Does well-dyed hair always look better than natural? - YouLookFab Forum

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Does well-dyed hair always look better than natural?

Scarlet

Veteran

I read this book recently after seeing a blurb about it in the New York Times:
“How to Look Expensive: A Beauty Editor's Secrets to Getting Gorgeous without Breaking the Bank”.

http://www.amazon.com/How-Look.....=expensive

(I’d be interested in anyone else’s reaction if you have read it too.)

One of the sections in the book was about hair color, and the author insists, and I have seen this advice elsewhere as well, that well-dyed hair always look better (richer, glossier, etc.) than natural hair. The first time I read this advice I mentally rejected it, but I guess I am starting to see the point. There is certainly no TV, Hollywood star, or model sporting completely natural hair. Personally I have always worn my natural shade until the last year when I started adding some blonde highlights to neutralize the appearance of a sprinkling of white hairs. I always felt pretty happy with my natural shade until now that I have moved so far north that I am not sure I ever get a real, naturally bleaching ray of sunlight, and my natural color is not the richer more varied color it used to be, hence the highlights.

Anyway, I watched this video from garancedore (http://www.garancedore.fr/en/2.....equipment/) which features several women who work in fashion, and their hair struck me. If you skip ahead to 1:25 to see them seated together at the table, I would say all have colored hair, especially the one with blond, short hair, where I would say this is essential to her “look” (Elisa Nalin). For three of the others I would say they look like they dye their hair some variation of their natural color and look “expensive”: another blond (Marina Larroude), the very dark brunette (Caroline Issa), and the red head, (Taylor Tomasi). The other brunettes are more subtle, but I am guessing still dyed (see, Garance herself and the brunette Italian stylist lady, Viviana Volpicella).

If you don’t have patience for all this detailed ruminating, please feel free to just chime in on the original question--does well-dyed hair always look better?

P.S.
As a side note Garance is wearing that equipment blouse that Annagybe really should buy in the pine color. Or anybody should buy it. Please someone buy it and take photos so I can admire it on you. Now is just not the time for me to be buying an expensive silk buttondown shirt.
(http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....laid-shirt)

General

60 replies

Latest reply was from Scarlet

Atlantia

Veteran

Dying hair will often add a glossy look, which we biologically read as pretty because it denotes health, etc. So on a very primal level, yes, well dyed hair looks better. A really good blowout can produce the same effect, because it smooths the cuticle layer, resulting again in glossier strands.
That being said, I do think it perpetuates a myth as far as a standard for beauty. Kind of like push up bras, you know? What do we all really look like? Isn't that okay, no matter what?
No real conclusion here on my part, just random thoughts. I don't think the caffeine has kicked in yet!

Oh, and for the record, I have a big streak of purple in my hair, so I don't think I really count as "well dyed."

Raisin

Veteran

I don't believe that necessarily. I never dye or bleach my hair and that is probably the main reason it is very healthy and glossy. I have naturally very straight hair, so that helps it to be shiny though. But personally I have always felt natural looks better. Dyed looks fake, well because it is. I think most people have a natural hair color that suits their skin tone, and if you don't dye or bleach it, then it takes a lot less upkeep. The repeated color changing over the years is what kills the hair. I think when natural hair is kept well, it looks MUCH better. It can be shiny and has it's own highlights and lowlights, and just looks more effortless to me than overly processed hair.

But I am very much into looking more natural than not. So I feel like natural hair, less makeup etc is a much better look than bleached hair, fake tan, tons of makeup. But that's just my opinion, I know not everyone agrees.

Parsley

Veteran

I think the answer is "It depends."
Some natural colors can look rather drab and mousy and can benefit from at least some judicious highlighting, IMO. Of course this is all really subjective.

I come from a family with mostly dark brunettes, and a few redheads, and I think that healthy natural dark glossy hair is hard to improve on with dye. The same with red hair. my sister's gorgeous coppery hair with its natural strawberry blond highlights looks better than anything that comes from a bottle, IMO.

Once the grays start really coming in it's a different story, and I think most people look better covering their gray when it's at that straggly gray stage.
However, once you have an entire head of silver or white hair I think it can be much prettier in its natural state than dyed.

