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What’s Wrong With Making DIY Color Conditioner?

Why couldn’t you just make your own dye-conditioner cocktail instead of buying oVertone? Well, you could, but you could also bleach your own hair – and there’s a reason most people don’t.

Let’s get real, before we had oVertone we made our own DIY color conditioner too, but the breakage and patchiness are just a couple of reasons why we stopped. Here are a few more of them:

DIY color conditioners don’t actually condition: it’s science.

Most commonly, fantasy hair has been bleached and needs extra love and hydration than healthy, strong strands. That’s why it’s even more important than usual to apply a conditioner that works. However, mixing semi-permanent dye into white conditioner creates a bunch of issues that prevent your conditioner from working correctly. The drying acids and alcohols present in semi-permanent dye base mess with the balance of oils and emollients in your white conditioner and can (1) screw with the pH of the mixture and (2) prevent those same oils and emollients from doing their job, which is hydrating your hair.

By mixing a 50/50 cocktail of dye + conditioner you have, at best, a conditioner that now barely hydrates your pre-bleached hair, which is in serious need of whatever hydration you can throw its way. At worst, you have a wonky pH balance and some really drying ingredients which are making your hair frizzier and more straw-like every time you shower.

It’s basically like bleaching your hair and then deciding to stop using conditioner altogether. Some people have such strong, straight hair that their strands can deal with this kind of torture, but most people find that their hair gets drier, patchier, and frizzier over time, which also means it’s harder to style, and more fragile the next time you want to switch colors.

For Vibrant and Extreme users, DIY will never be as bright

If you use the Vibrant or Extreme conditioners, you’re packing a colorful punch! Our conditioners contain between 3x and 15x the pigment that you would be adding with a mix of semi-permanent dye and regular conditioner.

For Pastel users, DIY will never be the same every time

No more guessing with amounts and mixing just the right amount of dye in to your conditioner to make sure your purple stays more lavender than aubergine. The oVertone conditioners are consistent every single time.

DIY color conditioner won’t take evenly

There are two main problems with a mix of dye and conditioner. Since they aren’t formulated specifically to mix together, they don’t always soak in to your hair evenly when you apply them. Anyone who has tried this at home will tell you that if you don’t mix things JUST right (and sometimes even if you do), you end up with a splotchy result.

This has to do with the way conditioner closes up the cuticle of your hair, leaving you with a chance that some sections of hair will take the color much better than others. The oVertone conditioners, by comparison, are specifically designed to give you a foolproof application of color every time.

 

Filed Under: hair care

12 comments on “What’s Wrong With Making DIY Color Conditioner?”

  • Bike Pretty says:

    I love this! I was saying the same thing to someone who was all “why don’t you just mix your own?!” Besides, I’m a fancy lady and I deserve expert hair care

  • oVertone says:

    Yes, you do! Thanks for the love!

  • Pam G says:

    So I can mix with conditioner until it is the color I want, then apply it?

  • Alee says:

    Hey there Pam!

    You can totally dilute oVertone with your favorite plain white conditioner to bring the brightness of the color down and to customize your color! oVertone was designed to mix well with other conditioners. If you have any more questions, or would like help choosing the right color for you, drop a line to our Color Consultants at https://overtone.co/pages/contact-the-unicorns and they will totally help you out!

  • Natalie says:

    Can you mix the conditioner and deep treatment together to get a custom color?

  • Alee says:

    Hey Natalie! You sure can!! ! We designed our products so clients can mix and match however they want – check out this blog post for tips on creating your perfect custom shade: http://blog.overtone.co/3-ways-to-customize-your-color

    For more help creating your perfect color combo, definitely send an email to our Color Consultants at hi@overtone.co or check out the live chat feature on our website at overtone.co!

  • Simone says:

    Will it work on black hair that turning gray?

  • Taylor says:

    Can you add dye to your overtone conditioner and mix to make a color you guys don’t carry?

  • Alee says:

    Hi Simone! Results on gray hair can vary a lot from person to person since the strand structure of those hair types can vary a lot and while some clients have hair that takes color really well, others find their grays can be somewhat resistant to absorbing pigment from – it’s just a matter of your hair’s texture. Check out this blog post on how gray hair and oVertone Color Conditioners interact: https://blog.overtone.co/overtone-on-gray-hair/

    Also, our Color Conditioners work on all kinds of hair, but because they don’t lift or lighten at all, the darker your starting shade, the less visible color you’re likely to see. Clients with black or very dark brown hair may only show a very subtle tint from our Color Conditioners and in some cases might not have visible results, so if you have dark hair, we definitely recommend trying an Extreme Deep Treatment sample size (grab one here: https://overtone.co/collections/samples/) and strand testing your hair to see how the color will work for you.

  • Alee says:

    Hi Taylor! oVertone Color Conditioners were designed to mix well with dyes, conditioners, and other shades of oVertone as well. That being said, For help creating your perfect color combo, definitely send an email to our Color Consultants at hi@overtone.co or check out the live chat feature on our website at overtone.co!

  • Rena says:

    Is there a list of shades that people have already tried out? Like Purple for Brown Hair Deep Treatment mixed with Extreme Red Daily Conditioner equals ________?

  • Alee says:

    Hi Rena! Definitely get with our Color Consultants at hi@overtone.co and they’ll let you know what color combinations they’ve got!

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