Does coloring your hair damage it?

[Annalouise]

Hi, i have not colored my hair since I was in high school.
My husband told me I have greys and he really wants me to go to a salon and get my hair colored. ( I swear I have like 5 grey hairs on my head). :D Hubby has x-ray eyes.

Will this damage my hair in any way? Also, I'm sensitive to chemicals and I don't know how bad it smells having your hair colored or how bad the chemicals are for you. Are they really smelly?

I would be going to an aveda salon if I had it done.

(And no I don't want to use henna, I don't want red hair). I want a deeper brown then my natural color.

[elbow chic]

holy carp, is your husband still alive?

[spidermom]

It depends on your hair. My hair responded to coloring by drying out and becoming extremely frizzy and unmanageable (unless I use a temporary, deposit-only product like Manic Panic). However, I see plenty of people around LHC who color and still have shiny, lovely hair. There are even a few who bleach without problems.

Try a temporary color first, see how your hair responds.

[FluffSpider]

You can get brown by mixing henna and indigo... on another note, ANY dye other than henna or maybe the very washable dyes (which are more like tinted conditioners-think manic panic_ WILL damage your hair. However, there are some vegetable-based dyes found in professional salons which don't give out fumes- I have no idea exactly what type they are, but I will ask my hairdresser if you're interested.
Most professional dyes do emit fumes which are pretty tough even for non-sensitive people, and YES, they WILL wreak havoc on your hair. So you can either: tone or use vegetable dye, dye it in a salon and put up with damage, or tell your husband he's growing grey leg hairs and that he should dye them because you strongly dislike them. :p

[Amraann]

holy carp, is your husband still alive?

Hahahhaha!!! I was wondering the same thing!

I color my hair and although color can be damaging it can be done with minimal damage if your careful to baby your hair.

[Annalouise]

holy carp, is your husband still alive?

:D I know! (Don't worry, I have ways of getting to him too, all I have to do is pull a long hippy skirt out of my closet and say "hmm, I think I'll wear THIS today!:D"

[elbow chic]

:D I know! (Don't worry, I have ways of getting to him too, all I have to do is pull a long hippy skirt out of my closet and say "hmm, I think I'll wear THIS today!:D"

If that were my husband, I'd ever-so-tenderly start reminding him how much more attractive he was eight years and forty pounds ago. :D

Homeboy would regret opening that door...

Anyway, no experience with hair color. lol.

[RitaCeleste]

Salon color is damaging. You can ask for deposit only haircoloring and this isn't damaging. If it stinks, its damaging your hair. To go darker, they don't even need to use peroxide but they will, in a 10% solution. Greasing your hair down with coconut oil a couple of hours before they color it is suppose to help. Temporary dyes will like Adore, and Manic Panic will not damage your hair and on virgin hair they gradually wash right out. You can get brown henna, it isn't all red. I color my hair, I like hair color. Yet it does damage and I'd be a big fat liar if I said it didn't.

[racrane]

Oy, yes, coloring your hair will damage it. When I was 14, I did a temporary strawberry blond shade that has since washed out completely but my hair was never drier. It was like straw despite my conditioning efforts. Just letting you know that was my personal experience with hair color and I never wanted to go back!

[spigette]

Tell your husband to shut up, lol. Your hair is gorgeous.

Don't dye your hair with chemicals.... they really really stink and sting your eyes and skin and damage your hair a lot. There are all sorts of hennas and indigos and cassias that produce different colours - I was thinking of trying one myself to get close to my medium golden brown shade, but I haven't quite made up my mind yet. That might be a good option for you if YOU want to colour it.... but like I said, I think your hair looks gorgeous.

Tell your husband his bald spot is getting bigger in the back where he can't see it. ;)

[spigette]

If that were my husband, I'd ever-so-tenderly start reminding him how much more attractive he was eight years and forty pounds ago. :D

Homeboy would regret opening that door...

Anyway, no experience with hair color. lol.

Oh yeah, kick his sorry butt, lol!!! :cheese:

Annalouise.... he criticizes your hair AND your clothes? Put Neet in his shampoo and Ex Lax chips in his cookies, lol.

[Sagi1982]

I dye my hair for 15 years now, and yes, it is damaging.:(
If your greys don't worry you, then don't dye them.:D

[VitaR86]

Not all, but most LHCers are anti chemical dyes. I'm not (lol, if you couldn't tell by my avatar). I think that if your not constantly dying it every two weeks and take care of your hair every other way, your fine.

[heidihug]

I've been coloring my hair at home for the last 15 years (roots only, every three months or so), and it is minimally damaged. However, when I was having my hair colored at a salon using Aveda colorants for the 5 years previous to that, it was turned to straw.

That said - Don't ever, ever color your hair for someone else, even your husband. Color your hair for YOU, and only you.

[Chamy]

holy carp, is your husband still alive?

Seconded! :D

Im sorry i have nothing to add, it was a long time since i coloured my hair. I do remember that a regular colour does not smell too much. As i remember it, it is the bleach that smells really much, and really bad. Regarding the damage, i really dont know, it is chemicals, and that might not be the best, but i guess it depends.

Good luck!

[teela1978]

It stinks, and it will cause some damage. And you'll have to do it every 6-8 weeks, because its very unlikely that your length will match your roots.

Are you prepared for the financial and time investment involved in this?

That said, I completely agree with heidihug. Don't dye your hair unless YOU want it. Its too much of a pita to do it for someone else.

[Annalouise]

Heidihug, I found a website on the natural aveda color:
http://www.aveda.com/enter/color.tmpl
Are these the ones you used for five years that made your hair like straw?


Everyone - thanks for your input!:)

[Annalouise]

Also, about the length/roots issue. My roots naturally do not match my ends because the sun bleaches out my hair.
I don't like that. The only way I could have one toned hair naturally would be to keep it shorter and cut off the bleached ends.
Or, color it so that it stays one color.

But you are right about the upkeep and maintenance involved.

I asked hubby - do you really want to spend all that money on my hair?? He said he doesn't mind. Hey, if he wants to pamper me who am I to argue?:D

[spidermom]

Coloring won't prevent the ends from being lighter. Sun-bleached ends will take the color differently than hair closer to the root.

[Annalouise]

Coloring won't prevent the ends from being lighter. Sun-bleached ends will take the color differently than hair closer to the root.

:( Well that sucks.

[cottage46]

Greasing your hair down with coconut oil a couple of hours before they color it is suppose to help.