Raisin

Veteran

Parsley, I forgot about greys. I do agree that's a different story and can benefit from some dying. Agree on the other points too. I love natural strawberry blond! I have always wanted that shade. I'm naturally very dark brown. I have been tempted but always come back to the fact that the best dye job in the world will not even get me half as good looking as the natural shade. And not to mention the upkeep! Lol, my dream shade!

cheryle (Dianthus)

(website)

Veteran

I would have been skeptical a year ago. I had highlights done in spring and the hairdresser added an all over color that was just slightly deeper than my natural brown. It was noticeably brighter, glossier and generally looked healthier. I believe coloring the same or a slightly deeper color can make the hair look healthier and shinier but lightening can have the opposite effect.

I also saw a show on beauty products a few years ago and the panelists unanimously picked hair color as the one product that had the most impact when trying to not look older. It was interesting.

Kristin L

Veteran

When I was dyeing my hair, I think it did look glossier. I wonder how much that also had to do with the conditioner I was using. When I would get the box, It had a small tube of thick, rich conditioner than really helped smooth everything out and added a lot of shine. I haven't been able to find that type of condition anywhere else.

Raisin

Veteran

I've seen at the drugstore you can buy a box of clear gloss too, if you just want the shiny factor. I think salons will do that also, but if the won works, I guess it would be a lot cheaper.

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

Hopefully someone more knowledgeable can chime in, but I think most demi permanent colors do have something that protects and adds shine? I color my hair due to greys, and my "fake" color is more flattering than my natural color. I don't agree that most people are born with "naturally flattering" hair color. And only a poor quality dye job looks fake.

Transcona Shannon

Veteran

As someone who stopped colouring her hair about 3 years ago after colouring it for 23 years, I completely disagree. I do think that colouring can add gloss and sheen, which gives the illusion of healthier looking hair. But there are other products that a person can use to add that sheen without colouring. My hair is actually much healthier since I stopped colouring.

Mander

(website)

Veteran

Maybe my hair would look better in some way, but I just cannot be bothered with the maintenance. I can barely get myself to style it most days and get a haircut twice a year, let alone frequent color touch-ups!

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

Maintenance is the pain, for sure. I have dark natural hair (my current hair color is just a shade or two warmer than my natural color, and maybe a shade darker) and am getting lots of little greys, so after about 6 weeks I have to go in because the roots grow in with so much white! Before I had many greys it wasn't nearly so noticeable and I could get away with 8 weeks because my dye'd color was close to my roots. As I get more grey I think I am going to see if my colorist can give me a modicum of dye to do my roots at home, or I will go broke!

Gaylene

Veteran

"Always look better"--no. Sometimes, maybe, if the shade is carefully chosen and done well. But, I have to say that usually I'm not as impressed by the end result of dyed hair on my friends as they seem to be. They talk about how they think it makes them look more youthful, or makes their hair look healthier, or thicker, or glossier, or whatever, but, in most cases, it really just looks like dyed hair to me. Much like the "improvement" most of them feel after having "something done" to their faces. But, if it makes them feel better to hide those grey hairs or lines, then why not?

But, as someone who has never dyed her her hair, I have to say that my hair seems to be in much better condition at 60 than most of my friends'. I've never had problems with dryness, dullness, breakage, or any of the other problems that most of them seem to worry about. And my hair is quite fine and wavy, but still a shiny mix of grey and brown. Whenever I've mentioned dying my hair to any stylist, they almost always try to talk me out of it, even though it would be to their financial advantage to grab a bottle of dye. Since I don't mind the thought of grey hair, I guess I'll spend my money on a great cut and shoes.

ramya

Veteran

Ok I may have a strange opinion here.
On fair skinned I like any color they have on.So for me coloring or not is never the issue. But on Asians I some how feel that glossy black is the best color . Nothing beats it.

Mo

(website)

Veteran

I did the highlight thing off and on for about 10 years maybe, in my 30's. I did it both professionally and at home with the box. My stylist said, by the way, that I did a superb self job. As for the 'glossy' thing - I found the opposite. When I would go to wash my hair, I could no longer just run my fingers through from scalp to ends, they would just stick and kind of pull against the texture of the hair. This is honestly the main reason I just stopped doing it a few years back. That, and color (no matter how expensive) starts to fade out and get almost orangey at the ends after several years of sun exposure, etc. With 2+ feet of hair, you can bet my ends had plenty of time to fade.
Funny thing - when I was still sporadically highlighting it (very subtly because I am just low maintenance in general) I had a male customer at the bar comment on how he appreciated my 'natural' hair and that too many women these days dye thiers! So there are certainly varying opinions on it.

