Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

Right now I have natural hair. I'd like to change it to a richer shade of brown, but I can't decide if I should commit to going to the salon, or do it at home. I'd like to save money by doing it at home, but I'm worried it might be hard to touch up my own roots at home.

Thoughts and opinions?

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

I am a hair color pro after years of messing up. i will never go to a salon again...too pricey and the color may still mess up. follow these following steps and your hair should turn out fine.

1. what color is your hair? if it is already any shade of brown, light or dark, do not try to dye it blond before stripping the color first. it will turn orange. going darker is much easier, just avoid any color that have the words "golden" or "ash" in the title. those will either turn your hair gray, green or orange.

2. if you want a darker brown, try a chestnut or a medium brown shade. i use garnier, which is pretty cheap at only 7 bucks a box. it smells good, it works really well and the color will last for about two months. i have not messed my hair up yet with that brand.

3. if you ever do want to go lighter, make sure you use color stripper or a bleach kit first. this will make your hair really blond, and will prime it for the color you want. it's kinda like painting. after you strip your hair, you can dye it any shade you want except red. red may turn your hair kinda greenish after you bleach it. (been there, done that.) if you want to go red, start with a brownish red tint and gradually go more red. red does fade really fast though, like within four weeks.

4. finally, if you don't want to go permanent, use a hemp based dye first. you can get them at any hair care store, and they will tint your hair without damaging it. there is no risk because it will fade within 6-12 washes. this way, you can test out shades to see what fits you best.

also, don't listen to folks who say dying your hair will damage it. i cannot begin to tell you how many times i've messed with my hair. just keep it trimmed regularly and use a good conditioner. your hair will not fall out, mine is still really shiny and healthy.

have fun and good luck! i love it when people ask me what salon they go to and i get to tell them i do it. i've done my friend's hair numerous time, it is really fun.

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

When it's done at the salon, you can have streaks and perfect shades.

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

If you go to a salon, the stylist will do a better job matching the color you want than if you do it yourself at home.

But, if you do it at home, you can save a ton of money.

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

Salon is always better!!!!!!!!!!

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

If you're going brown, the roots will not be seen like when going lighter. Hairdressers are trained to do this and get closer to your root than you doing it yourself.

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

I do mine qt home with non-permanent color. That way, as it fades, the roots aren't as apparent.

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

At home

Pros: MUCH cheaper

Cons: It can go TERRIBLY wrong and you'll probably have to get it fixed at a salon, which will cost you more

Salon

Pros: You can get the exact look and colour you want, rather than just one colour, they can put in a base with highlights and lowlights

Cons: depending on where you go it can get pretty expensive.

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

You can guarantee that a salon will do a excellent job, and that a professional will not screw-up in most cases.

But, doing it at home would be much affordable, and in some ways less of a hassle. (Driving to the salon, waiting)

But at your house, the person who does it may mess up. A stylist is trained and whatnot, so it'd be less worry about how it will turn out.

Hair coloring- at the salon, or at home? Pros and cons of both?

Doing it at home sure is convenient, but you risk a chance of it not turning out the way you like. Our hair reacts differently to the chemicals needed to color hair. The home kits come in all one strength. For instance, my sister can use the Loreal Blonde color, but it makes mine orange, even if I leave it on for the exact time as my hair strand test said to. And the hair strand test....cutting a section of hair off every time you want to do your roots.....they request you do this because they know the potency of the color and product may not be enough for your hair type. It's their very own way of covering their butts from being sued.

Now going to the salon can be a bit expensive, and you run the risk of the stylist not giving you exactly what you want, but the risks are MUCH lower than doing the home kits.

In your case, since you're not doing anything totally drastic (like changing from blonde to red, or dark brown to blonde) you should be fine with a home color kit going to a richer brown.

I really like the color kits that produce highlights. My friends and I have had consistently good results with those.

Good luck! I'm sure it will look great.