I'm going to be getting highlights tomorrow. I was planning to slather with coconut oil tonight and wash it out before I go to the salon. I'm wondering if I should just bun it up and leave the coconut oil in?

[FluffSpider]

Definitely leave it in. Dye/bleach actually works better on greasy hair. My hairdresser generally tells people not to wash their hair a couple of days before getting a dye/bleach job ;)

[ellen732]

I wasn't going to give my two cents but I can't help myself. Chemical coloring is not necessarily damaging, IF you have it done correctly and by a professional. Chemical coloring becomes damaging when month after month permanent color gets applied to the whole head. A good colorist will initially color your whole head with permanent color and then only touch up your new growth with the permanent color and refresh the ends with a semi or demipermanent. Don't let other peoples bad experiences scare you out of doing something that you want to your hair. I think an Aveda salon is a good place to get your hair colored. If your worried, just go for a consultation and talk with a stylist.

[maborosi]

I used to have a lot of problems with dying it, probably because I used to bleach it/color it lighter. I have naturally blond hair, but now it's very close to black. My hair is very soft, smooth, shiny, and I don't have much problems with it drying out (except at the very tips) or breaking/splitting (except the occasional split-ends that prompt me to trim, but I've always had these)

I deep condition every 5 or 6 days, paying extra attention to the bottom part of my hair, where dye could damage it. I don't heat style very often at all- a flat iron might touch my hair once a MONTH, if I'm doing something formal. I'm very nice to my hair, so any terrible damage that a lot of people seem to experience with dying hasn't really affected me too much probably because I'm so gentle with my hair.

I'm interested in henna, but I don't know if I could produce the same color I get with my chemical dye- I love it so much, too.

~maborosi~

[heidihug]

annalouise, I am not sure what type of Aveda color she used those many years ago. It may have been something that they no longer offer. I remember it was several shades of powdered colorant, and she mixed the powders with some other chemicals, and then painted it on. I do know that I always wanted and asked for a dark brown bordering on auburn, and what I ended up with is that horrid purplish brown that screams "I had my hair salon colored". No matter how many times I told them I wanted just a hint of auburn, it ended up purple.

So, you may ask - what the heck was I thinking? I hated my hair, but just kept going back, which was the definition of insanity. Because that's what a woman of a certain age (30-ish) was supposed to do. Thank heavens I finally had an epiphany that I could do what I wanted, when I wanted it, for 1/20th the price.

So, the moral of the story is - I would be very very careful about asking for and getting exactly the shade that you want at the salon, instead of what the stylist thinks would look best on you. And know that coloring is a life-long commitment. Once you start you're in it for the long haul; unless you're OK with having a growth line for years and years after you stop coloring, or are willing to cut it all off and grow uncolored hair after a certain point in time.

Also, is coloring your hair because your husband wants you to really "pampering" yourself? It's kind of an unpleasant, smelly-ish, long process. And not something to be undertaken lightly if you have sensitive skin. I have relatively resilient skin, and coloring chemicals - permanent or temporary, home or salon - have always made my scalp itchy during and for a few days after.

Whatever you decide, give yourself a few weeks to mull it over. Good luck with whatever decision you make.

[Aveyronnaise]

I used to use the 'box dye' from whole foods called Naturcolor , and as long as you aren't doing it super frequently,it isn't very harsh.
Well I found it very gentle but I used it only a few times per year.

[firicia]

It can damage hair, but it can depend on a persons hair as to the extent, it may just mean having more trims for some to cut off split ends, and for others it could turn hair into something that is frizzy and harder to manage.

I will say though think long and hard about the fact that if you start it will be hard to stop. It will also be costly. Once grey starts coming in and people dye it, it is harder to grow it out gracefully, just the same as it is hard to grow hair to your natural colour after colouring it so long.

[Runzel]

The only input I have is on the matter of chemical sensitivity. If you know already tha tyou are sensitive to chemicals then please, please only consider non-chemical-y hair dye as an option, for the sake of your own health.

I'm on the very extreme end of chemical sensitivity, and while I realize that most people do not need to take the same precautions that I do I can assure you that chemicals continue to offgas from your chemically dyed hair long after the initial fumes have dissipated. Most people don't notice it, but for me that means I can't have people with chemically dyed hair anywhere near me as it makes me quite ill. If you're only mildly sensitive you might be able to get away with it, but you'd be subjecting yourself to that constant exposure, which could cause chronic issues, and if things go wrong it could potentially mean you need to cut your hair off and start all over again. :(

So my recommendation is to only consider the natural stuff.

[teela1978]

Also, about the length/roots issue. My roots naturally do not match my ends because the sun bleaches out my hair.
I don't like that. The only way I could have one toned hair naturally would be to keep it shorter and cut off the bleached ends.
Or, color it so that it stays one color.

But you are right about the upkeep and maintenance involved.

I asked hubby - do you really want to spend all that money on my hair?? He said he doesn't mind. Hey, if he wants to pamper me who am I to argue?:D

There's a huge difference between a gradual lightening down the length and a sharp line of demarcation.

eg:
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e117/lchamber78/Hair%20Length%20Shots/hair5-3-06roots.jpg

[FluffSpider]

I wasn't going to give my two cents but I can't help myself. Chemical coloring is not necessarily damaging, IF you have it done correctly and by a professional. Chemical coloring becomes damaging when month after month permanent color gets applied to the whole head. A good colorist will initially color your whole head with permanent color and then only touch up your new growth with the permanent color and refresh the ends with a semi or demipermanent. Don't let other peoples bad experiences scare you out of doing something that you want to your hair. I think an Aveda salon is a good place to get your hair colored. If your worried, just go for a consultation and talk with a stylist.
If you have super resilient hair, the dye won't seem to affect it much, but dyed hair is more fragile than virgin hair, and that issue isn't debatable, because it's a biological truth: after lifting the 'scales' to deposit the permanent colour, there's no way they will overlap perfectly again-with TLC, it can be kept under control. At certain lengths, it's not noticeable. But as far as I can recall the question was if 'it damages AT ALL' and the answer is :yes. To what proportion, varies from individual to individual.

[ibleedlipstick]

It is somewhat damaging, but the damage is very manageable. I have dyed my hair for years, and while it may not be in perfect condition, I like it a lot more black than I do with its natural color. I wear my hair up a lot, I use NB Panacea after my shower, and coconut oil heavily before washing my hair and dyeing my hair.

My hair is baby fine, but is still strong and healthy, even while dyed. It all depends on how you treat your hair before, during, and after.

