Before the big hair plunge...

[VanillaT]

I tested out some hair dye that I am trying to get up the nerve to use on hair collected from my brush. Here is how it turned out:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v717/vanillatresses/DSCN4070.jpg

So, do you think that it looks like a plausible haircolor? I am going for a light auburn red, but not too bold. I would appreciate your opinions on if it looks okay (aka not an abby-normal haircolor)!

I actually have something Rita Hayworth-ish in mind. Le-sigh.

[BegintheBeguine]

Go for it. It looks nice. Have fun.

[KaitlynDawn]

Totally cute, and good idea to test it out. What kind of skin tone do you have?

Kaitlyn

[VanillaT]

Thanks for your opinions... it is helping me get my nerve up to do the deed! I've got fairly fair warm-toned (I guess yellowish) skin.

[ohairas]

I love it, that's the color I want mine but I have to use a stronger peroxide for it and I don't wanna!
You're very smart for testing first!

I say go for it! Red fades rather quickly, so even if it's too bright at first it will calm down.

Caution, it may turn out esp. bright at the roots.

If you've never been a redhead before, this *could* be pretty shocking for you. Most redheads I know, me included.. usally start off with a subtle red and then we can't get enough! Just do it.. if it's too red it is alot easier to calm down that to try and get it that red afterwards!

And hey, it matches your avatar, hehe!

Nikki

[Pink Dahlia]

Red was a fun color (when I had it) and that color is way gorgeous! I say go for it! And don't worry about it fading you can touch up every 4 - 6 weeks. :D

[pretty faythe]

I think the fading is the only thing I hate about when I am red. I like the brilliance of it, and even when using specialty red shampoos it tends to fade.
I love that shade of red. I vote go for it too.

[BitterEpiphany]

Red fades like you wouldn't BELIEVE - and then when it's faded horribly and it occurs to you that touching up your color that often is frying your hair, it turns out it's the only shade of hairdye that is almost impossible to remove. :P

With that having been said, however, the trend toward week two color glazes is making it easier to keep your red. Another tip I used to use was a bi-weekly highlight. It also helped to keep roots down. Mind, I was coloring at home so it doesn't cost me a fortune to do this but, once every other week I would highlight (no foils, just a weird tooth-brushy-lookin thing and some patience - with the same dye that i used to do it in the first place. If you only mix half of the coctail in a bowl, you can get two highlighting sessions out of it and your color will thank you for it. Mind, that was before glazes were an easily available, non-salon thing.

[hotrod_elf]

I have same skin tone maybe not so yellowish, but I just dyed mine a Garnier Fruitice color of light alburn and it turned out perfect. I dye my hair all the time, but I have fine oily hair and the dying part actually gives my hair some body and texture. My hair can handle a bleaching and perm in the same day without any problems. I say go for it or a shade browner.

[mysterygal]

I think the auburn would look beautiful! Nothing like going as a sassy redhead;)
btw: Sally beauty supply has products to help with hair color fading

[Kim_B]

From one (faux) redhead to the next, I say go for it ;)

I am actually going to go back to my original color of a darker shade of blond...I just love how my natural hair color looks in the summer time from being in the sun. Although, I had to look through gobs of photos just to remember what I looked like as a blonde! lol

Anyway, I say go for it...there is something about being a redhead that is just so fun and sassy...whomever said blonds have more fun must never have been red!

[Girl Friday]

What a great idea! That looks like a great color!

I love red hair, I could never do it myself. Mexi and red don't mix...:p

[kerry]

Red fades like you wouldn't BELIEVE - and then when it's faded horribly and it occurs to you that touching up your color that often is frying your hair, it turns out it's the only shade of hairdye that is almost impossible to remove. :P

With that having been said, however, the trend toward week two color glazes is making it easier to keep your red. Another tip I used to use was a bi-weekly highlight. It also helped to keep roots down. Mind, I was coloring at home so it doesn't cost me a fortune to do this but, once every other week I would highlight (no foils, just a weird tooth-brushy-lookin thing and some patience - with the same dye that i used to do it in the first place. If you only mix half of the coctail in a bowl, you can get two highlighting sessions out of it and your color will thank you for it. Mind, that was before glazes were an easily available, non-salon thing.

My hair is a similar shade to the colour Vanilla T is going for,which is about 1 shade lighter than my natural colour. However, it does fade really quickly and I dont want to keep topping the colour up with the permanent tint. Is a colour glaze ok to use over a permanent colour?

[ohairas]

Absolutely use a semi permanant color or 'glaze' over permanant. I suggest NEVER doing permanant over the ends after the first time if you can help it. It will just make your hair more porous and the red will fade quicker.

Most perm. hair color is mixed with 20 vol. peroxide. If you can remix with 10 or lower, it's best. You may also want to just try a shampoo or condition that has color in it. Make sure your shampoo is sulfate and chamomile free, this helps alot too.

Nikki

[Vanessa Anne]

I dye my hair red, and every few weeks I refresh the colour with directions or Manic panic dye. It washes out after a few weeks but the coulours are really bright! Sometimes I do it a cherry red and sometimes more of a hot red! It's not difficult to do, it's like conditioning your hair and only takes 1/2 hour. And it leaves your hair really soft. You can get it off of e bay but a lot of shops do it.

Cheers,
Vanessa

[GoldLeaf]

I didn't even think of manic panic! This coming from the girl who had a multi-colored mohawk for a year! I'm ashamed of myself lol

[mysterygal]

I didn't even think of manic panic! This coming from the girl who had a multi-colored mohawk for a year! I'm ashamed of myself lol
lol Now that's classic style!
I'm all for the hair dyes that wash out. This is one thing that I learned about this whole business of hair coloring; the color on the box isn't necessarily the color your going to get...best to know that it'll be going away soon if it is a disaster!

[Shearer]

Does anyone know of any good dark chocolate brown hair colours? I've got quite a bit of red in my hair as you can see in my avatar (edit: actually, maybe you can't now that I look at it ;)) and I'm getting tired of it. When summer rolls around, it's only going to get lighter and I want to stay a nice dark, rich colour.

[LizzieMaine]

I use Garnier #452, "Chocolate Cherry" -- it's a nice even dark brown with a reddish cast, and so far it hasn't given me a lot of problems with going coppery in the sun.

[mysterygal]

If there's a Sally Beauty Supply store out where you live, I highly recommend checking that place out. They have salon quality hair products, that work by far better than those you get at the store. Also, usually there's someone who works there who actually knows what they're talking about to help with what product would work best for your hair.
Good luck!:)

[Shearer]

Thanks, Lizzie! I'm going to make a list of colours to peruse :)

mysterygal, for some reason the Sally where I do most of my shopping isn't so great on hair colour selection so I wandered over to CVS this week to look at all the hair colours and got utterly overwhelmed lol I kept picking up boxes I thought were dark brown only to find them labeled black :eek: Now I'm thinking I'll be shopping for eyeglasses next lol

[mysterygal]

lol You're not the only one with that difficulty! I swear, you put soft brown and dark brown together, and there is no difference!
If your going with a store brand, clairol has been a product that I've had the best success with...it's the only one that has left my hair feeling soft after coloring.