make a swatch card, which I photographed under awful lighting. Everything except Forest Green and the Manic Panic Pillarbox Red is Adore (and I don't recommend that KISS forest green).
http://i.imgur.com/2yWpEDG.jpg

[lapushka]

Hmm, I'm liking that Pillarbox red, Anje. :)

Yeah, I would stop henna as well. It will continue to change your wave/curl pattern the more you use it. I would do semi's until you have your own color back and you'll always have the choice to go back to your original color with these semi's.

[Anje]

The Pillarbox looks a little less pink in that photo than it was on my head. I've seen some people say it fades orangey, but it definitely had some pink tones on me, when I was going for "fire engine." Oh well. It also bled pretty heavily every shower, and transferred a lot to the towel I kept over my pillow. My silicone laptop keyboard cover has pink marks on it from the MP (no doubt contributed to by me constantly rubbing my hands over my first-time-ever-short hair going "fuzzy!").

In short, Manic Panic is OK as far as dyes go, it stains well and is true to color, but I like Adore better.

[Erizu]

Thank you Anje and lapushka for your replies! You've really helped me out. I'll probably order some semi-permanent dyes and use them during the Christmas break after I've tried ziziphus. :D

[Adavidal]

The best colorful dyes I have ever used are hands down the Pravana dyes. They have a vivids line that is incredible. From pink to blues, I've never used a Pravana color I didn't like. They don't fade fast but are easy enough to remove and when they do start to fade they fade evenly and into beautiful pastel colors, not the splotchy weird mess I had with a few of the Ion colors and all manic panic colors. They are a bit more expensive than most of the dyes at salts and I have to order them online because no stores sell them near me but they are WORTH IT.

I've used henna in the past and while I like the brown and black shades I wasn't happy with the red I tried. I much prefer the way regular dyes make my hair feel. And deposit only dyes don't damage your hair. So long as you are not bleaching your hair or using a high lift color with a developer that is bolume 20 or more, your hair will be perfectly fine.

[Robot Ninja]

I've had some bad experiences lately with Adore so I'm not recommending it to everyone who asks anymore. Manic Panic reds seem to be pretty long-lasting in general. I have read that Pravana isn't great for reds. Special Effects reds are supposed to be really long-lasting but they do rub-off even when your hair is dry; how badly will probably depend on your hair.