Salons and barbershops have been shut down in Canada for weeks now due to the coronavirus pandemic, and for those of you who rely on routine colouring at the salon, your hair may have taken on its own life by now.
Dyeing hair at home may be intimidating to some, but beauty expert Janine Holmes recently broke down a step-by-step system for Global News’ The Morning Show.
“It’s important to have a realistic expectation of what box dye can do for you,” she said.
Holmes added that people are often expecting their hair to look exactly like the cover models on the box.
This, however, is not the reality. Hair dye also looks different on different shades and textures of hair.
She says if you’re out shopping for a box hair dye, look at the back and pay attention to the colour palettes.
“You don’t want to do any drastic changes,” she said. “Stay one to two shades either lighter or darker than your root colour.”
She said if your root colour is not on the box, the hair dye is not right for you.
When it comes to the actual process, make sure you read the instructions on the box carefully. Holmes says you also need to prep your hair.
“Wash it one to two days before you dye it,” she said. “You need your natural oils to come out because it’s going to protect your hair from the dye.”
She also recommends rubbing Vaseline around your hairline and around the neck to prevent staining.
Besides dyeing hair, Canadians are also concerned about what to do when it comes to cutting it.
If you need to cut your hair, keep things simple to reduce the likelihood of error. Now is not the time to attempt a Vidal Sassoon bob.
Raphael Azran, owner of Toronto-based salon Colour Lab, previously told Global News if you have long hair, for example, don’t do more than trimming dead ends.
“Get a roommate or get a friend and just take off a little bit at a time,” Azran said.
Another tip, according to Toronto-based L’Oréal Paris Canada hair artist Brennen Demelo, is cutting your hair dry instead of wet.
“When hair is wet, you risk cutting off too much or changing the balance or shape,” he said.
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And for people with short hair, use clippers.
Adrian Carew, owner of Hair91, previously told Global News you should avoid going too short.
“Do it gradually and just give it a light trim… where there’s not such a distinctive difference.”
To learn how to dye your hair at home, watch the full video above.
— with files from Global News’ Laura Hensley
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