The Essential Home Hair Color Kit

However to maintain the effect you can expect to touch up your roots at least once every 8 to 12 weeks, and there are some cheap and easily available items that can make that process so much less of chore.

Ladies and gentleman, may we present our essential home color tools…

1. Plastic wrap

Plastic wrap, or clingfilm, is the one essential we would never be without. Use it to wrap your hair once you have applied the dye and you can get on with life while the product does its job, without splattering a CSI worthy trail of fluid across walls and furniture.

Another great tip is to wrap your basin (and any other vulnerable surface) in film BEFORE you start mixing or applying the hair dye – once you are done you simply remove the film and with it any excess product that may have gone astray. Voila, a clean bathroom with no scrubbing!

2. Hairdressing Clips

You can pick these up from most drug stores – in fact the cheap plastic clips are perfect for dying hair as the plastic won’t be corroded by the chemicals in the product.

Hairdressing clips are invaluable for those of us with longer locks, use them to divide your hair into sections and you’ll find it so much easier to work the dye through every inch of your hair. Miss a spot and you’ll have to start the whole process again, or limit yourself to hair styles that cover the offending area!

Similarly, a basic plastic comb for working the dye right to the ends of your hair is another worthwhile investment – the product will be more effective without the hassle of getting dye out of your regular comb (just make sure you can tell the two apart).

Remember, if you clip your hair up during application you are less likely to drip product on yourself or your surfaces.

3. Gloves

Ok, we know that all the major brands of home hair dye kits include plastic gloves, and the quality of these have dramatically improved over the last few years, however the fact is gloves are useful at the application AND at the removal of the dye.

Most of us prefer to have the full use of our hands for the twenty minutes in-between, and is there anything worse than putting on cold, wet, sticky gloves once the application time is up?

The obvious solution, invest in a box of latex gloves.

They have a thousand useful household applications, from balloons to homemade chicken costumes, and until HairColorCode gets our “two pairs of glove per kit” campaign off the ground, having your own supply is the best way to keep your mitts nice and cosy.

4. Petroleum Jelly

Oh petroleum jelly, is there anything you can’t do? Apply around your face, on your ears and around the nape of your neck, and even if the dye lands on your skin, it won’t stain.

5. Old Towels/Rags

This may sound obvious, but if you are going to be coloring your hair on a regular basis it is well worth having a set of dedicated towels, rather than risking your best Egyptian cotton or throwing your fluffiest bath sheet to the lions.

If they get stained, no problem, if you spill a little product on the floor, use them to mop it up. No tears, no sweat.

6. Timer/alarm clock

I don’t need a timer, I’ve got one on my cellphone/designer watch, right? Sure, if you want to put expensive electrical items in the firing line of a product which is designed to stain! You can pick one of these up for a few dollars and in the long run it may save you a fortune.

So that’s it, everything you need to make dying your hair a walk in the park. If you’ve got any other great ideas to help take the effort out of home coloring, we’d love to hear from you on [email protected]. Til next time, happy hair!