[RitaCeleste]

I color the mess out of mine. I just have tough hair. I do it myself. A cut and color at a proper salon is well over $90 not counting everyone's tips. I don't have that kind of cash. Rolling your own cigs only goes so far. Long hair will take two boxes, bottles of color atleast. At Sally's it takes maybe $12 to $15 for me to do my hair. I will save $600 doing my own cuts and color this year. Of course it could be less than $90 to just do a retouch but I like reds so they need refreshing. If I want it colored by a pro again, I guess I'll have to go back to school. Seriously think about the cost of up keep on it if you are going to go a salon every six weeks. That's lovely if you make tons of cash but I don't. You'll also want a great conditioner after coloring it for awhile. You might end up adding a protein treatment too. This is something you should only do if you really want it. You are the one who is gonna be sporting the roots between coloring and its your budget. And unless you are able to get it dyed back to your natural color, you will be locked into doing this about every six weeks. If a little damage isn't a problem and you've got the budget for it, go for it!

[luluj]

Come and visit the Salt and Pepper Thread..http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=16951...;)

[lapushka]

For just a few gray hairs, I wouldn't color. If you do decide to start dyeing your hair, do it for you, as other posters have already suggested, and not for hubby. Coloring your hair requires regular upkeep. At first it's fun, after 2 or 3 times it's a chore. A week to a few weeks after dyeing, if you don't pick a color close to your own, there your roots will be - again. Growing that out will make gray hair seem like no big deal.

If you feel you have no choice, pick a color close to our own and go with a semi-permanent first, to see if dye is your thing (it'll wash out after a while). Or try so-called "blond henna", and by that I mean the boxes specially geared towards blond hair (of course there's no such thing as blond henna). "Blond henna" is a soft mix of mostly cassia with a teeny tiny bit of henna mixed in to make a golden blond.

[Firefox7275]

I have coloured my mousey hair at home for over twenty years, first blonde now red. I've noticed my hair being slightly dryer but never had any major damage from it, breaks or splits have been primarily due to heat styling or mechanical damage (can tell from the location). HOWEVER I have sensitive skin, I take the risk of exposing myself to such chemicals because I love my colour. :o

Unless YOU want to permanently colour your hair I don't think you should dye your greys. There is a lot of upkeep involved, this can be expensive and unless you are strong willed you may end up with a trim each time. You can get a deeper brown from a home semi-permanent, you could pluck out the greys or join the Renegrays and trade your cheeky husband in for a younger model! :p

ETA: if you don't want sun-bleached hair then protect it whenever you are outdoors, there are commercial products with a built-in SPF. If you prefer natural both coconut oil and shea butter have a low SPF, or you can use hats or silk scarves. As others have said, root regrowth does not look the same as the gradual fade the sun gives, mine is obvious by four weeks. If your husband wants to pamper you get a full body massage, because colouring is about as much fun as housework! ;)

[vanity_acefake]

If you really do want to dye it then why don't you look into the Lush hennas.
They are in 4 colours. One of them is brown. They have conditioning coco butter in them too.

[saera]

My friend had long, thick, gorgeous wavy hair once upon a time until she decided to dye it crazy colours. After that it became dry, brittle, really frizzy and looks really unhealthy.

[ellen732]

If you have super resilient hair, the dye won't seem to affect it much, but dyed hair is more fragile than virgin hair, and that issue isn't debatable, because it's a biological truth: after lifting the 'scales' to deposit the permanent colour, there's no way they will overlap perfectly again-with TLC, it can be kept under control. At certain lengths, it's not noticeable. But as far as I can recall the question was if 'it damages AT ALL' and the answer is :yes. To what proportion, varies from individual to individual.

I wouldn't call it damage, i.e breakage, more splits than normal; it just isn't "virgin" hair anymore.

[RitaCeleste]

Damage is damage. It may not affect it much or it may. You know very well that fine hair needs special care when processing! I know people's whose hair is so fine they get one chance to lighten it to the shade they like and re-processing it can lead to loads of breakage. Coloring causes damage. It can be minimized but damage is damage. If it didn't cause damage or change the hair it would remain virgin hair and be no big deal. There is a difference bertween virgin hair and processed hair, period. That difference is DAMAGE. Denial isn't just a river in Egypt!

[Dark Queen]

Oh yeah, kick his sorry butt, lol!!! :cheese:
Annalouise.... he criticizes your hair AND your clothes? Put Neet in his shampoo and Ex Lax chips in his cookies, lol.

This made me laugh so hard!
Anyway, I'm honestly scared to even try the temporary stuff. I've never colored in my life, but I have permed and that left my hair very crunchy and damaged. It took an eternity to grow out.
I have thought seriously about coloring though. My hair is pretty dark, but over time I've had lightening on the ends no matter how I try to protect it from sunlight. I still hate how it ends in this weird brownish shade, and I'd love to darken it to a blue-black if I weren't so afraid of chemicals. I don't want to cover up my grays at the top, though.

[BranwenWolf]

I think if my SO pointed out grays, I would point out the whites of his eyes...Three Stooges style.

30-day color (I don't know if that's called semi- or demi- permanent) didn't damage my hair at all. It made my dandruff vanish for a few days. Oddly enough henna made me have a big shed and mine seemed dry and crusty for a while.

[Slinks]

holy carp, is your husband still alive?

hahahahaha lol .. my thoughts exactly ..

I have about 20 greys and I'm embracing with open arms .. of course it's up to you, don't dye because hubby wants it ..

[Slinks]

Oh yeah, kick his sorry butt, lol!!! :cheese:

Annalouise.... he criticizes your hair AND your clothes? Put Neet in his shampoo and Ex Lax chips in his cookies, lol.

oh we are evil !! lol :-)

[summerjade]

If you only have five gray hairs, I would not color my hair. Hair is at its healthest when it is virgin hair. Your husband couldn't possibly know the difference anyway!! You don't have enough gray hair to worry about. Don't color!!

[lapushka]

As far as damage is concerned. My mother has dyed her hair for over thirty years and her hair has gotten thinner and thinner and thinner every passing decade. So no, I wouldn't recommend it. Neither would she. And she only dyes about 4 times a year, being extra careful.

Also, there's not a hair color in the world that can beat your own hair as far as radiance, glow, brilliance, shine, what have you,.... None. And judging from your avatar, you have a beautiful blond color. I wouldn't mess with it for a few gray hairs.

I'd put hubby up on the swapboard. :p ;)

[Venefica]

Hi, i have not colored my hair since I was in high school.
My husband told me I have greys and he really wants me to go to a salon and get my hair colored. ( I swear I have like 5 grey hairs on my head). :D Hubby has x-ray eyes.

