If you are bored with your hair and want to try something new, or simply want to have some fun, there’s nothing better than temporary hair color!
I looked at some great products for semi-permanent and temporary hair color that won’t damage your locks.
What is Temporary Hair Color?
Temporary hair color, also known as “wash out hair color”, is strong enough to show up vividly, yet wash out quickly.
The best thing about temporary hair color is that it contains less hard chemicals than permanent hair dye, and won’t stain your hair long term. Temporary hair dyes wash out in about 2-3 washes.
Semi-permanent hair dyes are designed to last a few more washes than temporary color, however they also don’t stick permanently to your locks. Best of all these temporary and semi-permanent color kits come in amazing vivid and pastel options, so you can try any color of the rainbow! Semi-permanent hair dyes will wash out in 4-8 washes.
But not all temporary hair color is created equal, and some brands perform much better than others. Check out the 5 best temporary hair color brands in my guide below!
Best Temporary Hair Color & Semi-Permanent Hair Color
Garnier gave us some brilliant and intense wash out shades with this line called Color Styler. This formula has pretty specific instructions, but if followed correctly will give you some great results.
It coats the strands, instead of tinting them permanently, so it may make you hair feel a bit stiffer than usual. You can style you hair as normal, and it washes out in 2-3 washes! It comes in some other cool shades like a shimmery bronze and pretty light pink as well.
L’Oreal is ready to give you festival hair goals with their impressive new brand Colorista. These kits includes gloves, a brush, and a guide of what to expect based on your starting hair color.
This vegan color lines has a great variety of options like aqua blue, soft pink, and vibrant purple to suit anyones hair goals.
We love that they made different formulas for those with blonde hair, and a separate Colorista line for brunettes. It seems common sense but if you are starting with brunette hair, you’ll need a strong dye and darker color to get results. Their line of Colorista for brown hair has great vivid options.
It is hard to find another hair color company in the world that has quite the same cult following as Manic Panic does. It was one of the first companies to make a vegan hair dye that you can use at home, and comes in any color you can think of!
They also make a formula that will lighten and “pastel” any color you’ve picked, called the “Pastelizer“.
Their formula is very unique because it moisturizes the hair very carefully as deposits the color, leaving your hair feeling great after wards.
Manic Panic lasts about 8 washes, but is so gentle that it is very easy to touch up. If you’ve got long hair consider a second package just in case, since these tubs are a tad small.
Arctic Fox has a line of great smelling and vegan hair colors in the most vivid and interesting shades. These kits even come with a bowl and brush that match your hair color choice perfectly!
We love that the color smells great since you’ve got to sit with it on your hair for a while, and the brand is vegan and cruelty free.
They have shades from Poison Red to Aqua Blue, and they wash out in 8-10 washes.
The Semi Permanent hair color line by Ion has not only vivid and pastel colors, but a lot of pretty traditional hair color shades too! They all are easy to apply, and fade out after 6-8 washes.
We love that this line of hair color is very affordable, and does’t contain any ammonia or peroxide that would damage hair. This brand does dye more quickly than others so watch your processing times for carefully!
7 Tips for Longer Lasting Temporary Hair Color and Semi Permanent Hair Color
Before you begin, prepare a clean workspace, and have all tools needed nearby. You don’t want to be scrambling to find a towels mid dye job.
FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS! It seems common sense but all formulas are made differently, so follow the directions on the box for ideal results.
Always rinse hair with cold water, this will keep color in longer. Warmer water tends to fade colors more quickly.
Try not to wash hair for a few days after you’ve dyed it, and avoid direct sunlight which speeds up fading.
Always do a color strand test first. If your hair is more porous it will absorb the color quickly, so you can adjust your time based on the results you want.
Remember at home coloring is an art and a science, so be patient, if your first try doesn’t produce the exact result you’d hoped. You can always use a fading shampoo to tone it down a notch, or a color safe shampoo + conditioner to maintain the color longer.
If you want the color to appear brighter, consider bleaching hair first to let the color show up more vividly.
