Colour Dye Recommendations

Please post your colour dye make & variety and your experience with it so far!

Updated: 10th February 2014
(I'll be maintaining this long term and adding in more of everyone's advice to the first post - any corrections, please let us know. Thanks to everyone's help!)

Reds:

Special Effects - Nuclear Red

sXedevitchka: "only lasted one wash in cold water...[but]...most awesome, most bright color I've ever used"

Snowflake Love: "no problems faded real nice"

Punky Colors - Poppy Red

Alexis: "Rub[s] off on anything it touches...turn[s]...pink after 10 washes or so"

Punky Colors - Flame

CorpseQueen: "nice red/orange, fades more to orange...very long lasting...hard time getting out!"

L'Oreal Colour Rays - Red

Sonic Architect: "permanent, very vibrant and required no bleach at all"

L'Oreal Excellence HiColor - Red

Jenni Dunfee: "really pleased...regular permanent dye...it doesn't really fade"

L'Oreal - Red Brown

nicole: "fades quick"

L'Oreal Excellence HiColor - Magenta

Jenni Dunfee: "really pleased...regular permanent dye...doesn't really fade"

L'Oreal Colour Rays - Red

Snowflake Love: "LONGEST lasting red I ever had and its definitely bright"

Beyond the Zone - Candy Apple

CorpseQueen: "nice shade of red, fades fairly quickly to a lovely pink...lasts a month or two"

nicole: "works amazing"

Manic Panic - Vampire Red

OctyOck: "not as dark as it looks in the bottle...really intense eye popping red"

Colorsilk - Red Brown

nicole: "fades quick"

La Riche Directions - Pillarbox Red

Kobalos: "good colour match, but took longer to settle in...didn't fade much in 1st wash...is lasting forever! :)"

Pinks:

Punky Colors - Rose Red

Toxic: "rub[s] off on walls...only did it bad night after...after 2 or 3 washes it stopped"

Special Effects - Atomic Pink

Cassy: "lasted over nine months"
LenaBean: "stayed in...even after dyeing it brown and then bleaching back to blonde!"

Special Effects - Cherry Bomb

Alexandra Sloan: "awesome!...lasts for months...best for the first week...after a few washes it does get lighter, but still stays really vibrant"

Color Fiend - Pink

Sonic Architect: "took but I needed to touch up every few days"

Splat - Pink

Emily Beth: "vibrant...will last about 2 months & fades into cool peach BUT destroys my hair if I try to maintain boldness of pink"

Manic Panic - Candy Pink

Jenni Dunfee: "pretty decent...reapply after about 3 weeks...because it starts to look too orange"

Manic Panic - Hot Hot Pink

Pamparius the Sailor Man: "This is very pink and fades extremely slowly."

Beyond the Zone - Pink

nicole: "works amazing"

Fudgebox Paintbox - Pink Moon

Raspberry Razorblade: "it came out really bright and lasted ages!"

Schwarzkopf Live Color XXL - Raspberry Rebel

Mali DeLan - "It's extremely vibrant and it fades in sort of a pleasant sunset-looking pink."

Greens:

Adore - Forest Green

Emily Beth: "lasts a really long time AND doesnt fry your hair"

Punky Colors - Spring Green

CorpseQueen: "Amazing shade and it lasts a long time"
Protagonist: "Its the tops."
Kaarina Rotten Crotch: "is fucking amazing"

Alexis: "has stayed in my hair for months"

Punky Colors - Forest Green

CorpseQueen: "Super great...lasted a few months...leaving hair tinted light green"

Special Effects - Iguana Green

LenaBean: "absolutely the best color I have EVER had"
Sonic Architect: "needed touched up about every week or so"

Special Effects - Limelight

lil Lauren: "DON'T get tho bc it wont stay in that long bc its such a lite color"
Khaos: "if your hair holds color well...touch it up after a few weeks...well worth it"
Hangman XIII: "no money for bleach...looks good"

Electric Lizard - Forest Green

CorpseQueen: "didn't take AT ALL didnt even tint her hair"

Manic Panic - Electric Lizard

Sonic Architect: "did not take at all"

N'Rage - Green

ZachWilson: "outlasted manic panic and splat. Without redying form the first 2."