First of all do not dye your hair just because hubby can not stand to see a little gray, tell me, do he have gray hairs on his head? Or is it only you who have to look like you where 20. Tell your dear husband that it is your hair, and you decide over it. I am tempted to say that if he continues to nag then kick him in the gonads, but that might be both unladylike and a bit to extreme. Anyway your hair is gorgeous, if you want to dye it do it for yourself, but do not change your appearance just to please your husband, if he want a woman he can control the appearance of he should buy a Barbie doll.


Will this damage my hair in any way? Also, I'm sensitive to chemicals and I don't know how bad it smells having your hair colored or how bad the chemicals are for you. Are they really smelly?

Short answer yes, coloring damages your hair. A bit longer answer, yes coloring damage your hair, but the amount of damage vary allot from person to person. I dye my hair black with sore bought dye about every two months and neither I nor my hairdresser see any damage, but then I have hair I am sure leave my head and drink people's blood at night for it can take allot of abuse without any sign of damage. But then I am lucky. I know others who have colored their hair once and then had to cut their entire length as the hair got ruined. Now some types of hair responds better to some type of dyes, some swears by henna, others prefer chemical dyes. Now it is fully possible to have long, dyed hair.

Now if you are sensitive to chemicals I would be very careful with dye. What the dye smells varies there are allot of brands out there and some smells more than others. However to take a skin test if you decide to do this, smear the dye your hairdresser will be using on a small piece of skin and see how it reacts, if your skin get red, itchy or show any signs of an allergic reaction. JUST DO OT GO THERE, it is not worth it to risk your hair and your health to cover up a few gray hairs.

Now you might want to try color washes first, these are gentler on the skin and hair but do not provide a complete color, many think they are good to cover up gray though. However again if you are sensitive to chemicals always do a skin test on a small area of skin before you use anything.

[Tefnut]

Difficult debate, my mother has dyed her hair various colours for nearly 50 years and her hairs still thick and in good condition.

[Mesmerise]

I see nothing wrong with colouring. Nothing! BUT if I colour my hair I do it for ME and if my husband told me to colour because I had a sprinkle of grey hairs then...:angry: well let's just say he wouldn't be a happy man at all.

Yes, colouring will damage your hair, but the degree of damage depends on the dye used and your hair. It's impossible for anyone here to predict how much damage you'll have too.

The other thing I've found, when dyeing long hair, is that the hair can remain in fine condition for quite awhile, but this doesn't necessarily last. I mean, when you colour all your hair, right to the roots...the hair that's at the top of your head is going to have that colour in it for a LOOOONG time as it grows...and four or five years down the track that hair will start to be showing damage (as it would even if you didn't dye...but the dye is going to make it worse). Of course, if you always get professional touch ups and only ever get the roots re-coloured you'll get a lot less damage than if you continually do your whole head, but even when roots are done, there's usually some blending. I'm more familiar with box dye myself, but I'm sure even a good salon procedure will cause a degree of damage.

However, YOU need to make the choice for YOU. If YOU want to experiment with a gentle hair colour, then go for it, but DON'T do it for your hubby!! It's YOUR hair and you have to live with any damage you get.

I'm also sure your hubby's not perfect so you could make an agreement with him like "I'll colour my hair when you've lost that extra 25lbs" or even "I'll colour away my greys when you do!".

[xoxophelia]

:( Well that sucks.

Actually my hair bleaches out a lot from the sun as well and when I first did mine it was extremely bleached out after a summer of working outside. I used both Wella semi permanent coloring and Natural Instincts and both took evenly for me.

All coloring (minus henna for most and veggie dyes) is damaging but it does depend a little on your hair type how much it shows up. My hair can easily get a bit of a straw/dull look to it and when I was coloring I did get damage to my hair. However, of all the products I used Natural Instincts semipermanent was the best one. My hair was very shiny at least for 1-2 weeks and then OK. If I hadn't been heat styling and had used permanent as well once I probably would have been OK.

I really don't think there is any reason to go permanent any time soon. If or when you want to grow it out or change your color it will be way easier to change from a semi color.

[teela1978]

I wonder... if you only have a few whites and are going for professional color anyway, perhaps you could get some strategically placed lo or hi lites that could cover your grays without dealing with the all over damage and color change that accompanies a full color. You could probably get away with more time between colorings that way.

[Sunshineliz]

Yes, hairstylists tell me that all chemical coloring damages hair--that is how it works. I did it ONCE (and only because my MIL pressured me, nicely:p) and don't want to do it again. It WAS damaging and my hair didn't feel good and I didn't really like the color much either. Henna and indigo are a good alternative if that is what you want.

Personally I think if they bother YOU (not hubby), then if there are only 5 or so, pluck them. I did that for a few years too. Or you could try to convince people you got some hair tinsel?:D Embracing silver can be very empowering and loving the self you naturally have very freeing.

Show your husband some pictures of lovely, young, silver-haired ladies...he may change his mind!;) I know mine likes it!




ETA: You might find some of the young silver hairs at the Salt & Pepper thread or at http://goinggraylookinggreat.com/great_grays/article/great_inspirations/--that site has a lot of good ones too (some young, some not, but many of them look good.)

[Alvrodul]

I can only second what Runzel and Venefica said about reactions to chemicals - be very careful about it! You mentioned that you have sensitivities, so I would very, very strongly recommend that you at the very least do a patch test before dying. You don't want to ruin your health just because you have acquired a few silvers.
Look here (http://www.hennaforhair.com/ppd/index.html) for more information on allerfic reactions to hair dye chemicals.
If you decide to dye (and do it only because you want it for yourself!!) try natural dyes. Or perhaps look into trying cassia? You can find information in the Articles section as well as the various threads in the Recipes, Henna and Herbal Haircare section!:)

[rogue_psyche]

I wasn't going to give my two cents but I can't help myself. Chemical coloring is not necessarily damaging, IF you have it done correctly and by a professional. Chemical coloring becomes damaging when month after month permanent color gets applied to the whole head. A good colorist will initially color your whole head with permanent color and then only touch up your new growth with the permanent color and refresh the ends with a semi or demipermanent. Don't let other peoples bad experiences scare you out of doing something that you want to your hair. I think an Aveda salon is a good place to get your hair colored. If your worried, just go for a consultation and talk with a stylist.

