Beauty School answers common beauty questions with help from creative people who've become experts on the job. Sign up here to find us in your inbox once a month, and send any questions of your own to tmagazine@nytimes.com.  | | Courtesy of the brands |
"Don't do it" is the most common advice you tend to hear about coloring your own hair. But despite all the horror stories of breakage and brassy streaks, many people embrace the challenge; once you've mastered the process, it's hard to argue with the convenience and creative control. For advice, we talked to three self-taught experts: Soo Joo Park, a Los Angeles-based model known for regularly changing the color of her salon-bleached hair; Aliyah's Interlude, an Atlanta-born music artist and TikTok star who has tried a multitude of shades on her natural hair and wigs; and Josh Wood, a British colorist whose entry into the business was dying his own hair as a teenager. The key, they say, is to know your limits and allow yourself some grace for mistakes. Soo Joo Park, model and musician | | From left: Hairstory New Wash Original, $46, hairstory.com; Bleach London x Wolf Alice Blue Weekend Super Cool Colour, $12, bleachlondon.com; Bleach London Beer Mask, $14, bleachlondon.com. From left: courtesy of the brand (3); Stephane Mahe/Reuters |
- Despite what the instructions say, I apply dye to dry, not wet, hair. It's easier to see where you're putting the color. I use a toothbrush instead of the applicator brush because it's more precise, and apply the dye to little sections of hair, about ½ to ¾ inches thick. I start at the crown and work my way down from there.
- I always wear gloves. And I wipe off any dye that does get on my skin right away, with rubbing alcohol. Makeup wipes work too.
- I leave the dye on for 45 minutes — longer than the recommended half-hour. (It needs more time to soak into dry hair.) Then I put on fresh gloves and wash the dye out in the shower, with my head upside down so the color doesn't run over my body.
- Every two weeks, I just top up the color. I've used Manic Panic and Adore, and Bleach London has a great range of colors. I sometimes mix two shades for a more customized look. For an allover pastel tint, I add a little dye to my shampoo or conditioner and leave it on for 15 minutes.
- To keep my hair healthy and bright, I use a very gentle shampoo. I like Hairstory's, which hardly lathers, and I use Bleach London's Beer Mask every other week or so.
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Aliyah's Interlude, 21, music artist | | From left: Creative Image Adore 142 Pink Blush Semi-Permanent Hair Color, $11, target.com; SheaMoisture Manuka Honey & Mafura Oil Intensive Hydration Masque, $14, sheamoisture.com. From left: courtesy of the brand (2); Hope Glassel |
- I really like to experiment with hair color. I've gone red, blonde and pink and then back to black [my natural color]. I also started coloring wigs at 18. For me, it's a form of expression.
- I mostly dye blond wigs — I like the natural hair ones from Alipearl. I put boiled water in a bowl, add a bottle of semi-permanent hair dye, mix it together and dip my wig in there until the shade is right. It's called the watercolor method; it's quick and I find the color holds well.
- For my natural hair, I like Adore's semi-permanent colors; my favorite is Pink Blush 142. But it's very noticeable when my roots grow in. So rather than touching them up, I typically use a clarifying shampoo to remove the last of the color and then dye my whole head again.
- If you're going from blonde back to black, you really need to leave the dark dye on for a long time. Otherwise, when it starts to fade, your hair turns green. Also, to prevent damage, don't bleach your hair more than once every six months. When my hair was really dry, I used SheaMoisture religiously — the shampoos, conditioners and masks.
- Certain colors will just not match my skin tone — and it's very obvious. Like, yellow is obnoxiously bright. Still, nothing is off limits.
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Josh Wood, 57, hair colorist and salon owner | | From left: Josh Wood Colour Root Smudge, about $19, joshwoodcolour.com; Matador MC30 Rake Handle Comb (225 mm), about $14, coolblades.co.uk. From left: courtesy of Josh Wood Colour (2); courtesy of the brand |
- Be realistic about what you can do at home. Covering grays or roots or going darker is fairly easy. Highlights or balayage? Virtually impossible to do yourself.
- If you're covering grays with permanent dye, start applying at the front of the hairline. By the time you get to the back of your head, 15 minutes has gone by, so the grays will get more processing time at the front, where you need it. Some of my clients also conceal grays with mascara or talcum powder. I use my line's Root Smudge, which is like eye shadow but more compressed and wetter so it holds.
- Semi-permanent colors involve less risk since they wash out. Go a couple of shades darker or lighter than your natural base tone as a starting point. For an even application, use a wide-tooth comb; I like the ones from Matador.
- Saving color is all about hydration. To maintain your color, wash your hair every few days with just conditioner instead of shampoo. If your color starts to tarnish, you can mix in a little hair gloss — I use my brand's Icy Blonde — for some extra sparkle.
- Don't worry if you mess up. You can neutralize a green tinge by applying another color opposite it on the color wheel, for example a semi-permanent dye with chestnut or red in it. And you can always ask for help at a salon.
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T recommendsThese interviews have been edited and condensed. |
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