Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Tori Crowther
Every two months or so, my mum, Fiona, asks when I'm coming home next (we're in a coronavirus support bubble, FYI). The reason? Besides getting to hang out, of course, she wants to schedule herself into my packed (honestly, never packed) schedule so I can dye her hair. Ever since British colourist Josh Wood released his own at-home hair colour brand back in February 2018, I've been her dedicated colourist. Even though I don't personally dye my hair at home (although, I do love using many other Josh Wood Colour products), Fiona and I have both become total devotees to Wood's box dye. And I'm convinced that after seeing Fiona's results, it will throw all of your box dye judgements out of the window. "The other types of dye brands I've tried never seemed to be a good colour match and often had an overpowering smell," Fiona said. "After using Josh Wood Colour the first time, I was quite blown away by the ease of use and the great coverage," which is why we haven't looked back since.
When it comes to dyeing her hair, Fiona wants something that covers her grey roots coming through without dramatically changing the overall colour of her hair. She also wants a product that won't cause too much irritation to the psoriasis on the back of her neck and scalp, which isn't a problem since Josh Wood Colour doesn't use PPD (paraphenylenediamine) or ammonia in its formula. And finally, she doesn't want the hair dye to cost a huge amount of money. It almost sounds too good to be true that this one ticks all of those boxes, but it isn't. "I can't count the number of compliments I've had over the past two or so years since using the dye, and I always recommend it to my friends," Fiona added, and she's not kidding — someone give this women an affiliate link already.
As England heads into a second lockdown and sadly our hairdressers have to put away their brushes and scissors again, we may be relying on box dyes a little more than usual — especially if you're someone who regularly touches up your root regrowth or grey hairs (we still recommend leaving the dramatic hair changes to the professionals, though). Whilst we'll continue supporting our beloved colourists the best we can during this lockdown period, in the meantime, at-home box dye is your next best option — and Josh Wood Colour is a sure winner.
Let's dive into the details and dyeing process further.
This autumn, Fiona decided to go for the Josh Wood Permanent Colour 6.0 + Chestnut Shade Shot (£19) because she wanted to keep the final result a very close shade to her natural colour. Because of this, we added the shade shot to ensure her greys were totally covered and to give the warm chestnut colour depth and dimension to avoid the colour looking flat.
When we approach winter, Fiona will likely go for one shade darker, which will give slightly better grey coverage but will also change the overall colour of her hair. Both shades are great and it really depends on what Fiona fancies at the time of dyeing; having a few options mixes things up but still keeps the results natural and fail-proof.
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Applying the Dye to Fiona's Roots
After following the directions on mixing each element of the dye kit (which contains the colour, colour activator, gloves, protective barrier cream, stain removing wipe, and deep conditioning treatment), we start on the areas where the grey hairs are most visible. These are mostly along the parting and through the fringe. By dyeing these sections first, it means they'll get the most development time, making sure there is 100-percent grey coverage.
I like to squeeze the dye directly from the bottle and use a hair-colouring brush to evenly work the formula into the hair. If you're dyeing your hair without an extra pair of hands, this is where things can start to get a little messy. For this, Fiona said, "The stain remover wipe is a saviour!" Make sure you clean up any mess around your hair line and don't forget to check any stains on your ears.
After letting the roots process for 20-30 minutes, we move onto the mid-lengths and ends. Before applying the rest of the bottle of dye to her hair, we add a splash of water to the bottle because Fiona said, "That's what the hairdressers do". As any professional at-home box dye colourist does, I listen to my client and follow Fiona's wishes. It seems to work out well for us.
We apply the remaining dye formula to the mid-lengths and ends, saturating the hair and leaving the colour to develop for a further 10 minutes before Fiona washes it off. She uses the Josh Wood Frizzy Brunette Shampoo (£10) and Josh Wood Everything Mask (£19) (a personal favourite product of mine), which comes in a single-use sachet with the hair dye.
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Fiona's Before and After Using the Josh Wood Colour
Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Tori Crowther
Ta-da! The final result is total grey coverage with an incredibly natural brunette shade. As you can see, the grey sections are 100-percent covered and some parts come out a faintest bit lighter than the mid-lengths and ends. We actually both love how this looks, especially through Fiona's fringe, as it gives a bit more dimension to her hair and avoids that flat feeling. However, if you want a solid all-over colour, I recommend going a shade darker.
Whilst it's definitely easier having someone help you dye your hair at home (especially for the back sections), it's absolutely possible to do on yourself and, in desperate times, Fiona has done it before. "The consistency of the dye — not too runny, which might causing spillages and not too thick, which might make it hard to spread — means that it's very easy to use. Most of it goes on my hair rather than the walls or floor, which is always a bonus because I'm not the most careful DIY colourist. I have remnants of other hair dyes all over my bathroom walls!" said Fiona.
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Fiona's Results Using the Josh Wood Colour
Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Tori Crowther
A closer look at the end result in the sunshine shows off the Josh Wood Shade Shot beautifully. It adds warmth, a slight copper-y tone, and overall it makes the colour feel richer. And if I do say so myself, it almost looks like Fiona is fresh out of the salon — OK, not quite, but close enough!