I don't mean to belittle your opinion, but it has been scientifically proven that chemical coloring damages hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n05/p00579-p00580.pdf). Within a minute of contact with peroxide, the cuticle becomes damages, and additional pores form. Every minute thereafter the pores widen and join.

That's not saying you can't have attractive hair if it is chemically dyed. It will just be attractive, but damaged hair. I bleached my hair with 20 vol peroxide, for about 20 mins, just once, and as more and more roots grow in the more obvious it is that peroxide damaged my hair. My APL-length roots have zero splits, but as soon as the bleach starts so does the splits and the taper. My hair reaches hip, but it will look so much better when the dye grows out.

To the OP (although the info I posted above was meant for her too): Since the amount of gray is so little, look into cassia to add a gold tone to your silvers. When the greys multiply, look into Lush henna, or Elumen which is supposed to be less damaging than other chemical dye.

For your husband, I recommend sprinkling cayenne pepper into his underwear. :p

[Runzel]

....found it!

I believe this thread (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=23103) would be very, very helpful to the OP.

[ellen732]

I don't mean to belittle your opinion, but it has been scientifically proven that chemical coloring damages hair (http://journal.scconline.org//pdf/cc2007/cc058n05/p00579-p00580.pdf). Within a minute of contact with peroxide, the cuticle becomes damages, and additional pores form. Every minute thereafter the pores widen and join.

That's not saying you can't have attractive hair if it is chemically dyed. It will just be attractive, but damaged hair. I bleached my hair with 20 vol peroxide, for about 20 mins, just once, and as more and more roots grow in the more obvious it is that peroxide damaged my hair. My APL-length roots have zero splits, but as soon as the bleach starts so does the splits and the taper. My hair reaches hip, but it will look so much better when the dye grows out.

To the OP (although the info I posted above was meant for her too): Since the amount of gray is so little, look into cassia to add a gold tone to your silvers. When the greys multiply, look into Lush henna, or Elumen which is supposed to be less damaging than other chemical dye.

For your husband, I recommend sprinkling cayenne pepper into his underwear. :p

I would only feel belittled if I wasn't a licensed hairdresser and a certified colorist. I have clients whose hair I have been coloring and cutting for twenty years and their hair is not damaged. I do believe that I may have more experience with chemical color than others here. But what do I know. :p

[MiamiPineapple]

Color really is damaging. My hair only responds well the black dye. All others make it dry and frizzly. If you must dye, I suggest a demi-permanent color which is much less damaging. But the ideal choice is no dye at all:D

[Mesmerise]

I would only feel belittled if I wasn't a licensed hairdresser and a certified colorist. I have clients whose hair I have been coloring and cutting for twenty years and their hair is not damaged. I do believe that I may have more experience with chemical color than others here. But what do I know. :p

I guess it depends on what you mean by "damage". I think a colorist can do a great job on hair that really minimises damage, but I don't think it's possible to permanently colour hair using chemicals and peroxide without doing a certain amount of damage (even if it's very small). I'm fairly sure myself that if my hair had just one layer of colour on it, by the time that layer grew to the ends, the damage would be very small indeed, but that's not to say that there would be absolutely NONE.

Still, I agree that if it's done carefully the damage will be minimal. However, if the OP doesn't really need to colour or even WANT to colour for HERSELF, then she shouldn't do it.

And yeah, I've been colouring my hair for... well errm pretty much as long as I remember lol. So I'm certainly not against colour myself ;) I definitely cover my white and grey hairs!! However, I've gone for henna now because I want to see if it makes a difference in my hair's condition over the long term.

[Lianna]

At eye sight level, not always, will depend on the hair. If you consider any "altered" hair damaged, yes it's damaged. I think you're talking about only the hair appearance, right?

I do it because my hair looks better after (and feels the same).

[ellen732]

From a professional aspect, professional color is different than the box color you buy in the store for ten bucks. Peroxide used with professional color is buffered which means it has a component that does not make it so drying. More and more professional color is also being made without ammonia as well. Ammonia is what swells the cuticle to allow the color molecules into the hair shaft. Many companies are now realizing it is not needed and color molecules are being manufactured in professional color so they are smaller and not as "damaging". I will stick with my professional opinion and say that any chemical service done properly and consistently done properly does not have to effect hair so negatively. I do agree that chemically colored hair is obviously no longer "virgin" hair, but it is not "damaged".

[Mesmerise]

At eye sight level, not always, will depend on the hair. If you consider any "altered" hair damaged, yes it's damaged. I think you're talking about only the hair appearance, right?

I do it because my hair looks better after (and feels the same).

To me (and yeah this is just my personal opinion lol) hair is damaged if it becomes even slightly more prone to splits, white dots etc. It doesn't need to be extensively damaged (breaking off or whatever) in order to have some damage.

I think long hairs need to be especially careful. If I had a pixie and wanted to keep it that way, it wouldn't phase me at all to bleach, colour whatever, because the hair at its longest is only a few inches, and within less than a year it's all grown out. However, when you've got long hair, the hair at the bottom is going to be several years older than the hair at the top, and even a small amount of damage at the top is going to affect that hair when its grown to the bottom (so several years later).

I mean, with long hair there are many people who have 100% virgin hair who experience hair damage problems by the time the hair's at their waist or longer... and any dye damage will only make this worse (even if the actual damage is very, very small). If you're happy to keep your hair to BSL or shorter the hair at the bottom is never that "old" so gentle hair colouring probably won't be too bad, even after the hair's been dyed several years... but if you want LONG hair (waist +) you need to be aware of the affect of not just dye (which can be very small) but the age of the hair too.

I know there are certainly people on LHC with long, dyed hair that's in great condition (ultrabella is one I can think of, but from what I recall she also has fast growing hair, so her ends may not be as old as someone with "average" growing hair who has hair of the same length) so it is possible to keep great looking dyed hair. BUT I think it's a mistake to think you can have NO damage in the long term, even if it takes 3 or more years to show up!

[growingpains]

In my experience it depends on how often you do it, how long your hair is/how long you want to grow it and the kind of dye used.

I used to be OBSESSED. Seriously obsessed with dying my hair. I would dye it once per month for about two years. I did all shades of brown and black mostly cause I was poor and generally did box dye. I found going darker on my shorter APL/BSL hair was ok. Black on a monthly basis made it frizzy and dry though. But then again I straightened every day.

If you must dye, darker is better than lighter and salon better than take home and demi or semi better than permanent.

Your chances of no damage are higher if you hair habits are otherwise healthy!

