How To Get Strawberry Blonde Hair At Home | DIY Guide Part 2

Hello, Redhead friends! I realized it was time to do an updated step-by-step post on how I do my hair color at home.  I have switched from boxed color to a Wella Color Charm formula.

If you are new to the blog, hi!  Welcome and glad to have you here.  I am referencing {this} post for L’oreal and {this} post for Wella.  If you are a part of the blog normally, also, hi!  You probably already know those posts.

The new formula involves measuring and mixing your own developer and color, whereas store boxed color has pre-measured amounts of color and developer that comes right in the bottle.  Because of this, the Wella formula can feel a little bit scarier the first time, but it will get easier each time!

YOUR BASE COLOR

One question that I keep getting is “My hair color is ‘fill-in-the-blank-here.’ Will I get the same results as you?”

So many factors go into how your color will turn out!  Your natural hair color and any dye you have on your hair will change the results a bit.  If you start out as a deep brunette, you will probably get different (more subtle) results than me.  My hair is 95% grey now so it’s very light.  Also, if you have any old color or highlights on your hair, you might get different results.  With highlights and blonde hair, take caution and start out with less of the red dye in the mix.

While I wish I could tell everyone that they’ll get the exact color they want the first try, it’s more realistic that you’ll probably have to tweak and personalize your formula once or twice before you really feel like the color is a perfect fit.

I am still even having to change my color formula some months, when I get really pale having the color too red can make it look very fake on me, so I end up using more of the blonde shade.

So just know when you start out that it might take one or two tries to get the color that looks totally perfect on you.  But this formula is really easy to tweak, so let’s get to it!

HIT PLAY

What You’ll Need

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• 8 G Light Golden Blonde
• 8 RG Titian Red Blonde
• 7 G Sunlit Blonde
• level 20 developer
• mixing bottle I like this one because it has the ounces listed on the side, just wish it were bigger!
• coloring brush
• coconut oil
• plastic gloves

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Step-By-Step Tutorial

Step 1 | Coconut Oil – add a quarter size amount of oil to the bottom inch of your hair.  This helps makes sure that your drier ends don’t pick up too much dye.

Step 2 | Gloves – put on plastic gloves (keep an extra set handy for later.)  I like to leave the coconut oil on my hands and put the gloves on so that my hands are soft after also.

Step 3 |  The Formula – I use Wella Color Charm gel colors.  I find that the gel covers greys better than the Color Charm liquid color.  My formula consists of:

• 1 full tube, 2 oz, of Light Golden Blonde 8G
• 3/4 a tube, 1.5 oz, (when I have a tan) or 1/2 a tube, 1 oz, (when I am more pale) of Titian Red Blonde
• 2 times the ounces of developer to ounces of color.  If I am using 3.5 ounces of color, I would add 7 ounces of developer.  I use level 20 developer.
• Because my hair is transitioning more to white than grey, I have been adding a very small amount, 4-5 pea size drops,  of 7G, Sunlit Blonde, to my formula so that my roots stay more red and don’t turn peachy pink.  
• If you don’t have any greys, you might not need to add 7G, it does make the color a bit darker for the first 3 washes which I don’t totally love, then it fades to a pretty strawberry blonde.

Step 4  | Mixing – In a large color mixing bottle, add your color, then the appropriate amount of developer.  With a gloved finger, cover the opening of the bottle and shake the ingredients together.  They start out looking like candy corn, but then blend nicely.

Step 5 | Begin Coloring- I like to start coloring around my face and hairline.  I take a hair color brush and spread the dye from the scalp up to the end of the regrowth.  If it’s your first time coloring, go from your scalp to the ends of your hair.

Step 6 | With the tip of the coloring bottle, I part my hair down the middle and apply color in lines, going back and forth between the left and right side of my head.  I use the brush to distribute each line of dye.  I find that using the brush instead of my fingers to blend the dye helps cover my grey hair better.

Step 7 | The Back – This part can get tricky.  With the tip of the coloring bottle, I divide the hair in thin horizontal layers and apply color.  I find it hard to get the brush back there to distribute the color, so I use my fingers to blend the color all around by massaging it at the back of my head.

Step 8 | Timing – Move quickly applying the color if you can!  I leave the color on my roots for 30 minutes, then apply the rest of the color to the ends of my hair for the last ten minutes (that’s when you’ll need that second pair of disposable gloves.)  

If you DON’T have any grey hair, you’ll probably only need 20 minutes on your roots and 10 minutes for the ends, for 30 minutes total processing time.  But if you DO have grey hair, you’ll want to do 30 minutes roots and 10 minutes ends, for 40 minutes of total processing time.

Step 9 | Shower – In the shower,  rub the dye out of your hair from the roots to the ends.  Once the majority of the dye is out, lift the hair in horizontal layers and really make sure all the dye rinses out.  

Then, shampoo with a color safe shampoo once or twice until the water runs clear and then deep condition.  I use medium temperature water the whole time. 

Related Post | Best Shampoo for Color Treated Hair

Getting Started | Troubleshooting

I hate to say trouble shooting right after I finish saying how to get the color, but I also want this post to be as helpful as possible.  Which requires me being realistic that there might be a few things that come up.

1 | If your color comes out a bit too red, read {this} post.

2 | Tweaking your formula.  If you want your color to be more red, then add more of the Titian Red Blonde.  If you want it to me more of a blonde Strawberry Blonde shade, then add less of the Titian shade.

3 | Blonde hair + Highlighted hair.  Started with only 1/4 a tube or 1/2 a tube of the Titian mixed with a  full tube of Golden Blonde to make sure that your hair doesn’t turn pink.  Then, each time that you recolor your hair, add a bit more of the Titian shade to the mix.

Questions | Comments

Any questions, comments, tried this and love it?  I want to know!  I get a lot of similar questions, so if you are thinking it, it might be helpful to someone else to know the answer too!  Make sure to ask me below.  

I am not a hair stylist (and even if I was it’s tricky to trouble shoot without seeing the hair right in front of me) but I will do my absolute best to help out from my personal experience and what I’ve tried.

Strawberry Blonde Hair Extensions

I started my own line of clip in hair extensions.  They are amazing.  I know I am biased, but I made them the best.  I have two shades for strawberry blondes that are so pretty.  

You can check them out at www.girlgetglamorousHAIR.com and on instagram @girlgetglamorousHAIR or by clicking the button below.

READ MORE

• My Current Formula For Strawberry Blonde Hair
• Why I Created girlgetglamorousHAIR Clip-In Extensions
• Strawberry Blonde Hair For International Readers
• The Best Makeup Shades For Strawberry Blondes
• My Copper Hair Formula
• My Hair Came Out Too Red – What To Do
• How To Go From Dark Blonde to Strawberry Blonde
• The Best Shampoo for Color Treated and Damaged Hair

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