How to stretch out visits for root touch ups

[Anonymous]

I am mostly gray in my 30s and want to keep coloring for the foreseeable future. My hair grows so fast and by three weeks It looks terrible. Starting at two weeks I use spray on root cover up (then go to salon at three or at most 4 weeks) but it only works for the part and sometimes comes off on my hands.

Has anyone had success alternating at home color with salon touch ups? If so what did you use and was your stylist ok with it? I don’t want to end up striped. It’s not so much the money though it is expensive but the time of going to the salon.

[Anonymous]

How often would you be willing to go to salon?

[Anonymous]

Instead of all over color, do a mix of highlights and lowlights to break up the regrowth pattern. Or switch to semi/demi-permanent color.

[Anonymous]

I have the same problem, and gave up on salon visits. I color at home using a temporary color that fades gradually and doesn’t leave a line. I still probably color about every three weeks, but it’s cheap, fast, and easy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have the same problem, and gave up on salon visits. I color at home using a temporary color that fades gradually and doesn’t leave a line. I still probably color about every three weeks, but it’s cheap, fast, and easy.

What color line?

[Anonymous]

How dark is your hair OP? I grayed early too. I was a medium brown but gradually lightened my color or a medium/dark blond so that they new growth isn’t so stark a difference. I also get highlights which helps too. I get the color done every 7 weeks, and I get the highlights touched up about every 3rd visit.

[Anonymous]

I tried going grey a year or so ago, but even though I’m only about 30% grey I just felt too old, so went back to color. However I have a spot on my crown that is very grey and it shows up pretty quickly as soon as my hair grows out a little bit - 3-4 weeks after coloring. Salon coloring is not only too expensive for me to go that often, even if I had the money I wouldn’t want to spend the hours there that often.

I now use Clairol Natural Instincts semi-permanent at home. It fades very gradually and on re-coloring I focus on the roots where the grey is most pronounced. The grey doesn’t take the color quite as well, but basically that ends up giving me a highlighted look. I get more compliments on my hair color from a box at the drugstore that costs me $9 and 30-45?minutes of time than I ever did when I spent hours and hundreds at a salon.

[Anonymous]

This is op. My hair is dark brown (largely why the roots are so obvious.) I did try natural instincts once when my schedule made it impossible for me to get to the salon but it really didn’t cover the gray well. It was better than nothing but I definitely couldn’t do that all the time.

Does salon color work well over semi-permanent color like natural instincts? If it does I guess I could use natural instincts at week 3 and go back to the salon at week 5.

[Anonymous]

I use Clairol Root Touch Up. My colorist at the salon wasn’t thrilled (she said grays and box dye can take color differently) but it’s worked so far. My only problem is getting to the gray roots in the back of my head. But for roots around the face and top part, it allows me to drag out my color for a few more weeks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have the same problem, and gave up on salon visits. I color at home using a temporary color that fades gradually and doesn’t leave a line. I still probably color about every three weeks, but it’s cheap, fast, and easy.

What color line?

DP but I use a thing that looks like a crayon or lipstick that I got at Sally Beauty to cover roots starting sometime in week 2 and color in week 3 with Color Brilliance by Ion also from Sally. I am a brunette and use 5N Light Brown. I was told you use go a bit lighter. I put it on the greys at my temples and around my face first before applying elsewhere so that they get the most time. I have to leave it on 40-45 mins to get those stubborn greys, but half that time is spent applying it everywhere else. When you are first starting, I recommend using the cream color rather than the liquid color, which is runny and harder to apply until you're good at it. (The cream is harder to mix with the developer, but it just takes time.) In addition to the color and the developer (big bottle will last about a year), you need a mixing bowl and an application brush. I also use a sectioning comb even though one end of the brush can be used for that. After I got the process down, I move pretty fast and didn't want to be waving the brush to use it to section. Also need plastic gloves. Doing my own color is well under $10, probably significantly under that depending on sales (Sally has sales on the color all the time so that's when I stock up and get a year's supply).

On the temporary root cover up to extend things a week, the sprays and powders don't work for me. I've used the crayon thing for the past few years (it lasts forever). Prior to that I used the products that look like mascara. Those worked well too but I went through them like crazy because they don't have much product in them and dry out fast.

Another option I considered to bring the cost of salon color every 3 weeks down is the Madison Reed membership. But I'd rather just do it myself when I find time, instead of having to deal with scheduling, going and sitting there.

I would not mix home and salon color (home at 3 weeks, salon at 5 as you suggested) without talking with my stylist first. I suspect you could have some bad and unexpected color reactions if you did that.

[Anonymous]

Do a mix (high/low lights etc) vs one all over color

Root touch up works, stylists will tell you it doesnt because it takes their business but for day to day it's fine

[Anonymous]

Going a shade lighter and/or doing some highlights to break up the color and add some more lightness should help the gray not look so stark against the dark brown. That’s what I do. I still touch up roots every 6 weeks but could probably stretch a week or two past that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Going a shade lighter and/or doing some highlights to break up the color and add some more lightness should help the gray not look so stark against the dark brown. That’s what I do. I still touch up roots every 6 weeks but could probably stretch a week or two past that.

Thanks. I do actually get highlights. I think the problem is the rate of hair growth (my stylist mentions it every visit) so even by three weeks I’ve got a very wide stripe of gray at the part. Maybe going lighter overall or switching to high quality at home color are my best bets.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

[Anonymous]

I order the root touch up spray on Amazon--it looks great--at least on Zoom!

[Anonymous]

I have tried it all! Rita Hazan spray, the powder, etc. The best I have found for the quick fix is the Bumble and Bumble stick. It is kind of the consistency of lipstick? It is in a tube and you dab it on to cover the gray. Much more control than spray.