Hey there kinky krew!

I’d been battling with wanting to dye my hair darker from the time I started my healthy hair journey in 2015 and guess what – I finally did it! My sandy brown colored hair had always been something I disliked so I decided to stop being scared and just do it.

When dying your hair it’s important to ask yourself this question – “What color do I want to dye my hair?” This question is crucial because the color determines the amount of damage you may inflict on your curls.

I knew I wanted to go darker so I wasn’t as worried as someone might be if they wanted to go lighter.

When you darken your hair, you’re actually adding color on top of your natural hair color – this process doesn’t alter the integrity of your actual hair. However, when lightening your hair you are stripping out color, removing proteins which completely changes the make up of your hair making it much more susceptible to breakage.

What I used:

I used the Coloring System by Shea Moisture in the Color “Soft Black”. I know SM may be canceled to some of you guys, but I was standing on the hair color aisle at Target (where I NEVER go) and I went for a brand I knew. The box stressed having no ammonium and being safe for curls so I went for it.

What I did:

1. I first detangled and sectioned my hair to prep for the dying process.
2. I then applied a thick moisturizer to my hairline to create a bit of a barrier between the dye and my skin.
3. I took the box and mixed the color with the developer, then shook it in the applicator bottle they provided.
4. I applied it to my stretched hair that I’d detangled and sectioned.

I stretched, detangled and sectioned my hair so that I could move fairly quickly. This brought me back to my relaxed hair days (lol) I was racing against the clock because I did not want this stuff sitting in my hair like a deep conditioner. In and out has to be your mindset!

You also want to work on DIRTY HAIR. You never want to apply dye to opened pores so make sure your hair isn’t freshly washed or wet.

The entire process took me about 45 minutes – About 20 minutes of application time and I allowed the dye to sit in my hair for about 25 minutes. (I was nervous the entire time but I knew I wanted it to count!)

Overall, I’m VERY happy with this dye and my results. I’m not sure how this works, but the box said permanent so I’m hoping I don’t have to do this process again, but should I have to do it again sometime next year, I will definitely be using the Shea Moisture Coloring System!

Would you ever dye your natural hair?