SplaT - Neon Green

ZachWilson: "lasted about 1 week without fading from blonde"

Directions - Spring Green

Lotte: "didn't take at all...looked completely washed out already"

Kobalos: "Left it in over night to take...washes out quite easily. Bright vibrant colour"

Fudge Paintbox - Green Envy

Raspberry Razorblade: "was pretty average and came out way more yellowy."

Blues:

Stargazer - Coral Blue

Kobalos: "Needs bleached hair...24hrs to dye in, with enough, makes alright colour...1/2 strength after few washes"

Directions - Alantic Blue

Antikia: "didn't last for very long"

Manic Panic - Shocking Blue

mike-o-psycho: "fades too fast about a week & it is almost greyish" (from swimming)

Manic Panic - After Midnight Blue

Sonic Architect: "stayed really well"
Jenni Dunfee: "did the best in my hair....would last me about 4-6 weeks before...needing touched up"
Alexis: "really dark navy almost blue....washes out in 2-3 weeks & slowly turned...green after that."

Color Field - Blue

Sonic Architect: "two weeks or so and still looking decent"

N'Rage Mix and Go - Blue

Jenni Dunfee: "looked horrible and spotty and grey...Made me leary of bleach and dye in one"

Turquoise:

Manic Panic - Turquoise

Jenni Dunfee: "probably my favorite...faded pretty fast [daily wash]"

Alexis: "did not turn out at all on my natural dirty blonde hair."

Punk Colors - Turquoise

CorpseQueen: "AMAZING COLOR & long lasting, fades to nice light blue after few months"

Purple:

RAW - Purple

Sonic Architect: "washed out in a day"

Manic Panic - Purple

Jenni Dunfee: "only lasted about a week...but it turned such an ugly color"

Manic Panic - Ultra Violet

Alexis: "nice and darkish for a few days, but eventually turned my hair grey"
LenaBean: "turned my hair navy blue for three weeks. It was icky!"

Schwarzkopf Live Color XXL - Cyber Purple (permanent)

Lotte: "darker purple...more subtle and not so 'eccentric' and extremely vibrant colour"

Schwarzkopf Live Color XXL - Mystic Violet (permanent)

"more on the pink side...more subtle"

Punky Colors - Plum

Alexis: "its dark and last forever. It also smells really good."

Punky Colors - Violet

Snowflake Love: "so far lasting really nice. The ends of my hair are fading to a bleach white/purple look"

Ion Brights - Purple

braids: "color can vary depending on how much you use"

Yellow:

Punky Color - Bright Yellow:

Alexis: "Lasted quite a while on...bleached hair....re-dyed...before ever needing to touch it up"

Colorsilk - Blonde

nicole: "always comes out copper or orange/yellow"

Orange:

L'Oreal Excellence HiColor - Copper

Jenni Dunfee: "really pleased...regular permanent dye...faded a little during the summer/swimming"

Punky Colors - Flame

CorpseQueen: "nice red/orange, fades more to orange...very long lasting...hard time getting out!"

Special Effects Napalm Orange

Steve: "when first dyed its a borderline red but fades to the definition of orange. Think crayon colors."

