Phyl Clarke on the perils of colouring your hair at home
I thought I'd gotten away with it. But as soon as I sat down at the hairdressers and started explaining that I just needed my roots done, Tina came out with the damning remark: "and you've put a colour in yourself". Feeling like a traitor, I buckled and confessed.
It was just a rinse, to tide me over as I was heading off for a couple of days and my hair was looking a bit faded. I'd used the product before, but was not so pleasantly surprised at the finished result. I checked the box, yes, it was shade number 765. But why, oh why, did I leave it on for longer than the 30 minutes specified? I was a bit too sure of myself, a bit too - 'I've done this hundreds of times' - and my hair came out a bit too dark. Mind you, not as dark as the character Ann on RTÉ's Fair City, whose jet-black mop never fails to distract me when she is on screen, to the extent that I sometimes miss the storyline.
Colouring your hair at home can be a minefield of disasters. It's all very well for Penelope Cruz and Andie McDowell to make it look like a cakewalk, but they have a battery of professionals behind the scenes to ensure a great result. The rest of us are left facing rows of products, each purporting to be the right choice for our crowning glory.
Choose a shade close to your own. If you are a brunette who wants to be a blonde, seek professional help and go to a salon. Such a drastic change is not for the amateur to attempt. However, the reverse is not true. Dita Von Teese, that ultra-stylish burlesque star and Marilyn Manson's other half, is a natural blonde who has always dyed her own hair black.
Secondly, begin with a level one product. The number relates to the strength of dye, and level one rinses usually last for six to eight washes. You will have plenty of choice of products at larger pharmacies, and don't forget to check out the health food shops, which often stock natural dyes.
You cannot lighten your hair with a level one product, so choose a shade to enhance what you already have. If, for instance, you have some natural copper tones, you could choose a colour in the red or auburn spectrum. This level is also perfect for covering the first scattering of greys. You can get a highlight effect by choosing a shade lighter than your main colour, and this will give a subtle finish which also breaks up the "solid" look.
Don't be lulled into a false sense of security by the seemingly lightweight strength of this level of dye. My disaster happened when I was using this very strength, and although I immediately washed my hair using washing-up liquid to strip the colour out, Tina could spot it a mile off, four weeks later.
Be careful about going much darker than your natural shade, unless you're on the right side of 30. As we age, dark hair is too severe, and a will look hard against your skintone and eyebrows.
Remember to save the package that the product came in. It will provide you with important information on ingredients, and a hotline you can call if anything goes wrong. It will also remind you of the colour name and number for the next time. Consider tinting your brows, too, but get this done professionally, because you're worth it.