Fresh, glossy new colour always puts a swing in our step. But as sure as the passing of time, our hair grows, the roots return, and those pesky grey hairs appear.
Key points summary:
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How to cover grey hair at home effectively
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How often you should dye your hair to cover grey
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Tips for choosing the right shade and tone
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Salon methods for grey coverage you can replicate at home
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What grey blending is and how to do it
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Best ammonia-free options for covering grey
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How to hide grey hair without colouring
When the timing is right, a trip to the salon is just what the trichologist ordered (Who's better equipped than the pros to return our hair to its previous red, brown, black, or blonde state, after all). However, moments arise when an at-home colour refresh is necessary to act quick in covering grey and we're here to talk about those.
Maybe you're after a quick root touch-up to stretch your colour between salon appointments, or perhaps you've decided a carefully matched colour kit offers the grey coverage and at-home convenience you're looking for.
From application tips to the best way to cover grey hair, the ingredients to look out for and more. Here's everything you need to know about blending away your greys at home. Keywords to note: how to cover grey hair, how to cover grey hair at home, and how often should I dye my hair to cover grey.
Is it better to go lighter or darker to cover grey hair?
The first step is to find your shade match. To get the best result when covering grey, Josh recommends sticking to a shade close to your natural root colour between the greys. "Make sure to never stray more than two shades away from this. If you’re looking to go drastically lighter or darker than your natural colour I recommend a salon visit for professional advice. You'll also need to consider the regular upkeep required to stay on top of the grey roots coming through." Another trick to help discover your perfect shade? "Match the colour swatch on the box to your roots, not your ends."
How do salons cover grey hair?
Salons match the colour to what suits you best. This allows you to colour your hair at home like a professional and get the best hair colour to cover grey.
With your colour match in the bag, you can think about customising the tones for a flattering finish that's unique to you. First, it helps to understand if you have a warm or cool skin tone, says Josh. "People are much more aware than they realise if warm or cool tones suit them," says Josh. "Think about if you’d wear a fuchsia lipstick (cool) or a more coral lipstick (warm), or you wear blue (cool) or red (warm). There's a natural knowing."
With this knowledge you can customise your hair colour with warm or cool tones—adding warm golden tones for blondes or warm chestnut tones to brunette hair, or cool smokey tones for brown hair or ashy blonde tones for those who can't bear brassiness.
What is grey blending?
"Look at the roots of your hair across the temples, underneath your hair. This is where you will see the pattern of greying," says Josh. This is important because it will show you the areas you need to apply the permanent colour to first, and leave for the longest. You don’t need to apply permanent colour to your ends—they already have plenty of colour. Josh recommends only combing colour through to your ends for the last 5–10 minutes of the 30-minute process time. This prevents ends looking too dark and heavy.
How often should I dye my hair to cover grey hair? This depends on how quickly your hair grows, but is often between 4–8 weeks.
If you’re only just starting to grey, it may not be time to begin permanently colouring your hair. There are other options for you, such as semi-permanent treatment glosses or root concealers.
Choose the best hair dye to cover grey (UK)
Ammonia is great at helping colour penetrate the hair, so it's no surprise we find it in many brands of permanent hair colour. The problem is, ammonia works by altering your hair's pH levels to break open the hair cuticle. Yes, this allows the colour to flood in, but hair is left damaged, dry and lacking moisture as a result. For colour that's as healthy as it is vibrant, choose a colour kit that skips harsh chemicals and opts for hydration.
What's the best way to cover grey hair?
Without the nasties, your at-home hair colour will pack a punch of nourishment. If you're used to ammonia-based products, you may need to revisit how the colour is applied for best results. Without an alkaline agent, the colour needs a bit more encouragement.
For Josh Wood Permanent Colour, we recommend packing the product onto your roots, leaving for 20 minutes, then pulling the product through the lengths for a further 10 minutes if you want to refresh the rest.
How to dye your hair at home: Start with a patch test
Even if you’ve used at-home hair colour before and had no reaction, it's important to always perform an Allergy Alert Test.
How to carry out your allergy test:
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Mix a coin-sized amount of the colour formula (A) and activator (B), plus Shade Shot if using.
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Apply a small amount behind your ear.
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Leave for 48 hours.
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If any signs of reaction appear, wash off immediately.
How to hide grey hair without colouring it
Sometimes permanent colour isn’t what we’re after. When you just need a temporary touch-up, root concealers are your best friend.
"If your hair is tinted brown and you have grey hair coming through, you’ll need quite a lot of root concealer, so layer up," Josh advises. "Start with clean, washed, conditioned hair, paint blending brush onto wet hair, and then dry it in with your hairdryer. You can then top it up with either an airbrush or root marker. For the best temporary grey coverage, it's all about density."
