How To Dye Your Hair Red
Whether you are looking to add some red highlights to your hair or are looking to achieve a fiery mane, red hair can be fairly easy to achieve. If you have light coloured hair, lighter than the red that you are hoping to sport, then the process will be much faster, easier & less damaging than if your hair is darker than the red shade. Don't fret if you have dark hair, though - it is still possible for you to get your hair to a fantastically bright crimson! Your first step in getting red hair is to pick the shade that you would like - this will vary from person to person, since you may be looking for anything between a darker, plummier red to something more vibrant & evocative of fire trucks & post-boxes. If you buy a shade that you're not sure will show up over your hair colour then ensure that you do a strand test to test the colour out. A strand test is implicit in any case to ensure that you are not allergic to the dye that you have selected.
If you find, or can guess, that the red dye that you have chosen is not going to show up over your hair colour then you will have to take steps to lighten your hair. This is permanent & cannot be reversed, but will allow for you to dye your hair any colour that you choose. To lighten your hair you can either bleach it, giving quick results but may result in damage to the hair, or you can bleach bathe it, which is more gentle but will take a little extra time. To bleach bathe, use one part shampoo to one part bleach & apply onto damp hair (remember to strand test) If your hair is not in great condition then you should either improve on it with conditioning treatments & leave it for a while to gain strength or use the bleach bathing method very carefully, ensuring that strand tests are done.
Once your hair is light enough, you can apply the red dye. You can find red dyes in semi-permanent for a quick fix or fun, or alternatively, use a permanent colour for long-lasting brightness! If your hair is light enough then you could even try using Kool-Aid for a super, short fix!
I created this poll to see what the peoples' favourite red dyes are. The top red dyes are Schwartzkopf XXL Live Colour & Special Effects in Cherry Bomb. Other notable red dyes include Manic Panic Rock N Roll Red, & L'Oreal Power Reds' Rich Auburn/True Red.
