Gray Coverage

We get a lot of questions about our Color + Clenditioners on gray hair:

“Can I use it on my gray?” 

“I used it, but then saw that it isn't recommended, why?”

“I tried it and I saw no results, what gives?”

Our bottles say one thing, but the FAQs and online reviews say another. We can see how this can cause a little confusion and we are dedicating this blog to all our silver sistas (jk, gentleman too that just sounded catchier!) 🤗

Can I use Color + Clenditioners on my gray hair?

The loaded question! Quick answers: yes and no. We know, we know… you’ve probably already rolled your eyes after reading that, just hear us out. Yes, these fun colors can be used on gray hair, some have amazing luck and their new style turns out amazing!✨ Others don't have as much luck and see no result at all. Hence, why we say no we don’t recommend it! Our shades contain semi-permanent direct dye pigments, so they are not guaranteed to work on gray hair. Every person’s gray hair is different, some more resistant than others. So really, without seeing or chemically treating your hair previously, we really can’t predict what will happen. It all goes back to the cuticle of the hair on your head, and covering gray with semi-permanent hair color can give uneven or no results. The ingredients in our colors will never harm or damage your gray hair, it just simply comes down to one big question mark if they will make a huge difference! 

Hair Color & The Hair Cuticle

The hair cuticle is the outermost part of the hair and plays a big role when it comes to color. Permanent hair color is recommended for best results when your goal is to have complete gray coverage. When permanent hair color is applied, the cuticle opens and the permanent color penetrates inside, giving complete coverage. Demi-permanent hair colors use developer, but contain no ammonia like permanent shades. These do not penetrate your hair strands, but wrap around it because the cuticle isn’t opened as much as it would with a permanent color. Semi-permanent colors contain no ammonia, but also do not get mixed with hydrogen peroxide (or developer). Because of this, the cuticle stays closed, and the color just sits on top of it. This results in faster fading, and unfortunately little to no guaranteed coverage on gray hair. To have full, even coverage on gray hair, color must be completely penetrated within the cuticle due to the gray having no pigment and it being resistant! This may sound like a lot of smart talk, so let’s use a fun analogy. Think of a permanent hair color as a 24 hour lip stain. It tends to be inky or bold, and lasts a while- even after drinking and eating meals. Demi-permanent shades can be compared to lipstick, it lasts for a good chunk of time but fades after eating and drinking (just like when we do a lot of hair washing). Semi-permanent colors are like lip gloss. They are fun and oh so temporary as they fade out quicker, just like lipgloss doesn’t last long after one meal!  Be sure to thank your stylist next time for not only creating good hair, but for also being a freaking chemist! 😊

Krystal Color Complex

Our Krystal Color Complex is found in our Original Clenditioner, Purify Plus, and Purify Plus Lite. This neutralizes chlorine and harmful water impurities helping to keep your hair in tip top shape. Chlorine and hard water fades color extremely fast, so if you are lucky enough to have found a shade that works for you we recommend using these too! After you’ve reached your desired tone, wash with our OG Clenditioner to help maintain your new look! Spraying Purify Plus or Purify Plus Lite after you get out of the shower will be a game changer. This not only helps neutralize trace minerals and chlorine, but helps lock in hair color while restoring shine and vibrancy! ✨These products are also great to use even if you decide to rock your natural gray hair as it will keep it nice and bright while making it feel like new!

So now that we broke down our yes and no answer, what will you decide to do? If your gray hair is known to be super resistant we recommend rocking it, but if you want to give one of our shades a go WE ARE HERE FOR IT👏👏👏! Some find they have fantastic results and have a wild hair color to represent their youth… because you know age is just a number! Don’t forget attempting our Color + Clenditioners will in no way ruin your hair, worse case is you won’t see the coverage you were hoping for. YOLO 🙌! If it works, we would hope you would keep up with the kids these days and document it for instagram. Be sure to tag us in your pics @keracolorhair for a chance to be featured on our feed!

💖XOXO, 

Keracolor