Vibrant or Bozo?: Toning tips for the color challenged

[My last post talked about how my husband and I went to Walmart, and I let him pick my next "red" dye to try. (They were out of my favorite color.) He picked Herbal Essences Paint the Town Red #44, which is a VERY vibrant deep red. ]

No makeup. Yay!

Since I've been dying my own hair (and other people's) for years, I figured, whatever the outcome, I could fix it.  I used the dye over my own slightly faded medium to light auburn, it came out a lot more red than I was willing to contend with. It was a beautiful shade, but I didn't like what it looked like with my eyebrows. I LOVED what it looked like with my eyes and skin. I kept wavering between liking it and feeling like bozo. (Believe me...The picture doesn't do it justice! It was a VERY red, red!) Needless to say, we made a quick stop at Fred's today, and I picked up a color to tone it down.

Quick fact: If you need to tone a color down, try a shade lighter than you would normally pick. It often turns out darker than you would think! 

They were having a sale, so I picked up two boxes of dye for $5. I got a medium brown and a dark mahogany brown (just in case). Medium brown layered over a darker red, will usually result in a darker auburn that isn't quite as Ronald McDonald.

I love this brand, and I usually differ back to it after trying other brands. It is the cheapest, and it always works for me. My hair usually feels like silk afterwards. BUT (There's always a but.) the gloves that come with this brand are terrible. I borrowed some of my husband's powder-free latex gloves! :)

In addition to switching gloves, I always section my hair off before I dye my hair. If you don't, you run the risk of missing patches. Yuck!

That's three sections secured with hair ties then clipped out of the way.

After I took care of those steps, I mixed the dye according to the manufacturers instructions, and I only left it on for about 15 minutes. I didn't want to get rid of the red. I just wanted to tone it down a bit. After my time was up, I rinsed throughly and conditioned using a Herbal Essences after color conditioner. I saved my packed of Colorsilk conditioner for later. It is a good conditioner, but the packets are messy!

Here is my finished color:

Yet again, the lighting doesn't really do it justice. It is a very deep auburn. The brown balanced it out just enough, and when the light hits it, the red is amazing. 

Should you decide to do your own color, don't panic. Unless you are trying to go from black to blonde or something crazy, you can probably achieve what you want at home. Just do a little research on the brand you like and the color wheel, and you should be good. If you have an "Uh Oh!" moment like I did, just think logically about what color could tone it down. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to post a comment!