[Lianna]

@Mesmerise

Like I said "technically" it's damaged because isn't it's original form, that's all there is to it. By your logic should fine hair be considered damaged because it's more prone to damage? No. So "prone to damage" is different than "damaged".

There's a reason I made the remark about "appearance", because then we wouldn't be technical. Could she be asking: "Can I grow long beautiful shiny (insert anything here) hair even with dyed hair?" The answer is yes.

I'm pretty sure she didn't want to start an argument on what is "damaged hair".


....I know there are certainly people on LHC with long, dyed hair that's in great condition (ultrabella is one I can think of...

They're not only on LHC, I know in some countries this would be a rare sight, but in others (like mine) it isn't.

[Dragon]

I have noticed it really depends on your hair. Also since you are sensitive to chemicals, be careful. Some people never have problems with colouring their hair and then there are others that find their hair starts to thin eventually and becomes very dry. I have only used semi permanents and am also sensitive to chemical. My scalp would always get itchy after but my last reaction was a lot worse. Not only was it itchy but my scalp became very saw for a few days. That’s why I gave it up. Also my hair would became a lot straighter. Also only do it if thats what you want, not because of someone else.

[Mesmerise]

@Mesmerise

Like I said "technically" it's damaged because isn't it's original form, that's all there is to it. By your logic should fine hair be considered damaged because it's more prone to damage? No. So "prone to damage" is different than "damaged".

There's a reason I made the remark about "appearance", because then we wouldn't be technical. Could she be asking: "Can I grow long beautiful shiny (insert anything here) hair even with dyed hair?" The answer is yes.

I'm pretty sure she didn't want to start an argument on what is "damaged hair".

They're not only on LHC, I know in some countries this would be a rare sight, but in others (like mine) it isn't.

Well yeah, I don't want to argue the point too much either ;) I guess I just wanted to emphasise that hair damage doesn't necessarily show up straight away, and if the ends of your hair are say, 6 years old, and you're going to continue dyeing your hair... in 6 years you'll have ends that have had dye damage (however slight) for 6 years, which will sort of exacerbate the damage, however minor it was, over and above the normal wear and tear that occurs over that period of time.

Someone whose hair grows 1" a month will have only 3 years of growth at 36", while someone whose hair grows 1/2" a month will have 6 years of growth at 36", so that's something else to consider as well. Someone whose hair grows really slowly may find dye is worse for their hair - not because of additional damage, just because the ends are that much older!

Again, I'm not against dyed hair, and my own hair doesn't show too much long term damage when dyed either (not that it's ever been longer than waist). It's just something to be aware of when deciding whether or not to dye! I've also seen plenty of people with no "visible" damage on their long, dyed hair.

Oh, and one thing else to add!! I think I'd be upset if I had virgin hair in great condition that rarely (if ever) split, and I bowed to pressure to colour my hair only to find that in 3 to 4 years my ends became more and more prone to splitting even when I regularly trimmed! The OP currently has virgin hair, and I think it's a pity to risk spoiling that just to cover up a few grey hairs that don't even bother her ;). If she was absolutely set on colouring her hair, and was willing to risk any subsequent damage, even years down the track, then I'd say "go for it!".

(Oh, and I like to debate, not argue!! Debating is fun :p :D :D I'm always open to learning more and hearing other people's opinions!).

[VitaR86]

lol, I knew I'd see people hating on the Chemical Heads. :rolleyes:

I say let her do it if she wants. But I do agree that she should do it if she wants and not because her husband wants her to. My husband hates my red hair, yet I still dye it red. My head, my hair, I'll throw chemicals on it if I want.

[teela1978]

I don't think anyone hates dyed hair here, we have many beautiful chemically colored heads of hair on this site. I do think lhc has a different definition of damage though. Long hair is impeded by dye. This isn't too much of an issue if you're growing to waist or tailbone, but can seriously halt your progress if trying for knee or ankle. It affects some people's hair more than others. But will definitely make growing hair to extraordinary lengths more difficult, even if it's not "damage" as defined by a "stylist".

[Mesmerise]

I don't think anyone hates dyed hair here, we have many beautiful chemically colored heads of hair on this site. I do think lhc has a different definition of damage though. Long hair is impeded by dye. This isn't too much of an issue if you're growing to waist or tailbone, but can seriously halt your progress if trying for knee or ankle. It affects some people's hair more than others. But will definitely make growing hair to extraordinary lengths more difficult, even if it's not "damage" as defined by a "stylist".

Yup, this is where I'm coming from ;)

If I hated chemically dyed hair I'd be an awful hypocrite since about 25" of my length is still dyed :p. I've been chemically dyeing for YEARS and I have absolutely nothing personally against it.

I also stand by the idea that if YOU want to dye your hair then do it, but DON'T do it for someone else, and be aware of the potential long term effects.

[Alvrodul]

I also don't hate chemical dyes - I did use them for years, after all, despite what they did to my hair! (This was long before I knew LHC existed, and before I started growing out my hair) And my hair does not really tolerate chemical colorants all that well.
No, the reason I stopped using them, was that I was worried about developing an allergy - I never did, fortunately, but it has always been a possibility, especially since I already have allergies!

[RitaCeleste]

I love dye! I'm fixing to strip out my color and go for Navy Blue hair, then when that fades, purple and eventually back to red again. But I'm not trying for ankle length hair either. Waist or a little longer is fine as long as I can keep coloring it. I had it long and natural, I prefer long and about as unnatural as I dare to show up to parent teacher conferences with! I don't hate dye, I live for it in all its ever-changing glory. But I must have coconut oil. I love Meadowfoam Seed oil. I must use Honeysuckle Rose conditioner on it. Occasionally it needs protein. Would I need all this if not for Dye? Probably not. Do I have damage from dye, definitely. But would I be happier if I did not dye it? No. It just like whether to wear your hair up or down, its about preferences. Color can be great or not depending on how it works for you and what you want. The truth is my sister went from black to blond one too many times and has ubber short hair now. My aunt covers her grey with boxed dye and has drier hair but at her shoulders she isn't gonna kill it. There are many options for coloring hair. To just try a darker brown, a few bottles of Adore semi-permanent will cost $8 and be gone in six weeks no damage, no commitment required! Henna is FOREVER! And salon dyes will leave damage. That's just basic truths.

[Firefox7275]

To the OP (although the info I posted above was meant for her too): Since the amount of gray is so little, look into cassia to add a gold tone to your silvers. When the greys multiply, look into Lush henna, or Elumen which is supposed to be less damaging than other chemical dye.