Astrid

Veteran

For me that's not true. Of course I've never had the money to pay a really good stylist, so that would maybe have made a difference. In the past I hated my 'mousy' hair color and wanted to look different, no matter what. I think the problem was that I'm so low contrast (like most so called 'mousy' colors) and I always felt invisible and wanted to have a higher contrast. But I only destroyed my hair in the search for a better hair color. All colors I tried looked off somehow and my naturally dry wavy/curly hair absolutely hated the chemicals. At one point I couldn't stand it anymore and just cut my hair to a pixie so that only my natural hair color at the roots was left. I let them grow out without ever adding any chemicals (I also stopped blow-drying) and my hair looks better than ever. And I also think that I look better with my natural hair color than I ever did with dyed hair. I also discovered what a difference wearing flattering colors makes - when I wear clothes that suit my coloring my natural hair doesn't look mousy at all.

ETA Just wanted to add I don't plan to ever dye my hair again. I'm not sure how fast they will go grey (it differs in the family), but I don't plan to dye them again. Only get a different cut maybe.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

What Parsley said.

Anonymous

Not always, everyone is different. But in the interest of full disclosure, I have naturally mousy dark blonde/ light brown which I have not seen in 20+ years. I am 42. I have died it myself (a horrible brassy orange once by mistake lol) but now budget my funds to have it cut, colored and highlighted. I spend more on my hair than my clothes (I think) but it's natural colour does nothing for me. It makes me feel good and as my clothes are so classic, I think it is part of my signature.

My mum, 66 always professionally colours hers too and all my friends think she looks great.

Queen Mum

Veteran

I'm curious how they recommend keeping your hair well-dyed without breaking the bank?

Having said that, my personal approach is to mix up a small amount of semi-permanent hair color with my conditioner 3 times a week and use it as a wash in the shower. I do find that it adds a nice silky coating to my hair and is actually quite easy to maintain...and much less expensive than going the salon route. BUT, I wouldn't claim to look "expensive" so I am curious as to what the author is advocating.

Laurinda

Veteran

I dye my hair at home every six weeks or so, the color costs around $7, so figure around a dollar a week.

"Because I'm Worth It."
*grin*

Diana

Veteran

Hmm, I'm not sure what my opinion on this is. I do have my hair dyed, and have done so for 10+ years. Mostly it's because I prefer a reddish tone (rather than my natural black) because it goes better with the colors I prefer and is a little warmer and less stark looking. That said, I admit that I do not do very well with the maintenance. I go for months longer than I should between refreshing my color. I have it done in the salon and it is time consuming and expensive (I have a ton of hair, and it does not hold color super well so it doesn't really work to do it at home). Interestingly no matter what shade of red (whether brownish or purplish) I choose it always fades to cognac. I have black roots though. =P (Although right now ombre hair is kind of trendy, so....)

Yes, right after I get it dyed it looks very good and very rich, sort of shinier and with more dimension than my natural (or faded out) hair color. Partly I think this is because the hair dye process involves essentially having super rich conditioner (with the color mixed in) on your head for like an hour.

Even though it's dyed, my hair is VERY healthy and shiny. I attribute this to never blow drying or heat styling it more than the dyeing. I have also never bleached it (even though it would probably take color better if it was bleached first), since I hear that bleaching regularly is very damaging.

ETA: Actually my preference for dyed hair on me might have to do with the theme of today's blog post, since I think I prefer almost-black rather than all-black even when it comes to my hair. I do wear a lot of black and dark colors, so I like my hair to be a little bit lighter.

Anonymous

I was never happy with semi-permanent color. My white hairs are very resistant to color, and I didn't like the "all one color" look that you get from a bottle of Clairol. I recently started having my hairstylist put highlights in my hair. I love the way it looks, and it doesn't end up costing me any more $ than coloring my hair at home every 4-6 weeks. I paid $40 for the first highlights I had in June. I paid $30 for more highlights in Sept. and will pay another $30 to have it done again in Dec. Every 3 months of highlights works out to $10 per month. Not bad, and while not all my white hairs get covered, they do blend in with the rest of my hair and are therefore not nearly so noticeable. I've received compliments on both my hairstyle and hair color, so I think I'm on the right track until I reach the stage where I have too many white hairs to count. Right now, there are only a few in the front, so it's not that bad.

