Gray hair color is often used to color white hair or to even out one’s hair color. There are many products available to help people achieve the style they desire. People often use products that will just cover the gray hairs. One such product uses a type of wand to coat each gray hair strand. This process may be a bit tedious and tends to take away shine so it’s important not to get the natural colored hairs surrounding the gray.
There are patching hair dye kits that come with small brushes so that you can color only the areas that need the extra coverage. It is a bit tricky to achieve even coloring throughout your hair with this product but it can be done with a few tries. The issue with these products is that they are typically more temporary than semi-permanent to permanent hair dyes so they tend to wash out quickly with only a few washings returning you to the gray hair color.
One of the issues with gray hair is that it takes longer to absorb chemicals like hair dye. Most hair coloring products take approximately 25 minutes to set in. A good solution is to apply the dye to the gray hair fifteen to twenty minutes before starting the rest of your hair. This will help give even results when you rinse your hair and will better remove your gray hair color. Softening your gray areas may also help you to achieve better results. This is done by using a twenty percent peroxide solution. Applying the solution to a comb and combing it through your gray areas while it’s dry and then rinsing after five or ten minutes will help soften the gray hair strands so that they will better accept your new coloring.
You may consider starting with temporary or semi-permanent dye’s to cover your gray hair color temporarily while you find the shade that’s best for you. Temporary colors can camouflage gray or brighten it by adding highlights to your hair but they tend to wash out with a few washings. Semi-permanent colors last a little longer and wash out after a few weeks. Both are good when you’re starting out and aren’t sure which shade suits you best as they will wash out fairly quickly.
The only product that is guaranteed to completely cover gray hair is permanent hair dye. The downfall is that this doesn’t wash out. The only way to get it out is to cut it off when your hair grows back. You could do repair treatments but this is a lengthy and expensive process and very damaging to your hair. Again, you’ll want to be sure you have selected the right shade to cover your gray hair color while still looking natural and stylish. The closer the shade is to your natural hair color, the better results you’ll achieve.
Darker colors typically cover gray hair the best but you’ll need to color your hair regularly in order to hide growing roots. Since gray hair color is harder to cover, it would be best to choose a shade just a little bit darker than your natural color, or slightly darker than the color you desire. Always remember to use shampoo and conditioner that is designed to clean color treated hair so as not to wash out the hair dye or further damage your hair.