For your husband, I recommend sprinkling cayenne pepper into his underwear. :p

Given the OP has chemical sensitivities I wanted to note that herbal colours contain chemicals too, and some of these (natural) chemicals can be allergens. I suspect it would also be more difficult to stop the herbs touching your skin than it is with a salon dye job.

[Annalouise]

Thank you everyone!:blossom:

I enjoyed reading all the responses.

Given that I already have sensitivity issues with chemicals I think perhaps it wouldn't be wise for me to go the chemical route.

The reason I didn't want to use henna, indigo and cassia is because after using herbs for a couple months for washing, I noticed I had to cut about 2-3" off the bottom of my hair from dryness. So, I backed away from the herbs. Although the aveda color says that it "improves the condition of damaged hair." I wonder if that is true?
http://www.aveda.com/enter/color.tmpl

But I do agree with others here who suggested getting it professionally done as opposed to doing it yourself.

As for hubby I broke it to him gently that I'm not going to color my hair. At first he said "well if you want to look like you are in your 40's then fine!" (which I am). Then he said, "its your hair, do what you want.":D

[Babyfine]

I do color my hair with a very gentle demi-perm. I have it done in the salon about every 4-5 months to blend away about 10% grey. It hasn't caused any noticable damage that I can see-but I treat my hair like antique lace.
I'm sure my hair would be healthier if I didn't color at all, but even with my fine, fragile hair, I've been able to grow it to BSL with minimal damage.
Permanent color does trash my hair, so when I start to get too grey for the demi to cover, I will either embrace my silvers or do henna glosses.
If you have chemical sensitivities however,Maybe chemical color wouldn't be a good thing.
I'm really trying to like my silvers, though.
One thing I like about the demi is is washes/ fades out with no line of demarcation, so when I decide I want to embrace the silvers, it won't be that hard.(I hope).

[Sunshineliz]

Good for you! Hopefully hubby will learn to like it fine. I'm sure you'll look great.

[Mesmerise]

Thank you everyone!:blossom:

I enjoyed reading all the responses.

Given that I already have sensitivity issues with chemicals I think perhaps it wouldn't be wise for me to go the chemical route.

The reason I didn't want to use henna, indigo and cassia is because after using herbs for a couple months for washing, I noticed I had to cut about 2-3" off the bottom of my hair from dryness. So, I backed away from the herbs. Although the aveda color says that it "improves the condition of damaged hair." I wonder if that is true?
http://www.aveda.com/enter/color.tmpl

But I do agree with others here who suggested getting it professionally done as opposed to doing it yourself.

As for hubby I broke it to him gently that I'm not going to color my hair. At first he said "well if you want to look like you are in your 40's then fine!" (which I am). Then he said, "its your hair, do what you want.":D

Good for you! And if you're in your 40s and only have a handful of grays then you're a lucky one :D. I'm in my 30s and have a gazillion grays lol!

Honestly, if you're happy to stay natural it is the BEST thing for your hair, and it won't make you look OLD either.

[rogue_psyche]

I would only feel belittled if I wasn't a licensed hairdresser and a certified colorist. I have clients whose hair I have been coloring and cutting for twenty years and their hair is not damaged. I do believe that I may have more experience with chemical color than others here. But what do I know. :p

I'm sure your clients leave the store with great-looking hair, and that the ones that take care of their hair continue to have great-looking hair after years of visiting you. However, much damage isn't visible to the naked eye, and that's what I'm splitting hairs over, if you pardon the pun. You can't see the pores in your hair, or even notice damage to the cuticle unless part of it is sticking out. A lot of people who color on the long term also tend to forget what their virgin hair feels like. As a side note, when my unbleached hair started to grow out, I found I needed twice as many curlformers to curl my entire head of hair, meaning my unbleached hair is coarser or thicker than my dyed hair.

I can't tell you how to feel about coloring, but I do think it is important for stylists to be honest about coloring and the potential for damage. While your dyes and techniques may lessen damage to such an extent that 99% of your customers report zero damage, you cannot vouch for the work of other stylists and (as you know) box color. I feel so sorry for the girl I sit in back of in English whose stylist ruined her hair with brassy, uneven color that wasn't fixed after a return visit, along with monster splits and frizz caused by stretched or broken hairs.

I hope not to come off as anti-stylist; a great stylist is worth his or her weight in gold. I have nothing but respect for stylists who care about the health of their client's hair as well as the appearance.

[Sunsailing]

Salon color is damaging.

That's a very broad statement.

First, I'd go to a salon before I'd use any over-the-counter dye. The professional dyes are much better.

The shade of color and how much of change from your "natural" color also comes into play.

Hair dye can actually make grey hair behave and feel much better. It evenly fills in and thickens the hair shaft (but again, you might prefer the texture of the grey hairs as they come in).

I do agree about trying the temporary color first (professionally applied) to see if you like it. Try to stick with a color that is close to your natural color. If you only have a few greys, a temporary "wash" will blend the greys with the rest of your hair. Nobody will probably even notice.

[Dragon]

Thank you everyone!:blossom:

I enjoyed reading all the responses.

Given that I already have sensitivity issues with chemicals I think perhaps it wouldn't be wise for me to go the chemical route.

The reason I didn't want to use henna, indigo and cassia is because after using herbs for a couple months for washing, I noticed I had to cut about 2-3" off the bottom of my hair from dryness. So, I backed away from the herbs. Although the aveda color says that it "improves the condition of damaged hair." I wonder if that is true?
http://www.aveda.com/enter/color.tmpl

But I do agree with others here who suggested getting it professionally done as opposed to doing it yourself.

As for hubby I broke it to him gently that I'm not going to color my hair. At first he said "well if you want to look like you are in your 40's then fine!" (which I am). Then he said, "its your hair, do what you want.":D


Thats great you hubby has excepted your decision :)

[Komao]

Not all, but most LHCers are anti chemical dyes. I'm not (lol, if you couldn't tell by my avatar). I think that if your not constantly dying it every two weeks and take care of your hair every other way, your fine.

I find the same experience as you when I color my hair. In fact mine seems to improve with color. It feels softer, thicker and looks good. I'm hoping down the line it does not start to show damage. I would like to learn about henna, so I will be learning about that from LHC. Just never had any experience with it.

I try to do roots only and about every 3 months. Right at the end I might run some through hair. I don't use any heat on my hair. Don't tease it. I oil everyday, braid at night, eat well and exercise. I just don't like the gray, at least not yet.

