Vibrant & Kind: The Ultimate Guide to Cruelty-Free Hair Dyes
Are you ready to give your locks a vibrant makeover without compromising your values or frying your strands? Whether you’re looking to cover up your roots, experiment with a bold new pastel shade, or simply refresh your natural hue, traditional hair dyes often come with a heavy hidden cost—harsh chemicals, scalp irritation, and questionable animal testing practices.
Enter the plant-powered revolution: natural and vegan hair dyes. Not only are these cruelty-free formulas kinder to the planet and your skin, but pack a botanical punch that leaves hair healthier. Say goodbye to chemical overload and hello to head-turning color that loves your hair back!
Most hair dyes sold in supermarkets and chemists are full of toxic chemicals and sold in boxes with oodles of plastic packaging. Hair salons now need to offer 24-hour patch tests, due to previous cases of being sued.
If hair is damaged, it’s better to just chop your locks off, and start again. Or just embrace your natural hair colour, many are now happy at going grey. Natural hair dyes are made with plant-based ingredients that biodegrade. Common ones are:
- Amla is from the fruit of a tree, and is used to darken hair.
- Walnut shells are sometimes used for brown shades, not for nut allergies.
- Cassia is from a tree bark, and used usually as ‘colourless’ henna in dyes, to improve hair condition.
Henna is a vibrant red dye, made from the leaves of the henna plant. Be caution with blonde or grey hair (it can go a muddled orange). It takes hours to work and is messy, so use in the bathroom and take a good book!
Henna should not be used if you have G6PD deficiency.
Indigo is a blue-black dye, often used alongside henna.
Some ‘black henna’ is made with a chemical compound containing PPD (banned for cosmetic use in some countries abroad).
Of course, you don’t have to dye your hair at all. Many people shave their hair off, go grey naturally or are just happy with the colour they have. But millions of people do dye their hair, so let’s look at better alternatives.
It’s Pure Natural Hair Dyes
It’s Pure Hair Dye is organic and takes a few hours to work, but comes with full instructions.
Other good brands of natural hair dye
These are all abroad, so you’ll either have to find UK wholesalers, or order from abroad (most will send them, but you may have to pay hefty customs charges).
- Desert Shadow (US) is a natural hair dye in various shades that takes 1 to 3 hours to work (sold alongside bamboo brushes).
- Earth Dye (US) contains herbs to speed up hair growth (check medications before use). It also sells dyes for eyebrows and beards (also find natural beard dye at Grizzly Mountain).
- Hairprint (US) was invented by an environmental chemist who turned his own grey hair back to original colour. Using a few plant-based botanicals, in 90 minutes you can restore melanin (it won’t work for red hair).
- Also in a version for stubborn grey hair (use a clarifying shampoo a few days beforehand, to remove traces of silicone).
Natural Hair Coloring is a beautiful book by an American beautician, who covers all the natural dyes, how to use them and how to transition from chemical to natural dyes. Includes before and after images.
Can you lighten your hair naturally?
Natural hair dyes can’t lighten hair. So visit a salon that uses organic hair dyes (salons can buy wheat straw mixing bowls and biodegradable capes.
Or naturally lighten hair a few shades using lemon or chamomile (won’t be dramatic, but it may lift a shade or two).