Special Effects High Octane Orange

Nahtch: "more red than orange...Its now been about a month, now its much more orange"

White:

Manic Panic Virgin Snow

Alexis: "[On]...super dark brown- black hair...40 vol bleach...is supppper light and as close to white as"

Black:

Nice & Easy - Natural Black

Jennifer Rose: "decent permanent, stays colorfast & doesn't fade to ugly gray/green shades"

Manic Panic - Raven

Alexis: "washed out in a week"

General Brand Advice:

http://www.mohawksrock.com/forum/topics/what-hair-dyes-work-best-for-u

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jenni D. on June 24, 2010 at 8:12pm

I've used predominately use manic panic, mainly because I usually do my hair spur of the moment and I can go buy it at sally's beauty :D

I've used their turquoise which is probably my favorite even though it's kind of a bitch to get right and maintain. It faded pretty fast, but that's when I washed my hair every day, so it was probably my fault. I used one of the MP reds (can't remember which it looked horrid with my complexion and I gave it to a friend) it had really good color payoff, but it never did stop running with rain or sweat. I did martial arts at the time and the back collar of my gei was all stained, lol. My sensei called me rainbow brite, I loved it :P I used mp purple at it only lasted about a week, but I was at the beach, so... yeah. But it turned such an ugly color I was too afraid to try it again.

MP's after midnight blue is my favorite! That color did the best in my hair and I could put in some turquoise streaks and it would look so pretty! It would last me about 4-6 weeks before looking nasty and needing touched up.

I used N'Rage mix and go in blue once, and it was the most god awful thing I've even done to my hair, including getting a perm in 7th grade! It looked horrible and spotty and grey (but not the pretty silvery grey that's popular now). Made me leary of bleach and dye in one go type of colors.

For a nice vivid red I can recommend L'Oreal Excellence HiColor; I've used all three shades magenta, copper, and red and have been really pleased with each result. Plus it's a regular permanent dye, so as long as you use color shampoo it doesn't really fade (the copper faded a little during the summer being in the sun and swimming so much).

I've also used Ion Color Brilliance hair dye and it turns out really pretty and is gentle on your hair if you end up having to dye back to the normal color spectrum.

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Permalink Reply by Jenni D. on June 24, 2010 at 8:16pm

Oops I forgot I have MP cotton candy pink in right now, it's pretty decent. I had to reapply after about 3 weeks because it was starting to look too orange. Since I'm 27 I feel it's imperative to keep my color well maintained, so I don't look like I'm trying to be a kid.

I also love Quick Blue bleach :)

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Permalink Reply by Kobalos on June 24, 2010 at 8:41pm

Thank you for the great details there! Very useful!

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Permalink Reply by ZachWilson on June 24, 2010 at 8:23pm

N'rage green outlasted manic panic and splat. Without redying form the first 2.

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Permalink Reply by Kobalos on June 24, 2010 at 8:42pm

Thanks! How long has it been in, for your photo there?

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Permalink Reply by ZachWilson on June 24, 2010 at 10:02pm

That was SplaT and that lasted about 1 week without fading from blonde. Then i did the n'rage green....which is listed here...

Attachments:

my teal.jpg, 15 KB

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Permalink Reply by Kobalos on June 25, 2010 at 11:59am

Cheers for the pic! What colour name was the SplaT?

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Permalink Reply by ZachWilson on June 25, 2010 at 7:24pm

ummm....SplaT neon green. I dont think it has a SplaT wierd anem yet.

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Permalink Reply by Kobalos on June 26, 2010 at 10:00am

Cool cool. Updated the main post to include it.

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Permalink Reply by Alexis on June 27, 2010 at 9:35pm

Woah. This is a crazy great list.

I'll see if I can't add more...

You already got me for red.. but it did turn to a pink after 10 washes or so.
My profile photo if of the red.

Punky Color Bright Yellow lasted quite a while on my bleached hair. I re-dyed it a different color before needing to ever touch it up.

Mixed the poppy red and the bright yellow and made this.

and it faded to this.

then this.

Manic Panic Midnight Blue gives a really dark navy almost blue but washes out in 2-3 weeks for me and slowly turned my hair green after that. Weeks after the obvious blue/green color was gone people could still see it in the sunlight as green.

Thats the sorta blue turning green stage. ^^^

Manic Panic Ultra Violet is not a recommendation of mine. It looks nice and darkish for a few days, but eventually turned my hair grey. D:

I DO recommend Punky Color Plum, its dark and last forever. It also smells really good.

(sorry for the giant photos)