[massivecnqstdr]

Since you mentioned Aveda salons, I thought it was worth bringing up that they have a brown color depositing conditioner. This may blend away dullness and grey for ya. Please only use any of the suggestions if YOU want a change, though!

[palaeoqueen]

I'd just like to point out that absolutely everything is made of chemicals and for someone with known sensitivities a "natural" dye could be just as risky as a "chemical" one, possibly more as box dyes and salon dyes will be strenuously tested and I don't know if the same is true for henna etc though I'd be happy to be corrected. I would go as far as to say that a salon job may be best for someone sensitive who is determined to dye their hair as any decent salon will do a skin test to make sure you're not going to have an unpleasant reaction.

[Komao]

Today I tried something new. As I said in another post I color my hair. It looks healthy and other than this I take good care of my hair. However, I'm really into health and I decided to try something I had read about. Article said that this has been used for hundreds of years. I did a rinse of sage and rosemary. I still don't know if it will cover gray. The article says that takes about a month depending on hair type.
All I can say is, my hair is incredibly shiny and so super soft. I was not really expecting that. With the little gray that is at my temples, which would normally drive me nuts that is now not the case.

It's so shiny that I'm not even focusing on the gray. Perhaps I would not hate it so much if my hair is bright. It seems to me before when grays starting to come in that it gets dull looking.

So I'm very happy and thought others might find this helpful.

[Firefox7275]

I'd just like to point out that absolutely everything is made of chemicals and for someone with known sensitivities a "natural" dye could be just as risky as a "chemical" one, possibly more as box dyes and salon dyes will be strenuously tested and I don't know if the same is true for henna etc though I'd be happy to be corrected. I would go as far as to say that a salon job may be best for someone sensitive who is determined to dye their hair as any decent salon will do a skin test to make sure you're not going to have an unpleasant reaction.

Depends what you mean by sensitivity: there is irritant contact dermatitis and allergic contact dermatitis, some will be more prone to one some to the other and some to both. And of course other skin complaints may be worsened by not caused by specific pHs or ingredients (eg. atopic eczema and sulphate surfactants). The vast majority of permanent 'chemical' dyes are alkaline and contain peroxide and sulphate surfactants, these are all damaging and irritant to the skin barrier. Some contain ingredients like PPD that can be allergens; it's possible to avoid most of the likely allergens by picking your product carefully, not so easy to avoid the likely irritants. 'Natural' dyes are not usually irritating but they can be allergens so not the best idea for someone who already has a few food or topical allergies.

[tigerlily.]

Just on the subject of Aveda, I've had my hair coloured at an Aveda salon before and I didn't notice any damage. I have noticed damage at other hairdressers before using different brands. While there may well have been some damage, I didn't see or feel it.

[Leeloo]

I guess it largely depends on the hair. I tried the gentlest dye and my hair still was damaged

[tigerlily.]

I forgot to mention, this is when I used to colour my hair brown a few years ago, so products might have changed since then.

[jacqueline101]

I'd use a deposit only color.

[DarleneH]

Definitely leave it in. Dye/bleach actually works better on greasy hair. My hairdresser generally tells people not to wash their hair a couple of days before getting a dye/bleach job ;)

Do any of you know if this is true?

[FuzzyBlackWaves]

I've been dying my hair since I was 14 or so. Dying your whole head of hair twice a month like I did will kill it (although, no snapping or anything - just really brittle). I only do my roots now, once a month or so, on top of coconut oil that's had a chance to sink in. Maybe you could do the same?

[Silverbrumby]

On a more serious note a mother at my son's school came in with a huge swollen face and scabs on her scalp from an allergic reaction to a dye job at the salon. The reaction to it put her in the emergency room. She had been sensitive before but this was a reminder to me to remind others to get that patch test 24 hours before if you are in any way sensitive to chemicals.

[Silverbrumby]

Oh, I buy my dye from wholefoods. It all organic and chemical free. I'm not a fan of red and use the chestnut color. It's a nice way of blending my silver hair in. I love the color compared to my natural brown

[VixenWolfMare]

holy carp, is your husband still alive?

If it where me he would be dead. Yes it will kill your hair. Yes it is full of chemicals and smells like amona. tell your hubby to shove it.

[HylianGirl]

I would be so angry if my signifant other talked to me like that....

Anyway, yes it damages, unless you use semi permanent dies (the ones that don't use developer). But really, don't dye your hair because someone else told you to, only do it if you want to.

[palaeoqueen]

Depends what you mean by sensitivity: there is irritant contact dermatitis and allergic contact dermatitis, some will be more prone to one some to the other and some to both. And of course other skin complaints may be worsened by not caused by specific pHs or ingredients (eg. atopic eczema and sulphate surfactants). The vast majority of permanent 'chemical' dyes are alkaline and contain peroxide and sulphate surfactants, these are all damaging and irritant to the skin barrier. Some contain ingredients like PPD that can be allergens; it's possible to avoid most of the likely allergens by picking your product carefully, not so easy to avoid the likely irritants. 'Natural' dyes are not usually irritating but they can be allergens so not the best idea for someone who already has a few food or topical allergies.

Great post, thanks. And yes I was being a bit lazy and not really specifying different types of sensitivity :lol:

[Firefox7275]

Do any of you know if this is true?

AFAIK that is for the sebum to protect the scalp from the harsh chemicals, nothing to do with helping the dye take better. It also means a standard scalp won't have been exposed to the harsh surfactants in regular shampoo, these thin dehydrate and damage the skin barrier which is not really what you need before sticking potential allergens and potent irritants on.

[Komao]

I'd use a deposit only color.

Hi Jacqueline101, can you direct me to more information on deposit only color or tell me about your experience with it?
I wonder what brand you would suggest? I never knew of this until I read reply. Thanks:)

[Firefox7275]

Just found this article entitled 'Hair structure, damage and interaction with dyes' in my bookmarks, thought someone here might find it useful
http://www.clinicalservicesjournal.com/Print.aspx?Story=4313

[stephy190]

Hi :) It won't be as damaging if you use a semi permanent dye as it won't have as many harsh chemicals and shouldn't damage your hair :)

[Komao]

Thanks Firefox7275. I have read some of the article and added it to my reading list. Hopefully I'll learn quite a bit from this:o

[Deekers]

I saw this thread and was going to reply to the poster, til I realized that it is from 2011 lol. I'll go ahead with my comment though on dying grays - I like my silver highlights and don't plan on dying my hair. I think silver, gray and white hair is beautiful =). I just hope that as I get more, I can find a way to keep them looking nice and healthy and shiny.