Having said all that, I must add that my hair looks a lot healthier when I keep it regularly trimmed and when I don't blow dry it. It looks shinier when I let it dry naturally.

Jules

Veteran

No.
However, I do find that a cheap box of semi-permanent (no roots!) hair colour is the absolute cheapest and easiest boost to my appearance. It probably does what makeup could do, but I'm too lazy to apply makeup every day, so I actually find dye is a lower-maintenance option.
But when I was pregnant/breastfeeding (and not getting my period -basically a different hormonal state that affected a lot of things) my hair was quite different. It was straighter and shinier and thus appeared darker. During that time I did not feel the need to dye.

rae

(website)

Veteran

I think it's important to note that the title of the book is "How to Look EXPENSIVE" - not necessarily how to look beautiful. Expensive is a beauty standard all in itself - or at least it is around these parts.

Parsley

Veteran

Good point, Rae!

Jenava

(website)

Veteran

I agree about not blowdrying it. I'm able to do this with my hair but maybe it doesn't work for everyone. I used to blow dry my hair a lot. Since I've stopped it's much healthier (shinier, smoother, more body) looking. I think it also depends on your natural color on how best to cover/mask greys (and, not everyone is interested in this and of course that's fine!). I am greying prematurely (I'm 34) so I do prefer to cover them up!

Rae makes a good point r.e. looking "expensive" vs. looking beautiful..."expensive" means "coiffed" in my mind and would also include a regular mani/pedi and makeup. I like to look expensive! It's just so....expensive.

Aziraphale

Veteran

Short answer: NO.

I've had way more compliments on my hair colour in the past five years, now that I no longer colour it. People remember me as a blonde, and assume I've been dyeing it brown. They are often surprised to learn that it was the blonde that was fake -- but I used to pay a lot of money to have it skilfully highlighted. But apparently my natural warm brown suits me better. I think in general, nature knows best.

I'm sure there are exceptions, though. For example, if someone has enough gray that it shows, but not enough gray that their whole head looks gray, it can make their face look a bit lifeless. A good dye job can work wonders in that case.

CK

I tend to be skeptical of statements that contain the words "always" or "never." I'm with Parsley too - it depends!

shiny

Veteran

I wouldn't keep dying my hair if I didn't believe this-- for my own hair. In my case, it's less about the color. I never dye it anymore than one, two shades lighter or darker than the natural color. It grows out gracefully and even if it's been 2, 3 or 4 inches since my last cut, you can barely tell the difference at the roots. The DH often asks me, "then why do you bother at all?" And the answer is that it is more about what the dye does to the texture of my hair.

Yes it leaves it shinier (particularly because my colorist always concludes with a clear gloss), but that does not last through to the next salon visit. The big benefit is that it changes the actual texture of the strands itself, making them thicker -- and a lot more manageable. I know it's time for another color when my hair starts to lay all flat and lifeless - at the roots, where it's not dyed.

I have no idea what'll happen when I go gray, so I can't say. The gray that is coming in does seem to be a lot different texture -- coarser, drier and curlier. I'll have to wait and see.

Hair changes about every 7-10 years. My hair is not the same at 47 as it was at 17, or at 27, or even at 37. I did not need color at 17 or at 27. My DD-age-18 certainly does not need it; her hair is gorgeous. DD-age-20 doesn't need it either, but she likes experimenting so what can I say. (She's given up on her experiments and claims she will Never. Dye. It. Again.)

We are, of course, talking about "good" dye jobs. I've had some (professional) dye jobs that left my hair a wreck. And yes, the longer your hair is, the easier it is to ruin it; that's what happened to me recently. I was trying to grow it out, but repeated dye jobs left the ends a mess -- that did not look healthy or better.

annagybe

(website)

Veteran

Wow, there is a LOT of judgement in this thread.
My natural hair color is mousy/ashy/dish water dark blonde. I'm now greying a bit. I started highlighting my hair to push it more towards blonde and to hide the greys. I was blonde as a child and I think I look better a bit blonder. In fact I'm not entirely happy with my most recent color because it looks a bit ashier than I'd like. Yes I spend good money every eight weeks getting it highlighted, but it makes me happier with my looks. And isn't that why we're all here, to be happier with our looks?

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