Tips for Coloring Red Hair

 

The red shades vary in depth from a light strawberry blond to rich auburns and striking burgundy. The tones are either warm or cool. Warm reds are those with gold or copper undertones and are best on people with warm skin tones and eyes. Cool reds have more blue in them, producing a burgundy tone. The cool tones are best on pink or red skin tones and with blue or gray eyes.

We suggest that you understand the limits of hair color to reduce problem results. Generally speaking a person can successfully lighten natural hair colors by no more than three levels with one application. As your natural color lightens, it will tend to pull more warmth (gold and copper undertones). If a cooler red is desired, we recommend you stay closer to your natural level to yield better results.

A typical problem for coloring hair red is for the root area to come up too "hot" or bright and/or the ends turn dull and brown. The brighter roots are generally the result of body heat which distorts the end result and/or a higher concentration of gray hair. The duller ends are the result of excess porosity in the hair. The hair shaft simply can not hold on to the red pigments. When you complete a personal profile for Color to Go, our experienced color technicians will use this information to isolate this potential problem and prescribe the optimal solutions for great looking hair, and long lasting color.

You can not use hair color formulas to lighten already colored hair. If you've recently colored your hair and want it lighter, using another hair color will not work. In fact, coloring already treated hair may drive the previous pigment further into your hair, making it difficult for even a professional to remove. Coloring hair will only lighten your natural color. You may leave the ends fade out naturally, or talk with one of our color technicians about COLORLIFT color remover.

To help you complete your personal profile for customized color, use the Hair Color 2 Go swatch kit to select your target color. We have included many brown shades as most of the red shades are pure and can be intermixed. The "N" series is neutral or natural, the "G" means gold, "R" cool red, "K" copper, "B" brown, and "V" violet. Some swatches are combinations of colors, some are pure. They may be intermixed with the brown shades. Examples would be: 6RB with a little more 6R, 7B mixed with 7K for some copper tones, 5RB with some 6V for a cooler blue/red tone.

Consider using custom blended shampoo and conditioners to prevent fading or changing hair color tones between your hair color treatments. An additional tip would be to avoid excess exposure to the sun and chlorine water. Finally we recommend cool water to wash your hair to further safeguard your new color.

For additional information, visit our FAQs section.